By The TimesLedger
It’s getting scary at City Hall. With each new week comes a proposal for new and, for the most part, unnecessary legislation. Most of this proposed legislation comes with good intentions. But this new legislation could cause more problems than it solves.
For example, there is the bill that would require Little Leagues to use wooden bats instead of the aluminum bats used by Little Leagues all over America. The theory was that the ball comes off the aluminum bat much faster, endangering right fielders with slow reflexes and short attention spans.
Will it really be that much better if little Billy gets whacked in the nose by a ball coming off a hardwood Louisville Slugger? Probably not.
Then there is the legislation that would force children’s sports programs to give the boot to rowdy parents. More good intentions, but this law would be nearly impossible to enforce and would cause more headaches for the people it seeks to help.
The latest is a proposal to impose fines on people whose cell phones go off in movie theaters and concert halls. Sounds good. Think about it. There you are in the multiplex when some bozo’s phone starts playing “The Dancing Queen.” How exactly does the theater identify the bozo and who gives the bozo his ticket? Wouldn’t an unmandated condescending dirty look have the same chilling effect?
We understand that with term limits the council members are under pressure to make their mark as quickly as possible. But we suggest these overheated lawmakers take a deep breath and think before they write. When it comes to making law, good intentions are not enough.
Editorial: A sincere apology
Something terrible happened at Caffe on the Green on the evening of Jan. 3. Connie Coleman, an Asian American, said she was verbally and physically assaulted by two men and a woman sitting at a table next to hers. The assault reportedly included anti-Asian slurs.
Joe Franco, the owner of the restaurant, invited Ms. Coleman and her husband to the Caffe where he offered the couple a public apology. Mr. Franco was not working on the night of the incident and he has had to rely on the report given to him by his staff who claim that Ms. Coleman and the woman at the other table were briefly involved in a physical fight and that a waiter intervened.
The Colemans say no one intervened.
Because this is Bayside, nothing is ever simple. The apology extravaganza was attended by Queens Borough President Helen Marshall, former Borough President Claire Shulman, City Councilman John Liu (D-Flushing) and Michael Nussbaum, a director of the Queens Jewish Community Council and associate publisher of the Queens Tribune.
From the bottom of his heart, Mr. Franco said, “As the owner of this restaurant, I sincerely apologize to Mrs. Coleman for the verbal and physical attack she suffered in my restaurant, and will do everything I can to cooperate with the police in bringing the assailants to justice.”
This was not enough for Mr. Coleman, who like Mr. Franco wasn’t there. Meanwhile, Connie is considering a lawsuit. Now there's a surprise.
The frustrated owner then added, “My people did jump in, but these people are waitstaff. I can’t expect them to be referees or bodyguards.”
The way we see it, Mr. Franco has gone beyond the call of duty. We believe he is sincere and that he feels terrible about what happened in his restaurant. That should be enough.
