Reader: Yeger controversy about semantics
To the Editor,
Councilman Kalman Yeger spoke
truth to power, and power in turn
spoke its concept of truth to Kalman
Yeger.
The saga of Kalman Yeger opened
with his March 20 tweet: “Palestine
does not exist.” At this writing, Yeger’s
bosses — the leadership team of New
York City Council — are in the process
of removing Yeger as a member of its
immigration committee.
Yeger, who represents Borough
Park’s enclave of Orthodox Jews,
was undermined by the manipulation
of oblique language — what
amounts to theater of the absurd. The
Councilman was merely responding
to use of the word “Palestine,” often
espoused by advocates for the Arabs
in Israel’s territories. Supporters of
Israel have applied similar tactics
to their arguments, but it does not
appear to be quite as much.
None of NYC’s three dailies bothered
to defi ne “Palestine” when they
reported on the controversy. That
word — Palestine — has confounded
me over the years when supporters of
the Palestinians have uttered it.
There is a Palestine, Ill., and a Palestine,
Texas, and I am not familiar
with any other sovereign nation, state,
county, or city called Palestine. In
other words, Yeger stated what is true.
It is challenging enough to debate
the Israel–Palestinian confl ict when
speaking in plain, understandable
language, yet, how can we possibly
get serious when one or both sides
exploit words of dubious meaning?
Both sides have utilized skewed
language, such as: “From the river to
the sea,” “apartheid state,” “Greater
Israel” and “the evil doings of Israel.”
The “river/sea” remark is seen as
Arab code for the land where Israel
and its territories are located (from
the Jordan River to the Mediterranean
Sea). Israel is frequently referred
to as an “apartheid state.” “Greater Israel”
is viewed, at the least, as Israeli
control of the West Bank and Gaza.
Then there is U.S. Rep. Ilhan
Omar’s 2012 comment: “Israel has
hypnotized the world, may Allah
awaken the people and help them
see the evil doings of Israel.” While
she did not hold elective offi ce at the
time, Omar had advanced far into
adulthood by then. What sane person
talks like that?
We can reasonably fear that disingenuous
semantics will ignite future
clashes among powerful people.
As semantic skirmishes persist,
millions of lives hang in the balance.
In the city known for its estimated
Jewish population of 1 million, it
took only about 10 days — on April
Fools’ Day — before the Council leadership
decided to remove Yeger from
City Council’s immigration committee.
They were not fooling, while
fooling themselves.
Mayor de Blasio and Council
Speaker Corey Johnson must know
what us lowly American citizens and
mere members of Council like Yeger
do not know, since both of New York’s
esteemed leaders swiftly pounced
on Yeger.
“I very vigorously condemn his
comments…they have no place in
New York City,” said Johnson, as
quoted in The New York Times. “The
best thing about our city is our diversity,
and includes our Jewish community
and…our amazing Palestinian
community.” Note: NYC’s Council
speaker regards only one of the communities
“amazing.”
“There has to be a Palestinian
homeland,” the mayor chimed in
during a radio program. “People in
public life should be about unifying
people and fi nding ways to work together.
What he is doing is the opposite.”
De Blasio added in a tweet, “A
two-state solution is the best hope for
peace. I challenge anyone who thinks
the state of Israel shouldn’t exist. But
the same goes for anyone who would
deny Palestinians a home.”
Who is denying Palestinians a
home? Palestinians lack a sovereign
home right now, and fabricating a
name for an entity that does not exist
yet will not make it happen. If Israel
and Palestinians reach agreement
on a two-state solution, then
they will have an independent state
which, presumably, its inhabitants
will name “Palestine.”
Yeger was left with the choice of
apologizing or losing his place on the
immigration committee. He has so
far refused to apologize. The Times
reported that Council’s Committee on
Rules, Privileges and Elections must
vote to drop Yeger from the committee
to be followed by a two-thirds vote
of all Council members.
Maybe Council will not follow
through on this, maybe they will reverse
themselves later if they ever
recognize how silly they are behaving.
COURIER L 38 IFE, APRIL 19–25, 2019 PS
It seems obvious that de Blasio
and Johnson are sincerely trying to
be sensitive to a minority group, and
in so doing they are abusing their
power. Sounds like they need an interpreter.
Bruce S. Ticker
Philadelphia, Pa.
Congestion concerns
To the Editor,
According to the Daily News, billions
of dollars have been pilfered
from MTA funds collected from NYC
residents’ utility bills, phone bills,
and other NYC revenue sources. Every
governor, with the possible exception
of Elliot Spitzer (because he
quit too soon), has taken money out
from this MTA fund for more than
30 years — Mario Cuomo included —
and then used this money for upstate
(NY) priorities only.
Return the billions of dollars back
to the MTA now, and we won’t need
congestion pricing! I don’t drive —
never have, never will. Congestion
pricing is nothing but a tax and it will
be increased over the years — hurting
the middle and lower classes, as usual.
It is wrong, as wrong as all these
governors stealing the MTA funds
was wrong! Evan Stone
Brighton Beach
...
To the Editor,
The devil is in the missing details
yet to be worked out concerning passage
of Congestion Pricing. The MTA
receives $1.4 billion in annual assistance
from various Federal Transit
Administration formula funding
grant programs. For decades, the
MTA has distributed these dollars
from Washington via a formula to
operating agencies. They have been
split between NYC Transit (75 percent)
Long Island Rail Road (12.5 percent)
and Metro North Rail Road (12.5
percent). It is interesting that this formula
for federal assistance has been
accepted as fair. A similar formula of
80 percent for NYC Transit, 10 percent
LIRR and 10 percent MNRR was adopted
for distribution of future Congestion
Pricing Revenue. Remember
a legal challenge to the non resident
commuter tax resulted in its demise.
Don’t be surprised when legal challenges
are submitted against congestion
pricing. Who knows if it will actually
be implemented by 2021.
Is MTA Bus included under the
80 percent for NYC Transit? In 2005,
NYC transferred management of the
seven private franchised bus operators
(Command Bus, Green Lines,
Jamaica Bus, Triboro Coach, Queens
Surface, NY Bus and Liberty Lines
Bronx Express) to the MTA. The
MTA subsequently created MTA
Bus, which is a separate from NYC
Transit Bus.
Promised savings by consolidation
of Civil Rights, Engineering, Legal,
Procurement and other LIRR/
Metro North departments have been
periodically discussed and promised
for decades by different generations
of MTA management and elected offi
cials. This will never happen due to
work rules, seniority and contracts
between different labor unions representing
employees at LIRR and
Metro North. The same applies to anticipated
savings by contracting out
more work to the private sector.
Project cost containment along
with fast tracking procurements and
contract change orders for the MTA
has been periodically discussed and
promised for decades by different
generations of MTA management and
elected offi cials. It is easier said than
done due to signifi cant obstacles.
MTA union work rules sometimes
prevent contracting out work to the
private sector. Third-party private
contractors require MTA NYC Transit,
Long Island and Metro North Rail
Roads agency Force Account (their
own employees) to provide both supervision
and protection. when they work
on or adjacent to active right of way
track. There sometimes are excessive
numbers of MTA supervisory or employees
assigned, adding to costs.
Will Cuomo and the State Legislature
use congestion pricing revenue
as a back door method to reduce previously
planned anticipated future
contributions to the upcoming MTA
2020–2024 Five Year?
Promised “forensic audit” of the
MTA is a waste of time and money.
How many internal MTA, MTA Offi
ce of Inspector General, State Comptroller,
City Comptroller, NYC Offi ce
of Management and Budget, Federal
Transit Administration OIG and
other audits have come and gone?
What about numerous newspaper investigative
reports on waste, fraud,
or abuse? Another audit will not result
in any signifi cant changes.
No one will know the cost of congestion
pricing until it is implemented
starting in 2021. Coincidence
that members of the State Assembly
and Senate will fi rst be reelected in
2020 before the price becomes public?
What happened to promised open
transparent government?
Is this what MTA customers have
to look forward to? Taxpayers and riders
deserve better. Larry Penner
Great Neck
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