Value Content Over Style
Heed those who see the big picture
By Bette Dewing
Hey, journalists Jeff Greenfield and Mark Barabak, don’t call yourself “old fogies” because you think that televised debate audiences shouldn’t react verbally, and chuck that ageist label. It implies that decorous behavior in an era of loud mouths is somehow regressive. Read more
Dousing the Flame on Apartment Fires
Fire prevention must become a top national concern
By Bette Dewing
“We often need as much to be reminded as to be informed” are among the wisest words ever spoken. Thank you, Dr. Samuel Johnson.
And we must remember Martin Luther King’s dream of a nation where content of character matters, not skin color. Surely that means not valuing “physical attractiveness” over character. Recent research shows that so-called attractive members of Congress are the ones who get the most TV coverage (“Looks Matter as TV Covers Congress,” New York Times, Jan. 6). Once, the women’s movement denounced this general attractiveness bias, and I’m seeking others concerned that the now decades of related research stored in one of my file cabinets do not go to waste. Read more
2012 Resolutions to Keep
Using Facebook and Twitter to better society
By Bette Dewing
Protecting life and health always tops this column’s mission.
The tragic Christmas morning Stamford, Conn., fire that killed three young sisters and their maternal grandparents prompts an overdue focus on fire-related danger. While unsafe disposal of fireplace embers was the fire’s reported cause, had smoke detectors been installed in the mansion that was under renovation, it might not have been deadly. Read more
Banging the Drum Against Murder
Confronting indifference to violence and mobs that maraud without cause
By Bette Dewing
“Rampaging mobs had broken into every shop there, stealing everything from designer clothing to electronics. One store stood alone, however, its window intact and its goods untouched. It was a bookstore, wherein perhaps the best hope for a better future lay ignored.”
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Harking Back to Bygone Virtues
Cultural change can come if enough of us work for it
By Bette Dewing
“The impersonal hand of government can never replace the helping hand of a neighbor.” Hubert Humphrey’s wisdom repeatedly appears here, because, as Dr. Samuel Johnson discovered, “We need as much to be reminded as informed!”
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Adopt the Leiby Initiative and make our streets safer
Unending Good Must Come from Senseless Evil
By Bette Dewing
“If it wasn’t for surveillance cameras, Levi Aron would be free to kill again. These cameras have been instrumental in capturing previous killers, rapists, muggers, bank-robbers and the like. We need more cameras particularly in crime-ridden neighborhoods.”
Anniversary Celebration Hits the ‘Right Key’
Paper’s 40th a success—and bring back park pianos full time!
By Bette Dewing
First, dear Our Town readers, a computer glitch grinch changed my wishing the paper 40 more birthdays to asking readers to save 40 copies of the paper in last week’s column. Hee, hee! But hey, do save a copy of the memorable June 30 anniversary issue.
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Don’t Be Silent About Elder Abuse
Fight back against mistreatment of seniors
By Bette Dewing
So worth the saving, sharing and acting upon is the “Elder Abuse Is All-Too-Common Crime” op-ed piece from last week by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance and Council Member Jessica Lappin, who also heads the council’s Committee on Aging (the article can also be found at ourtownny.com).
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Raising the Veil on Traffic Tragedies
Pedestrian deaths and family love deserve more media coverage
By Bette Dewing
Here’s hoping that “all the news that’s fit to print” paper’s new executive editor, Jill Abramson, and news editor, Dean Baquet, give more coverage to non-political violent crime and to what I’ve long called crimes of traffic.
One Mad Moment in the Night
Confronting frequent causes of suicide among young men
By Bette Dewing
When a New York Times movie reviewer quite likes Bridesmaids, maybe the world should end. (Incidentally, the otherwise still traditional Family Radio station loses all credibility due to its president’s “World will end on May 21” rant.)
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