Pay Phones Continue To Vanish
July 31, 2006 on 1:23 pm | In Local, Main | 5 Comments
If you’re driving (or hiking) along the road and find yourself faced with an emergency, chances are you can either shout, flag down another car or activate your cell phone if you happen to be in range. Chances are, however, that you won’t find a pay phone.
That’s because they have been disappearing at an alarming rate — the victim of vandalism and the burgeoning use of wireless communications. As I discovered when I researched an article on this almost a year ago, there are few payphones left in the Northwest Corner and nearby New York. Unfortunately, links to that article on our Web site have expired, so I have pasted it at the end of this post in italics.
As this more current AP piece appearing in Sunday’s Hartford Courant makes clear, pay phones are becoming quaint relics. Take a walk through an airport or a train station. Entire banks of pay phones have disappeared at Bradley International Airport, for example, replaced by walking legions of travelers with plastic phones glued to their heads. Some cell phone yappers have dispensed altogether with the extra effort of pulling out the phone with the convenience (some might say ‘decadence’) of walking around all day with a headset.
X-Treme Politics
July 27, 2006 on 7:09 pm | In Main, National | 11 Comments
As is often the case on Wednesday afternoons, when weekly deadlines have passed and I have a chance to catch my breath, I got to thinking. We are in the middle of a political season whose battles are too often being fought at a fevered pitch. What inspires such passion among people in the arena of political and philosophical principles? Why do so many candidates, supporters and pundits go over-the-top when describing the beliefs, tactics and motives of the opposition?
The obvious answer is that it’s a reflection of a desire to be heard among the din that passes for political discourse these days. After all, a thoughtful and fair analysis of your opponent’s views seldom gets you face time on TV or a link on someone’s blog. And such a tactic is next to useless if your nemesis refuses to abide by the same rules. Then a harsh attack provokes a mean response and the whole process becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy. But there is another level on which meaness breeds passion and I think I’ve found it.
An Eye Doctor’s Vision: Vote And Get Rich
July 22, 2006 on 8:12 pm | In Main, National | 10 Comments
I must confess to being something of an Arizona-o-phile. Though I only visited the state briefly more than 20 years ago, I have always been impressed with its physical beauty, the can-do attitude of its people, that phenomenal Arizona Highways magazine, and the fact that a good Tex-Mex restaurant is never more than a hop-skip-and-a-jump away. The state insect is the two-tailed swallowtail — whatever that is (sounds great, though). And to top it off, three of my favorite politicians hail from the Grand Canyon State: John McCain, Bruce Babbit and Barry Goldwater.
That’s why I was particularly taken aback when I heard about a scheme to increase voter turnout there. Mark Osterloh, an ophthalmologist from Tuscon and a noted politcal gadfly, has succeeded in getting a proposal on the ballot in November that would reward those who vote in statewide elections and primaries with entry in a special $1 million lottery.
Why the Roar?
July 20, 2006 on 8:20 pm | In Main, Scenic Photos | 7 Comments
The Great Falls of the Housatonic River are seen this afternoon from the Salisbury side. The falls were as active as I have seen them in some time. I had a chat at the top of the overlook with Peter Gilbert and his son Caleb, but the sound of the rushing water was so loud I could barely hear the conversation.
Normally on a day like this there are swimmers dipping into the swirling pools at the bottom. But not today. It would have been far too dangerous. It has been hot and dry for the last several days with little measurable rainfall. Any idea why the falls are still acting like they’re the victim of a recent deluge?
Public vs. Private: Whose School Will Be ‘Perfect?’
July 17, 2006 on 7:28 pm | In Education, Main | 9 Comments
I’ve been doing a great deal of thinking about schooling since I read Jack Mahoney’s column on the op-ed page of the July 13 Lakeville Journal. Jack is a great guy, a popular former principal at Housatonic Valley Regional High School (whose 2005 graduation is pictured at right) and smart as a whip. On a couple of occasions I have used him as an authoritative source when writing about educational issues and trends. He always has something interesting and insightful to say.
His column is one of many in a series entitled “The Perfect School.” And I agree with much of what Jack wrote in the piece — that is until at the end when he states with certainty that “When the Perfect School is built it will not be private.”
Continue reading Public vs. Private: Whose School Will Be ‘Perfect?’…
The Buzz on the C-130s
July 14, 2006 on 7:23 pm | In Local, Main | 11 Comments
Shortly after I rejoined The Lakeville Journal Company in March 2005, I noticed renewed aircraft activity over the Northwest Corner and neighboring New York. What’s going on here, as the tagline to this blog asks? Why our area?
The chief culpit was the C-130 Hercules transport, a four-engine turboprop cargo aircraft and a key transport workhorse for military forces worldwide.
The view of the aircraft from below, as in the photo above left (which I got courtesy of the image archive at spectrumwd.com), is the one most area residents will recognize. This is because when they come over our area, the roaring aircraft announce their arrival well in advance but are flying low enough that you can’t see them until they’re practically on top of you.
Continue reading The Buzz on the C-130s…
Invasion of the Exponential Ants
July 11, 2006 on 11:35 pm | In Main, Pests | 9 Comments
It’s a little reminiscent of a sci-fi film. I woke up at 6 a.m. last week, bleary-eyed as always, poured my coffee and sat down in my study to check my email and watch a little Imus in the Morning. I noticed one or two carpenter ants on the floor, got up and killed them and didn’t think much of it.
Then about five minutes later they started coming out of the woodwork — literally. In about 15 minutes there were dozens of them not only in the study, but in the adjacent section of my kitchen. Yikes, I thought, I must do something, but what?
I got into my car and went straight down Wells Hill to Herrington’s, which is where I go whenever I have a problem, even at 7 a.m. I rummaged around the pest control section and came back to the counter with a couple of packages of baited “ant motels.â€
Pancake Circuit: Murphy Dines In Sharon
July 9, 2006 on 6:44 pm | In Local, Main, State | No Comments
In a rare foray into the Northwest Corner, Democratic state Sen. Chris Murphy, brought his message of Medicare reform, energy policy reform and opposition to President Bush’s Iraq war policy to a Sunday morning breakfast crowd.
Murphy, who is challenging longtime incumbent Republican Nancy Johnson for Connecticut’s 5th district seat in Congress, came to the firehouse in Sharon this morning for flapjacks and an informal campaign session. In the photo above taken by yours truly, he is seen making a point with a couple who attended the Sharon Fire Department’s pancake breakfast.
With two young campaign aides trailing him and handing out photocopied campaign flyers, Murphy, a second-term state senator, worked the crowd like an experienced pol, shaking hands with everyone in sight and giving his spiel to anyone who would listen.
The ‘Thrilla’ In West Hartford
July 7, 2006 on 3:39 am | In Main, State | 5 CommentsIn marked contrast to his tepid performance in the vice presidential debate of 2000, Connecticut’s junior senator looked more like Joe Frazier than Joe Lieberman in last night’s debate against challenger Ned Lamont. But as you may recall, despite a feisty performance and a pugnacious presence, Frazier lost the legendary 1975 bout with Muhammad Ali in the Philippines.
Such was the case at the WVIT studios. Did Lamont show himself to be a credible candidate who would “fight for Connecticut (a phrase Lieberman must have used a dozen times)?” I think he did, but then again I am biased — not for Lamont but against Lieberman.
Prepping For The Debate
July 6, 2006 on 2:29 pm | In Main, State | 2 CommentsTonight’s debate between Sen. Joe Lieberman and Democratic challenger Ned Lamont should be revealing on several levels.
Lamont will face his first serious test since announcing his candidacy earlier this year. Does he have the gravitas and the grasp of the issues to go toe-to-toe with an incumbent senator with 18 years of on-the-job training? Can he avoid the label of “Johnny One-Note” in challenging Lieberman on more than just his record on the Iraq war?
These questions will be key in determining whether Lamont will be taken seriously as a candidate by more than the anti-war crowd. If Lamont attacks Lieberman too strenuously from the left, he risks pushing moderates away from himself and toward Alan Schlesinger, the likely Republican nominee — that is if Lamont can beat Joe in the Aug. 8 primary.
How will Lieberman handle questions about the war? Will he find refuge in his previous assertons that those who question that war are hurting its effort (and, by implication, giving comfort to the enemy)? Will he belittle Lamont again as “that guy who was on the Greenwich Board of Selectmen?”
Will he deftly handle the question of why he has decided to run as an independent if Lamont beats him? Or will he come across as the Joe we know — the one who simply can’t believe the Nutmeg State could survive without him? Stay tuned.
The one-hour debate begins at 7 p.m on Channel 30 (WVIT) in Hartford. Those on the New York side who are interested can find it simulcast on C-SPAN. It will be the only debate between the two men before the primary.
Check out this page tomorrow (or perhaps even late tonight) for my take on the exchange.
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