OP-ED
TOWER/MARCH 10, 2023
MATTHIAS JAYLEN XAVIER ROLSTON Opinion & Web Editors
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ernando and Priscila Mendoza run the deli and restaurant Los Ferchos right here in Dobbs Ferry, a business they bought around a year ago. Their slogan is “the best tacos in town,” but do they live up to that reputation? Tower decided to find out. Los Ferchos is located at 90 Main Street in Dobbs Ferry, and is named after Fernando’s nickname from his hometown, “Fercho.” They serve a wide variety of Latin dishes and products. From their specialty Mexican dishes to their daily Dominican lunch and dinner specials, everything that we’ve tried, (and we tried a lot) was to die for. For all you dessert lovers, they even make homemade favorites like passion fruit, mango, and blackberry ice cream. Another great part of Los Ferchos was their display of imported and hard-to-find Latin American snacks and drinks. The first thing we noticed was how fresh the food was. After every order was placed, we could watch the kitchen staff pulling out ingredients and cooking everything fresh on the spot for all of their customers. The bistec taco was a strong start to the meal. The taco was served on a smaller corn tortilla, typical for a Mexican-style taco, but was loaded up with small chopped up pieces of steak. The mix of bright-green cilantro and white onions, alongside their signature green chile salsa, tasted fresh and acidic. Those bright flavors paired perfectly with their saltier grilled steak. the only drawback was the tortilla: the tender grilled steak deserved a better vessel than the relatively boring
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corn tortilla it was placed Another candiupon. With a freshly made date for best item on tortilla, these tacos would the menu is easily the be unstoppable, but these torta al pastor, a Mexiwere still nothing short of can sandwich filled with delicious. We rate these pork The sandwich is a solid 9.5 — blown away! filling, it’s deeply layAnother great dish ered and complex in was the Costilla de Res both texture and flavor Guisada, one of Los Fer— there’s nothing more chos’s specialty Domina diner could ask for. ican dishes containing All tortas are built on stewed beef ribs plated delicious telera rolls alongside rice and beans. (comporable in size The portion size was very and flavor to a typical large and filling, which Portuguese roll), which earns them some points. are toasted beautifully The beef ribs were very to get a nice charred savory and the meat was so texture on the bread, juicy that it fell right off the Miraculously, the bread bone. There was also a nice remains light and soft flavorful balance between on the inside while still meat and fat. Because the supporting all the conribs were slow-cooked for tents of this massive so long, you were able to sandwich. Other topsuck on the bone and get pings include freshly all of those juicy flavors sliced avocado, which into your mouth. The rice adds a layer of creamand pinto beans were a iness and fattiness, perfect and filling balance Oaxaca cheese (which to contrast the salty and for anyone who hasn’t flavorful beans. For such had it, is a cheese simia big and flavorful plate of lar in flavor and texture Dominican food we gave to a fresh mozzarella, a rating of a great 8.5/10 though a bit stringier Our favorite dish on and softer) which melts the menu by far was their beautifully and adds chorizo burrito filled with some much-needed spicy pork sausage. The saltiness to the sandburrito came out of the wich, refried beans, and kitchen piping hot and some tomato and letit was calling our names. tuce which add crunch XAVIER ROLSTON/TOWER and tasted like a sliver of FERNANDO AND PRISCILA MENDOZA, the owners of Los Ferchos have been in business for and another dimension heaven. Inside was their the last year. They serve a vareity of foods for fair prices but also sell snacks, desserts, and many of freshness.The best spicy chorizo wrapped types of convenience products. Before settling their business in Dobbs Ferry, the Mendoza’s part of the sandwich, with their signature rice though, is the al pastor cooked up Mexican food for catering events. and beans that were to — a beautifully maridie for. All of that mixed nated boneless pork downsides to ordering this. On top might not want to share. For 11 dolwith their guacamole, shoulder that is slowcheese, and fresh greens made for a of that, the burrito was a monstrous lars, it’s certainly a steal, and it’s by far ly cooked on a spit and sliced thinly tremendous burrito. Everything was size. Two people could share that the best dish at Los Ferchos and the with pineapple. The meat, which is fresh, hot, and tasty. There are no burrito, though it’s so good that you best burrito in the river towns. 10/10 PILED onto the sandwich, is super
greasy and saucy, and insanely tender. It has a nice spicy and smoky flavor, which is balanced out by the sweetness of the pineapple and the acidity of the tomato. Every bite is nuanced in both texture and depth of flavor. It is hard to find anything negative to say about the torta at all. There is no amount of description that can explain how delicious this meal was, and with no doubt, this earns a 10/10. Our experience at Los Ferchos was nothing short of mesmerizing. While describing our experience with this food may be informative of one aspect of our experience, it cannot possibly encapsulate all the delights of dining there. The owners of Los Ferchos, and all the staff, are some of the most genuinely kind and joyful people. The ambiance is friendly, and the atmosphere of the place is cozy and welcoming, albeit a bit cramped for space. Los Ferchos’ staff go out of their way to make conversation with customers, greet everyone with a smile, and put that same love into the food they prepare, laughing and having fun while doing their jobs the whole time. Being around that positive energy, while also getting some of the best food Dobbs Ferry has to offer, is a no-brainer. In addition to the delicious food and excellent service, everything offered is very affordable. With tacos being only $4 each, and our filling portion of Costilla de Res Guisada coming in at only $11, customers are getting the most bang for their buck possible. It’s hard to find an offer cheaper than that — especially so in the Rivertown area. Los Ferchos’ slogan, “The Best Tacos In Town,” is undeniably true. But our verdict extends beyond that: Los Ferchos is a must-try, hidden gem — that may perhaps be the best restaurant in Dobbs Ferry altogether.
Ohio train wreck derails health in East Palestine ALEXA MURPHY News Editor
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or residents of East Palestine, the fall of COVID-19 had alleviated much of the anxiety associated with the small Ohio village’s response to public health emergencies; they lowered their guard as the rest of the world did. But hopes for healthful normalcy went up in smoke at about the same time 38 Norfolk Southern train cars did, on Feb. 3, having derailed and released toxic chemicals from five tankers into the village’s air and water. It is the responsibility of government to provide each of its constituents with those necessities essential to survival, in order to lay the framework for a functioning and free society. These necessities are food, water, shelter, and needless to say, air. In East Palestine, minimal federal regulation of rail, poor railroad working conditions, and delayed executive response has threatened access to every one of these rights. One of the toxic chemicals in question is vinyl chloride, of which officials opted to control the burn . When burned, vinyl chloride yields hydro-
chloric acid and phosgene, which have been used as gasses in chemical warfare. Other chemicals spilled and burned include butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate, ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, and isobutylene. There is little to no research regarding how these chemicals interact with each other, adding to the frightening uncertainty of current events in East Palestine. Despite the many vagaries of the chemical spill, there is one thing we know for sure: exposure to the chemicals being burned in East Palestine right now has extremely adverse effects on human health. Residents of the village are reporting nausea, headaches, irritation, and vomiting, among other symptoms. There are no answers. Fears of unsafe drinking water linger, as well as the long-term effects of exposure to contaminated air. At a Feb. 15 town hall, where hundreds of Ohio residents gathered to voice their concerns, company officials backed out of attendance at the last minute. People in the area are angry, and sick—despite the EPA telling them that their air and water is completely safe. Though the East Palestine derailment is unique in its widespread coverage and detrimental impact on the local environment, the issue of railroad mismanagement is not. In fact, as recently as March 4, another 28 Norfolk Southern cars derailed near Springfield, Ohio. Though there was apparently no hazardous material onboard, this fright-
ening turn of events reveals the extent to which American demands for rail reform have fallen upon deaf corporate ears, with the reason being a fundamental lack of accountability within the industry. “What you’ll find, though, is that whenever there’s an incident, you can almost be certain that someone wasn’t following the rules. So you have a lot of these federal regulations and laws, but the question is whether they’re fully followed or not. And then there’s always been a fairly contentious relation with the unions, who are an extremely powerful player politically. They’re also a very major player in all of this,” former president of Metro North and current transportation consultant, Howard Permut said in an exclusive interview with Tower. When Permut refers to unions, he speaks of the historically dominant role labor advocates have held in political decision making surrounding rail. Railroad unions are particularly actors today, as Biden signed a bill in Dec. 2022 which would prevent an economy-damaging railroad strike. Critics argue that prolonged labor mobilization will likely increase the inefficiency and unsafety of rail development. However, more often than not, unions mobilize as a result of their company’s sidestepping regulations which make accidents, like the two most recent Ohio derailments, more common. “The main issue is that there
aren’t enough safety regulations for freight companies from the federal government, like there are restrictions for passenger rail. In passenger rail, sensors are much more frequent, so they can detect issues and stop them more efficiently. Obviously on MetroNorth, they have sensors on every stop, or sometimes twice between stops, depending on how long it is. Freight companies often don’t have this, because they do not like spending money, but they love making money,” resident train enthusiast Theo Knauss ‘24 said. “It’s just a matter of implementing federal regulations, but it’s difficult to get policy written for this, because it’s all privately owned. So it’s just hell, essentially.” The tug-and-pull relationship between federal decision makers and railroad giants has posed a threat to American welfare since the 1890s, but we may be entering an entirely new era of uncertainty. Now, unions and labor advocates are mobilizing to curb the spread of a new approach to railroad economics, which is quietly swiping the jobs of tens of thousands of workers. “About ten years ago, this guy by the name of Hunter Harrison came up with something called ‘precision railroading.’ That’s a fancy term for not investing a lot and giving money to Wall Street, so he made himself a fortune, then passed away. Any-
way, there’s a belief that I suspect to be true that between that and COVID, the railroads have reduced their workforce dramatically. There’s really a question as to how much safety has been compromised because they’ve cut of the workforce,”Permut said. It is unacceptable that only now that railroad mismanagement is tangibly affecting the environment and welfare of American citizens are we beginning to demand higher levels of transparency
within the railroad industry. To ensure the minimization of rail mishaps like that which has continually affected the residents of East Palestine, the federal government must enforce both a safe and effective level of staffing in the industry and the standardization of tanker and rail construction. Americans should not have to trade their safety for the survival of the free market; productivity should never come at the expense of citizen welfare.
ELLIE SCHALKWYK/TOWER
ALEXA MURPHY DEMANDS THAT there should be more accountability and transparency when it comes to the East-Palestine train derailment to keep all of its residents safe.
Earthquakes leave Turkey shaken up TARA PHILLIPS Features Editor
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n February 6, an earthquake erupted in Hatay Province Antakya, Turkey. So far there have been over 40,000 deaths with an unknown number of people still buried under the rumble. The U.S. pledged 185 million dollars for earthquake relief. The Turkish government has proven itself to be callous, negligent, and corrupt. The high death toll from the natural disaster was a result of the government’s failure to enforce building codes and stan-
dards. Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s cronies were given amnesty for compliance with the building codes in exchange for large political donations to Erdoğan’s Justice and Development party (AKP). Turks are enraged by the earthquake response. With national elections coming up in May, Turkish voters may punish the AKP. If elections are free and fair Erdoğan will lose the popular vote, although there are doubts that Erdoğan will allow all ballots to be counted. Many of the peoples’ views are not effectively represented in the national government. Smaller contractors have been rounded up and scapegoated, indicative of the widespread negligence and corruption that exist within the Turkish government. The way to minimize cor-
ruption is to strengthen the civil society and independent media. Turkish officials need to be held accountable for their crimes. That starts with exposing malfeasance. Journalism and media can play an important role in highlighting corrupt practices. Turkish media are owned by conglomerates, diversified companies with construction interests that benefit from government contracts. The Turkish government awards them big contracts, buying their silence. Independent media has been suppressed or punished with taxes and other penalties, if they go against the government. The U.S. is faced with a dilemma: it wants to help earthquake victims but is wary of giving it earthquake assistance to the government which could steal the funds and cor-
rupt the U.S. intent. An alternative would be to give the money to international NGOs. This would allow the funds to be monitored. The U.S. shouldn’t neglect human suffering, but also, doesn’t want to be ripped off. Some question whether the US should be donating its funds in the first place. As a world power, the U.S. should play a role in saving victims. However, they need to set up monitoring and accountability mechanisms. In order to help the Turks, the international community must work through NGOs to circumvent the Turkish government and cooperate directly with the earthquake affected EU CIVIL PROTRCTION AND HUMANITARIAN AID/FLICKR population.The humanitarian imperative is greater than con- TARA PHILLIPS ARGUES THAT the U.S. should be wary of donating cerns about Turkey’s integrity. money to Turkey due to Turkey’s governmental corruption.