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sinik

Re: Okay, so who here thinks the Katyn monument needs to go?

#91

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Quote:

T-Bird wrote:
Sinik - because a movie didn't show someone being bayoneted (out of 20,000+ people who died) means no one was bayoneted? Nobody? Really?

I think the artist does have a responsibility to truth and especially in this case where there has been decades of mis-information and lies, I would have thought you would want to do it with at least some accuracy rather than letting your artistic leanings run wild.

From what I have since read about this most of the executions were done by taking victims with their hands tied behind their backs to a cell where they were shot in the back of the head than the bodies were pulled through double doors and loaded onto trucks where they were taken to the grave. However, some officers were taken to the grave-side and shot in the neck. Some were bayoneted after they were shot.

The Exchange Place statue shows a figure being bayoneted from above as if victim was standing in a grave but alive. It seems to be going for maximum shock value while also being a highly unlikely method of executing a very large number of people at one time. In that sense it actually diminishes the scale of the crime.

Wajda's film showed both the cell executions and the grave-side executions. In the case of the grave-side executions a noose was placed over the head to lead the victim to the grave and in some cases a coat or blanket was tied over the head before execution.

Quote:

If I want to learn more about the JFK assassination, should I rent Oliver Stone's movie?

Oliver Stone is the first one to say that he is not a chronicler (unlike Wajda) and that his films are not intended to be historical fact. However, some DVD versions of JFK include a documentary extra concerning the assassination.
I think it is the Peter Jennings documentary which may not be the most recent but does include the 3D computer evidence which does back up the hypothesis that it was Oswald alone from the book repository and that he had time to get off all three shots. It debunks (not altogether satisfactorily) the audio evidence that caused a post-Warren committee to conclude that the was a fourth shot and hence a conspiracy. There have been subsequent documentaries that have further updated this but I would say that yes there is merit in renting JFK provided you rent a version with extras. Sorry if that was not the answer you were looking for.

BTW, without Stone's film there is a vast amount of information that would still not have been unclassified but was released as a direct result of the impact of the film, so it has helped to bring us nearer to the truth.

Posted on: 2009/3/10 22:11

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sinik

Re: Okay, so who here thinks the Katyn monument needs to go?

#92

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According to Wajda's film, the victims were shot, not bayoneted. Given his personal relationship to the atrocity I don't think he would have misrepresented this unlike the artist that was commissioned for the memorial at Exchange Place.

Posted on: 2009/3/10 3:00

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sinik

Re: Okay, so who here thinks the Katyn monument needs to go?

#93

Home away from home

Quote:

JCbiscuit wrote:
I'm all for honoring events that have (or once had) an effect on JC residents. But that statue is so macabre that it's almost comical, and thus is hardly a respectful commemoration of the Katyn massacre victims.

On the other hand, it's so freaky that when I first saw it, I thought "I have GOT to know what that's all about," and probably wouldn't have bothered to learn about this slice of 20th Century history otherwise.

It definitely gets one's attention.

But admit it, Binky. Comparing this waterfront curiosity to the Holocaust Museum falls under the heading "Disingenuous."

If anyone wants to find out more about Katyn, there is a film showing at Film Forum currently called, um, "Katyn" directed by Polish veteran director Andrzej Wajda whose father was among those murdered. I didnt particularly enjoy this film, although I suppose you are not meant to. It is told from the perspective of the families left behind trying to find out what happened (the Nazi's and Russians tried to blame the atrocity on each other and it was not until relatively recently that Russia finally accepted responsibility).

Now, does anybody who supports the memorial think that the statue is tasteful and fitting? Honestly, now.

Posted on: 2009/3/9 21:08

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sinik

Re: Jersey Journal's parent company warns of newspaper's possible closure

#94

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Quote:

ianmac47 wrote:
... most papers the size and scope of the journal will fold.

The old jokes are the best

Quote:

But as they are operating now, they are, and rightfully so, a sinkng ship.

atrocious

Posted on: 2009/2/22 19:22

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sinik

Re: Hoboken Sovereign Bank's ATM modified to steal users' card info and pin number

#95

Home away from home

This happened to me last month. Somebody withdrew $300 using my ATM card details in a foreign country but Bank of America flagged it as suspicious because I made a local withdrawal the same day. So I got a new card and PIN.

The places I normally use my card are JC, Hoboken and NYC, but if it's NYC it's always from inside a BoA lobby that normally requires card access.

Yesterday, I was at Newport Mall and tried to withdraw some money from the portable BoA ATM on the ground floor near the Parking Garage exit.

The first thing it did was ask me which language I wanted, which it normally doesnt do but everything else looked like the usual BoA software. When it asked me for the PIN it wouldnt accept it, so I tried several times

I thought perhaps my card had been too close to my cell phone so I tried it again at the Newport BoA lobby and it worked fine.

I reported this to BoA and they were going to send somebody out to check. Anybody else have a problem with that machine yesterday?

Posted on: 2009/2/19 14:27

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sinik

Re: JC Man: 20 yrs for International Racketeering - Funneled Cash to Pakistan & Got Illegal Green Cards

#96

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Quote:

heights wrote:
Quote:

sinik wrote:
Quote:

heights wrote:
And you can thank the Brits for giving freedom in 1947 to these 2 countries, one newly formed at that time.

Yeah, how much more appropriate to blame the actions of Britain 60+ years ago rather than the individual who was born in an independent country. I guess once Britain granted Pakistan independence it was inevitable that this dirtbag was going to come here and start racketeering.

How true, my sentiments exactly.

Well, yes, I thought that's what you were thinking

Posted on: 2009/2/5 17:44

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sinik

Re: JC Man: 20 yrs for International Racketeering - Funneled Cash to Pakistan & Got Illegal Green Cards

#97

Home away from home

Quote:

heights wrote:
And you can thank the Brits for giving freedom in 1947 to these 2 countries, one newly formed at that time.

Yeah, how much more appropriate to blame the actions of Britain 60+ years ago rather than the individual who was born in an independent country. I guess once Britain granted Pakistan independence it was inevitable that this dirtbag was going to come here and start racketeering.

Posted on: 2009/2/5 2:24

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sinik

Re: Hoboken will be just a walk away

#98

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Quote:

Annod wrote:
Is this walkway any more convenient than Marin Blvd to go to Washington Street in Hoboken? Maybe for people living in Newport. It seems that this walkway is only convenient for most people to go to the Lackawanna Terminal.

From HP I find it quicker to walk to Washington Street via Marin than it is to walk through the Mall and take the light rail, particularly on a weekend morning when the light rail service is abysmal. If you are lucky enough that the first train that comes goes to Hoboken Terminal rather than 2nd Street it's still quite a hike to Washington

On the flip side you may frequently get accosted for money on the other side of the Tunnel and then when you try to cross Observer Highway drivers turning right from Marin will not yield even if the light is in your favor and you are in the walkway [I trust it's not any of you lot

]

Posted on: 2009/2/5 2:15

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sinik

Re: Hoboken will be just a walk away

#99

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Quote:

heights wrote:
Quote:

robt wrote:
It's going to take a year??!?!?!?

How big is the inlet it's going over? 15-20 -meters?

That's going to be one solid foot bridge! :

Meters ?? Where are we merry ole England.

More like Napoleonic France

Posted on: 2009/2/5 0:05

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sinik

Re: Hoboken will be just a walk away

#100

Home away from home

Quote:

GeorgeWBush wrote:

I was thinking the same thing. When you say "walkway" I hear "corridor" and when I see "Newport" I think "Danzig", and I don't mean the dude from Lodi :)

GWB

If I follow your historical analogy, you seem to be suggesting Hoboken would use Newport to annex JC. Doesn't seem very likely, dude

Resized Image

Most of the people I have met from Hoboken dont even know where Jersey City is.

Posted on: 2009/2/4 23:48

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sinik

Re: Downtown: One dead in shooting on Coles Street in Jersey City this morning

#101

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Quote:

SamS wrote:
SPIN?!??!

It was pretty insensitive. Probably a lot of us in HP know this guy and he was alive less than 2 hours ago. This is very sad.

Posted on: 2009/1/27 16:29

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sinik

Re: Barack Obama for President

#102

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Quote:

Br6dR wrote:
And it hasn't just happened, I truly believe he is the best possible person to lead this country after it has been run into a ditch.

I am not really sure what he accomplished as a Senator to earn such an endorsement. He spent most of that time running for President. Considering who his opponent was it was no small achievement to get the nomination although he had an embarrassing amount of help from the media. Honeymoon's over. Time to get on with the job and prove himself.

Posted on: 2009/1/21 9:27

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sinik

Re: Great Depression II

#103

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Quote:

thriftyT wrote:

Long term, I'm bullish on the U.S.A. If one was to look at the U.S. as a corporation, one could see that we have two key UNIQUE strategic advantages compared to other countries: unmatched diversity and unmatched freedom. These powerful forces tend to overcome any handicaps over the long term.

I think many countries are very diverse (I assume we are talking about ethnicity and not the economy, as we have already discussed how un-diverse

the US economy is) and I am not sure that diversity by itself necessarily is an advantage, or that much of an advantage.

As far as freedom is concerned. Once again I don't think that the US has UNIQUE and unmatched freedom. Many countries have the basic freedoms that the US has and some that the US doesn't have (the rest of the world has moved on as well since 1789 and the Bill of Rights, you know). It might be too much freedom, i.e. lack of regulation, that helped get us into the present mess. On the other hand the Sarbanes-Oxley regulations were introduced as a response to a lack of regulation (or too much freedom, if you will) in the aftermath of Enron and other scandals. Sarbanes-Oxley has been the cause of much business - particularly financial - relocating to centers with GREATER "FREEDOMS" e.g. London and Frankfurt; so much so that there were fears that London would replace New York as the financial capital of the world.

Perhaps it is a case of having the right mix of freedom and regulation and not just more freedom than the other guy (which we only think we have, but don't).

Posted on: 2008/12/20 12:49

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sinik

Re: Great Depression II

#104

Home away from home

Quote:

thriftyT wrote:

Unfortunately, I believe you're right. We've been undertaxed for the past 30 years or so. This isn't opinion, it's fact.

I see. Well since 40% of people do not pay income tax, perhaps you would be in favor of some of them making a contribution instead of receiving checks from the treasury. What about property taxes? Are they too low as well? As the number of foreclosures increases presumably property taxes will have to rise on homeowners to make up the shortfall which will presumably help to increase the number of foreclosures and so on. Then of course we are all aware that many people have lost or will lose their jobs so the people in work will have to pay more income taxes just to keep revenues where they are and as the number of unemployed rises (as it will) and so the cycle goes on.

Is it your "opinion" that increasing taxes at this particular time is the answer?

Posted on: 2008/12/20 12:04

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sinik

Re: Great Depression II

#105

Home away from home

Quote:

ianmac47 wrote:

The United States manufactures ideas. The era of production in the United States is mostly over. The nation produces cultural products, like movies, television, music and art, and it produces engineering like architecture, chemistry, medicine, and agricultural innovations

Does it manufacture ideas? I am looking at figures for 2002 and the arts/entertainment sector comprises less than 2% of the workforce. Comparing revenues from all sectors of the economy, it doesn't fare much better.

Posted on: 2008/12/18 12:17

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sinik

Re: Unleashed Pit Bull attacks jogger in Lincoln Park -- Owner leaves woman bleeding

#106

Home away from home

Quote:

super_furry wrote:
Quote:

GrovePath wrote:
Quote:

super_furry wrote:
Quote:

injcsince81 wrote:
Evolution gave pitbulls their massive jaws, their massive heads, and their massive chests for a reason...

Selective breeding, not evolution. Jeesh!

Exactly! ...Selectively bred to kill other dogs in "pit" fights, and to be used as guard dogs.

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pit_bull :

Pit Bulls - or dogs that appear to be Pit Bulls - make up a large portion of the population living in shelters across the United States, and may be put down due to the stigma associated with the various Pit Bull breeds (or because of overcrowding).

However, because Pit Bulls have been selectively bred over time to be non-aggressive towards humans, they make excellent family pets who are friendly, loyal, and intelligent. In fact, in England the breed is often referred to as the "nanny" dog because of their predisposition to love people, especially children. Some Pit Bulls may show aggression towards other dogs. Often, aggression in dogs towards other canines stems from insecurity or fear. With diligent training and a committed handler, the dog may overcome this aggressive behaviour.

It is the HUMANS that misuse their pets, not the dogs that are to blame. Place the responsibility where it belongs.

Well I lived in England for a bunch of years and I don't ever remember Pit Bulls being called anything other than Pit Bulls.
And as a matter of FACT, according to the 1991 Dangerous Dogs Act Pit Bulls are identified as one of four breeds of dogs including their crossbreeds that must be kept muzzled and leashed at all times in public. Obviously that legislation did not come about because of Pit Bulls reputation for loving people and children so please make sure you check all the facts before you post misleading information like that again.

Posted on: 2008/12/13 2:22

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sinik

Re: Any thoughts? Most of California's Black & Latino Voters Backed Gay Marriage Ban

#107

Home away from home

Quote:

friendoflois wrote:
Sinik,

The issue becomes one of civil rights when a segment of the population that is subject to discrimination is singled out in some inappropriate way by the law. In this case, gays have been specifically excluded from the rights that the state grants to married couples.

Yeah, we have been somewhat distracted by Loopy's "separate but equal" cheap shot.

I am all for gay couples having the same rights as married couples. Let's extend this to all unmarried couples too so at least people who have made a commitment to each other without resorting to the law can have the same visitation rights in hospital etc. Apparently, however, that is not enough so this is not only about civil rights.

By the way, nobody has been "singled out" by the law for discrimination. Married couples enjoy certain privileges and perhaps some of these should be looked at because there is no real justification for some of them except in the case where they have children. Of course, that would be political suicide.

Posted on: 2008/12/4 12:36

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sinik

Re: Travel Show shoots in Jersey City

#108

Home away from home

Quote:

dbmcnamara wrote:
I can break the reality, it's a joke. Of course it's a joke. Once you see it, you know it can't be real. A penis sculpture in Van Vorst Park? Fire Helicopters? A crazy racist sculptor? If you don't think the idea of a giant penis sculpture next to a kid's playground is funny than you don't think it's funny. But some people do. The premise is to make up stuff about Jersey City that's completely absurd. I think it did it's job, it's harmless. I understand your pride for the city because it is a great place to live but it's also funny how no one knows anything about the city outside of hudson county. We've all talked to people who know nothing about Jersey City, so here is more information to confuse them and have them become possibly curious about where we all live. It's to spite other people's ignorance about where we live. I'm making more so watch out.

Well why not a penis sculpture in Van Vorst Park? Bayonne has a cracked vagina, so why not?

Posted on: 2008/12/2 3:33

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sinik

Re: Same sex marriage in NJ

#109

Home away from home

Are gay couples and married straight people segregated in the same way that whites and blacks once were? I don't think so. Do gay un-married couples and straight un-married couples have any significant differences in rights that you could compare to the differences in the way that whites and blacks used to live in the '50s and '60s? If you try to argue that there are, I am sure there are some more votes that you will lose the next time a vote on the issue is held.

It's not me you need to convince.

Posted on: 2008/12/2 1:23

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sinik

Re: NYC transit added to Google's map service

#110

Home away from home

Quote:

sinik wrote: Quote:
GrovePath wrote:
View Larger Map I'm glad to see they have Jersey City and the PATH working with the MTA - this will be great on your iphone & Blackberry.
The latest downloadable release for iPhone firmware (2.2) now has walking directions as well as MTA, PATH options included. Has anybody else tried this? It seems to be sending me to Grove Street and then to Journal Square to get to 33rd street when I am closer to Pavonia. This seems like a great addition if it's working correctly. Also streetview is included in the new release.

It also appears to have Ferry and NYC bus timetables integrated although it doesnt seem to distinguish weekend from weekday sevice. Anybody had any success with this, at all, vis-a-vis using it to find accurate travel times between JC & NYC? This weekend it recommended me to use ferry service between exchange place and NYC when clearly there is none.

Posted on: 2008/12/1 22:37

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sinik

Re: Same sex marriage in NJ

#111

Home away from home

Nobody said it better than this man.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7I1wtPUOtM

Posted on: 2008/11/28 16:30

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sinik

Re: Same sex marriage in NJ

#112

Home away from home

Quote:

Loopy wrote:

I also believe that Sinik's position that gays and lesbians should have equal rights to marry so long as you don't call it marriage is nothing less than veiled bigotry.

No that's not bigotry, it's just an opinion and it has no relation or reaction to anybody else's opinion. I respect the opinion of gay people and others that think differently (and they should at least be tolerant of my opinion unless they are themself bigots).

Quote:

If you think that two dudes getting married somehow undermines your marriage to a woman, you have serious self-esteem issues.

That is more like bigotry, because you are intolerant to somebody else's opinion you insult them by calling them "rednecks" or questioning their adequacy.

You are not going to win any converts among the ranks of those that *are* married with this approach but that is exactly what proponents of gay marriage need to do if they are to make any headway in the current system.

One approach might be to articulate why equal rights is not enough and why any resolution must include the word "marriage".

Posted on: 2008/11/28 6:35

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sinik

Re: Same sex marriage in NJ

#113

Home away from home

quote]
TheHookJC wrote:
Interesting break down. Those who voted for Prop 8

84% of weekly churchgoers ? (32% of electorate);
82% of Republicans ? (29% of electorate);
81% of white evangelicals ? (17% of electorate);
70% of African Americans ? (10% of electorate);
65% of all Protestants - (43% of electorate);
65% of white Protestants ? (29% of electorate);
64% of voters w/children in household ? (40% of electorate);
64% of Catholics ? (30% of electorate);
61% of age 65 and over ? (15% of electorate);
60% of married people ? (62% of electorate);
59% of suburban dwellers ? (51% of electorate);
58% of non-college graduates ? (50% of electorate);
53% of Latinos ? (18% of electorate);
51% of white men ? (31% of electorate).[/quote]

Something not quite right about these numbers.

(i) African Americans only comprise about 7% of the population, so how do they get to be 10% of the electorate?
(ii) The Latino population in California is actually more like 35%, so how are they only 18% of the electorate even allowing for an illegal component?

However, assuming there is some truth in the above numbers,
The biggest group of people that voted for prop 8 is married people. This group does not want marriage to be re-defined to mean something different to what it means now. The demographic of this group is not likely to change any time soon so it doesn't really matter which particular group protesters decide to target, so long as this is to be decided democratically, this proposition will always succeed. I also think the manner of the protests is self-defeating and is not going to change anybody's mind.

[FTR, I favor equal rights for all couples, but not the requirement to call this "marriage".]

Posted on: 2008/11/27 14:08

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sinik

Re: NYC transit added to Google's map service

#114

Home away from home

Quote:

GrovePath wrote:
View Larger Map I'm glad to see they have Jersey City and the PATH working with the MTA - this will be great on your iphone & Blackberry.

The latest downloadable release for iPhone firmware (2.2) now has walking directions as well as MTA, PATH options included. Has anybody else tried this? It seems to be sending me to Grove Street and then to Journal Square to get to 33rd street when I am closer to Pavonia. This seems like a great addition if it's working correctly. Also streetview is included in the new release.

Posted on: 2008/11/22 22:55

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sinik

Re: Barack Obama for President

#115

Home away from home

Quote:

Br6dR wrote:
At long last, have you left no sense of decency?

That's a Palinesque sentence

Posted on: 2008/11/21 14:17

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sinik

Re: Barack Obama for President

#116

Home away from home

Quote:

Trubrit wrote:
Quote:

greenville wrote:
Quote:

Trubrit wrote:
Say what you like. If you focused more on solving the problem rather than joining the Obama cult - you'd be more understanding.

Switching from trickle down economics to bottom up economics is going to cause the country to flatline for 6 months.

How does the Koolaid taste the morning after? Maybe you can all chant "yes we can" to stay warm?
\

You wanted to put a person who didn't know that Africa was a continent not a country a heartbeat away from the presidency! What the heck is wrong with you? She would have done horrors to our economy and with McCain who has had problems with cancer a few years ago it would have not been long before she took over! Your probably just like Joe the welfare feeding plumber another Republican hypocrite, and with a mind like that there's no way your making over $250,000 and you'll probably ARE going to benefit from Obama's tax cut for the middle class.

Don't believe the media bias on Palin. The idea that she doesn't know that Africa is a continent is the kind of crap that keeps SNL / John Stewart / Bill Maher in business. It's from an anonymous source - which means it's bullshit.

Electoral college aside, 46.2% of this country voted for McCain. And the key is the youth vote. America doesn't let citizens drink until they are 21, and yet you allow them to elect a unqualified socialist to president at 18. Something is very wrong.

Judging someone's income on a blog gives me a good handle on the kind of class of person that you are.

My take on what that weasel, Carl Cameron, actually reported is that she did not know that South Africa was a country rather then a region of Africa (the continent). Of course she knew that Africa is a continent but the rest is bad enough. John McCain did not adequately vet her and IMO therefore deserved to lose for making a poor choice.

But then a lot of people thought it was hilarious that Palin (in the guise of Tina Fey) apparently said that she could see Russia from her house when they should have known that she could not possibly have said that if they had had even an elementary knowledge of the geography of Alaska. Probably many of these are the same people that are now feeling very smug about their superior knowledge of geography to Palin.

So we are back to the "everybody making less than $250,000 is going to get a tax cut" nonsense, are we? The utterances on this subject made by the Obama campaign prior to the election can not all be correct because they were contradictory. I tried plugging numbers into the Obama tax cut calculator link that was posted here earlier. I dont think any single filer making more than about 75,000 is going to get a tax cut (there is an anomaly between 150,000 and 200,000 where you actually get $34 back). To put it very nicely, this guy seems to have a problem telling the truth.

Posted on: 2008/11/7 22:03

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sinik

Re: Barack Obama for President

#117

Home away from home

Quote:

thriftyT wrote:
Quote:

Trubrit wrote:

Moving forward, several of my friends in finance believe the economy would have bounced back much faster with McCain.

That's cool. I and several million Americans have a bunch of enemies in finance. And we don't really care what they have to say right now.

Clearly, all people who work in the finance industry are to blame for what happened at Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. So clearly, all Trubrit's finance friends are to blame and their views should be discounted.

Impeccable logic as always.

Posted on: 2008/11/7 12:48

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sinik

Re: Any thoughts? Most of California's Black & Latino Voters Backed Gay Marriage Ban

#118

Home away from home

Quote:

designknob wrote:
I still find this amazing that most of the areas of CA went 2-1 Obama and banned this. How on earth did that happen? And why is this even an issue to vote on? WHO CARES. Gay couples should have every right to experience the misery of straight couples... and even the joy in some cases. WHY on earth do people care so much about this????

Not being married myself, I would only guess that this is about changing the meaning of what "marriage" is and has been for Millennia (it also changes the meaning of words like "husband" and "wife"). No problem about having an expression like "civil union", though.

Posted on: 2008/11/7 11:35

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sinik

Re: Barack Obama for President

#119

Home away from home

Quote:

MrWolf wrote:

One of the critical things that the resuscitation of the economy will require is an increase in consumer and investor confidence, currently both at very low levels. Of the two candidates, the winner was clearly the candidate that will best inspire such confidence, not only in the US, but around the world. At the end of the day, the better run the country, the better the prospects for the economy. Whether this will occur "faster" is for market timers to guestimate, I'm more interested in a return of strong economic fundamentals.

I'm sure Warren Buffet and other like minds agree .....

Well so far, we have had the worst ever post-election day loss on the stock market and worst 2 day loss in 20 years. Where's the "confidence"?

Posted on: 2008/11/7 11:25

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sinik

Re: Barack Obama for President

#120

Home away from home

Quote:

Trubrit wrote

Still, at least you can travel to France and not get verbally abused!

Don't count on it

Posted on: 2008/11/7 0:15

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