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Riverdale Review, November 8, 2012

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Riverdale’s ONLY Locally Owned Newspaper!

Volume XIX • Number 43 • November 8 - 14, 2012 •

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Troubled aftermath of hurricane horror By MIAWLING LAM Local homes are slowly getting back on the grid but mail delivery has ground to a halt and residents are facing a crippling gasoline shortage following the devastation of superstorm Sandy. As city agencies, utility providers and elected officials continue relief efforts in the battered region, those in Riverdale are reeling from the damage caused by the historic storm. Some power outages still persist, cable, phone and Internet service remains patchy and local drivers are being forced to endure epic lines at gas stations as pumps run dry. As of 10 a.m. Tuesday, Con Edison’s outage map showed around 5,000 customers remain

without power in the Bronx, of which 1,000 are in the Riverdale/ Kingsbridge area. The bulk of the blackouts were in Fieldston and Spuyten Duyvil, but service is slated to be restored in those areas by 11:59 p.m. on Friday, November 9. Commanding officer of the 50th Precinct Captain Kevin Burke said despite the emerging problems, local cleanup efforts were progressing smoothly. He cited power outages as one of the biggest issues post-Sandy and said police have stepped up patrols in the area to deter potential looters and assist residents. “We have two police cars in the area at all times,” he said. “We are looking to maintain a high visibility to prevent Continued on Page 10

Northbound traffic on Riverdale Ave. was reduced to one lane on Friday as motorists queued for gas.

No matter how the election came out, here are the reasons why How Mitt Romney won... How Barack Obama won... By IRA STOLL Mitt Romney is now President-Elect Romney, and it is because of these six reasons: “One-term proposition”: “If I don’t have this done in three years, then there’s gonna be a one-term proposition,” President Obama told NBC’s Matt Lauer in February 2009. He was talking about an economic recovery. As much as President Obama tried either to blame the previous administration or to argue that, bad as things are, it would have been even worse without his actions, the fact remained that the economy — with 7.9% unemployment, 2% economic growth, and 47 million Americans on food stamps — was just too weak. The president, precisely as he himself had predicted, got the blame. Peace and prosperity: Incumbents get re-elected in cases of peace and prosperity. Mr. Obama didn’t deliver the prosperity (please see “one-term proposition,” above), and the violent deaths of four Americans in Benghazi, Libya, in an attack launched on September 11 undercut Mr. Obama’s claim to have delivered peace. ObamaCare: President Obama thought he was being clever by delaying the full implementation of ObamaCare until 2014, after the election. But the consequence is that benefits the law would provide remain strictly theoretical to many voters. To run

By IRA STOLL Call it the Obama paradox: He’s been a failure as a president, but he was reelected, anyway. How can it possibly be explained? The answer is somewhere in these three

President-elect Mitt Romney successfully against the Republican claim that the law raises premiums, expands bureaucracy, cuts Medicare, and increases taxes, Mr. Obama needed a better response than just coverage for 25-year-olds and Continued on Page 19

President-elect Barack Obama

plausible story lines: The voters reelected Obama-Boehner, not Obama-Biden. The President Obama who’s leading in the polls isn’t the overreaching president of the first two years of his term, the Obama of the stimulus bill, the Dodd-Frank financial “reform” bill, and ObamaCare. That President Obama disappeared, or at least was hidden away, on Election Day 2010, to be replaced for the most part by the President Obama who worked with the Republican Speaker of the House, John Boehner, to extend the Bush income tax cuts for two years, add a payroll tax cut, keep Guantanamo open, and ratify free trade agreements with Panama, Colombia, and South Korea. The stock market, as measured by the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index, is up about 20% since Election Day 2010. Health care costs and energy costs are leveling off. By re-electing a Republican House, voters are rejecting President Obama’s argument that things would be better without the Republican obstructionists. They’re saying, instead, that they like the obstructed Obama better than the unobstructed one, and that the combination of a Republican House and President Obama might be something better than a failure. A second story line is that Romney was Continued on Page 12


Thursday, November 8, 2012 • The RIVERDALE REVIEW

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Long delays and foul-ups mar voting in Riverdale By TESS McRAE and MIAWLING LAM Hundreds of voters inundated local polling sites on Tuesday to exercise their democratic right. Although many Riverdale residents turned up to vote for one of the presidential candidates, some were also concerned about weighing in on the local Congressional and Senatorial race. The polling station at P.S. 81 was abuzz, with many queuing up to cast their ballot. At 9 a.m., there was already a 35-minute wait, and a handful of voters wandered

around appearing confused and lost. Information clerks were scattered throughout the gymnasium trying to help as many people as they could, but tensions were high. One clerk became visibly upset with a voter who could not find the scanners, telling her to “keep the attitude down.” “Usually when I vote, I just walk in and out. It’s really fast,” one voter said while standing in line. “One woman told me it’d be a half-hour wait. Then again, I’ve never voted at this time, but this is just insanity.” A few voters were turned away be-

Local residents line up to vote at the P.S. 81 polling site.

cause they had reported to the wrong polling station. One man stood aghast when a clerk could not find him on the list. “I come here all of the time,” he said. “I vote here every year.” According to the city’s Board of Elections, individuals are permitted to vote only in their designated polling stations. Stations and districts are determined by home address. The polling site at P.S. 81 was even worse earlier in the day. Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz said it was utter chaos around 8 a.m.. “It was like a zoo,” he said. “The lines were long and the scanning machines weren’t working. They’re working now

but early on, three of the four machines weren’t working.” In addition to P.S. 81, a number of other polling sites in the Riverdale/Kingsbridge area experienced teething problems. Dinowitz said the polling site at 555 Kappock Street opened late and lines at M.S./H.S. 141 were long, attributing the issues to a lack of personnel. “The polls that I’ve seen today are understaffed,” he said. “In a lot of cases, the polls are staffed half Democrats and half Republicans. But there aren’t enough Republicans apparently, so although there are usually four workers at some sites, there are only two.” As of press time, election results were not available, but Congressman Eliot Engel and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand were expected to remain in office.


By MIAWLING LAM Police fear that a recent rash of armed robberies in Riverdale, including two over the past weekend, could be part of a wider trend. Detectives from the 50th Precinct believe the same two suspects, both described as black males in their late teens or early 20s, are responsible for at least five local robberies reported between October 18 and November 4. Police said the pair’s modus operandi follows the same pattern: They target individuals traveling on foot and demand that victims hand over their smartphones and other valuables. On at least three occasions, the men even flashed a firearm. Commanding officer of the 50th Precinct Captain Kevin Burke said he was

extremely concerned about the string of armed robberies. He said although detectives have not established any concrete leads, most of the victims have been thumbing through mug shots of known assailants in the area. According to police, the men first struck on October 18, when one of the suspects robbed a 31- year-old woman of her iPhone as she walked southbound near 4901 Henry Hudson Parkway. Police said the man approached the woman, flashed a black handgun that had been wedged in his waistband and ordered, “hand me the iPhone.” The pair allegedly surfaced again five days later—on October 23—on Independence Avenue and robbed another woman of her iPhone. According to police, the second victim

was walking past 3056 Independence Avenue just after 8 p,m. when one of the men approached her, displayed a black firearm and demanded her phone. Investigators said the pair struck a third time just after 4 p.m. on October 27 at the corner of Henry Hudson Parkway and West 246th Street. In that case, one of the suspects brandished a silver handgun and demanded the necklace worn by his victim. After a brief six-day hiatus, the two men surfaced twice over consecutive days and fled with iPhones on both occasions. Captain Burke said the pair struck around 6:20 p.m. last Saturday at the intersection of Riverdale Avenue and West 235th Street and ran away with an iPhone after threatening to shoot the victim. The men appeared again less than 24 hours later at Independence Avenue and

Kappock Street, with one man forcibly removing an iPhone from his victim while the other acted as a lookout. The recent wave of robberies comes less than seven months after Riverdale was rocked by the grisly murder of an aspiring chef who was shot and killed during a cold-blooded robbery. Police say Hwang Bum Yang, a Korean national who lived at 3261 Johnson Avenue with his family, was gunned down for his iPhone on West 232nd Street near Cambridge Avenue at 12:30 a.m. on April 19. The two men charged with his murder, Alejandro Campos, 21, and Dominick Davis 20, are currently making their way through the courts. Anyone with any information on the five latest robberies is urged to call CrimeStoppers at 800-577-TIPS.

Local veterans honor fallen comrades By TESS McRAE The crisp, sunny day made the perfect backdrop for the annual Veterans’ Day ceremony in Riverdale on Sunday, November 4. As the light streaked through the tall oak trees and illuminated the auburn leaves in Van Cortlandt Park, it was hard to believe superstorm Sandy had touched down just six days earlier. Attendance at the ceremony was much lower than anticipated, with around 25 Bronx residents there to celebrate the men and women who served our country. This was in part due to miscommunication within the parks department,

which had been informing callers that the ceremony had been cancelled due to the recent storm. But Herb Barret, coordinator of the ceremony, didn’t let that bring down his spirits. “I’m not complaining today about anything. The grove is restored and I am happy,” he said in his speech on Sunday. Barret, along with fellow veteran Don Tannen, had been working since 2006 to have Memorial Grove reconstructed. The grove was established in 1949 by the Veterans of Foreign War Post 8646 to Continued on Page 12

3 The RIVERDALE REVIEW • Thursday, November 8, 2012

Police hunt two men in connection with string of armed robberies


Thursday, November 8, 2012 • The RIVERDALE REVIEW

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Around the schools... P.S. 81

The parents association Election Day bake sale was held as usual on Tuesday. At family art night on Wednesday, children create crayon and marker drawings for use in the upcoming parents association art fundraiser. Parents can order mouse pads, mugs, trivets, and other practical items enhanced with their children’s art. The school’s annual fall show is scheduled for this Friday, November 9. Second-grade performers will sing songs with an autumn theme.

P.S. 24

Students got a taste of the democratic process at the school’s mock presidential election on Monday, where the actual 2012 presidential candidates were on the ballot. After registering, students got a chance to vote. The majority of P.S. 24 students decided to re-elect President Obama.

Riverdale-Kingsbridge Academy

Parents of prospective RKA high school students are invited to an open house on Monday, November 19, or Tuesday, November 20, from 8:30 to 10 a.m. To register, contact JPrince4@schools.nyc.gov. Friday middle school tours for parents of prospective sixth-graders will continue through December 14 (except for November 23). Tours begin promptly at 8:30 a.m. and last until around 11 a.m. To register, contact parent coordinator Julie Prince at JPrince4@schools.nyc.gov. RKA is a zoned middle school. To determine whether your home address is within the RKA zone, visit the Department of Education website (schools. nyc.gov) and search under “zone finder.”

Horace Mann School

The school will continue to offer hot dinners through Friday between 5 and 7 p.m. in Fisher Dining Commons for members of the HM family and their friends and neighbors. The school’s bus contractors, Supertrans and Selby, will continue to offer free rides throughout the week, based on availability. A limited amount of boarding space on campus is available to upper division students who are without power or who were forced to evacuate their homes. Dr. Jeremy Leeds, director of the Center of Community Values and Action, is leading students in a search for relief efforts they can join. The community is invited to see Riverdale resident Micheal Dale, a teacher in the Middle Division/Upper Division foreign languages department, in a performance of “Misson and Libertalia: A Folk Opera” this Saturday, November 10, from 2 to 3 p.m. at the Sputen Duyvil Library, 650 West 235th Street. The folk opera describes the life of the French pirate Captain Francois Misson, who became a pirate not just to plunder but also to free slaves and found a state called Libertalia on the island of Madagascar. Misson anticipated the principles of the French Revolution—“liberte, egalite, fraternite.” Dale will recount the history through his own compositions on guitar and dulcimer along with a Power Point presentation. The Horace Mann Model Congress this Saturday, November 10, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Around 400 students from many different schools are expected on campus to participate in the event.

Manhattan College

Bronx senior Nicole M. Vacca was among 16 juniors and seniors granted a 2012 James Patterson Scholarship, an award that recognizes the academic achievement and leadership potential of Manhattan College students. The recipients were chosen, out of the hundreds who applied, on the basis of merit, need and involvement in activities related to the college’s mission. The scholarship was created by James Patterson (’69), an award-winning author with 19 consecutive top-ranked titles on the New York Times best-seller list. “The scholarship program will support students whose success thus far gives promise of extraordinary accomplishment, leadership and service,” Patterson said. “My hope is that this recognition will encourage these talented young men and women to continue their good work, and inspire them to go out after graduation to make a real difference in their communities.” Patterson also funds the James Patterson Minority Scholarship, founded in 2006, to support the education of qualified students. He holds a Guinness World Record for the most hardcover fiction best-selling titles—76—by a single author. Works include the “Alex Cross” detective series featuring “Along Came a Spider”and “Kiss the Girls” and the popular “Maximum Ride,” “Daniel X” and “Witch and Wizard” series. Patterson launched the website ReadKiddoRead.com to help adults find appropriate books for children. He also created the James Patterson Pageturner Awards for groups or individuals who use creative and effective ways to spread the joy of reading. He regularly donates books to troops overseas.

College of Mount Saint Vincent

The college will host the New York Classical Players on Friday, November 16, at 8 p.m. for “Tchaikovsky in Context,” a concert featuring Tchaikovsky’s iconic String Sextet in D minor, Op. 70 (“Souvenir de Florence”), Anton Stepanovich Arensky’s “Variations on a Theme of Tchaikovsky” and Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 3. The New York Classical Players are a group of young instrumentalists who have debuted at the Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall and have been involved with high-profile endeavors such as Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Project. Music director Dongmin Kim has established himself as an exciting and versatile conductor.


By MIAWLING LAM Foodies, dining enthusiasts and bargain hunters, take note: Bronx Restaurant Week is still on. Borough officials kicked off the second annual event during a subdued launch preview at Oregano Bar & Bistro in Riverdale last Thursday. Dubbed Savor The Bronx, the promotion aims to showcase the borough’s diverse gastronomical delights and elevate its culinary cred. Under the promotion, rescheduled due to superstorm Sandy, around 35 Bronx restaurants are offering diners a three-course lunch for $16.41 and a bargain dinner for $20.12 through Friday, November 16. A few establishments are even throwing in a free dessert or taking 15 percent off the entire tab. The $16.41 price for lunch bears a special significance—1641 marks the year that Jonas Bronck purchased a 500-acre farm and settled in the borough. Bronx Tourism Council executive director Olga Luz Tirado said this year’s event has taken on added importance, given the widespread devastation caused by the historic storm. Tirado admitted that organizers flirted with the idea of canceling the promotion altogether but decided against it, saying it was more crucial than ever before to promote local businesses. “We have to make sure that the people know that The Bronx is open for business,” she said. “What’s best for Bronx businesses is to move forward and get back to business as quickly as possible, and what’s best for the community is to get The Bronx

back up and going. We just have to keep moving forward.” Among this year’s participants is the critically acclaimed Cuban establishment Havana Café, the popular Italian joint Antonio’s Trattoria and the casual restaurant Muscle Maker Bar & Grill. Of the participating restaurants, eight are located in the Riverdale/Kingsbridge area: Oregano Bar & Bistro, Jake’s Steakhouse, Riverdale Steak House, Piper’s Kilt, Bronx Ale House, Montezume Restaurant, Santa Fe Grill and Palace of Japan. Bruckner Bar & Grill in the South Bronx was also due to participate but was forced to withdraw just days before the launch after Sandy flooded its entire basement. Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. made no apologies for moving ahead with Savor The Bronx, claiming it would help boost the city’s spirits. “In the aftermath of Sandy, we have to be mindful that this is good for morale,” he said. “We have a lot of Bronx families who need to know that they can come out and eat something at an affordable price at 35 different restaurants and spend time with their family and help out a restaurant. These restaurants haven’t had any traffic in almost a week.” Oregano Bar & Bistro, a local Franco-Iberian restaurant that opened to much fanfare earlier this year, seized on the opportunity to participate and will offer prix-fixe options for both lunch and dinner. At the launch event, chef Claude Alain Solliard gave a hint of what diners could expect and served Iberico pork and baconwrapped beef short ribs drizzled with black peppercorn sauce. Restaurateur Erick A. Caceres, who is currently exploring the possibility of

Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. samples some of the food to be served during Savor the Bronx. The event was launched in Riverdale last Thursday. establishing Riverdale’s own Restaurant Week, hoped the event would expose Oregano to a larger demographic. Stephane Kane, chef/owner of the quaint French restaurant Bistro SK, echoed the sentiments. The City Island-based restaurant escaped Sandy’s wrath and is offering diners the prix-fixe dinner menu. Kane, who served a smorgasbord of authentic French bites including tuna tartare, escargots and crème brûlée at the preview launch, agreed the 12-day promotion gave restaurants unprecedented exposure. “Being on City Island, we are very secluded to start with, and I’m doubly

secluded because I’m a French restaurant around a lot of seafood restaurants and Italian restaurants,” he said. “So I thought it would be—and it is—a good opportunity for me to open up to the rest of The Bronx and say, ‘Hey, we are here. Come and try.’” This year’s Savor The Bronx is produced by the Bronx Tourism Council in conjunction with the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation and is sponsored by financial services juggernaut American Express and the New York State Restaurant Association. For more information, please visit savorthebronx.com

5 The RIVERDALE REVIEW • Thursday, November 8, 2012

Delayed Bronx Restaurant Week is now underway


deadline date and are invited to an awards ceremony in June to receive the first payment of $2,500. The remaining balance of $500 is to be paid to the artist upon completion of a community service activity which is required of all awardees.

Thursday, November 8, 2012 • The RIVERDALE REVIEW

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Kristallnacht Service and Program at CSAIR

Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale (CSAIR) will present a talk by Yehuda Kurtzer as part of its Kristallnacht observance on Thursday, November 8. One of the central challenges facing Jewish life today is that Jews have inherited a past that defines who they are but they are inherently skeptical of a past left behind. Kurtzer will explore how Jews can craft a future that allows them to retain what they need from the Jewish past, without having to live in it. Kurtzer, one of Jewish Week’s ‘36 Under 36,’ is President of the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America where he oversees the Institute’s many educational initiatives for the leadership of the North American Jewish community. He received his doctorate in Jewish Studies from Harvard University and is an alumnus of both the Wexner Graduate and Bronfman Youth Fellowships. His latest book, Shuva: The Future of the Jewish Past, deals with many of the central challenges facing contemporary Jewry, and offers new thinking on focuses on how contemporary Jews can and should relate to their past. He lives in Riverdale with his wife, Stephanie Ives and their two sons. Kristallnacht commemorates the ‘night of broken glass,’ a massive antiJewish pogrom which took place in Germany and Austria on November 9 and 10, 1938, which is viewed by many

historians as the starting point of Hitler’s ‘Final Solution.’ The program will begin with a service at 7:30 pm, followed by Dr. Kurtzer’s talk at 7:45 pm. This event, which is free and open to the entire community, is sponsored by the CSAIR Adult Education Committee. CSAIR is located at 475 West 250th Street. For additional information on this and other programs, call the synagogue office at 718-543-8400.

BRIO Award application available online

Application and guidelines for the 2013 Bronx Recognizes Its Own (BRIO) awards will be available online Thursday, November 1, 2012 on the Bronx Council on the Arts (BCA) website at www.bronxarts.org. Please note that the distribution of BRIO applications will be entirely online. This year’s online submission deadline is Friday, January 25, 2013, 11:59 pm. This year marks 24 years of BRIO Fellowships demonstrating the Bronx Council on the Arts’ ongoing outreach and support to artists creating work in the literary, media, performing, and visual arts. Bronx artists may apply in one of the following categories: Acting, Choreography, Crafts, Dance, Digital Arts, Fiction, Film Animation, Illustrated Text, Illustration/Artist Book, Installation Art, Instrumental and Vocal Music Performance, Mixed Media, Music Composition, Narrative/Docu-

mentary/Experimental Film or Video, Non-Fiction, Painting, Performance Art, Performance Poetry, Photography, Playwriting, Poetry, Printmaking/Drawing, Screenwriting, Sculpture, Spoken Word, and Storytelling. A total of 25 awards of $3,000 each are available this year to Bronx artists. Eligible applicants must be 18 years or older, live in the Bronx, and not be enrolled as a fulltime graduate or undergraduate student. Individuals who work for BCA or who are recipients of any of the Council’s awards in 2012 including BRIO, Bronx Writers Center Fellowship Program, or Digital Matrix Commissioning Program are also ineligible. Application assistance and tips on presenting your work professionally is available at one of five free BRIO workshops to be held on the following dates: • Thursday, November 8, 2012, from 5:00-7:00pm, at New Hope for All Saints Lutheran Church, 585 East 163rd St., Bronx, NY 10456; • Wednesday, November 28, 2012, from 3:00-5:00pm, at Hostos Community College, room C-391, 450 Grand Concourse at 149th Street, Bronx NY 10451; • Thursday, December 13, 2012, from 2:00-4:00pm, at Bronx Council on the Arts @ Westchester Square, 2700 East Tremont Avenue (at St. Raymond Avenue), Bronx, NY 10461; • Saturday, January 12, 2013, from 3:005:00pm, at Bronx Library Center, 310 East Kingsbridge Road, Bronx, NY 10458; • Friday, January 18, 2013, from 6:008:00pm, at Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos [Community College], 450 Grand Concourse, Bronx NY 10451. We urge you to attend one of these workshops! Space is limited. Please RSVP at www.bronxarts.org. Individual Consultations by appointment only with BRIO Administrator. For Literary Applicants: 1-on-1 half-hour consultations with Bronx Writers Center Director to help prepare your manuscript for BRIO. Call 718-931-9500 x35 for information or e-mail BRIO@bronxarts.org. The selection of the awards are based solely on artistic excellence and decided by a panel of professional artists of various disciplines. All materials involved in the selection process are kept confidential and are reviewed anonymously. Winners are notified of panel decisions by e-mail approximately four months after the

New activities at the Riverdale Senior Services

Clubs, Computer Classes, special events and parties are just some of the happenings at the Riverdale Senior Services, located at 2600 Netherland Avenue in the Century Building. The center will also be offering the following programs: Wednesdays at 3:00, Yiddish Group, Fridays at 10:00, Scrapbooking and Fridays at 1:15 and Wednesdays 11/14 and 11/28 Meditation, Classic Movie Friday at 2:00. Authors Speak at Senior Center: Wednesday, November 14th, Bob Brier will discuss the The Secret of the Great Pyramid. Registration is required and space is limited. Wednesday, November 14th. Thanksgiving lunch, register in the main office. $5.00 Suggested Contribution Tuesday, November 27th, celebrate November birthdays with Diane Templeton. The Center is currently registering members for a trip to Empire City on Wednesday, November 7th, Lord and Taylor, Thursday, November 8th, Lehman College, Thursday, November 15th, Friday, Lunch at Seashore Restaurant, November 16th, Shopping at Stew Leonards, Monday, November 19th, Empire City, Monday, November 16th, Shopping at Burlington Coat Factory, Wednesday, November 28th. Please register in the office for all trips. The Riverdale Senior Services is funded in part by the NYC Department for the Aging and is open Monday - Friday from 9 - 5. A wide variety of activities are offered daily as well as a hot lunch. New members are always welcome and for more information you can call 718-884-5900.

Donate coats, jackets, and pet food at the Y

The Riverdale Y is collecting for storm victims. There is a bin in the lobby -- they have been told by the 50th Precinct that most needed are warm coats and jackets, and pet food! No one is thinking about pet needs, but they are urgent as well. Come drop off your donations anytime during regular business hours (Sunday until 9 pm; Monday - Thursday, 5:30 am - 10 pm; Friday 5:30 am - 3:30 pm) and the Y will be sure they get to those in need. You can also donate to UJA-Federation of New York’s Hurricane Sandy Relief Fund.


The Riverdale Y, located at 5625 Arlington Avenue, will be holding an open house on November 11 from 10:00am to 2:00pm. Anyone who is interested in becoming a Y member is welcomed. Get healthier - compete on swim team - relax with a massage - play basketball. Sing - dance - paint - play a musical instrument. The Riverdale Y’s membership is a gateway to all these wonderful activities plus many, many more. Enjoy the use of our indoor heated pool, fitness center, sauna, steam room, group fitness classes and receive member discounted prices for wellness programs, camp, early childhood center, after-school programs, family programs, classes, holiday programs, to name a few. All group fitness classes will be open to the community during the open house and if you join the Y that day, you will get 50% off of initiation, plus a Y T-shirt too. For more information, contact Lisa Bruskin at 718-548-8200, ext 241.

Kristallnacht program at Cong. Shaarei Shalom

This Friday evening, November 9, Congregation Shaarei Shalom will devote its Shabbat evening service to a special commemoration of Kristallacht, ‘The Night of Broken Glass.’ On the night of November 9, 1938, a pogrom against the Jews took place throughout Germany, Austria and parts of the German occupied Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia. Jewish homes, shops, synagogues, towns, and villages were ransacked and set on fire as civilians, Hitler Youth, the SS, and Storm Troopers destroyed buildings with sledgehammers, leaving the streets covered in smashed windows. Kristallnacht - The Night of Broken Glass was the beginning of a long and systematic campaign of terror that culminated in the Holocaust. This year, Rose Winterfeldt, an eleven year old child living in Berlin in 1938 will share her memories of the night with the congregation. She will describe the shock and horror, in her words “forever imprinted in my memory” of riding the train to school that November morning and seeing the magnificent “Synagogue Fasanenstraase” engulfed in flames. She

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will go on to vividly recall the destruction of Jewish shops and businesses throughout Berlin, all as seen through a child’s eyes. This service of remembrance will be led by Rabbi Steven D. Burton and Cantor Ronald J. Broden, with musical accompaniment by Rose’s son pianist Walter Winterfeldt, commencing at 7:30 p.m. in the congregation’s sanctuary. The synagogue is located at 5919 Riverdale Avenue. The community is warmly invited to join in this special commemoration. To learn more about the congregation, this special service, weekly Shabbat services, membership, adult education opportunities, its religious school, and many program offerings, please call (718) 796-0305 or e-mail: shaareishalomriverda le@gmail.com or visit its website at www. shaareishalomriverdale.org.

CSAIR to present program on Jews of Afghanistan

The Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale (CSAIR) will present a Shabbat Lunch and Learn program on ‘The Jews of Afghanistan: History, Culture and Muslim-Jewish Relations’ on Saturday, November 10, 2012, following Shabbat morning services. Sara Y. Aharon, author of From Kabul to Queens: The Jews of Afghanistan and Their Move to the United States will describe the experiences of her own family, and will provide a rare glimpse into Afghanistan’s Jewish life. Spanning from the community’s origins, which many Afghan Jews believe to be from biblical times, to the development of their Jewish institutions, Aharon’s book details the story of a small Jewish community that lived in relative peace with its Sunni Muslim neighbors. Ms. Aharon, who studied modern Jewish history as a PhD student at New York University, was recently named to The Jewish Week’s annual list of ‘36 Under 36’ young Jewish leaders. This program is free and open to all. There will be a kiddush lunch after Services. (Services begin at 9:00 am). In addition, free babysitting will be available during talk. This program is free and open to the entire community. It is co-sponsored by the CSAIR Adult Education Committee

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and the CSAIR Havurah. For more information on this and other education opportunities at CSAIR, call the synagogue office at 718-543-8400. CSAIR is located at 475 West 250th Street at the Henry Hudson Parkway.

Aéropostale announces Tshirt design contest

Aéropostale, Inc. (NYSE: ARO), a mallbased specialty retailer of casual apparel for young women and men, announced its P.S. from Aéropostale ‘What Makes You Smile’ T-Shirt Design Contest. Students are given the chance to submit a t-shirt design from October 1, 2012 to October 31, 2012 to express what makes them smile. From November 1, 2012 to November 15, 2012, each contestant’s family and friends get the chance to vote for their favorite design. One student from grades 1-5 will be awarded with prizes for themselves and their school. The competition begins when the top 100 designs with the most votes are nominated to become finalists. Then, a panel of P.S. from Aéropostale experts, including the Senior Vice President from the P.S. design team, will select one lucky Grand Prize winner from each grade. Each winner will win a $500 P.S. from Aéropostale gift card, $1000 for their school, an in school presentation by P.S. to celebrate the winning design, P.S. from Aéropostale t-shirts for all their classmates, and 50 t-shirts with their design for friends and family.

STILL GIVING. Beloved philanthropist Brooke Astor set up a permanent fund with The New York Community Trust. Today, The Trust continues to carry out her philanthropy, and always will. What are your plans?

Brooke Astor 1902-2007

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Consider setting up your own permanent fund today. Visit stillgiving.org or contact Jane Wilton (212) 686-2563

Annual Kristallnacht commemoration at HIR

Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass, is a day set aside to remember the six million Jewish souls who perished in the Holocaust. For the past several years, the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale (HIR) has held an Annual Kristallnacht Commemoration Program. This year the program will feature Songs of Spiritual Resistance, a musical journey and tribute to the indomitable spirit of the writers and singers who continued to create music during our people’s darkest hour. Performed by Avram, Elisha and Zalmen Mlotek. All are welcome. English translation of the Yiddish poetry will be provided. The program will be held on Monday night, November 12, at 7:30 p.m., at the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, located at 3700 Henry Hudson Parkway. Rabbi Avi Weiss, senior rabbi of the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale said: ‘I am always so impressed by the tenacity that the survivor community has displayed. The Nazis did not destroy their will to live. On the contrary, they rebuilt, and continue to contribute to the Jewish community. And they are a people who inspire me daily’. For more information call 718-7964730, ext 107.

7 The RIVERDALE REVIEW • Thursday, November 8, 2012

Riverdale Y to hold open house

Winning designs will be announced in December followed by school presentations in February and March. Students can easily enter into the P.S. from Aéropostale contest by visiting www.pswhatmakesyousmile.com and following the simple instructions. Become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ps4u, or follow the brand on Twitter at @PSfromAero.


Thursday, November 8, 2012 • The RIVERDALE REVIEW

8

Thursday, November 8 Kingsbridge

WRITER’S CIRCLE 1 p.m. Kingsbridge Branch Library 291 West 231st Street Are you an aspiring writer? Join our writer’s group to share your work and get feedback from other members. All types of writing are welcome, whether it’s fiction, memoir, poetry, or other! For more information, call 718-548-5656.

10:30 a.m. Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel 475 West 250th Street The group will discuss All Our Worldly Goods, by Irene Nemirovsky. Participation in the group is free and all are welcome. Advance registration is required. Call the CSAIR office at 718-543-8400 to register of for additional information.

Monday, November 12 Riverdale

FAR OUT PHYSICS 3:30 p.m. Kingsbridge Branch Library 291 West 231st Street Children will explore different themes such as: speed, momentum, forces, reactions, structures and other physical phenomena. Presented by the Children’s Museum of Manhattan. For ages 6 and older. For more info, call 718-548-5656.

KRISTALLNACHT PROGRAM 7:30 p.m. Hebrew Institute of Riverdale 3700 Henry Hudson Parkway This year the program will feature Songs of Spiritual Resistance, a musical journey and tribute to the indomitable spirit of the writers and singers who continued to create music during our people’s darkest hour. Performed by Avram, Elisha and Zalmen Mlotek. All are welcome. For more information call 718-796-4730, ext 107.

Riverdale

Tuesday, November 13

Kingsbridge

KRISTALLNACHT PROGRAM 7:30 p.m. Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel 475 West 250th Street Yehuda Kurtzer will present a talk as part of Kristallnacht observance. He will discuss ‘Holocaust and History: Making Meaning from Jewish Catastrophe.’ For more information, visit www.csair.org or call 718-543-8400.

Friday, November 9

Riverdale

SCRABBLE 2 p.m. Riverdale Branch Library 5540 Mosholu Avenue If words work you up and crossword puzzles keep you going, come to Riverdale and share your passion with friends every Tuesday afternoon for a lively game of Scrabble. Pre-registration required. For more information, call 718-549-1212.

Kingsbridge

Kingsbridge

STAY WELL EXERCISE 10 a.m. Kingsbridge Branch Library 291 West 231st Street Join us for a free, fun Stay Well exercise session. Stay Well volunteers certified by the NYC’s Department for the Aging will lead participants in a well-balanced series of exercises for seniors of all ability levels. Please wear loose comfortable clothing. Exercise equipment will be provided. Those participating in the exercises must sign an activity release form. For info, call 718-548-5656.

AMERICAN TEENAGER PROJECT 3:30 p.m. Kingsbridge Branch Library 291 West 231st Street Tell the story of your life with film and friends. Join awardwinning photojournalist Robin Bowman for 6 sessions and learn how to craft a narrative using photographs, personal insights, and shared experiences. Your work will be featured in a library exhibition, and will be published in a book that is yours to keep and share. For more information, call 718-548-5656.

Riverdale

Wednesday, November 14

FUN SCIENCE 3:30 p.m. Riverdale Branch Library 5540 Mosholu Avenue Children are welcome to come to the Riverdale Branch and learn more about the scientific process. They will conduct experiments and have fun while learning how the world around them operates. For ages 5 to 12 years. For info, call 718-549-1212.

Kingsbridge

TEEN ADVISORY GROUP 4 p.m. Kingsbridge Branch Library 291 West 231st Street Let your voice be heard in the Kingsbridge Library’s Teen Advisory Group! TAG meetings will be held on Friday afternoons from 4-5 pm. If you are a 7th -12th grade student, you are eligible to join. For more information, call 718-548-5656.

Riverdale

KRISTALLNACHT PROGRAM 7:30 p.m. Congregation Shaarei Shalom 5919 Riverdale Avenue A special commemoration of Kristallacht, “The Night of Broken Glass.” Rose Winterfeldt, who lived in Berlin in 1938, will share her memories. For more infomration, call 718-7960305 or visit www.shaareishalomriverdale.org.

Saturday, November 10 Spuyten Duyvil

FOLK OPERA 2 p.m. Spuyten Duyvil Branch Library 650 West 235th Street Misson and Libertalia: a Folk Opera with Micheal Dale. The life of the French pirate, Captain Francois Misson, anticipated by a century the underlying philosophy and vast social changes of the French Revolution. Micheal Dale will recount the important events of this through his own compositions on guitar & dulcimer. Music & narrative will be accompanied by power point. For more information, call 718-792-1202.

Sunday, November 11 Riverdale

OPEN HOUSE 10 a.m. Riverdale YM-YWHA 5625 Arlington Avenue Anyone who is interested in becoming a Y member is welcomed. For info, contact Lisa Bruskin at 718-548-8200, ext 241.

Riverdale

BOOK DISCUSSION

Riverdale

BRANDEIS GROUP MEETING 12:30 p.m. Riverdale Temple West 246th St. & Independence Ave. The Riverdale Chapter of The Brandeis National Committee cordially invites its members and their friends to its next monthly meeting. The program will be a presentation by Mina Crasson, the well-known historian, lecturer and dramatist. Her subject will be “The Ladies of the Club - Women With Ideas, Dreams and Energy”.

Riverdale

HOMEWORK ZONE 3:30 p.m. Riverdale Branch Library 5540 Mosholu Avenue Students are welcomed to used the library’s Community Room to work on their homework assignments in an environment conducive to learning. Study support is provided by students from the International Leadership Charter High School. For ages 5 to 12 years. For more information, call 718-549-1212.

Riverdale

ADOPTION SUPPORT MEETING 7 p.m. Riverdale YM-YWHA 5625 Arlington Avenue Special Guest Speaker, Samuel Pitkowsky, an adoptive parent who has specialized in adoption for over 25 years, will discuss ALL aspects of the paths to domestic and international adoption including the agency or independent process, paperwork, costs, and timelines. For further information on the meeting or the 32 Annual All Day Conference Call (212) 304 8479 or www.adoptiveparents.org.

Thursday, November 15 Kingsbridge

CB8 MEETING 7 p.m. 50th Police Precinct 3450 Kingsbridge Avenue Meeting of the Public Safety Committee of Community Board 8. For more information, call 718-884-3959.

Riverdale

LECTURE 7:45 p.m. Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel 475 West 250th Street Joseph Berger, a veteran NY Times reporter and columnist, will discuss the complicated legacy of Yiddish writer Chaim Grade. For more information on this program – which is free and open to all – as well as other adult education opportunities at CSAIR, call the synagogue office at 718-543-8400.


By PAULETTE SCHNEIDER Riverdalian Jessica Lavery, a freshman at the University of Scranton, is the winner of a fouryear Presidential Scholarship that covers full tuition. She was one of only 19 students the university selected for this comprehensive scholarship award, reserved for incoming freshman with outstanding high school records and community involvement. Lavery scored high in both measures. She was valedictorian at Dominican Academy, a Manhattan Catholic prep school for girls, where she was named an AP Scholar with distinction and a National Merit Commended Scholar. In her spare time, she tutored fellow students in math, managed the volleyball team, played basketball and soccer, sang with the glee club, and became an integral part of the Riverdale Rising Stars—the Riverdale Y’s theater troupe for young adults. “I played sports in grammar school and high school, but my main thing is musical theater,” she said. “I was in the Riverdale Rising Stars program for nine years. That was my main focus.” The multifaceted teen is a celebrity to RRS aficionados. “I stared out as ensemble, and then by junior year in high school I played Catherine in

of The hitason e every s York! in New

‘Pippin’ and Tracy Turnblad in ‘Hairspray,’ she said. “In my senior year, I was Philia in ‘A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum’ and Dorothy Brock in ‘42nd Street.’” For her performance as Philia, Lavery was nominated for a National Youth Arts Award in the category of supporting actress in a musical. Over the summer, she worked as head of counselors and choreographer, though her only dance training, and most of her vocal training, came from learning roles for the Rising Stars. “I’ve taken dance classes and been in the program for so long that I picked up a few things,” she said. “I’ve choreographed three shows.” At Scranton, Lavery is part of a special Jesuit liberal arts honors program that focuses on philosophy and theology. She’s also a biology major with some interest in dentistry. “If I continue in that, I would end up with a bio major and a minor in philosophy,” she said. “That’s the plan for right now, but I’m not really sure what’s going to be the plan in the end.” Even science majors should pursue the liberal arts, she thinks. “That program, with such strong philosophy and theology—it just kind of shapes you into a more well-rounded person.

from musical theater, so she’s involved in Scranton’s theater program for non-majors and is currently playing the role of Josephine Strong in “Urinetown.” “Participating in extracurricu-

Rather than just focusing on the science, you need to know how to speak and how to write and how to think instead of just memorizing stuff for the natural sciences. I think it’s another was to grow and to learn more.” Her interest in dentistry grew from her own extensive experience in the chair. “I’ve had a lot of dental work. I was born with a cleft lip, so I’ve been in dentists’ offices my whole life,” she said. “I’ve done some shadowing hours, and I realized that I might want to do this as a career. I’m still exploring it, so I’ll do more shadowing hours as an undergrad to see if it’s definitely what I want to do before I commit.” Lavery realizes that “it’s good to take a break from studying,” so she gets away from it all by tutoring colleagues in math and working at food pantry near school. Of course, she can’t stay away

lars, I’ve formed tons of friends,” she said. “Back home, some of my best friend came from Rising Stars. I think if you put yourself out there, you’ll definitely get something in return.”

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9 The RIVERDALE REVIEW • Thursday, November 8, 2012

Local renaissance girl awarded full college scholarship


Thursday, November 8, 2012 • The RIVERDALE REVIEW

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Troubled aftermath of the hurricane Continued from Page 1 criminal activity and to catch people who might be looking to take advantage of the situation.” Andrew Sandler, a representative of Councilman G. Oliver Koppell’s office, said Con Edison crews have been working hard to restore service but that their job was far from over. “We’re happy and lucky that Con Edison has listened to us and responded to our issues, but we are still trying to get them to Fieldston,” he said. “That section of Riverdale is much more difficult because they are served by overhead wires.” Sandler said power was finally restored to residents of Villa Charlotte Bronte, the quaint co-op complex located at 2501 Palisade Avenue, late Monday afternoon. He said the complex was flagged as a top priority because its residents were drastically inconvenienced. “Their sewer ejector pump was filled to capacity before the storm hit,” he explained, “and so they had to shut off their water supply, which prevented people from taking showers or using toilets.” Meanwhile, mail delivery in The Bronx has been hampered in the aftermath of the storm. Congressman Eliot Engel said due to service cuts, a large volume of first-class mail destined for Bronx households has been sitting in limbo in storm-ravaged postal facilities in Manhattan. He said the U.S. Postal Service’s decision last year to close the Bronx Distribution Center and transfer the borough’s mail processing operations to Manhattan was having a disastrous effect. “I said it then, and I say it now—this was a bad decision and lousy planning,” Engel said. “Now, as a result of the closure, important mail for Bronx residents is piling up and the consequences for residents could be serious, especially for seniors and working families. “Mail delivery may not be a high priority during a time of crisis, but it is one step towards returning our lives to a sense of normalcy.” John DeSio, a spokesman for Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., agreed that the halt in mail service was unfortunate. He said once cleanup efforts are complete, Diaz will lobby USPS officials to reopen the Bronx Distribution Center. “We were on this issue a year ago,” he said, “and now we see just how bad it is, or how bad it could be.” The severe gasoline shortage gripping the New York metro area has also forced locals to endure long lines to secure fuel for their cars and generators. Gas pumps at the Sunoco station, located at 5914 Riverdale Avenue, was completely dry as of Friday lunchtime, but the Gulf station on Riverdale Avenue, just north of West 263rd Street, was open and filling the near-empty tanks of hundreds of motorists. Some drivers reported waiting in line for more than 40 minutes, and at one point, the queue even stretched for seven blocks—back to West 256th Street. The Prime station on Broadway, just south of Mosholu Avenue, was also open on Tuesday morning. Lines there were significantly shorter, and cars forced to adhere to a $40 limit. Captain Burke said the gasoline situation was slowly improving.

He said the owners from each of the seven gas stations in the five-oh were working in tandem with the precinct and alerting police whenever they expect gas deliveries. “It’s getting better in the sense that when it first started, there was no gas to start with,” Captain Burke said. “Three or four stations are sporadically opening up, so we’re hoping that over the next two to three days, it really eases up.” While city agencies and utility companies work overtime, local institutions are doing their share to extend a hand to the Riverdale community and beyond. The Riverdale YM-YWHA made its bathroom and shower facilities available to those in the community who lost power and cooked and served hot soup

to hundreds of locals on Sunday. Congregants of the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale collected and sorted donations of food, clothing and other supplies and made multiple deliveries to hard-hit areas of the city, while the Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale also collected food and other items. Donations where packaged by Hebrew school students early Sunday morning and delivered in the afternoon to a Lower East Side nonprofit whose clients had lost power. CSAIR also alerted congregants to the need for volunteers at the Hebrew Home at Riverdale, which provided housing for 33 displaced people—15 patients at NYU Medical Center and 18 residents of Menorah Nursing Home in Brooklyn.

HGI H O L O C A U S T, G E N O C I D E , A N D I N T E R FA I T H E D U C AT I O N C E N T E R FIFTH ANNUAL SCHWEITZER LECTURE

Kristallnacht in History and Memory During World War II, the Nazi regime and its collaborators around Europe murdered 6 million Jews. Given the magnitude of this atrocity, why is so much attention given to the Kristallnacht pogrom of November 1938, which preceded the war and the "Final Solution," and that resulted in the deaths of hundreds rather than of millions? In his lecture, professor Alan Steinweis will explain how the Kristallnacht fit into the unfolding anti-Jewish policies of the Nazi regime, and why the event continues to loom so large in the collective memories of Jews, Germans and others.

Wednesday, November 7, 2012 7:00 p.m. Smith Auditorium

If you have any questions about this, or any other HGI Center event, please contact Mehnaz Afridi, Ph.D., at mehnaz.afridi@manhattan.edu.


By PAULETTE SCHNEIDER There was an abundance of food, with choices for everyone from vegans to omnivores, so the concept of hunger seemed distant for 300 community members who enjoyed a Sabbath meal last Friday night at the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale. The November 2 Global Hunger Shabbat event was one of hundreds taking place worldwide through an American Jewish World Service initiative. At each of the large round tables, a conversation facilitator handed out informational “placemats” and ensured that the topic at hand—reversing hunger—was on the menu. The main course was a speech by AJWS president Ruth Messinger, a social justice icon, who offered plenty of food for thought about the problem of malnutrition.

AJWS staffers chose Riverdale as the venue for Messinger’s appearance because more than 20 neighborhood organizations, the largest collaboration on earth, signed up to participate in Global Hunger Shabbat. Messinger, who had just returned from a mission to Cambodia, cited startling facts: more people in developing countries are dying of malnutrition than of disease, and part of the problem is America’s wellmeaning but counterproductive policy of sending large amounts of food across great distances to needy nations. Our regimen of packing food, including some purchased by the government from producers who are encouraged to create a surplus, and shipping it at great expense to faraway lands is far more costly and time-consuming than helping the

needy acquire available local provisions, she explained. Aside from taking longer and costing more, our present strategy weakens local agriculture by drastically lowering prices for crops like rice. Food aid programs, as detailed in the U.S. Farm Bill, are up for review, and Messinger urged citizens to take action by persuading elected officials—regardless of political party—to advocate for more efficient food aid policies. Several food-related organizations close to home were also on hand to offer

literature and recruit assistance, including the Kingsbridge-Riverdale-Marble Hill Food & Hunger Project, an interfaith nonprofit that operates a food pantry at the Church of the Mediator on West 231st Street and accepts grocery donations from a number of drop- off points in Riverdale. To find out about KRMH, call Frances Segan at 718-796-7166. To learn about the American Jewish World Service and join in their efforts, visit awjs.org/reversehunger/action. Funding for the H.I.R. event was provided by the UJA-Federation of New York.

Local dentist plans relocation By TESS McRAE Riverdale residents will soon have a brand-new dental care facility in town. Dr. Gabriel Shalmi of Riverdale Dental Care will be moving his practice on Riverdale Avenue to a location around the corner on West 259th Street. The move is planned for December or January. Originally four “Class A” apartments, the site is now being reconfigured to support two apartments with an open parking lot for six cars. According to the New York City Buildings Department, construction costs are estimated at $300,000. Tanya Curlen, Shalmi’s office manager, said the building would be strictly for commercial use. “It will most definitely be all medical,” Curlen said. “There will a physical therapy office on one floor, dental and another medical practice (on the two other floors).” Construction has not been completely seamless, as there have been seven documented complaints since work began on the property. Most complaints were minor, regarding off-hour construction and working with

an expired permit. All issues were resolved with no violations warranted. But one complaint made to Councilman G. Oliver Koppell’s office—an increase in the number of rats—was not considered minor. “A resident called three months ago to inform us of a rat infestation, presumably as a result of the construction,” said Andrew Sandler, director of community affairs for Councilman Koppell. Sandler suggested that the complaining neighbor call the buildings department, but as of November 5, no complaint had been lodged. Shalmi has been providing dental health care to the area since 1996 and currently treats a few thousand patients. Though the new building itself is not unusual in style, its newly erected clock tower has caught some attention. Painted cobalt blue with gold trim, the old-fashioned clock is currently sitting in the center of the intended parking lot in the otherwise residential area. A grand opening will be announced in the coming weeks.

11 The RIVERDALE REVIEW • Thursday, November 8, 2012

HIR hosts ‘Global Hunger Shabbat’


Thursday, November 8, 2012 • The RIVERDALE REVIEW

12

Obama wins Continued on Page 1 a terrible candidate. This is partly personal, partly policy. Mr. Romney served one four-year term as governor of Massachusetts. He never won the popular ratification that comes with re-election or even with having a handpicked successor win re-election. His public-sector achievements are so thin that, at the Republican National Convention, he was reduced to trotting out Olympic medalists in the sports of women’s skeet shooting and women’s skeleton to testify to his work on the 2002 Winter Olympics. John Kennedy swam three miles in shark-infested waters towing an injured shipmate; John McCain survived five and a half years of torture in North Vietnamese prisons; Mitt Romney saved short-course speed skating in Salt Lake City. Mr. Romney is gaffe-prone: “I like being able to fire people”; “I’m not concerned about the very poor.” Mr. Romney’s most significant public achievements — the Massachusetts health care law that expanded insurance coverage through a mandate and the John and Abigail Adams scholarships to state colleges and universities in the Bay State — don’t contrast well against either ObamaCare or President Obama’s Pell Grant expansion. Voters looking for a candidate to expand health coverage and college access with taxpayer money figure they might as well stick with Mr. Obama. Mr. Romney did not mention his tax-

cutting plans in his convention speech, avoided tax simplification as an issue, and was vague about his plan to reduce tax breaks for upper-income taxpayers (another issue on which he agrees with President Obama.) He ran promising to spend more on Medicare than President Obama would, and praising McCain-Feingold-style campaign spending limits. Generationally, Mr. Romney, 65-yearsold and gray-at-the-temples, is an odd choice to deliver a message about federal debt reduction. Younger Republicans, like Marco Rubio and Paul Ryan, connect better with the younger voters who will have to pay off the debt, and those nextgeneration politicians may have their chance to do so in the 2016 Republican presidential primary campaign. Mr. Romney’s economic message was so gloomy that he sometimes sounded like a candidate trying to get elected entirely

with the votes of the 8% of Americans who are unemployed. By this line of explanation, the rejection of Mr. Romney is not so much a rejection of the Republican Party or of conservative or free-market policies or ideas, but of Mr. Romney and his particularly odd campaign. The third possible explanation is one I hope is not true, but that lurks as a fear in the minds of many of those dismayed by the polls. That is that the “takers” have started to outnumber, and outvote, the “makers.” Add together the 46.7 million Americans on food stamps, the 8.7 million Americans receiving Pell Grants, the 7.6 million unionized government employees, and weigh them against the top 5% of income earners, the roughly 7 million taxpayers making more than about $154,000 a year, who earn about 32% of the adjusted gross income and

pay about 59% of the nation’s individual income taxes. We have all kinds of systems and laws in America for protecting the rights of unpopular minorities, but no one has quite figured out how to prevent an election from devolving into “four wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch.” Margaret Thatcher said socialists “always run out of other people’s money.” Charles Prince, then head of Citigroup, said in 2007, “as long as the music is playing, you’ve got to get up and dance. We’re still dancing.” A worst-case scenario is that the 2012 election will be remembered as one in which voters thought the music was still playing and danced away, only to discover before long that the other people’s money had run out. Mr. Stoll is editor of FutureOfCapitalism.com and author of “Samuel Adams: A Life.”

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Veterans Day ceremony Continued from Page 3 honor soldiers who died in World War I, World War II and the Korean War. The site was neglected for decades, and it wasn’t until earlier this year that refurbishment efforts were complete. “It just shows that one person with dedicated veterans can make a difference,” Senator Jeff Klein said in a brief speech. He was the only politician in attendance. The ceremony opened with a color guard procession featuring members of Riverdale’s Boy Scout Troop 240 and Girl Scout Troop 1477. American flags posted at each of the plaques in Memorial Grove fluttered in a soft wind as those in attendance recited the Pledge of Allegiance and the scouts led a rendition of the “Star Spangled Banner.” Noting a twinge of sadness in the crowd, Barret encouraged everyone to look upon Memorial Grove as a living memorial and not a place to mourn. “This is not a burial ground or cemetery. This is a place to honor our boys. People like this gotta be remembered,” Barret said as he gestured to the grove behind him. The ceremony concluded with a roll call of each soldier honored in the grove as the melancholy funeral anthem, “Taps,” was played. Veterans in attendance saluted their flag almost instinctually when Boy and Girl Scouts sang all eight verses of “America, the Beautiful.” With thousands of service men and women serving our country every day, Senator Klein felt just celebrating soldiers on Veteran’s Day wasn’t enough. “We need to redefine our priority to veterans. We need to do more. Each and every day should be a day to pay homage,” he said.

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popular residents at the farm, along with a craft to take home. For more information, call 914-864-7282.

HUDSON RIVER PHOTOGRAPHY 8 a.m. Croton Point Nature Center Croton Point Avenue Bring your smartphone or any other electronic device to learn how to capture the beauty of the early winter light at Croton Point. For more information, call 914-862-5297.

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North White Plains

EARLY RISERS HIKE 8:30 a.m. Cranberry Lake Preserve 1609 Old Orchard Street The early hiker gets to see the wildlife before they hide from the daily trail traffic. For more information, call 914428-1005.

Cross River

LENAPE OF WESTCHESTER 10 a.m. Trailside Nature Museum Ward Pound Ridge Reservation Children can explore the life of the Lenape, who inhabited the area for thousands of years before the present, through their food, tools, toys and stories, see a traditional wigwam and make a craft. For more information, call 914-864-7322.

Rye

VOLUNTEER WORK PROJECT 1 p.m. Marshlands Conservancy Route 1 Help clear vegetation off historic stone walls. Hand tools provided; bring work gloves. For more information, call 914-835-4466.

Sleepy Hollow

NATIVE AMERICANS ALONG HUDSON RIVER 1 p.m. Kingsland Point Park 299 Palmer Avenue Join a Teatown Lake Reservation educator to find out how Lenape Indians used the shores for food and shelter. FREE. For more information, call 914-762-2912 x110.

New Rochelle

CHAMBER ORCHESTRA 8 p.m. Iona College Christopher Murphy Auditorium Violinist Yevgeny Kutik, playing Max Bruch’s Violin Concerto no. 1, op.26 in G minor, will open the Westchester Chamber Symphony’s 16th concert season. For more information or tickets, call (914) 654-4926 or log onto www. westchesterchambersymphony.org.

WINTER GARDEN PROTECTION 2 p.m. Lasdon Park Route 35 Winter Protection for the Outdoor Garden. Learn about the use of anti-desiccants, burlap, cold frames and mulch with the Lasdon horticulturist. For more information, call 914-864-7260.

Rye

WINTER FEEDER WATCH 2 p.m. Marshlands Conservancy Route 1 Observe, learn to identify and record the birds at the feeders, followed by a hike into their world. For more information, call 914-835-4466.

Tuesday, November 13 White Plains

ARETHA FRANKLIN IN CONCERT 7:30 p.m. Westchester County Center 198 Central Park Avenue The Pepe Infiniti concert series at the Westchester County Center presents Aretha Franklin! Doors open at 6:30 p.m. / Show begins at 7:30 p.m. For more information, call 914-995-4050.

Wednesday, November 14 Tuckahoe

BOOK READING 2 p.m. Westchester Italian Cultural Center One Generoso Pope Place Shot Down Over Italy by John Lanza. The book tells the untold, true story of how Italian partisans saved American airmen by hiding them from the Nazis after they were shot down by the Germans. Little was known about the experiences of each crew member, even by their families. John Lanza began to uncover their story while talking to his uncle, a crew member survivor, unfolding a story of courage and survival; a story kept secret among them since World War II. This program is offered at no charge. Donations are welcome. Must register in advance. For more information, call 914-771-8700.

Tuckahoe

AMPHION STRING QUARTET 8 p.m. Caramoor Center for Music & Arts 149 Girdle Ridge Road In 1999, Caramoor established the annual String Quartetin-Residence program supported by major endowment gifts from The Ernst C. Stiefel Foundation. It is Caramoor’s goal to use the residency format to integrate a quartet into the life of the institution and the community. The Amphion String Quartet is the thirteenth Ernst Stiefel Quartet-in-Residence at Caramoor. They will visit schools and give concerts in the Fall and Spring. For more information, call 914-232-1252 or visit www.caramoor.org.

BOOK READING 6:30 p.m. Westchester Italian Cultural Center One Generoso Pope Place Padre Pio Through the Eyes of Father Pio Mandato, FMHSJ. Both Padre Pio and Father Pio Mandato came from the small town of Pietrelcina. Father Pio Mandato received his First Holy Communion from Padre Pio before coming to the United States. He grew up in New Jersey and entered the Capuchin Seminary at the age of 17, where he received his Franciscan formation and later his priestly formation. Father Pio will also read from the book “Padre Pio: Encounters with a Spiritual Daughter from Pietrelcina,” written by his mother, Graziella DeNunzio Mandato, who was a spiritual daughter of Padre Pio. In the book Graziella shares her memories of the Saint. The reader comes away with an intimate understating of how closely Saint Pio was tied to the lives of ordinary men and women and the spiritual love they shared for each other. Must register in advance and prepay. Members $10, Non-Members $20. For more information, call 914-771-8700.

Sunday, November 11

Yonkers

Katonah

Mt. Vernon

VETERANS DAY COMMEMORATION 10 a.m. St. Paul’s Church 897 S. Columbus Avenue Join us for an 11 AM ceremony commemorating Veterans Day, followed by tours recalling the stories of soldiers buried in the historic cemetery. At 1 PM, Professor Harvey Strum of Sage College examines A House Divided: New York and the War of 1812, helping to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812. This talk is sponsored by the Speakers in the Humanities Program, New York Council for the Humanities. At 2:30, enjoy a special jazz performance, dedicated to veterans, in historic St. Paul’s Church by Sage, the acclaimed female jazz combo. For more information, contact David Osborn, 914-667-4116.

Somers

TURKEY TREASURES 1 p.m. Muscoot Farm Route 100 Members of Muscoot’s 4H Club will introduce you to these

GREAT GULL ISLAND TERNS 7 p.m. Lenoir Preserve 19 Dudley Street Join Helen Hays, a member of the Great Gull Island Committee and the American Museum of Natural History, to view the gulls during their nesting season, then follow them to their wintering grounds in South America. For more information, call 914-968-5851.

Thursday, November 15 Tuckahoe

LECTURE 6:30 p.m. Westchester Italian Cultural Center One Generoso Pope Place In Search of a Saint: Santa Chiara del Sacramento. This lecture will enter the heart of mysticism by analyzing the writings of Saint Theresa of Avila, Saint John of the Cross, and Maria Raffaella DeVito Francesco. Presented in English by Professorin-Residence Anotonio Rutigliano of New York University. Must register in advance and prepay. Members $10, Non-Members $20 For more information, call 914-771-8700.

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The Adoptive Parents Committee, a non profit all volunteer informational educational parent support group for couples and singles who have adopted and for those seeking information about adoption will hold a Support Meeting on Wednesday, November 14th at 7pm at the Riverdale Y. Special Guest Speaker, Samuel Pitkowsky, an adoptive parent who has specialized in adoption for over 25 years, will discuss ALL aspects of the paths to domestic and international adoption including the agency or independent process, paperwork, costs, and timelines. For further information on the meeting or the 32 Annual All Day Conference Call (212) 304 8479 or www.adoptiveparents. org. The Y is located at 5625 Arlington Avenue.

Book discussion group at CSAIR

The Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale (CSAIR) invites you to join the discussion at its book discussion group on Sunday, November 11, at 10:30 am. At this meeting the group will discuss All Our Worldly Goods, by Irene Nemirovsky.

Set in France between 1910 and 1940 and first published in France in 1947, five years after the author’s death in Auschwitz. All Our Worldly Goods is a gripping story of war, family life and star-crossed lovers. Participation in the group is free and all are welcome. Advance registration is required. Call the CSAIR office at 718-543-8400 to register of for additional information. The group will discuss Nicole Krauss’s Great House on Thursday, February 28, at 7:45 pm and American Pastoral by Philip Roth on Thursday, May 9. For more information on this and other education opportunities at CSAIR, call the synagogue office. CSAIR is located at 475 West 250th Street at the Henry Hudson Parkway.

Bronx International Film Festival screenings in November

The Bronx International Film Festival will launch its year-long 10th Anniversary celebration with screenings of narrative, documentary, experimental and animated films from the US, Ireland, Australia, Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan and Puerto Rico from November 8 to 10 at Lehman Stages. Visit http://bronxfilmfestival.com for schedule and developing festival

information. You can also connect with BXFF via http://www.facebook.com/bronxfilm and http://twitter.com/bronxfilm. A threeday transferable festival pass is $12. One day non-transferable passes are $5. Lehman Stages is conveniently located on the CUNY campus of Lehman College at 250 Bedford Park Blvd West, Bronx, NY 10468 near the #4 and D lines and just minutes away from Westchester and the GW Bridge. Films to be screened in competition include ‘Astorgos’ (USA) - Solomon Onita, ‘Atonal’ (USA) - Derrick Hausen, ‘Docket 32357’ (USA) - Randy Wilkins, ‘Douglas’ (USA) Brandon Vedder, ‘Evolution’ (Germany) - Georg Jungermann, ‘Fais Croquer’ (France) - Yasinne Qnia, ‘Gabi’ (Puerto Rico) - Zoe Salicrup-Junco, ‘Heads Up’ (USA) - Alex Merkin, ‘Heartland’ (Taiwan)Hai-Tao Wu, ‘Kavinsky’ (Switzerland) - Daniel Schraner, ‘Le Tette Di Una Diciottenne’ (Italy) - Luca Gennari, ‘Naufragos’ (Spain) - Mario Rico, ‘No Messages’ (Ireland) - Clan Mcgarrigle, ‘No Where, No One’ (Australia) - Erin Collett, ‘Nowhere In Particular’ (Ireland, UK) - Mason Cardiff, ‘Pareto Principle’ (USA) - Beneyam Wolde-Yohannes, ‘Pro Kopf’ (Germany) - Sascha Zimmermann, ‘Q’ (USA) - Felipe Vara De Rey, ‘Robot Man’ (USA) - Mark Scalese, ‘Rotos’ (Spain) Roberto Perez Toledo, ‘Son Of Man’ (USA) - John

Ambros, ‘Split Time’ (France) - Fabrice Bracq, ‘The Art Of Boxing (USA) - Andrew Flakelar, The Boat (Australia) - Somhay Phakonkham, The Fixer (USA) - Ian Phillips, The Runner (Germany) - Parker Ellerman, The Telegram Man (Australia) - James Khehtie, The World Outside (USA) - Zachary Kerschberg, Tu & Eu (USA) Edward Shieh, Vole Comme Un Papillon (France) Jerome Maldhe, Walt (USA) Thom Anthony, Wrigley and King (USA) - Cornelius Murphy. Stay tuned for more events during Bronx International Film Festival’s yearlong 10th anniversary celebration including additional film screenings and the launch of our new series with the Bronx Documentary Center titled “What is a Documentary?” The event will consist of different types of documentary makers from film and video, books, interactive, music, photography, dance, oral history, technology, food, scholars, educators, community leader, etc. talking about their projects, and how their project answers the question “What is a Documentary?” The Bronx International Film Festival is produced by the Bronx Stage & Film Company and made possible with the support of Lehman Stages, Bronx Council on the Arts, Yelp, The Bronx Tourism Council and The Bronx Documentary Center.

The RIVERDALE REVIEW • Thursday, November 8, 2012

Adoption Support Group to meet


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Of Bloomberg, butterflies and climate change

What’s worse than a hurricane? Being lectured by a bunch of know-nothing politicians as to why the hurricane happened, who is at fault, and how to stop the next one. That’s why you are hearing such great scientific minds, such as Mayor Michael Bloomberg, blaming global warming for the storm. The mayor insists that because of the hurricane and what he sees as the imperative to stop global warming, he has decided to endorse President Obama. Presumably, the president’s “better” stance on this issue will give the residents of the city some magic protection, a sort of garlic necklace to ward off future hurricanes. Or perhaps a Bloomberg endorsement might lead, as some have suggested, to a big job offer in the Obama cabinet so that the term-limited mayor can continue his “public service.” To those who are willing to blame global warming for Hurricane Sandy, we have but one word and one number. The word is Galveston and the number is 1900. It was a massive hurricane that hit Galveston on September 8, 1900. That storm so thoroughly destroyed the city that it is still considered the greatest disaster of its sort ever to hit America. Estimates of the death toll range from 6,000 to 12,000. Galveston was a city whose population at the time was estimated to be 37,000. Even Hurricane Katrina, responsible for destroying so much of far larger New Orleans, claimed only 1,800 lives. Let us contrast what went on in Galveston back then with our travails last week. We spent the better part of the week debating whether or not we should be conducting a foot race, while the people of Galveston spent the days after their disaster building enormous funeral pyres to burn the dead and load a barge with hundreds of other bodies which were weighted and dumped eighteen miles out at sea. Galveston was widely considered to be on the cusp of greatness, a city that almost certainly would have eclipsed Houston and perhaps even New Orleans to become the nation’s premier port on the Gulf of Mexico. There is, fortunately, a great book that chronicles this tragedy. That book is “Isaac’s Storm: A Man, A Time and the Deadliest Hurricane in History” by Erik Larson. The Isaac referred to in the title was Isaac Monroe Cline, who Continued on Page 19

CSAIR to present program on Chaim Grade

250th Street at the Henry Hudson Parkway.

Joseph Berger, a veteran NY Times reporter and columnist, will discuss the complicated legacy of Yiddish writer Chaim Grade at a talk at the Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale (CSAIR) on Thursday, November 15, at 7:45 pm. Grade was a great postwar Yiddish writer who never achieved anything like Isaac Bashevis Singer’s stature even though many scholars consider him the greater novelist. That failing may be due to a widow who battled scholars and publishers; no translator or editor was good enough. Now Jewish institutions are waiting to discover what’s inside the trove of manuscripts and books that were left in his widow’s modest Bronx apartment. For more information on this program - which is free and open to all - as well as other adult education opportunities at CSAIR, call the synagogue office at 718-543-8400. CSAIR is located at 475 West

HIR to hold Thanksgiving Dinner and Service

The Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, the Bayit (located at 3700 Henry Hudson Parkway) will host its annual Free Community Thanksgiving Dinner on Thursday, November 22. The day will begin at 12:00pm with a spiritually uplifting Thanksgiving Service followed by our free turkey dinner at 1:00pm. The afternoon will feature a live performance with soprano Sigal Chen and pianist Jonathan Dzik who will be performing popular songs from Broadway and patriotic Americana. This Dinner brings together approx. 150 people from in and around the Riverdale community for a delicious and festive meal. There will be plenty of food and an opportunity to offer up prayers of thanks. For reservations, please contact

ANDREW WOLF, Editor and Publisher

Note our new address: 5752 Fieldston Road Bronx, New York 10471 (718) 543-5200 FAX: (718) 543-4206

JOEL PAL Production Manager ROBERT NILVA Marketing Director

CECILIA McNALLY Office Manager MIAWLING LAM Associate Editor

STAFF: Robert Lebowitz, Richard Reay, Paulette Schneider, Lloyd Ultan, Daniel R. Wolf

the Synagogue office at 718796-4730. Volunteers are needed for setup, serving, and clean up. If you’re interested in volunteering, please contact our Volunteer Coordinators Hal and Ellie Weinstein at halellieweinstein@yahoo. com.

Rabbinical school lecture series at the Hebrew Institute

The community is invited to participate in a learning opportunity on Monday evenings. Yeshivat Chovevei Torah is presenting a series of four-session scholarly lectures on Monday evenings from 8 to 9 p.m. The next series, entitled ‘From the Rav’s Desk: The Published and Unpublished Letters of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik,’ will be taught by Rabbi Nati Helfgot, chair of the school’s departments of Bible and Jewish thought. Classes are scheduled for November 19, December 3, December 10 and December 17. The series that began this week, ‘Jew and Non-Jew in Halakha,’ is taught by dean of the yeshiva Rabbi Dov Linzer. Remaining sessions are October 29, November 5 and November 12. The registration fee is $18 per series. Classes meet on the second floor at the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 3700 Henry Hudson Parkway. For more information, contact abatalion@yctorah.org.


Continued on Page 1 for those with pre-existing conditions. He needed to show expanded coverage and lower costs for voters and consumers. But under the 2010 health care law, the exchanges and tax credits, which are the key coverage and cost provisions, don’t start operating until 2014. Wisconsin Unions: If Mr. Romney’s victory includes Wisconsin’s electoral votes, it will be a classic case of political irony. If the Wisconsin public sector

Of Bloomberg... Continued on Page 18 was the chief of the Galveston office of the nascent U.S. Weather Service. This was a key outpost in this then-budding agency. Cline, a “man of science” who also studied medicine, was a competent and thoroughly decent young man. The lack of preparedness for the storm could hardly be laid at his feet. The information Cline received on which to base his forecast was wrong, in part because the U.S. was unwilling to “scare” people even by using the word “hurricane” and unwilling to credit the work of Cuban meteorologists in identifying and tracking such storms. If anything, Cline was too inclined to trust his experience and had too much confidence in the structural integrity of his own very substantial house. He paid for his overconfidence with the loss of his pregnant wife, although he and his three children miraculously survived. Cline, who was 93 when he died in 1955, never remarried. If you read Larson’s book, you will learn of the unusual, historic heat of that summer, long before there was any huge increase in our “carbon footprint.” Automobiles were curiosities, and Mayor Bloomberg would have been overjoyed to preside over a city in which so many residents so regularly used bicycles to get around. But all the pedaling and all the cap-and-trading would not have spared Galveston, nor will it prevent any future storms To blame climate change for an individual storm is folly, and to base public policy on this is destructive. The origins of any storm are unknown and are often put in the realm of “nonlinear dynamics” or chaos theory. In Cline’s day there were no satellites transmitting detailed data, nor was there any way to “play back” the events of the recent past leading up to any storm. We have these advantages, yet still cannot pinpoint the genesis of any individual storm. Larson quotes Ernest Zebrowski Jr. in his book “Perils of a Restless Planet”: “Could a butterfly in a West African rain forest, by flitting to the left of a tree rather than to the right, possibly set into motion a chain of events that escalates into a hurricane striking coastal South Carolina a few weeks later?” Larson states that “the fact that the most detailed satellite analysis could not detect a trigger suggested that tropical storms might be influenced by forces too subtle to measure.” We do know that the effect of the wagging tongue of the pontificating politician can often be measured in terms of bad public policy and the unneeded cost to us as individuals, the sum of which over the entire population leads to a diminishing of the economy as a whole. Bloomberg’s “Butterfly Effect” is one we can all do without.

cutters usually beat tax-raisers. The Tone, Capitalism, and the Electorate: It turns out that a substantial portion of the electorate isn’t interested in demonizing successful American businessmen, as President Obama and his campaign have done. It turns out that a lot of voters admire American business success and wish we had more successful entrepreneurs in America, not fewer of them. So much of this campaign was President Obama and his allies attacking Bain Capital (and Wall Street, and insurance companies, and oil companies), and so much of it was Mr. Romney defending his career at Bain Capital. It turns out that a majority of American voters are not hostile to capitalism, and they bet that a president with business experience might do a better job of fostering economic growth than has President Obama, who constantly portrayed busi-

ness as something that Americans need to be protected from. So those are the explanations for the Romney win. Ira Stoll is editor of FutureOfCapitalism. com and author of Samuel Adams: A Life.

Alfred Vincent Filippelli, 90

Alfred Vincent Filippelli, age 90 of Norwalk, died on Sunday, November 4, 2012 at Griffin Hospital, Derby. Graveside Services will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 9, at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Hawthorne, NY. His family will receive friends on Thursday from 2 to 7 p.m., at the Magner Funeral Home, 12 Mott Ave., Norwalk, CT. For info or online guestbook, please go to: Magnerfuneralhome.com.

Great Music at Christ Church Riverdale Presents

TALISE TREVIGNE, Soprano Come experience the sheer beauty of her voice and exquisite stage presence. “No wonder TALISE TREVIGNE is THE BUZZ of the opera world. She has it all: a glorious voice, matchless acting ability and breathtaking beauty!”

Saturday, November 17, 2012 7:30pm Complimentary reception will follow the performance

$20 adults / $15 students & seniors For tickets and info visit www.christchurchriverdale.org Tickets also available at the door Christ Church Riverdale 5030 Henry Hudson Parkway Bronx, NY 10471 (718)543-1011

19 The RIVERDALE REVIEW • Thursday, November 8, 2012

Romney wins

unions had not gone after Governor Scott Walker in their unsuccessful recall effort, Mr. Walker would never have raised all the money he did and built the sophisticated voter lists and turnout operation that he had. If Mr. Romney wins Wisconsin, the Walker political ground operation developed in response to the union-initiated recall will be a big part of the reason why. (Another reason is Wisconsin’s own Paul Ryan, who will look like a genius vice presidential pick if he succeeds in helping to deliver those electoral votes.) Taxes: Mr. Romney’s tax messaging may have been murky to nonexistent at times, but Mr. Obama’s was so clear that the voters got the point anyway. Voters saw right through Mr. Obama’s “ask the wealthy to pay a little bit more” formulation and concluded that Mr. Obama wanted to raise taxes, while Mr. Romney had a plan for a 20% rate cut. In American elections, tax-


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