Is Long Island really worth the money?



New Mexico, USA



Long Island is beautiful. We have beaches, great schools, shopping malls, golf courses and wineries. We also have some of the highest taxes, electric rates and cable TV rates. We have tolls that keep going up, we have LIRR tickets that keep going up. We have beach and park fees that keep going up. There is a fee on everything here and they keep thinking up new ones. Is it really worth living here?

There are 49 other states as well as upstate itself. New Yorkers seem to flock to Florida, but now that State is turning into another Long Island with rising taxes and tolls.

I have found the "best kept secret". It's called New Mexico. Some Americans don't even know it's an American State. That's the reason they put "New Mexico, USA" on their license plates.

I bought an acre of land in Deming, New Mexico for $1500. No, not $15,000, or $150,000. I pay $35 a year tax on that land. When I build my retirement home there, the taxes will go up to $500 a year.

Sign along New Mexico Highway

So what do they have there that's so great you might ask? Well, I found a golf course, a winery, great shopping, a lake to go fishing and boating, and a beautiful view of the mountains. The humidity is very low and since it's about 3000 feet above sea level, it doesn't get into the 100's like it does in Arizona. In the Winter you get a dusting of snow. No LIE, No LIRR, No tolls, no crazy permits every time you want to do something.

Along the road, I found an adopt a highway sign that said "Ex-Long Islanders" on it. I guess I'm not the only one to find this paradise, but I figured I'd tell others about it if they are looking for a real alternative.

Paul Cartier; A Long Islander We All Can Be Proud Of!

Most citizens are law abiding people.  Now and then, we come across a person who contributes more to society than the average citizen.  One of those people is Paul Cartier.

Paul Cartier

Paul has been the organist for the New York Yankees since 2004.  He replaced longtime organist Eddie Layton after his retirement.  If you've been to a live Yankees game since then, you have heard Paul play,"Take Me Out To The Ballgame" during the seventh inning stretch.
             Paul started his organ playing when he was only nine years old.  His aunt had purchased him a Magnus chord organ.  By the time Paul was 11, he played his first Catholic mass at Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Roosevelt, New York.  For the past 25 years, Paul has been playing at Our Lady of Hope Roman Catholic Church in Carle Place, New York.  He recently received an award for 35 years of service with the Diocese of Rockville Centre.
             When Paul was 12, he wrote to the Shea Stadium organist, Jane Jarvis.  She graciously sent him a "First Edition" Mets songbook.  At age 15, Paul boldly applied for the organist job of the New York Islanders.  The director of music for the Nassau Coliseum responded with laughter.  That did not stop Paul.  He attended the University of Dayton in Ohio and worked hard learning how to play classical organ.  He spent long hours in a 12 X 12 room practicing on a pipe organ.  After his freshman year at Dayton, Paul transferd to Hofstra University and was offered a job playing at Saint Martha's Roman Catholic Church in Uniondale.
             As luck would have it, Paul had Dr. Fred Mendelson as his professor for piano 101 at Hofstra.  Professor Mendelson was also the organist at the Nassau Coliseum for the New York Islanders.  He invited Paul to come down to the coliseum for a visit.  During the intermission, Professor Mendelson asked Paul to play!  Soon after, the New York Arrows Indoor Soccer team started playing at the coliseum and needed an organist.  After only four years from the time of being laughed at, Paul, at age 19, was hired as an organist at the coliseum. Professor Mendelson soon retired a few years later and Paul filled his shoes as organist for the Islanders.
              In 2003 the organist for the New York Yankees had announced his retirement after 37 years.  The New York Yankees Director of Scoreboard Operations, Michael Bonner, offered the job to Paul. Then, in 2004, Paul's career with the New York Yankees began. He knows how lucky he is. On News 12, Paul told a reporter, “I have to pinch myself often and not take it for granted”.
             If all that wasn't enough, Paul has been a volunteer firefighter/EMT for the past 33 years.  He also has been Chairman of the Board of Fire Commissioners of the South Hempstead Fire District for the past 13 years.  Believe it or not, Paul has also been an FAA air traffic controller since 1987.  He is responsible for thousands of lives that fly over New York everyday.
             Paul was born on January 4, 1959 in Yonkers, New York.  He now lives in South Hempstead with his wife Janmarie.  He has a stepson, Kevin, who is 23 years old and a graduate of Hofstra University with a bachelors in psychology.  Paul and Janmarie's daughter, Katherine Lynn, 21, joined the South Hempstead Volunteer Fire Department in 2010.
       If you live on Long Island, there is a good chance that Paul's work has benefited you in some way.  Whether it be a response to a 911 call, a safe landing of an airplane, or the beautiful sound of organ music, Paul's many years of hard work has contributed to the high living standards we enjoy here on Long Island.

Are We Too "Dumbed Down"?

Are we “dumbing down” too much? Now with high tech gadgets, it seems that people are just not thinking as much as they used to. It seems that Americans can't spell, can't find anything on a map, can't do math and don't care about anything, except football scores and celebrity gossip, anymore.

 For example; now that we store important phone numbers in our cell phones, most of us don’t bother to memorize phone numbers anymore. That’s not always a good thing. Some people who get arrested on a Friday, for example, could be out and about within hours if they had a number of a friend or a relative to get them out. Because cell phones are taken away, upon entering jail, the person who can’t remember a number might end up in jail for the entire weekend.

 Another problem is associated with texting. People now try to make up abbreviations that are neither official nor universal. I was playing an online game of “The Price is Right” and somebody in the chat area tried to wish me good luck by typing “GL”. I understood it as an insult, thinking it meant “get lost”.

 Texting also causes another problem. Children are now using these “abbreviations” in normal school work. Teachers are dealing with term papers with such things as “ur” instead of “your”, or “r u” instead of “are you”, in them. It seems students now don’t think spelling and grammar are important anymore.

  Must the word “like” be used 30 times per minute? I recently was walking down 7^th Avenue in Manhattan, when a young person pointed towards 42^nd Street and asked me, “Is that like Times Square?”  I spontaneously answered, “No, it’s the real thing!”, not realizing he was asking for directions.

  I recently went back to Suffolk Community College to finish my degree in radio and television. I was amazed at what I saw at the college level. For example, in my geography class, I heard a student say, “Just teach me what will be on the test".

  Another student in my public speaking class told me, “I thought this was going to be just making speeches. I didn't think there was going to be homework".

  Even modern music seems to be “dumbing down”. I know Katy Perry isn’t Mozart, but "California Gurls" leaves nothing to the imagination. I guess metaphores and similes require too much thinking. You have to be as frank and offensive as possible now. "Sex on the beach. We've got white sand in our stilettos". Is that even fit for radio?

 Nevermind the spelling of “gurls”. We now have TV networks such us “SyFy” and “Tru TV”. The Wendy’s sign on Route 109 in Farmingdale says, “D Thru  ‘till 2am” Is that even English?

 I recently saw Jay Leno ask a lady on his “Jaywalking” segment, who lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. She didn’t have a clue. Yet, when he asked her who lives in a pineapple under the sea, she yelled out, “Spongebob!”

 If you think that’s frightening, an Australian TV reporter was asking people in Times Square when 9/11 happened. He was getting answers like, “October” and “September 9^th."

 I don’t know if I should laugh or cry. I tried looking up which countries are now number one. China is number one in math, Finland is number one in reading and Japan in number one in science. The only thing America seems to be number one at is teen pregnancies (within the industrialized nations)!

 Maybe it’s just me. I might be too old fashioned or not up to speed with the new “dumbed down” America. Am I making too big of a deal over this? Should I worry about the future of the U.S.A. or is this just a phase we are going through?

Has the music industry gone too far?

The entertainment industry has a powerful influence on our society and culture. It is a yardstick of our values. Children and young adults, especially, look up to their idols and, in some cases, try to emulate them.
     The music of today has changed a lot in the past forty years. Here is a good example: England Dan & John Ford Coley "I'd Really Love to See You Tonight" from 1976 vs. Katy Perry "California Gurls" from 2010.
     Popular singers were always known to dress "outrageous" in order to attract attention. Long hair, leisure suits and mustaches are tame compared to the bras that shoot out fireworks Katy Perry wears. That is mainstream entertainment now.

          Next, let us look at the lyrics: They are both supposed to be about sex in some fashion. Sex does sell. "I'd Really Love to See You Tonight" is almost like a story. Words like "There's a warm wind blowing the stars around" create romantic images that people can relate to. On the other hand, "California Gurls" leaves nothing to the imagination. Metaphors and similes aren’t used anymore. You have to be as frank and offensive as possible now. "Sex on the beach. We've got white sand in our stilettos". That is barely even fit for radio. There is such a thing as free speech, but, with lyrics like that, there is no wonder why America is number one in teen pregnancies among industialized nations. There is a difference between romance and pornography.

         I debated this issue with a former Long Island radio DJ for B-103, named Bob Alfano. He said, “I'm sure back in the late 50s & early 70s there were people who made the same argument about early Rock & Roll. If they got their way, we'd have been deprived of Elvis, The Beatles, etc. As tame as that seems now, it was as radical back in the day”.
     This might be true, but where should the line be drawn? Long hair and maraijuana use is one thing, but the consequences of unprotected sex can result in AIDS or unwanted children.
    Lydia Connito, a mother from Westchester County, NY, agreed. “Have you heard Rhianna's new song "S&M"? How did that get past the sensors?”, she asked.
     It seems that society itself has turned in the opposite direction, compared to the 1950’s, when married couples were depicted on TV as sleeping in separate beds. That was extreme, but so is what our airwaves are filled with today.
     There really is a sense that improper values are now free to be promoted on our airwaves. Yes, the FCC still has rules against broadcasting indecent material, but the entertainment industry keeps trying to test what it can get away with by pushing the envelope every year a little bit further. This will not change as long as it is tolerated by parents

Treasure Hunting on Long Island

Did you know that there is hidden treasure all over Long Island? No, not gold and diamonds, but geocaches. A geocache is a hidden container filled with a log book and pencil/pen, and possibly prizes. People with GPS devices can search for these containers and enjoy the outdoors at the same time.

  There are 1.4 million geocaches all over the planet and hundreds hidden right here on Long Island.  In order to participate, you will need a portable GPS device (even a smartphone with GPS capability) and a free account at www.geocaching.com.

 There are many types of geocaches to find. The most popular is the “traditional cache”, which consists of either a tupperware container or an ammo box filled with goodies, as well as a log to sign. Other geocaches, such as the “micro-cache”, may be smaller and only contain a log. Some geocaches may even contain trackable items know as “geocoins” and “travel bugs”, that travel from geocache to geocache.

  Geocaching started back in the year 2000 by Dave Ulmer, a GPS enthusiast. Since then, it has grown to over 4 million people hiding and finding geocaches all over the world.

  Here on Long Island, geocaching has become very popular. People of all ages travel to places on Long Island, they may have never otherwise known about. Most of the geocaches are hidden in parks or on public land.

 There are really only 3 rules to geocaching: 1. If you take something from the geocache, leave something of equal or greater value. 2. Write about your find in the geocache logbook. 3. Log your experience online at the geocaching website.

 Geocaching even has its own lingo, such as “FTF” (First to Find), TNLN (Took Nothing, Left Nothing) and geomuggle (a non-geocacher that may look puzzled at a geocacher making circles with their GPS receiver).

 For more information, you can visit the LIGO (Long Island Geocaching Organization) website at www.ligeocaching.com.

The Credit Score Scam

Let me get this straight. Three companies, TransUnion, Equafax and Experian, came into existence and are allowed to access all of your personal financial information and create some kind of a " FICO score" that can be kept hidden from you, unless you pay to see them?
You can get a free report per year, but that doesn't include the score! This "FICO score" is not only being used to evaluate things like the interest rates you get, but now it is being used by potential employers and landlords to determine if you will get a job or a rental apartment. This is tolerated?
What ever happened to being innocent until proven guilty? Under this system, you actually have to track down your bad score and try to dispute it, in order to keep it correct. This is time and money you are spending on something that should be a private issue.
Steve Rizza, a Reginal Vice President for Primerica, here on Long Island, said, "Most people don't check their scores. They should because it affects their mortgage and credit card rates".
What if a new company came along, took all your private medical records, and made a "medical score" you weren't allowed to see without paying for, so that health and life insurance companies could judge what rates you should get on medical and life insurance? Is that next?
I think that this is designed to destroy the middle class. If you lose your job, you can't make your credit card payments, which lowers your score, which makes it harder to get another job, which makes being unemployed a longer problem, which also raises the interest rates on your new loans that are even harder to pay without a job. As you spiral down, you may also lose your apartment, but good luck trying to find another, more affordable, one as your score falls lower and lower.
Don't like the fees your current bank is charging you while you struggle to survive on unemployment insurance? Good luck trying to open up another checking account at another bank (yes, your credit score counts for that, too).
The worst part about credit scores is that they are inconsistent. According to a recently released report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, credit reporting agencies actually give out different scores, depending on if they are for banks, retailers, landlords, or consumers. "Given this complexity, it is unlikely that a consumer will often be able to know the exact score that a particular lender will use to evaluate them," the report stated.
Nicole Brems, a college student on Long Island agrees. “It's a totally ridiculous system they have set up," she said.
Some people are even having a problem getting a simple cell phone, because of the credit score system. “AT&T wanted a $500 security deposit thing, per phone, because I didn’t have a score," said 19-year-old Kierstyn Horne of Centerport.
This needs to end. People have to stop accepting the way things are now. We need to make credit scores fair.

Bad Driving on Long Island

Traffic on Long Island is out of control. Drivers pretty much do whatever they want without any regard for anyone else.

People eat, shave and apply make-up while driving. They talk on cell phones as if the law doesn’t apply to them. They fly through stop signs as if they weren’t even there. Speed limits are a joke. Even if you go 70 mph in a 55 mph zone, people still pass you as if you were standing still.

I just love it when I get to a four-way stop and actually make a complete stop, then watch as some entitled driver sees me stopped and thinks that is an excuse to fly through his own stop sign without getting hit. Why not make your own complete stop and let me go, like the law intended?

Turn on the radio and listen to a traffic report. There is always an accident somewhere on Long Island. Yet, we wonder why our insurance rates are so high.
In my opinion, our $100,000+ average per year police are not doing a good job.
Here are some of my experiences:

• After videotaping a band at a local Farmingdale bar, for my public access TV show, I returned to my car to go home. An alleged intoxicated person soon left the bar, got in his car and pulled out of his parking spot, hitting my car. As he sped off, I got his license number and called 911 on my cell phone. After 10 minutes, an officer arrived and was only willing to fill out an accident report. No effort was made to catch the potential drunk driver. The officer told me that there was no proof that the driver they may catch at the wheel would be the same one who hit me. He even suggested that I go after the guy myself, next time!

•   Another incident happened on the Southern State. I was on my way to a concert at the Westbury Theatre. Of course there was a long line of cars at the exit trying to get to the theatre. I waited 20 minutes to get onto the exit ramp. Somebody with a giant SUV, who thought he was better than everybody else, decided to pull up onto the grass and pass everybody. He then decided he wanted to cut back in, in front of me and pulled up within inches of my car. He then rolled down his window and started to pound on my car with his fist, yelling that I was “gay” for driving a small Toyota, Yaris. I called 911 and waited for the police. Of course they arrived way after the guy took off. I was told they couldn’t do anything, because my car wasn’t damaged and I wasn’t hurt.

• I find it amazing that I had been pulled over three times in one day for a broken taillight, on the same day I almost got killed by two people drag racing on the LIE. I guess the police go after the easy prey.

It’s no wonder why so many people do whatever they feel like doing on Long Island roads. The chances of actually getting caught seem to be slim to none.