Nativity Scene, at Brooklyn Borough Hall

Nativity. Photo by MK Metz

The Catholic Lawyers Guild of Brooklyn has installed its annual Nativity scene in Columbus Park at Brooklyn Borough Hall Plaza.

The lawyers dedicated the scene with a blessing by Guild Moderator, Rev. Msgr. Edward B. Scharfenberger and the singing of traditional Christmas carols.

You don't have to be Catholic to find a sweetness about this annual scene.

OK, commenter, then how about: We're not Catholic but we think the whole thing (the sheep, the angels) is sweet.

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Brooklyn Borough Hall Tree Lighting to Feature Moment of Silence for Eric Garner Tonight

Photo: MK Metz

At 5 p.m. tonight (Dec. 15) Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams will celebrate the holiday season by lighting the Christmas tree in Brooklyn Borough Hall Plaza.

Why is this year different than any other year?

After the lighting, he will darken the lights for a moment of silence over the death of Eric Garner and in peaceful solidarity with those calling for local and national criminal justice reform.

During the silence, a member of the Brooklyn United Marching Band will strike their drum eleven times to symbolize the eleven times Garner repeated, "I can't breathe," before he lost consciousness.

Borough President Adams will speak to the importance of pursuing non-violent protest, particularly in the wake of the assault of two NYPD lieutenants during a march last night on the Brooklyn Bridge.

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More on Millions March NYC . . . Gracie Mansion is Next...

Marchers at Union Square. Photos by MK Metz

 Thousands joined the Millions March NYC, which started in Manhattan at Washington Square Park and wound through Union Square on Saturday. By the time darkness fell, the crowd had swelled to between 25,000 to 30,000, according to various news reports.

Senior citizens march for the cause.

The amazing thing was the mixture of all ages and races.

As the evening wore on, some of the protesters stayed in Manhattan, while others streamed over the bridges into Brooklyn.

The mood was good -- until some a**hole got crazy on the Brooklyn Bridge and tried to throw a metal garbage can at police officers. When police went after him, a mini-riot erupted, which ended up with two cops on the ground getting kicked by some of the protesters. One cop's nose was broken.

Marchers coming off the Brooklyn Bridge walkway onto Tillary St.

Arrested for fomenting the melee was Eric Linsker, an adjunct English professor at Baruch College.

According to the University of Iowa Press, "Eric Linsker holds degrees from Harvard and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. His poems have appeared in Boston Review, Chicago Review, Conjunctions, and Lana Turner. " He lives in Crown Heights.

According to CBS, Linsker's attorney called the charges bogus.

Police net at Tillary and Brooklyn Bridge Blvd.

After marchers exited the Brooklyn Bridge, a police net caused them to head up Tillary Street to Flatbush. All traffic ground to a halt while the street was filled with chanting protesters.

Protestors march right up Tillary to Flatbush. Photos by MK Metz

The group split up -- some marched along Atlantic, some on Smith Street -- and then recombined at Barclays Center for a couple of different die-ins.

According to the Brooklyn Eagle, police estimated that 2,000 demonstrators participated in the largest one. Another group, estimated at 1,500 by police, held a die-in in the middle of Eastern Parkway near Nostrand.

What's next? Word is protesters are unhappy that Mayor de Blasio refuses to meet with a group of them -- so they're going to the Mayor... tonight.

Next up!!! Join us for the party!! #MansionShutdown pic.twitter.com/TbauN4mLfP
— Justice League NYC (@NYjusticeleague) December 15, 2014

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MTA Wants Your Two Bits About a Fare Hike

Photo: MTA

The MTA wants to increase fares by roughly 4%.

MTA's board is soliciting public comment on two different proposals, which would take effect in March 2015 on subways, buses, and the Staten Island Railway (also bridges).

The single-ride fare increases in 25-cent increments. Changes to 7-Day and 30-Day Unlimited Ride MetroCards are the same in both proposals.

-----> In Proposal 1, the base fare increases by 25¢, and the bonus amount is increased from 5% to 11% when putting $5.50 or more on a MetroCard.

-----> In Proposal 2, the base fare for cash, Single Ride Tickets, and Pay-Per-Ride MetroCards remains unchanged at $2.50, but the bonus for putting $5 or more on a MetroCard is eliminated.

In both proposals, the cost of a 30-Day Unlimited Ride MetroCard increases to $116.50 and the cost of a 7-Day Unlimited Ride MetroCard increases to $31.

More details here.


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NYC Subways May Remain Disrupted Friday Morning

It's a zoo in the subway @MTA you need to get your act together pic.twitter.com/Pjy19eZo1V
— D king (@APDonKing) December 11, 2014

The NYC subway system was bedeviled with problems Thursday night, and they may last into Friday morning.

A manhole fire totally disrupted many subway lines  after 6 p.m., causing mass delays on the A, C and E lines and further disruption on the B, D, F, M and R trains.

On top of the fire, No. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 lines were hit with power outages, CBS reports.

There was also a case where the doors of a 42nd Street shuttle train at Times Square-42nd Street opened onto the tracks instead of the platform. What the heck is going on?

Subways a mess tonight. Was on this S when doors opened on track, not platform side, at Times Square. @2AvSagas pic.twitter.com/OYAWghlPU9
— Eric Bienenfeld (@EricBien) December 11, 2014

According to an MTA update posted at 12:09 a.m. Friday morning:

Due to ongoing signal problems at W 4 St-Washington Sq, the following service changes are in effect:
Select southbound F are running on the G line from Jackson Hts-Roosevelt Av to Bergen St.
Southbound E trains are running on the R line from Queens Plaza to Whitehall St-South Ferry.
A, B, C, D, M and R trains are running with delays in both directions.

Posted at 12:10 a.m.:
Southbound B and D trains are running with delay.
F and M train service has resumed with residual delays.

More at NY1.



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Sen. Squadron Holding a Town Hall in Downtown Brooklyn Thursday, Dec. 11

Photo: MK Metz

State Sen. Daniel Squadron is holding a Town Hall tonight that will focus on how to make state government work better.

Squaadron: "There are a whole lot of ways that improving the system -- whether reigning in unlimited campaign contributions, closing gaps in ethics laws, or making it easier to vote -- that will improve people's lives."

This Town Hall will be a chance to discuss a more responsive and transparent government. It taakes place Thursday, December 11th at 6:30pm at the Forchelli Conference Center at Brooklyn Law School, located at 205 State Street, 22nd Floor, in Downtown Brooklyn.


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Meeting: Councilman Levin to Speak About Brooklyn Heights Library's ULURP Process

Photo: MK Metz

City Councilmember Steve Levin will talk about the city's ULURP (Uniform Land Use Review Process) in connection with the sale of the Brooklyn Heights Branch Library on Sunday, Dec. 14 at 4:30 p.m. in the Community Room of 101 Clark St., Brooklyn Heights.

The event is sponsored by Citizens Defending Libraries, which is fighting the sale and redevelopment of the Heights branch.

All are welcome to attend.

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Goodbye NYC Payphones; Hello Wi-Fi Hot Spots

Rendering: LinkNYC

NYC approved on Wednesday a deal to replace New York City’s payphones with free Wi-Fi hot spots.

The city will eventually install 10,000 LinkNYC towers. Users will be able to pick up Wi-Fi on their mobile devices, make free calls within the U.S., and charge their devices. The Wi-Fi signal will extend 150 feet from each link.

The first units to be installed will offer 1 gigabit Wi-Fi speeds, enabling someone to download a 2-hr movie in under a minute. These kiosks will have dynamic advertising. A slower model (one-tenth the speed), without ads, will be installed in residential areas, according to the Brooklyn Eagle.

A number of questions remain, including data security. (Such as: How can we trust with our data with the company that hid 500 trackers in Manhattan payphones last year? After they were outed by Buzzfeed in October, the mayor ordered them to rip them out.)

Also, in this city of immigrants, what do people do who lack "devices?" Payphones in hospitals and around the courthouses are still busy. What do these users do when they are replaced with Wi-Fi kiosks?

NYC approves plans to replace payphones with free Wi-Fi hotspots [Brooklyn Eagle]

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Brooklyn's Dirty Little DNC Secret, and More Brooklyn Briefs

Respect to Jay Z and the Brooklyn Nets for supporting the movement!! #ICantBreathe #EricGarner pic.twitter.com/ZIywk8TfDE
— Michael Skolnik (@MichaelSkolnik) December 9, 2014

- Dirty little secret behind Brooklyn's 2016 DNC bid. [Atlantic Yards Report]

- Lena Dunham stays in Brooklyn Heights, buys $4.8 million apartment at 30 Henry St. [BHB]

- Ken Lowy on the Brooklyn Heights Cinema and future plans. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- Spending a night with New York's finest rat-hunting club. [Vice]

- De Blasio cuts a labor deal with uniformed superior officers. [Brooklyn Eagle]

- On Wed., the City Council will discuss funding libraries. [Gotham Gazette]


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Wild Night at Barclays Center for the Duke and Duchess: Royal Shutdown

Photo © 2014  MK Metz

 A heck of a die-in took place at Barclays Center Monday night as protesters against the Eric Garner grand jury decision pulled a "Royal Shutdown" while the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were inside attending a Nets game.

"I can't breathe!" protesters chanted, in memory of Eric Garner, who told that same thing to cops before he died following a possible choke hold. Photo © 2014  MK Metz

 Cops made a number of arrests as they corralled demonstrators who tied up traffic and invaded Target at the Atlantic Center Mall.

The crowds marched over the Manhattan Bridge around midnight and blocked traffic on Broadway, then headed helter-skelter across lower Manhattan to Union Square.

Protests will be continuing all week, with a Million  March NYC planned for Saturday.

More here.


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