Eliminate BP’s Office
To the Editor:
It is regrettable in a city where so many have lost their jobs, that the Manhattan Borough President proposes a vegetable garden in City Hall Park (Express, “State of the Borough,” Feb. 11). It is yet another milestone—not on the road to City Hall, but to the elimination of the borough presidencies.
David Casavis
2009 candidate for borough president
To the Editor:
One sometimes wonders why a paper would have one of its writers either knowingly or inadvertently insult the intelligence of readers. In the Feb. 4 column by Josh Perilo—the self-described “Penniless Epicure”—we are told, “I know wine. There’s little else I truly have any depth of knowledge in.” His knowledge of wine may be what he alleges, but the tone of the article is scolding.
First, your reporter assumes that anyone consulting a wine list is scoffing at it. That’s simply not the case. He then takes us through wine list morality 101 and begs the question of whether restaurant patrons know where they are.
Unless the column is intended for the unsophisticated, no one has to be told that the best wine list for any restaurant is one that serves the cuisine. The reporter does not bother to mention that many distributors offer wine list creation services for restaurant clients that order only from them. Frequently, such wine lists are more about what the distributor wants to sell and less about what the restaurant needs. These and many of the thoughtless configurations that pretend to be wine lists deserve more than a scoff, they deserve the circular file.
And the excuse for an abbreviated by- the-glass wine list is both specious and inaccurate. Sure, many restaurants have limited space to store wine, but there are many more who put customers first and go the extra mile to offer a good by the glass selection.
Is the writer a restaurateur? Both the scolding tone and the preachy style lead me to believe he’s written an apologia for restaurants whose wine lists may not be up to par.
“So the next time you sit down and scoff at the wine list, remember where you are and that you aren’t the only one ordering wine that night.”
For the people in the neighborhoods Our Town serves to be chastised in this way is an insult. Instead of asking readers to snuggle up to any wine list they encounter, Mr. Perilo ought to apologize to the readers. Not every wine list is worthy.
Rodger Parsons
East 85th Street
Letters have been edited for clarity, style and brevity.
City Week: Feb 26– March 4
A Selective Listing of Recommended Cultural & Community Events
Compiled by Shannon Geis
Friday, February 26
Artists in Training—The new exhibition “Becoming an Artist: The Academy in 19th-Century France” explores the technical and intellectual training offered by famous art school École des Beaux-Arts. The exhibit highlights the rigorous curriculum that attracted students to the academy from all over the world, the competitions, the hierarchy of subject matter and the variety of artistic expression generated by this system. The exhibit is sponsored by a partnership between Syracuse University and the Dahesh Museum of Art. The Palitz Gallery in Lubin House, 11 E. 61st St., 212-826-0320; 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Free. Read more
Science, Straight Up
By Rochana Rapkins
For the last few months, crowds of youthful, well-groomed New Yorkers have flocked to the American Museum of Natural History the first Wednesday of each month to hear lectures on Darwin and social media, the search for life in the universe and the biological basis for greed. An added enticement? Free admission, a DJ and a cash bar, which are part of the museum’s bid to attract new visitors. Read more
A Climax For Feldshuh
By Charlotte Eichna
It’s hard to catch Tovah Feldshuh—that’s pronounced felt-shoe, “like a shoe made out of felt,” mind you—who for years has been bouncing between Broadway, film, a stint on Law & Order as defense attorney Danielle Melnick, singing gigs and other projects. Read more
Subway Construction Updates
By Samuel Chamberlain
Sam Schwartz Engineering recently released a schedule for Second Avenue subway construction through March 8.
Work on the 96th Street station will span East 95th to 100th streets. Between East 99th and 100th streets, workers will relocate utilities, build a new manhole for Con Edison and install a Con Edison duct bank. Read more
Penguin Paradise
A chinstrap penguin (right front) gets to know one of four new king penguins that recently moved in to the Penguin House at the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Central Park Zoo. The new penguins, all males, are named Lyle, Slappy, Will and Robert.
Photo by Andrew Schwartz
Split Over Maloney Primary
By Andrew J. Hawkins
Members of the Eleanor Roosevelt Legacy Committee, an influential women’s political empowerment group, are splitting over the primary race between Rep. Carolyn Maloney and her insurgent challenger, Reshma Saujani.
Cathy Lasry, the group’s president and wife to billionaire hedge funder Marc Lasry, is actively supporting Saujani, serving as co-finance chair for the first-time candidate’s campaign. Other members have also expressed vocal support for Saujani, a hedge fund lawyer and political fundraiser. Read more
SAVING BUCKS WITH E-BOOKS
by Miranda Katz
With the advent of digital readers like the Kindle and the near universal preference of laptops over desktops among college students, Assembly Member Micah Kellner believes young scribes can be spared the high cost of textbooks.
Kellner released a report Feb. 22 suggesting that CUNY and SUNY negotiate with distributors to establish a price for the bulk purchase of digital texts.
The digital textbooks would be compatible with all types of e-reading
devices, including laptops, Kindles and iPads. Kellner emphasized the importance of ensuring format flexibility and developing an open system through which students could acquire textbooks at a much lower price than they do now.
“There is no monopoly on knowledge,” Kellner said. “My legislation will mandate CUNY and SUNY to set standards for how we can encourage faculty to develop open textbooks for their courses.”
T-SHIRT DONATIONS
by Charlotte Eichna
Those looking to donate clothing for victims of the earthquake in Haiti need look no farther than Baruch Performing Arts Center, on East 25th Street between Lexington and Third avenues. The center’s managing director, John Malatesta, announced last week that the box office has become the only Manhattan-based drop-off point for 25,000 T-shirts for Haiti, a Staten Island-based organization that is collecting clothing for earthquake victims. For more information, contact Malatesta at 646-312-4083 or john.malatesta@baruch.cuny.edu.
CLARIFICATION
By Andrew J. Hawkins
The names of some funders of Andrew Haswell Green Park were omitted from the Feb. 18 article about the plan. In addition to Borough President Scott Stringer and Council Member Jessica Lappin, State Sen. Liz Krueger and Assembly Member Jonathan Bing have also allocated funds to create the park.
