6• EAGLE NEWS MEDIA— A SECTION OF HOME REPORTER AND BROOKLYN SPECTATOR • Week of December 13 – December 19, 2019
OPINION
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BETTER TIMES
o you recall the 1930s song “Happy Days Are Here Again?” I was singing it under my breath most of the day that the Wilpon family announced that they would be selling their controlling interest in the Mets. My only regret is that they will continue to have some role for the next five years. The Mets had a decent year despite the ownership. And that is the point. Few management decisions seem to manifest themselves in wins. Often, the lackluster nature of the ownership can be traced to poor player acquisition and handling during the playing season. How the Mets can annually become the orthopedic center of baseball with major players missing entire seasons is a
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mystery for me and many fans alike. The Mets have been fortunate in having younger players attempting to make a name for themselves waiting in the wings who fill these big holes caused by so many injuries. Then, after a few fine seasons, the Mets, instead of making an effort to sign these players to longer term contracts, allow them to be picked up by other teams or simply trade or sell them in poorly regarded actions. A New York City sports franchise, regardless of the sport, will be one of the most valuable franchises in America. The New York City media market alone provides the Mets, even when they are losing, with more revenue than most any other baseball team in either
league. Yet, the Wilpon family, instead of using the large sums of cash they accumulate to build a playoff-quality team, makes decisions based on making money for itself. This could be a result of the enormous financial losses the Wilpons took in the Bernie Madoff scandal. Although it is too early to know what the future holds for the team under the new ownership of hedge fund billionaire Steve Cohen, we do know that he has indicated his intentions of spending the money necessary to make the franchise a big winner. Inasmuch as he is super-wealthy, losing the Wilpons and gaining Cohen makes me feel that we are in for some really exciting times. Let’s Go Mets!
COMMON SENSE BY JERRY KASSAR
If we win, the $100 million state public campaign finance scheme, which is no more than your taxpayer dollars being used to help out politicians you may not support run for office, will not go forward.
*** The New York State Conservative Party, which I chair, will be in State Supreme Court in Niagara County for a hearing anticipating a summary judgment regarding our belief that the Commission
UNIFORM DECISIONS
n Dec. 9, Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo called for the Violence Against Women Act to be reauthorized. The law, originally passed with bipartisan support in 1994, bars abusers from owning firearms. Two days earlier, one of his sergeants was killed while responding to a domestic disturbance. Directing his comments to Senators McConnell, Cornyn and Cruz, Acevedo said, “I don’t want to hear about how much they support law enforcement… who killed our sergeant? A boyfriend abusing his girlfriend.” The House of Representatives passed a VAWA reauthorization bill months ago, but the NRA-opposed legislation stalled in the Re public a n- c ont r ol le d Senate. It’s indicative of the hypocrisy of some lawmakers, who proclaim they stand up for law enforcement, but
then shrink when it comes to providing protections to keep officers safe. The same people are often quick to attack anyone who questions any action by any member of the police, accusing them of hating cops. But wanting those who are entrusted with a great deal of authority to be held to the highest standards is not an act of hate. There are debates to be had about how to police better and more effectively, in terms of protecting our communities, as well as how to serve them. Acknowledging that certain communities have different impressions of policing, based on their experiences, isn’t hateful. No group should be generalized, but that cuts both ways. It is not right to say all members of a particular group are inherently bad, but it’s also wrong to say they are all infallible. If no cop ever violated police
policy or the law, every police force wouldn’t have an internal affairs department. But they do, because there are instances when people in positions of authority do something wrong. This view that citizens must never question law enforcement comes from above. The nation’s top lawman, Attorney General William Barr, said last week that, “They have to start showing... the respect The protection that police officers provide is not something that is held over citizens’ heads in exchange for reverence and support that law enforcement deserves and if communities don’t give that support and respect, they might find themselves without the police protection they need.” The protection that
on Public Finance represents an unconstitutional delegation of legislative authority to a nine-member unelected commission. If we win, the $100 million state public campaign finance scheme, which is no more than your taxpayer dollars being used to help out politicians you may not support run for office, will not go forward. It will also stop efforts to eliminate third parties, for whose candidates as many as 600,000 New Yorkers each year choose to vote. The Democratic effort reduces political choice and, as an extension, free speech. We feel we have strong arguments as well as simple
logic on our side. In my view, if we win, you win, with $100 million being saved at a time that the state has a record $6.1 billion budget deficit. *** I wish to express my condolences to Assemblymember Peter Abbate on the loss of his mother. Mrs. Abbate was just short of her 101st birthday. Talking with Peter, it sounds like she had a wonderful life. Regardless, this is a sad time for the Abbate family. They are in my prayers. On a happier note, best wishes to State Sen. Andrew Gounardes who celebrated his marriage to Melanie Graf. I wish them many, many years of happiness.
MATTER OF FACT BY JAY BROWN
police officers provide is not something that is held over citizens’ heads in exchange for reverence. Or at least it shouldn’t be. Law enforcement officers serve and protect because they are professionals and that is their job. Going even higher, to the president, we see this simplistic view of others in uniform: the military. In the past few weeks, President Trump has pardoned or granted clemency to three service members. He intervened on behalf of Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher who was acquitted of war crimes, but convicted of posing for photographs holding a dead teenage ISIS captive up by the hair. Fellow SEALs
claimed he had stabbed the teen in the neck while medics tried to treat him. Fellow SEAL snipers had also reported that Gallagher shot civilians, including two young girls and an elderly man. He was charged with threatening to kill those who reported him. Trump intervened on his behalf and ordered that the prosecutors in the case be punished. Last month, Trump issued pardons to two soldiers charged with murdering civilians in unrelated cases. Again, members of their own platoons testified against them, but the president declared, “We’re going to take care of our warriors and I will always stick up for our great fighters.” Excusing terrible actions isn’t taking care of warriors or sticking up for great
fighters, because these people are neither of those things. The great people are those who speak up, despite the danger it puts them in. “Support the troops” is a catchy slogan, but if you take the side of a few soldiers who commit murder over many service members who report those crimes, while stripping food stamps from thousands of veterans struggling with food insecurity, who exactly are you supporting? Calling someone a cop hater is an easy retort, but if you demand that nobody ever criticize the police because they only do great work, and then you declare police crime statistics showing they are doing a good job can’t be trusted, why should anyone trust anything you say?
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