Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

[Beth Chamberlain]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

This will NOT drag out through the Spring. Below is the text of an email I just recieved.


Update February 5, 2009

As of today we have had increased interest from former OBVR staff members, Village volunteers and many of the volunteer historical re-enactors who have come make Old Bethpage Village a part of their lives. Through Frank Ruiz, Captain of the 14th Brooklyn - we are looking forward to a story on WCBS News. Hopefully in the very near future we will see a story in Newsday about OBVR and the other parks and museums slated to close. Our friend Christopher has even set up a facebook page “Help Save Old Bethpage Village Restoration, long Island, NY.” with over 1000 “friends” to date.



We’ve been told that the fate of the Village hinges on the renegotiation of the Civil Service Employees Union’s contract and that the Village and all museums and several parks could close in April. We believe the fate of the Village also hinges on the votes in the Nassau County Legislature this Monday, February 9th, that would authorize the laying off of all museum employees, selected parks employees, and other county staff.



The museum staff at OBVR and the other sites are very distraught and are in dire need of your support to guide the Union and County officials in positive discussions to end this crisis. It should be noted that Old Bethpage Village has had tremendous support over the past year from County Executive Suozzi and his deputies. The Village has had eight new roofs built, removed the decaying Coles House, had some exterior painting done, which was to continue in 2009, and is about to embark on several major construction projects in the Village and on the Fairgrounds which would surely generate the income necessary to make the Village viable.

[MBBursig]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

I have recieved similar responses from other Legislators as well! The classic double speak or "pass the buck!" Some are even the peverbial "F You!" To quote The Who, "don't fooled again!" I echo every other comment here. Keep the letters, calls, and messages flying into those mail and inboxes. Many of my students have decided to write letters as well.

To show this outrage for this issue, on Tuesday there were 50 people on a Facebook Group devoted to saving the Village, now there are close to 1,000. If everyone writes one letter to Suozzi from that group alone then that is an impact, but we need more!

[KarinTimour]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

Thanks, Chris, I've been through this process several times with health insurance bills, and the waltz is always the same. This year, with the state deficits higher than in past years, they're getting off to a faster, more public start.

I don't yet know where the CSEA that represents the workers at Old Bethpage Village fits into the whole puzzle. But the Governor has asked the CSEA locals that represent state workers to a) abandon our new contract (we worked without a contract for over a year while they were trying to negotiate the last one and just got it signed this summer), and b) work five days for free this winter. He said without that, he'd be forced to consider layoffs. The union said that they weren't willing to rip up the contract and what was his next offer? No word yet, but rest assured there is fevered activity happening behind the scenes.

It sounds as though Suozzi is doing the local version of this particular dance.

It's early days yet -- this is going to take at least all spring and might well go into the summer. But there is work that we can be doing already. By sending in your letters you are arming those who will be making the decisions to move Old Bethpage off the table. "Gee, Tom, I know you said that we'd have to close old Bethpage, but I'm drowning in mail already and it's only February. The phones are ringing off the hook and my constituents won't stand for it. If we close Old Bethpage, I'm going to have every Boy Scout and Girl Scout in my district calling me mud and old ladies will kick me crossing the street."

Legislators hate an issue where they've been painted as clearly on the side of Satan -- because often most voters don't know or care what they do. So if the only thing that a voter knows their legilsator did was close Old Bethpage and that voter is angry enough to fire off a letter, they might vote for "anybody but the incumbent" at the next election. Legislators are into job security.

Keep those letters coming!

Save Old Bethpage!

Karin Timour
Period Knitting -- Socks, Sleeping Hats, Balaclavas
Atlantic Guard Soldiers' Aid Society
Email: Ktimour@aol.com

[CJDaley]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

All politics is local.

Bingo! I wish I had a prize to award Karin because she just hit the nail on the head. This has nothing to do with a Federal stimulus bill, it has nothing to do with which side of the political aisle you sit on and it has nothing to do with the grassy knoll. This all boils down to what can be done on a local level and why I gave you the names of the Congressional leaders and country executive.

Thanks Karin, all three of your posts have been dead on correct and incredible insightful especially on the CSEA issue.

[KarinTimour]

I received this reply from one of the County Legislators:

"Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to write to the Presiding Officer Diane Yatauro regarding your concerns with possible funding cuts for Old Bethpage Village Restoration and other County Parks and Museums. The County Executive’s proposed cuts all hinge on not getting any state or federal funding from the stimulus program that the President has put up for vote. Every other option is exhausted before these cuts would come into play. "

LOVE IT!

Ok, the translation: for those of you not fluent in Double Speak:

<
I read your letter-- see, I even acknowlege what you wrote about, and your position on the issue that got you so upset. It's not me that is the problem. I'm just an innocent bystander in this.

THAT OTHER GUY (not me) proposed these cuts. And since he's a higher official in my party, I know he's only going to be forced at gunpoint to do these terrible, horrible things if THESE OTHER GUYS FROM THAT OTHER PARTY don't step up to the plate and do the right thing."

The whole idea here is to deflect the shitstorm from his/her office and point it at the highest target who is a MEMBER OF THE OTHER PARTY.

If your problem is local, they aim you at the state officials. If you're writing on the state level, they point you to Washington.

Extra credit points in Doublespeak are awarded if the writer can make a credible case that the real threat to Old Bethpage is either poor leadership at the UN or Osama Bin Laden.

Don't fall for it. All politics is local. The higher they redirect us, the more other people there are screaming on a broad range of issues and our screams just get lost. If you write Obama about this, well, there's a lot of people vying for his attention right now. Old Bethpage is far down the list.

The Nassau County Legislators, the Long Island Senators and Assembly people, on the other hand, have limited places to point the finger if we won't shift our eyes (and letters) off them. Remember when your older brother would say "OMIGOD, WHAT'S THAT LANDING IN THE BACKYARD????" You whipped around to look and he stole your slice of pie.

Keep your eye on that slice of pie, no matter what they say, and keep writing. You're having an effect.

Karin Timour
Period Knitting -- Socks, Sleeping Hats, Balaclavas
Atlantic Guard Soldiers' Aid Society
Email: Ktimour@aol.com

[MBBursig]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

I received this reply from one of the County Legislators:

"Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to write to the Presiding Officer Diane Yatauro regarding your concerns with possible funding cuts for Old Bethpage Village Restoration and other County Parks and Museums. The County Executive’s proposed cuts all hinge on not getting any state or federal funding from the stimulus program that the President has put up for vote. Every other option is exhausted before these cuts would come into play. "

[eric marten]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

I've been fiddling and lecturing at Old Bethpage for over 26 years, probably about 25 - 30 times per year, and can't imagine Long Island without it. I have brought several of my students (violin) there as apprentices over the years, and introduced them to period music and period instruments. In fact, that's why I have set up four 19th century violins for use there. These kids, (now adults) have put in countless hours providing authentic music for visitors.
I will do everything I can to prevent the closure; I've written the County Executive, etc.
Keep up the fight.

[LibertyHallVols]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

Chris,

Thanks for posting this! Here in Indiana, we get a lot of value out of Conner Prairie and I would hate to see it close! The loss would extend beyond the decay of once-restored buildings and farm settings, but, as you say, the loss of venue for teaching 19th Century crafts and trades. You can't just haul-off and decide to do a little blacksmithing, shoemaking, or farming in the back yard or garage... and even if you could, you can't exactly share your experience with others. You need a venue in which to do the craft and for others to watch and learn, or perhaps even to apprentice.

Out east, recent state-level budget crunches have closed great sites like the Revolutionary Battlefield park at Monmouth, NJ. I would hate to see a site like OBVR suffer a similar fate!

I'll be working on letters this week!!!

Thanks, Chris!

[CJDaley]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

Just listening to Chris talk about this place over the years has been an education.

I do talk about it alot because museums like Old Bethpage Village Restoration do more than education 2nd graders about 19th century life. They also take high school student and college interns and mold them into future historians.

The cast of people I worked with there included Shoemaker Chris Schreiber, Hatter Oliver Ogden, Blacksmith John Folk and scores of historians like Glenn Sitterly (TimeTravlers on ebay.com), Gary Hammond, Terry Hunt and of course Jim McKenna.

Those mentors gave me an appreciation for history, artifacts and eduction. Where will the next generation of historians come from if we don't have a 19th century 'incubator' to grow them?

Think about what you do for the new recruits in your reenactment unit, this is what these museums do for aspiring historians and craftsmen. Small museums like Pamplin Park, Conner Prairie, Sturbridge Village and Old Bethpage offer something you can never get from cracking a book.

[KarinTimour]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

Beth:

Full disclosure note: I'm a CSEA member, though of a different local. Your note was the first that I'd heard that CSEA wasn't currently negotiating. I suspect that this is a strategic ploy, and would recommend at this point that people more usefully target Suozzi and the legislators. The state fiscal year starts April 1 (technically). The years that we've had a budget on time in the past century can be counted on the fingers of one hand, with fingers to spare. These are all proposed changes -- so these are the opening salvos of the mud wrestling to come.

Thanks to those of you who have already written.

Further Suggestion on mail and letters
To give you a further "bit" of How the Mystery called Representative Government works, they also count form letters. So what some of us should start doing is xeroxing our letter of outrage, and snail mail a copy once a week or even daily. Get this, in addition to reading our letters, they weigh (on a scales) the number of form letters or group letters they get. So it's useful to repeatedly send your printed out email. Just get in a routine of doing this every few days.

As Doug has noted, while letters from their constituents count for the most, letters from other states also carry a certain amount of impact. Those of you overseas can also write, and if you're a veteran or serving military, I think it would carry a lot of weight to mention that. The idea that someone would pick up a pencil or type on a computer from the sandbox because he or she is concerned about Old Bethpage Village would certainly carry weight with these guys. Suozzi clearly has ambitions for larger office, so hearing from voters in other parts of New York or outside the region will carry some weight with him.

Those of you who are within driving distance of Long Island, listen up. I've been thinking that there might be something a little creative that we can do in person. I'm in the scheming stage right now, and need to talk to those who are central to this battle (we don't want to be working at cross purposes with those who are front and center in this). I'm not going to post this here, since it's a public board and we don't want to lose the element of surprise.

If you're interested in some in-person activity, send me an email at Ktimour@aol.com. I need to do some research first, but I've got my Thinking Cap on.

In the meantime, keep those letters coming!
Save Old Bethpage Village!

Karin Timour
Period Knitting -- Socks, Sleeping Hats, Balaclavas
Atlantic Guard Soldiers' Aid Society
Email: Ktimour@aol.com

[DougCooper]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

Gang, this is a lot like the plan to close Ft Snelling a few years ago. The letter writing and e-mailing (letters are in fact more impressive) saved the Fort's programs of education and living history. The huge outpouring of support from outside Minnesota was truly amazing. To hear it told, there was a complete ignorance of the Fort's place in the hearts of folks outside the state.

The same thing needs to happen here. As usual, there is likely a lack of understanding of just how vital this place is to historical education, for New Yorkers and everyone else. Just listening to Chris talk about this place over the years has been an education.

Write, type and Stamp at will.

[Johnny Lloyd]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

Ouch... this hurts.

The Gawdawful Mess has done a Picket Post with the 119th NY in years past. Attached are some pics of last year's event. Yep... It's actually Long Island... not too far from NYC.

This site is WONDERFUL and it would be a shame to lose this island in the middle of urban sprawl and cement. The buildings there are period, post/pre-period. This site preserves much of what urban New York needs to save ASAP.

I'll see what I can do to help!

Thanks for the word, Chris.

All the best- Johnny Lloyd:wink_smil

[Beth Chamberlain]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

Some more information to add to what Chris posted.

Souzzi's plan includes laying off 1000 employees - that is what will shut the Village down. Souzzi has proposed to the union that members should take a pay cut and, according to some sources, pay some portion of their health insurance. So far the union president has refused to open negotiations. I don't want any of my friends to have their pay cut but I know if I had a choice between a pay cut or no job I would take the pay cut. Thousands of people across the country have already done just that to keep their businesses open. To not even open negotiations denies union members a voice in how this pans out. CSEA local 830 president Jerry Laricchiuta can be reached at Jerry@csea830.org

Some of Souzzi's other plans require aid and/or cooperation from NY State so please also contact Assembly and Senate members. The Village sits in Senator Kemp Hannon's district, his contact information can be found at http://www.senatorhannon.com/. A complete list of Assembly members can be found at http://www.senate.state.ny.us/senate...ators?OpenForm. The Neighborhood is represented by Assemblyman Charles Lavine, his contact information is at http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/?ad=013, a complete list of Assembly members is at http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/. The Village routinely welcomes school groups, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and adult organizations from Suffolk County and New York City. While your own legislators and those representing the Village's neighborhood are logical front-line contacts politicians from the rest of the region need to know that their constituents are about to loose a valuable and beloved education and recreation resource.

To those of you who do not call OBVR "home" but make your voice heard in support of the Village - Thank You. I don't rely on the Village to keep a roof over my head and food on my table but my friends there do.


Beth

[MBBursig]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

Blanket those County legislators if you are a Nassau County resident!

Everyone should contact Mr. Suozzi though! The more letters he receives the better the chance we have! Maybe this is all political "saber rattling" to get his way, but I don't trust local Nassau County politics regardless of your party!

My students and fellow faculty, here in Nassau, found out today about the news and they were mad as well!

Don't Tread on Me,

[Swag]

Re: Save our History: Old Bethpage Village Restoration

Letters are being written and will be sent promptly. Thank you for letting us know about these issues, this is an absolute outrage, considering the beauty and importance of Old Bethpage Village. And I will make sure to send it via snail mail, as Karin has mentioned.