The Kingston Parade went very well today, the weather cleared up and the sun came out. The KHS band did a fantastic job! I handed out flyers detailing ideas for the Kingston School Board and I would like to thank all the people that I had the opportunity to meet today.
Below as usual, is a list of the notables at the parade that I saw today...sorry if I missed anyone.
Elected Officials :
City - City Judge James P. Gilpatric ( who ran the Shamrock run) Council President James Noble, Alderman Anne Marie DiBella, Alderman Shirley Whitlock, Alderman Mike Madsen, Alderman Bob Senor, Alderman Ron Polocco, Alderman Al Teetsil
County- Sheriff Paul Van Blarcum,County Clerk Nina Postupack, Chairman David Donaldson, Majority Leader Brian Cahill, Minority Leader Glenn Noonan, County Legislator Peter Loughran,County Legislator Frank Dart,County Legislator Al Lomita
State - Assemblyman Kevin Cahill
School Board - Matt McCoy
Federal- Congressman Maurice Hinchey
Candidates - Mike Hein, Ulster County Executive Jeremy Blaber, Kingston School Board
22 comments:
Where was Sottile?
I saw Clint Brown smokin shamrocks in front of the Shamrock.
Pastor Bob Jones
Legislator Wayne Harris was there.
Where were Sottile, Ringwood, Hoffay, Reynolds, Landi and the other Kingston Legislators, Provenzano and the guy that took Berardi's place (can't think of his name)?
Ringwood was in the Shamrock Run.
Where was Sennett and Spitzer? Ah, Sennett was probably mounting a defense team for Spitzer.
Jeremy, how could you take part in an obviously state sponsored christian (Catholic to be more specific) holiday. I wonder if NS took part?
Kudos to Bob Ryan and the guys who started this great program. Ran my fourth race with my grandson Alex- from Miller School. A great race, we finished in non record time of 30:56 and after some super refreshments at the Neighborhood center enjoyed watching Mike Madsen and his Green Tshirt lead our city officials past the Center. Hopefully the 2009 race can generate some needed dollars for the American Cancer Relay for Life-
Shelly Z
Where was Bradley? He marched with the Hibernians last year - he's nowhere to be found this year.
It looked like the unemployment day parade.
All one has to do is stand and watch the people on the side of the streets to see what a disgrace this city has turned into.
Congratulations Ulster county and the city of Kingston. You have suceeded in becoming a dumping ground for every welfare case, assisted living family and prisoner in NY. Keep up the good work
To 12:45pm
Since 2003 - I have [and many others have as well] run in the Shamrock Run and then marched in the parade as well.
Ringwood is a lame duck at this point and probably just wanted to enjoy the Shamrock Run festivities of Beer and Bagels...oh and a chance at winning a trip to Ireland.
Where was Jimmy Sottile? Why didn't he march?
Why "darling," how kind of you to ask :)
NS "did" take part in the parade - and I must say, "she" had a blast!
And... perhaps (?) you will be happy to know that no one preached "at me" or "to me" - or to my knowlege (lol lol lol) "about" me for the ENTIRE day!
Excepting, perhaps, "yours truly?"
"I" - as Sprinsteen has been know to tweet "was born in the U.S.A."
I am not Irish (except for a smidgling, perhaps)- and I'm not Catholic - but I have known people of many faiths, heritages and backgrounds --- and I have considered a good number of these varied (isn't it wonderful?) folks my "friends."
Tell me, if I, like a Phoenix, tried to "rise from the ashes" --- would you be one of the first --- due to whatever (?) you believe --- to shoot me down?
Do you run over frogs in the road?
Did you pull the legs off of spiders when you were a child?
The parade was GREAT. The folks that organized it - the City of Kingston - and all of the folks that participated in it should be proud.
Would you like agnostics and humanists to wear an identity tag like the Jewish folks in Nazi Germany? Would you like progressive Democrats and all of us "horrid" intellectual types to be hauled off to concentration camps?
Did YOU enjoy the parade?
[I truly hope so.]
BTW, although I'm relatively sure that you already know this... my husband has an Irish Catholic background... comes from a (for the most part) Irish Catholic family... and has a number of Irish Catholic friends...
Most of whom don't preach at me, to me, or "about" me (to my knowlege...) - for which I RESPECT them (and their heritage and beliefs) immensely.
That said, the reason I (NS) participated in this parade is (1) FOR the children; (2) FOR the City of Kingston; (3) for the "practice;" (4) for the FUN of it; and (5) because America has (thus far) given people the freedom to join together, to be "a part of" --- if and when they so choose...
So, if you want to continue "taking my inventory" (versus your own) be sure to make note THOSE factors.
And please... try to go around the frogs, versus trying to squish (a nasty business...) them all the time...
Being "mean" doesn't serve "anything" or "anyone..."
"The poorest people in our country today, on the whole, are working every day. But they are earning wages so low that they cannot begin to function in the mainstream of the economic life of our nation.... We have thousands and thousands of people working on full-time jobs, with part-time incomes."
Martin Luther King, Jr.; "Why We Must Go To Washington;" 1/15/1968
hey 5:42 - if this place sucks so much, leave. No one is putting a gun to your head keeping you here. If you have nothing nice to say, STFU. Obviously you were there to see the "scum", so you must be scum yourself.
I'm really glad you enjoyed the parade NS. As most people do at these events. There was no preaching, unless you went to church that morning. There was much drinking though. And it was my duty, as an Irish American, to partake in such CUSTOMS.
My surprise, is I am sure your favorite website, does NOT support city tax dollars used to paint the green line. City tax dollars to pay for the police. City tax dollars to pay for clean up. The gas used in the fire trucks. All this public funding, going towards the support of a Catholic holiday must be unconstitutional somewhere.
I am not privy to information about the funding aspects of the St. Patrick's Day Parade. But I'm relatively sure that nothing was mentioned at the last Common Council meeting about City funding for the event. So I pretty much assumed (perhaps wrongly) that most of the funding came through the Ancient Order of Hibernians and the advertising that they generate income from. Green lines "might" be an extravagance. But crowd control mechanisms are necessary at any big event, and I have no problem with that, other than the fact that they might want to hire on some extra people (trained to manage at such events) rather than pay overtime (if such is the case) to the officers we have. [This simply has to do with the need for jobs around here.]
Have the Ancient Order of Hiberians received any of Pres. Bush Jr.'s "religious initiative" money? I do not know. But yes, I would be against that, just as I am against Federal funding of any other religious organizations or religious events.
Still, I guess I am a bit off kilter here (maybe?) - because this seems like more of a heritage celebration (not one-dimensional) event than a religious one - & more playful/community spirit motivated than a lot of other events that I have been known to criticize....
I have said though, many times, that my issue is with the separation of church and state...
NOT the abolition of religion.
I respect many people of many faiths (the Reverend Martin Luther King quote was put on here by me, as well) --- and I would simply like to see some of that same respect (as an agnostic and humanist) reciprocated.
Other than that, if anyone is privy to more information about how this parade is funded, please join in the conversation.
As I mentioned earlier, I grew up in America - and even though we weren't a relious family, per se, we did join in a lot of holiday celebrations in a secular manner, which IS an option (so far...)here in the U.S.
I AM pretty consistent in my views. THere are reasons that I think and feel the way I do. I do NOT live in a BOX.
I recognize that I am a very small part of a very big piture, and I do what I can, when I can - at least in regard to providing information -- on different matters.
I don't expect everyone, or even many folks, to agree with me --- but I do expect (irregardless of that...) some respect.
N.S.
"you want to know
whether I believe in ghosts
of course I do not believe in them
if you had known
as many of them as I have
you would not
believe in them either."
--- Don MarQuis; "Ghosts;" Archy and Mehitabel; 1927
BTW, if the reference up above was about the UCP blog, I would like to state that I appreciate three of these blogs (immensely), but that C of UCP IS (in my opinion) a CREATIVE GENIUS --- and one of our most dedicated (for little reward that I can see, other than his personal integrity! :) Kingstonians.
N.S.
If this is a heritage event and not a religious one, then where in the Irish heritage does it say that people cannot get divorced and cannot be pro-choice? They denied Kevin Cahill the opportunity to be the Grand Marshal because of those two issues. Maybe the Hibernians are getting their organization confused and they're unable to separate being Irish from being Catholic (and therefore also anti-gay). Their religion shouldn't determine their heritage - Ireland was around for hundreds of years before Catholicism. No public money should be spent on this event.
The Hibernians are both a Catholic and an Irish organization. To be a member, one must be Irish AND Catholic.
Ah gee, I didn't join the "order" (short hand), I just took part in their parade.
Nor do I have a copy of their rule book, their budget or their meeting notes...
But, if all that is posted is true - and they are strictly fundamentalist Catholics (not all Catholics are fundamentalists...) - then someone (I'm not taking this one on...) might want to check into the public funding aspect of this event (which I know for a fact had plenty of non-fundamentalist "participants", etc.) further.
My suggestion would be is to show up at a Common Council meeting and voice your concerns and/or complaints - & find out what the facts are...
As far as not allowing Cahill to be the Grand Marshall of the parade, I think that was a good choice considering all that has been written here, because if the parade "is" a religious event (I'm still not convinced about that) a polititian does not belong (again, the "separation of church and state" issue) at the head of the line...
So, this becomes a really tricky issue, does it not? Bordering on the question of whether special interest groups should be able to form and discriminate (re. membership) at all... which would apply to a whole LOT of groups (it boggles the mind) other than the Hibernians, as well.
Bottom line? I had fun. I participated for the reasons that I stated. And I don't (lol lol lol... I bet you didn't think I knew how to be humble!) rule the world.
N.S.
Now that's the sparks I was looking for. That's right, go to the common council and complain. You will be really popular in Ulster and Green Counties.
BTW, no I was not talking about UCP. I was talking about Americans Unitied for (the largest farce ever to be told) Separation of Church and State.
Those weren't sparks, and I'm not even smouldering (sp?) [lol]
I'm not going to the Common Council on this, because I've got other things on my mind and schedule at the moment... and I don't have any desire to fight this particular fight --- because I DO have tremendous respect for the majority of the Irish Roman Catholics that I (personally) know.
What I DID say is if someone else wants to check out whether any public funding went the way of the parade - and that person finds it offensive - have at it. That is what the Common Council (in part) is for... To hear our concerns and/or complaints and/or even our wonderful ideas and thank yous...
:)
As far as the Freedom From Religion Foundation goes (is that your real bugagoo?), they put out a lot of VALUABLE information, whether you care for it or not, in their monthly newsletter, "Freethought Today."
In fact, having just gotten mine for this month, I'll grace you with a couple of snippets (these are just a few of the highlights and headlines...
[All Hail the New Theocracy???????]
"Arrested/Charged:"
1. Rev. Robert Reaves (Durham, NC)--- Murder (1st Degree)
2. Rev. John Caskey (St. Cloud, MN) --- Possession of Child Pornography
3. Rev. William Moran Jr. (Kentucky) --- Theft (over $300)
4. Rev. Charles Koen, et. al (IL) --- Felony Fraud (over 1.6 Million dollars involved...)
5. Rev. Timothy Brumit (SC) --- Distribution of Child Pornography
6. Rev. Donald Robinson (OH) --- Fraud; Money Laundering; other... (involving over $300,000)
"Convicted:"
1. Rev. James Clark (Texas) --- Fraud + sex crime (see article) (includes "stealing" over $500,000)
2. Rev. Robert Schmidtberger (PA) --- Possession of Child Pornography.
3. Rev. William Procanick (NY) ---- Sexual Abuse of a Seven-Year-Old Child...
"Sentenced;"
1. Rev. James Hatfield (MI) --- Molestation (for years) of adopted daughter
2. Rev. Corey Pritchett (OR) --- 32 charges, including securities fraud, theft, etc. (involved over $40,000)
3. Bishop Earl Paulk (GA): Perjury (regarding a sexual misconduct charge)
4. Rev. Ronald Tovar (CA) --- Sexual abuse of a female child...
AND...
"Ministry Fundraises for Huckabee"
"Bush Pushes Faith Initiative"
"Pell Grant Proposes Parochial Aid"
"Faith-Based Mentoring Continues"
"Bush's Faith-Based Budget"
"Faith Groups Push Discrimination"
"Air Force Evangelizing"
"More Religion on Coins"
"Catholic Church Pushes Exorcists"
"MySpace Deletes Atheists, Agnostics"
"Tennessee Proposes 'Gay' Ban"
"Catholics Remove Woman Referee"
ETC.
NOW "THOSE" ARE SPARKS! [This is just a little piece of one month's worth of news in this department!]
--- The information presented here is from "Freethought Today"; March 2008; Freedom From Religion Foundation; ffrf.org.
N.S.
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