Reader critiques: I'm 100. Here's some Black history that can never be erased.
Every week, The Post runs a collection of letters of readers' grievances — pointing out grammatical mistakes, missing coverage and inconsistencies. These letters tell us what we did wrong and, occasionally, offer praise. Here, we present this week's Free for All letters.
Regarding the Feb. 12 Metro obituary 'Decorated Tuskegee Airman,' for 100-year-old Harry Stewart Jr.:
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20 hours ago
- Yahoo
War on rats gets ugly as hundreds of ‘eyesore' Empire Bins gobble up parking spaces in Harlem
These drivers are in for rat-ical change. West Harlem has become the first neighborhood in the United States to have all of its trash containerized in order to squash uptown rats' curbside trash feasts, City Hall officials said Monday – but the hundreds of UFO-like 'Empire Bins' are now permanently taking some coveted parking spots, The Post has learned. The latest cohort of European-style bins, which are mandatory for all residential properties with more than 30 units, were installed over the weekend — and have gobbled up about 4% of parking spaces in the neighborhood overnight, a city sanitation department rep told The Post. 'It takes up parking spots that were already hard to find,' said Harlem resident Erica Lamont, who claims she circled the blocks of Broadway and West 149th Street for a half-hour on Tuesday morning. 'The bins are the size of small cars and when you put two and three on a residential street, you are ultimately forcing people to force blocks away,' Lamont, 46, said. 'It's not placed in no standing or truck loading zones – they are placed in the few actual parking spots that residents could get,' said Michelle R., a 40-year-old dog sitter in the neighborhood. 'I like the garbage cans, but I feel bad for the people that normally park their cars there.' Other locals, like Harlem resident David Jones, simply blasted the bizarre look of the gargantuan containers. 'It's an eyesore,' said Jones, 40. 'It's right there in front of your face. I'm neutral. If it does the job then let's applaud it — If it doesn't, then let's get rid of them and come up with something else.' Some locals previously told The Post the massive receptacles clash with the neighborhood's aesthetic, even though they may be needed to scare away rats. The pilot program, which spans Manhattan's Community Board 9, includes 1,100 on-street containers for about 29,000 residents living in properties with over 30 units, as well as about half of properties with 10 to 30 units that opted to use the bins. The locked bins are accessible to building staff and waste managers via 'access cards,' and have been serviced by automated side-loading trucks since Monday. 'Rat sightings in NYC are down six months in a row,' a DSNY rep told The Post. 'This is the exact same period that residential bin requirements have been in effect. Containerization WORKS, and there is no reason that other cities can have it and New York can't.' But while citywide rat sightings are down, Manhattan's Community Board 9 has seen a 7.8% jump in rat sightings compared to this time last year, according to a Post analysis of 311 data. Still, City Hall hopes the new bins will end the curbside rat buffet fueled by garbage bags lingering on residential streets — which uptown residents say have made it nearly impossible to walk on some streets at night. 'When there's trash on the sidewalk, there's rats—plain and simple. And yet for years, City Hall acted like trash cans were some sort of sci-fi/fantasy invention,' said Council Member Shaun Abreu, Chair of the Committee on Sanitation and Solid Waste Management. 'Now with full containerization in West Harlem and Morningside Heights, we've got clean bins, no more sidewalk piles, and fewer rats. We fought like hell to make this happen, and now we're proving it works.' Harlem resident Rick M. said he hopes the new containers are effective as residents have historically had to move quickly past piles of street side trash 'because you don't know what may run out. 'I've seen rats run from one big pile to another so it's nice to not have to walk by piles of trash,' the 30-year-old said. 'The rat problem was so bad here that humans couldn't be living here — they'd be attacking you right here,' lifelong Harlem resident Shanice Day told The Post at Morningside Avenue and 124th Street. Day, 39, recalls rats as big as cats 'like Master Splinter rats from Ninja Turtles' that would chew wires off people's cars — and attributes the Empire Bins to a rapid decrease in rodent sightings. 'What I can honestly say is we are almost rat free,' she added. 'If people are upset about the bins they're crazy, because they are a big help.' But Harlem resident Wise Grant, 64, warns the containers are only as effective as those who use them. 'It slows them down but it's not a way to get rid of them,' the retired voting machine technician said. 'It's up to the individual people. People throw food on the floor and it feeds them.' 'That's what people do on the streets. They don't care … They have to care about where they live.'
New York Post
2 days ago
- New York Post
As Jupiter enters Cancer, expect magic milk and healing waters
When does Jupiter enter Cancer On June 9, Jupiter, our gas giant planet of luck, abundance, games of chance, and inclinations of excess, will set up his roulette wheel in the breast milk founts of Cancer for the first time in over a decade. The zodiac's good-timing, dice rolling, drunk uncle will remain in the sign of the crab until June 2026. Jupiter enters Cancer 2025 3 Jupiter is exalted in the sign of Cancer. HORA STUDIO – Advertisement With a gilded touch and a gouty toe, Jupiter expands all that he touches. In the feelings-forward, intuitive, and home-centric sign of Cancer, that expansion is found through healing, healthy boundaries, and fortified foundations. On a collective level, we will all benefit from the vulnerability, magic, and depth lent by Jupiter in Cancer. In Gemini, Jupiter is about the expansion of expression, while in Cancer, the power of plenty extends to reflection and tending to the wounded waters from which we came. Jupiter in Cancer transit Aiding and abetting our understanding of this transit is the brilliant astrologer and spiritual counselor Letao Wang. 'As Jupiter moves into Cancer, we are invited into a period of emotional growth, deepened connections, and collective care. When in Cancer — a sign ruled by the Moon and deeply tied to home, family, and emotional security — this transit encourages us to expand our hearts, heal old wounds, and build stronger foundations in both our personal and collective lives,' Wang told The Post. When is Jupiter in Cancer / Jupiter in Cancer dates Advertisement 3 The zodiac's good-timing, dice rolling, drunk uncle will remain in the sign of the crab until June 2026. zwiebackesser – Jupiter enters Cancer on June 9 and will remain in the backwater of the crab until June 30, 2026. Jupiter is exalted in the sign of Cancer, meaning the planet can fully express its powers and prowess and in turn, its easier for we mortals to receive and access its boons and bounty. Advertisement 'Jupiter's journey through Cancer will emphasize themes of compassion, protection, and humanitarian efforts. We may see increased focus on housing security, food accessibility, and support for families and children. Governments and organizations could prioritize policies that nurture communities, such as improved healthcare or social safety nets. Emotionally, the world may feel more inclined toward unity and empathy, with a collective desire to care for one another—especially those in vulnerable situations.' Wang shared that this transit also supports creative and domestic pursuits. 3 Cancer is about nurturance and Jupiter is about amplification. In kind, this transit ehances our ability to heal. 淑红 蔡 – Advertisement 'Art, music, and storytelling that evoke nostalgia or emotional resonance will flourish, and many may feel drawn to reconnect with their roots, whether through family, tradition, or homeland.' Cancer is about nurturance and Jupiter is about amplification. In kind, this transit ehannces our ability to heal. According to Greek myth, after completing his arduous labors, the exhausted hero Hercules struck the earth with his club. In response, the ground gave was, fissuring and flooding into hot springs. Lowering himself into the water, Hercules was healed, his muscles soothed and his spirit restored. Jupiter in Cancer invokes a similar energy, a summons to transmute suffering into salve and heal ourselves through ourselves. A divine dive in. Surf's up, mothertruckers. Astrologer Reda Wigle researches and irreverently reports on planetary configurations and their effect on each zodiac sign. Her horoscopes integrate history, poetry, pop culture, and personal experience. To book a reading, visit her website.
New York Post
3 days ago
- New York Post
NYC parents pay $2K in tutors to make up for math classes leaving kids 'bored'
Students in New York City's largest school district are so bored by the DOE's dumbed-down math curriculum they read novels in class, parents say. Families are forced to shell out thousands of dollars for tutors or flee in search of more challenging programs, parents say. Parents in District 2, which covers most of Midtown, Lower Manhattan and the Upper East Side, are demanding accelerated math classes in elementary school and geometry starting in middle school to keep kids on par with their peers elsewhere in the city and country. Advertisement 'Kids are reading novels in math class because they are bored,' Danyela Egorov, a member of District 2's Community Education Council, told Superintendent Kelly McGuire during a recent board meeting. 4 Children in District 2 elementary and middle schools are bored and unchallenged in math class. sakkmesterke – Egorov said parents have told her they are considering moving to Brooklyn's District 20 because it will offer geometry in some middle schools next year, setting kids up to take Algebra II in ninth grade. Other districts in Brooklyn and Queens already offer the accelerated option. Advertisement 'It's the only chance they have of getting geometry in middle school since they cannot pay for private school,' Egorov said. Kids in middle schools that offer accelerated math end up a full year ahead of those in District 2, which is one of highest-performing in the city, argued Manpreet Boparai, another CEC 2 member. For kids graduating the Lower Lab School, which offers a gifted and talented program and sixth-grade-level math in fifth grade, it's even worse, Boparai noted. 'D2 middle schools hold them back and make them repeat sixth-grade math, taking them off track to finish geometry in eighth grade,' she told The Post. 'They don't need more puzzles. They need to be accommodated to stay on the track they're already on.' Advertisement 4 Community Education Council member Maud Maron says the situation is 'urgent.' J.C. Rice CEC 2 members Allyson Bowen and Maud Maron told McGuire in a letter last week there is an 'urgent need' for math reforms in District 2 and demanded a meeting to discuss establishing a 'math path' pilot program, and a task force to monitor its success. 'Parents are leaving the system due to a lack of rigorous academic offerings,' they wrote, citing the city Department of Education's annual school survey. Meanwhile, other parents are turning to pricey math tutors and after-school programs like the Russian School of Mathematics, or RSM. Advertisement 4 Allyson Bowen and Maron told McGuire in a letter last week there is an 'urgent need' for math reforms in the district. William C Lopez/New York Post A West Village mom and her husband with three children in District 2 schools pay a total $6,400 to send all three to supplemental math programs at RSM, which starts teaching algebra concepts in first grade, she told The Post. 'We want to make sure that our kids are well set for a successful future, having math ahead of what the public schools are currently offering. Because that's not enough to be competitive.' After the regular school day, her kids spend two to two-and-a-half hours weekly in RSM, and take on additional homework. 'So it's a commitment, and not a fun one. Other kids are playing ball, and my kids have to do some brain work.' In affluent neighborhoods, such programs are apparently growing in popularity. 4 Danyela Egorov says children are reading novels in math class because they're bored. William C Lopez/New York Post 'I live on the same block as Russian School of Mathematics and I see parents lined up,' Leonard Silverman, the board's vice president, told McGuire during last month's meeting. Advertisement Even Superintendent McGuire admitted that his son is taking math classes this summer to catch him up for pre-calculus, because his middle school did not provide accelerated options. Despite continued requests and repeated meetings, McGuire said there are currently no plans to bring geometry to middle schools in the district next year. He is waiting to hear interest from principals, he said, and maintained that the pilot proposals would require a 'heavy lift' of resources. Egorov argued that principals don't promote accelerated learning out of fear of protests from critics who say its inequitable.
