Lost Causes

Think of them as you wish, and they're not lost anymore. Magic! I started writing a newspaper column with this title when I was the student editor of "The Communicator" at Bronx Community College in 1966. And have remembered it for this Tumblr. The doodley drawing was by my classmate Joel Kweskin, who went on to become a professional caricaturist. Joel now dismisses this work as "sophomoric." Find his grownup work at www.jdkmarketing.biz.

-- Peter Frishauf

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Tuesday's Bloodshed on 6th Avenue Didn't Have to Happen

Mehmet Oz (circled) helping Siân Green at the scene

Dr. Mehmet Oz (circled) administers First Aid to Sîan Green, whose foot was severed by an out-of-control cab (NY Daily News Photo)

Mehmet Oz and hero plumber David Justino saved Sian Green’s life Tuesday. And the Emergency Service at Bellevue Hospital provided state of the art care for Sian the moment she arrived. All of these good deeds should be celebrated.

But what if Sian’s near-fatal injury could have been avoided altogether? What if New York City could eliminate 600 unnecessary deaths a year, and some 10,000 serious, often crippling traumatic injuries? How can we use this tragedy to make life better?

Two days after the carnage, and a few blocks away, Transportation Alternatives celebrated its 40th birthday. The bloodshed at 49th St. made it a bittersweet event.

We all want to end the kind of carnage that occurred outside Dr. Mehmet Oz’s window.

Every 36 hours a New Yorker dies in traffic; we believe (but don’t really know because of the way data is collected) that more than 10 times that number are seriously injured but survive, thanks to excellent medical attention, such as was rendered yesterday. An exponential number more sustain additional injury, such as the bicyclist in yesterday’s crash.

Many more people in New York are killed and seriously injured in traffic than from gun violence. Almost all of this death and injury is preventable:

Over the course of 10 years (1999 – 2009) in Midtown Manhattan there were:

· 8,604 total crashes

· 2,995 injuries

· 65 fatalities

After the construction of a protected bike lane and walker safety islands on 9th Avenue, the Department of Transportation recorded:

· Injuries to all street users down 56%

· Injuries to pedestrians down 29%

· Injuries to bicyclists down 57%

We must have safer streets and sidewalks for walkers and bicyclists and less congestion in traffic-clogged Midtown.

Just as we take food safety for granted, all of us should be safe to walk and travel through our streets.

With a redesign of our streets to slow traffic and promote healthy activities such as walking, bicycling, and prioritized access to mass transit, this goal can be achieved. Cities all over the world have done this, and New York itself has made great strides under Mayor Bloomberg in improving street safety: where modern “Complete streets” have been introduced, death and injury decreases 30% to 50%.

With a critical mayoral race before us, it is important that every candidate take this issue seriously.

We can do this: in the 19th century, it became quickly apparent that the built environment is critical. After the Croton aqueduct brought fresh, clean drinking water to the city in 1844, the fatality rate from cholera and yellow fever plummeted by more than 90%.

Sian's foot (circled) can be seen under the cab that struck a bicyclist who had the right of way and then ran over Sian

Sîan Green’s foot (circled) can be seen under the cab that struck her and a bicyclist who had the right of way (NY Daily News Photo)

“If this girl wakes up…today wasn’t as bad as I thought it was,” plumber David Justino said yesterday. With everyone’s active support, we can also make tomorrow a safer healthier day on our streets for Sian and all her new friends.

You can help:

• Sign this petition started by Transportation Alternatives last year to for a “complete street” redesign of Fifth and Sixth Avenues.

• Ask those running for public offices about their positions on safer streets, and more rational NYPD enforcement (In 60% of cases, just as was the case yesterday, a speeding out of control car is involved). The political organization StreetsPAC endorses candidates who take the issue of street safety seriously.

Educate yourself: Watch this short video of TA executive director Paul Steely White at a recent City Hall rally.

Now Ear this: this old-time SoHo simple has great Draft beer, history, and karma.

Soon we will need protected dog lanes on the nicely car-free Central Park loop as we #bikenyc.

Maybe the bike lobby IS all-powerful?

Does any candidate REALLY want to piss off tens of thousands of voters who care about streets issues? #StreetsPAC

# bikenyc StreetsPAC

Hilda Cohen doing the good work for streetspac.org at Summer Streets. #bikenyc

Not even a torrential downpour will deter free Shakespeare in #CentralPark!

86% of sex workers are mothers. AMMAR, Argentina’s Sex Workers’ Association, hires Ogilvy & Mather to make the point, brilliantly, with these corner posters. More at www.ammar.org.ar

Baby Falcons At Two NYC Bridges!

Neat photos of newly-hatched birdies
born at the Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge and the Throgs Neck Bridge. These are pegrines, the world’s fastest birds.

Citi Bike Hits 7,500 Trips on Day 3

Bloomberg Was on Fire at Yesterday’s Bike-Share Presser

Maybe the last occasion to see Michael Bloomberg answer a whole string of bike-related questions from the NYC press corps in one sitting. Well done #MayorMike as we #CitiBike to #BikeNYC!

# bikenyc

# bikeshare

# mayormike nyc

Photos: Parade Of Beautiful Vintage Trains At Grand Central Terminal This Weekend

On Saturday and Sunday, historic train cars from all over the country will celebrate Grand Central Terminal’s centennial for the “Grand Centennial Parade Of Trains"
These train cars are some of the most famous, like an observation car from the 20th Century Limited!
The parade of trains, which is free, runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on May 11 and 12, and there are many events—see here. There’s a model train show, “Railroadiana” antiques and collectibles event, plus MTA Police Department K-9 Unit Presentations and a Guinness Book of World Records event for the "World’s Tallest Track.” And, of course, there will be trains at tracks 34-37.

The Mermaid Parade Kickstarter Needs Your Clams

The Mermaid Parade is going to need to raise $100,000 in order for the 30-year Coney Island tradition to continue this summer. That nasty hag Sandy all but swallowed up the eclectic beachside community last October, delivering a thrashing that caused around $400,000 in damages to the parade’s organizers, Coney Island USA, which also runs the freak show, a burlesque show, and the Coney Island Museum

The Kickstarter for the parade officially launched yesterday, and has already netted $26,465 from 538 backers.

Its accompanying media features endearing entreaties from several Coney Island personalities, including parade founder and “unofficial mayor of Coney Island,” Dick Zigun, wearing his characteristic antique bathing costume, and a young boy decrying the mermaids as being “too naked.”

“Don’t come just for the cleavage,” one sophisticate says in the video. “There’s so much more to the Mermaid Parade.” Watch the whole video and contribute to the cause yourself here.

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