St. Joe’s falls to Mitchell College
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
St. John’s inks two recruits
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Jeffrey Roth, 258th Field Artillery
Army National Guard Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Roth, a resident of Boerum Hill and a veteran of deployments to Kuwait and Jordan, has taken command of the New York Army National Guard’s only field artillery battalion.
The 258th Field Artillery is headquartered at the Jamaica Armory in Queens and has elements in the Bronx, Harlem, and New Windsor.
The traditional change of command ceremony involved Roth accepting the Battalion’s flag from the commander of the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team.
“We will build upon the past successes of this battalion, redouble our efforts to strengthen the artillery, and grow leaders for the future of the field artillery, which today has an unparalleled opportunity for impact and career growth,” Roth said.
While assigned to the Michigan Army National Guard, Roth deployed with the Multinational Force and Observers, a peacekeeping force established in 1981 as part of a treaty between Israel and Egypt. He served as the deputy officer in charge at a training center in Jordan.
In civilian life, Roth is the deputy commissioner of the New York City Department of Veterans Services. He is currently on leave from his civilian job serving on duty supporting special projects for the New York National Guard.
Roth holds a Masters of Public Policy and Urban Planning from the Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Graduate School of Design and a Bachelor of Arts degree from James Madison College at Michigan State University.
He is a graduate of the Army Command and General Staff College and is enrolled in the Army War College.
His awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, Multinational Force, Observers Medal, and the German Armed forces Forces Proficiency Badge.
“Much is expected of those of us who choose to raise our hand and serve in today’s military, particularly as citizen soldiers,” Roth said. “It is demanding, and it requires flexibility and commitment.”
GOP didn’t just do well in Council races
The unthinkable is about to happen in the a race for a seat on the bench in Queens County.
Republican Joseph Kasper first ran for a judicial seat in 1995. From 1998 to 2000, his name was on the ballot every year. He took a decade-long break, and then resumed running nearly every year since 2010.
He never won; it’s nearly impossible for a Republican to overcome the built-in advantage Democratic candidates have among registered voters. And since very few voters pay attention to the judgeship races and know very little about the candidates, those who do bother to fill out that portion of the ballot are likely voting strictly along party lines.
Even though Kasper never came close to sniffing victory, he felt it was his obligation to run just to give voters a choice. He believed in the two-party system.
But maybe the 20th (or however many times he has run) was the charm!
After the polls closed, Kasper held a 1,700-vote lead over former councilman Paul Vallone in the race for the 3rd Municipal Court District, which includes Maspeth, Middle Village and Ridgewood, as well as parts of Ozone Park and Howard Beach.
Not only was Vallone running as a Democrat, voters would no doubt be familiar with his last name. His grandfather, Charles Vallone, served as a judge in Queens Civil Court for 12 years, while his father Peter Vallone was the second-most powerful man in the city when he served as speaker of the City Council from 1986 to 2001, when term limits forced him from the Astoria seat he represented since 1974.
And his brother Peter Vallone, Jr. is also a former councilman who is now a judge himself in Queens County Civil Court.
There were 2,400 absentee ballots sent to the Board of Elections, which they are counting this week. If Kasper’s lead holds, it will be the first time in a very, very long time that a Republican went up against a Democrat for a judgeship in Queens County and actually won.
Kasper was probably helped by the strong showing that Republicans had in several City Council races throughout the city, including Joann Ariola, who easily defeated Democrat Felicia Singh in a district that partly overlaps the 3rd Municipal Court District.
Although, several people familiar with the race told us that Vallone was also overly confident that a victory for him was a lock. They told us he did very little to connect with voters, figuring his name and his party affiliation would be enough to cruise to a win.
And while Kasper didn’t even have a campaign website, he attributed his strong showing to good old-fashioned campaigning, motivating voters and volunteers and meeting with a lot of people.
It took 26 years, but the next time Kasper’s name is on the ballot, it might be as the incumbent, not as a token opposition candidate.
Discussion needed on Open Restaurants
IN OUR OPINION
Illegal burden
Dear Editor,
The flood of illegal immigrants coming here from our southern border bring the risk of COVID and places an unfair burden on our schools.
Queens are Brooklyn are among 15 counties nationwide that each took in over 1,000 children who were rounded up illegally crossing the border and brought here on secret flights landing in darkness at WestChester Airport in a clandestine program run by the Department of Health & Human Services.
Many of them are unaccompanied teenagers who don’t speak English and have special needs, but are placed in the city’s burdened public schools that do not get federal funds to handle the challenge.
This creates a financial “classroom crisis” for New York City schools that already cost taxpayers over $28,000 a year per student.
Law enforcement authorities worry that unaccompanied minors are prime recruiting targets for MS-13 and other violent street gangs. Why don’t our elected officials protest this program and try to stop its harmful impact?
If they fail to stand up for their constituents now, we should not re-elect them.
Sincerely,
Richard Reif
Kew Gardens Hills
Missing funds
Dear Editor,
Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer proudly boasted how he has delivered $10 billion in new Federal Transit Administration funding to the MTA.
He said these funds will pay for the federal share of the $12 billion Gateway Tunnel, $6.9 billion Second Avenue Subway Phase 2, $8 billion Penn Station South and $1.5 billion Metro North Bronx Penn Station Access.
What’s missing from his grand announcement is any reference to the $10 billion Cross Harbor Freight Tunnel, $8 billion Rockaway LIRR branch restoration, $5 billion Utica Avenue Subway extension, $3.7 billion Brooklyn/Queens Street Car Connector, $3.5 billion Red Hook Subway extension, $3 billion Triboro X Bronx/Queens/Brooklyn subway line, $2.2 billion Light Rail between Jamaica and Long Island City, $100 million Flushing Intermodal Bus Terminal and $40 million for reopening the Woodhaven Boulevard LIRR Station closed in 1982.
This confirms that funding for these projects will end up being delayed until the next MTA 2025-2029 or 2030-2034 Five Year Capital Plan.
There is no evidence that most of these project are included in the MTA 2020-2040 Capital Needs Assessment Plan. Former Governor Andrew Cuomo and the MTA promised to release this document in December 2019.
Twenty-one months later, riders, transit advocate, taxpayers, and elected officials are still waiting for this critical document to see the light of day.
Sincerely.
Larry Penner
Great Neck