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Janet Reitman Reads at The Half King

Janet Reitman reading from her book at The Half King.

Last night at The Half King, Rolling Stone reporter Janet Reitman read from her book Inside Scientology: The Story of America's Most Secretive Religion.

Reitman, who has reported in Haiti, Iraq, Sudan and Sierra Leone, spent about six years researching the book. She told the standing room only crowd that she tried to write objectively about Scientology--like a journalist reporting on a foreign culture.

Rietman described herself as a typically cynical New Yorker. She didn't expect to be lured in easily.

Her initial encounters with Scientologists--who didn't know she was a reporter--were benign. They acted so kind, so friendly and they seemed to truly want to help her quit smoking. They offered to enroll her in various--and expensive--Scientology programs. She told them she'd think about it.

When she told her editor at RS how nice they were, he yelled at her and said, "No! What's happening to you?" and she snapped out of it.

"They have an amazing sales mechanism," she said.

Someone in the audience asked Reitman if she had any insight on why people searching for meaning look for it at organizations like Scientology.

She said that people who are searching for meaning will be drawn to any organization that claims to provide answers--and Scientology is actively looking to recruit searchers. "They have modified themselves to fit every generation," she said.

When asked if she feared retribution for writing the book, she said pointedly said to "any Scientologists in the room: 'No.'" 

There was a slight pause, and, when no one in the audience spoke up to claim membership, the crowd exhaled.

Reitman said she was not afraid. She paraphrased FDR, "The only thing you have to fear," she said, "is fear itself."

--Sherry Mazzocchi

 

 

Robot Film Festival - July 16 - 17th

Heather Knight at TED.

Roboticist Heather Knight founded the Robot Film Festival, which premiers this weekend at Three Legged Theater on 80 Greenwich Street. Watch over 50 films, learn to make your own robot movie and even attend the swany Saturday night award ceremony--the Botskers (robot Oscars).  Sunday, come prepared to indulge in the BotBQ--complete with botgers (meat and veggie options available), podata salad and tinfoil hats.

Eric Francis Visits New York

Astrologer Eric Francis paid a rare visit to New York on Friday. The publisher of Planet Waves spoke to an intimate crowd of roughly 30 people at Nightlight Astrology about a wide range of topics including eclipses, Chiron, the odd events associated with 28 degrees of Gemini and his early years studying astrology.  

Francis said one of best teachers was Patric Walker, the legendary syndicated columnist who wrote a daily sun sign column for more than 20 years. The column appeared in more than 200 newspapers, including The New York Post. Walker had a devoted following who declared his column had a magical accuracy.

Francis never met Walker, but he studied those columns. Walker used the whole sign house system. If you are a Libra, Walker put that sign in the first house, Scorpio in the second, etc. and interpreted the day's planetary aspects from that perspective. Using an ephemeris, The Book of Thoth and an Aleister Crowley tarot deck, Francis said he "hacked" Walker's method. 

One of the things Francis liked best about Walker was his voice. "He spoke to people as people," Francis said. "You got the feeling this person was talking to you." 

Check the Planet Waves website for a link to a podcast of the evening's discussion.

-Sherry Mazzocchi

 

Cupcakes and Ale

The Peter McManus Cafe (corner of Seventh and 19th) is looking a lot sweeter these days. The happy face of Eileen O'Conner graces the open front window--along with her cupcakes.

About a month ago, O'Conner embarked on a new catering business, Double-D-lish Cupcakes. She makes the beautiful confections pictured above for weddings and other events. But lucky passersby can also get a taste heaven by buying individual red velvet, double chocolate with sour cherry butter creme or almond creme cupcakes directly from O'Connor at Peter McManus.

O'Conner worked at the bar on and off for 20 years as a waitress. She said that owner James McManus has been very supportive of her new catering career.  

"You class up the joint," he told her.

At first she was concerned that the McManus patrons wouldn't like the new addition to the bar.

But she shouldn't have worried. When customers come to the window to buy her cupcakes, the bartenders and customers encourage the purchase of at least two, saying "You'll want another one as soon as you get to the corner!"

Even though she's only been at the window for about a month, she already has a steady customer business and a good following on her Facebook page and Twitter.

"Of all the jobs I've had," she said, "this one is really fun."

--Sherry Mazzocchi

Vance Advocates for a Change in Misdemeanor Arrests

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr. told West Village residents last night that he is proposing new legislation that would allow people convicted of eight misdemeanors to be charged with a felony on the ninth arrest. 

Citing the January conviction of Naim Jabbar, Vance said that aggressive prosecution is needed to crack down on recidivism. According to Vance, Jabbar worked a midtown "eyeglasses scam." Jabbar was infamous for bumping into pedestrians and dropping his glasses, which Vance said were already broken. Jabbar would get angry and demand money their repair. Police arrested him over 40 times on various misdemeanor charges.

Vance told a crowd of about 100 at the Manhattan 6th Precinct community meeting that there are career criminals who specialize in misdemeanors because the longest sentence they can receive is a year in jail. "Criminals are skilled in committing offenses in the misdemeanor range," he said. "Judges don't pay too much attention to their cases and criminals are gaming the system."

Nineteen of Jabbar's 40 convictions were for fraudulent accosting. The longest sentence he'd ever received for that charge was five months. But that changed after his July arrest. Instead of being charged with the usual misdemeanor, hia crime was written up as a robbery disguised as a street con. Jabbar was convicted of a class D felony. 

"Now he's doing three and a half to seven years upstate," Vance said. 

Vance said the proposed legislation that will cut down on recidivism."Sentences for a felony conviction ups the ante," Vance said. "Now criminals have no disincentive to committing misdemeanors."

Vance also told West Village residents that his office is seeing a big rise in cyber crime and identity theft. The DA's office works on roughly 200 to 300 cases a month. "Cyber crimes are the crime scene of the 21st century," he said.

In the past, the DA's office treated cases of stolen credit cars as a "one-off crime." But now, the crimes are more thoroughly investigated. Vance said his office views these cases as the tip of national and international organized crime rings. 

"People arrested for using stolen credit cards are often recruited by crime organizations from abroad who make malware for the purposes of identity theft," he said. "They are turning that information over to local thieves who turn that money off shore."

Vance said his office works closely with local precincts, identifying the priority recidivist offenders. He gave a shout out to Assistant District Attorney Heather Pearson of the Crime Strategies Unit. When a serial offender is arrested, Pearson gets an email alert and ensures that the judge receives the individual's full dossier.

"We're focusing on the bad actors and prosecuting them aggressively," Vance said.

 -Sherry Mazzocchi

 

Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance Comes to the Village

 
Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance speaks Wednesday at the 6th Precinct Community Counsel meeting at Our Lady of Pompeii Church. According to Compstat, eight women have been raped in the 6th Precinct so far this year--a 100 percent increase over last year at this time. Rape is the one category that shows an overall increase since 1990.

Get Notified

Sign on the corner of NE corner of 23rd and Seventh Ave.

NYC is finding new avenues for advertising city services.  This sign, plastered right on pavement on the NE corner of Seventh Ave. and 23rd St., is great for pedestrians. But there should also be a phone number to call for emergency services in case you are hit by a bike messenger while reading instead of looking both ways.

Pita Hut on 23rd Street Shuttered

Pita Hut, a family operated business, which had been serving the Chelsea neighborhood for at least 16 years has closed.  The Pita Hut served up excellent Middle Eastern specialities and shots of fresh juice along with other vegan and vegetarian options. I often stopped in after a work out at the gym. The store has been closed since mid-April. The closing adds to the shortage of economically priced, locally-owned businesses in the Chelsea area. We will miss the Pita Hut.

Verizon Wireless Service Outage on 14th St.

 

Can you hear me now, Verizon? It's me, your customer.....

Verizon Wireless customers were cursing at their computers today. A call to the ISP resulted in a long wait while a crackly pre-recorded voice advised that Verizon customers were experiencing service outages on the East Coast, including “14^th Street.”

A conversation with a customer service rep did not restore service. A trip to S’nice to use their WiFi didn’t provide any relief either. They must use Verizon as their carrier, although none of the tattooed, but pleasant, staff could say for sure.

Verizon’s website could use a little customer assistance itself. After scrolling down their New York Customer Tips page, the link to New York Customer Service numbers lead to a blank page. Thanks for that, Verizon. I’ll just deduct the cost of that Starbucks latte from my bill.

 

Iraqi Art Show

Iraqi Art Exhibition NYC from Mario Diaz on Vimeo.

 Even though Iraqi artists living in exhile in Damascus are in extreme poverty and stress, Mel Lehman says they are finding salvation through beauty. Having worked for humanitarian causes for over 30 years, Lehman has been to Damascus, Syria several times to visit refugees. He has bought several works of art for exhibit at the Second Presbyterian Church at 96 Street and Central Park West. The show lasts until tomorrow evening at 8 pm. All of the works are for sale. The bids start as low as $30. All profits go to the refugees.