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This Week's Attitude
So, as we officially kick off the holiday season, I'd thought I'd write a potpourri - a horn of plenty of stuff - about some little things on my mind. •The stagehands, who have crippled Broadway for the foreseeable future, including Thanksgiving weekend and possibly Christmas week, should be ashamed of themselves. They're almost as villainous as the grinch who stole Christmas. I've got two family-friendly words for them - Bah, humbug! While they may deserve the demands for which they are striking and picked the time of year that is most effective to get their point across and, at the same time, hurt producers' profits the most, they would have earned more public sympathy and respect by deciding to work while negotiating during the hectic holiday season when tens of thousands of tourists make plans months in advance to spend millions of dollars in the city. Having worked with members of the striking union (IATSE) when I was at Radio City Music Hall, I know first hand how inflexible they can be. But striking at this particular time of year makes them nothing more than Scrooges. Striking at Thanksgiving and Christmas? Bah, humbug! •Now, I turn to baseball, and even more specifically, the New York Yankees. Some of you gals and non-sports guys may want to skip down a few paragraphs if you lack any interest in America's national pastime. To no one's surprise, Alex Rodriguez won the American League Most Valuable Player Award on Monday, albeit two votes short of unanimous. He earned it, posting incredible statistics for this or any other year. Yet, despite his achievements and accolades in pinstripes, he has yet to win the hearts and minds of die-hard, veteran Yankee fans because he often comes off as an egotist. (He seems to reject the notion, "There's no 'I' in team.") His disappointing post-season play has also not endeared him to fans tired of watching him fail in clutch situations where he's had the opportunities, but doesn't perform on the level he does during the regular season. In ten years as a professional, he's never led any team to a championship. Now that he's almost inked a lucrative contract that will likely keep him a Yankee until he retires at age 42 - hoping to break some records along the way - he is going to have to demonstrate his worth and transfer his success into post-season accomplishments or continue to get razzed and criticized at the old and new Yankee stadiums for the next decade. I was happy to see A-Rod work out a deal on his own with the Yankee bosses, as he sidestepped Scott Boras, his agent. (A few days later ex-Yankee and Detroit Tiger starting pitcher Kenny Rogers fired Boras and negotiated a new contract on his own.) Maybe other players will realize that some agents are self-serving, looking for hefty commissions, and not necessarily working in their clients' interests. Free agency is good for baseball, but sometimes player agents make the business of baseball overshadow the game itself. •In a Yankees-related story, New York state officials last week claimed captain and shortstop Derek Jeter, beloved by almost every Bronx Bomber fan, owes millions in back taxes. Tax officials said that Jeter claimed he lived in Florida to avoid New York taxes for several years, when he was actually living in a deluxe apartment in the Trump World Tower. Jeter, one of the highest-paid players in baseball, filed nonresident income tax returns to New York state between 2001 and 2003, claiming that he lived primarily at his off-season home in Florida to avoid paying state income tax. Jeter's just doing what a lot of other millionaires do. Using inequitable tax laws that the rich use to their advantage. The All-Star shortstop may reside in New York most of the year, but his financial advisors obviously suggested he could use his Tampa residence as his primary home and save millions. It's sorta like the tax breaks given to businesses to entice them to locate or remain in New York to boost the economy. Derek Jeter certainly props up the city's economy by being a sports superstar with integrity - on and off the field - not to mention his various charitable endeavors. Until taxes are levied equitably for all income levels, Derek Jeter should be able to continue getting away with circumventing the state's laws. •This one's personal. Less than 50 yards from the entrance to the building where I live is a large collection of branches and twigs in a SUV-sized torn, black tarpaulin. It's been on Coyle Street, off Avenue Y, for more than a month. I pass it almost every day. I thought nothing of it for several weeks, hoping some city employee - a sanitation worker, express bus driver or cruising police officer who all pass it regularly - would report it and have it removed. No such luck. Guess I was expecting too much from a civil servant. I decided to report it to 311, which has been responsive in the past. Five days later, it remained in place. When I called to inquire on the follow-up, I was told since it's "just branches and twigs" it was a Parks Department responsibility, not a sanitation job. And Parks has 45 days to remove it! I persisted and said it's in the street and could pose a potential danger for drivers. The 311 operator decided it was an emergency and transferred the call to 911. I screamed, "This is not an emergency, don't put me through to 911!" When the 911 dispatcher came on, I abruptly hung up. Four weeks have passed and the darn bag sits there like a log - actually a bagful of little logs, branches and twigs. And it has increased in volume with new additions in the last few days. I called Councilman Mike Nelson, whose district encompasses the location. Since last week his staff has been trying to expedite its removal. Heck, if he can't fight City Hall, who can? That's it! I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders and some minor gripes off my chest. Have a happy, healthy Thanksgiving!
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