Splenda Killz! Time for Natural Sweeteners

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Linda Kaidan

Last night Insider.com informed me that artificial sweeteners can kill you!https://youtu.be/0bCaL7WAthk Like many others, I had no idea. Causing stroke, heart attack, and blood clots you definitely want to avoid this weight control aid.

Splenda contains erythritol. Derived from fermented corn it’s 70% as sweet as sugar. A Cleveland Clinic Study identified a link between increased rates of heart attack, stroke, death, and erythritol (Feb 27, 2023, News Release Cleveland Clinic).

Over 4000 study participants in both US and Europe supported the conclusion that erythritol leads to blood clots. Dr. Stanley Hazen of the Cleveland Clinic advises continued studies examining the adverse effects of artificial sweeteners, especially those involving an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

 

 

 

 

Protect Your House from Flooding in Herkimer Village! Fire Hydrant Test Misses the Mark

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by Linda Kaidan

Do you have protection against basement flooding? “IDK” is not a good answer!

9/26/23 My foot above a clooged drain on Herkimer's Pleasant Avenue following today's fire hydrant test. I clered this drain. The rest remained clooged.
9/26/23 My foot above a clogged drain on Herkimer’s Pleasant Avenue following today’s fire hydrant test. I cleared this drain. The rest remained clogged.

Flood insurance is not cheap and basement insurance is limited. Yet most basements have expensive infrastructure like one or more electrical boxes, furnaces, water lines, and heating systems. If you have ever hired a contractor, you might realize that repairing or replacing some or all of these systems is very costly.

The least expensive protection is to prevent your basement from flooding in the first place.

One of the major factors in flood prevention is periodically clearing the storm drains that move water from streets into an effective municipal drainage system.

Is this more difficult than ever before? Sadly, the answer is yes, because more rain is falling than ever before. We can handle this increase in rain by having excellent storm drains that move the water away from buildings and control the flow into conduits that can carry it to reservoirs or into waterways that can handle the flow. But this requires constant vigilance on the part of residents and government.

What is your local government doing about this?

In Herkimer, NY a water hydrant test was conducted this morning on our street. I had forgotten all about it. I think it was around 9:30 AM 9/26/23 when I realized our street was streaming with water from Protection Ave to 328 Pleasant, halfway down  Pleasant Avenue, where the only truly clear storm drain gurgled happily, indicating the system worked well at this specific location. One reason it functioned adequately was because I had just cleared it of the fallen leaves that had accumulated on the grating at street level.

Today’s test showed that a small amount of intentional runoff from a fire hydrant caused backup of all drains except for the at 326 Pleasant Ave. The photo above shows me putting my foot in it. Well worth the effort :)!

It was sunny this morning as big puddles collected the length of the street. The single storm drain across from the biggest puddle at 326 was functional. It gurgled happily, removing flood water danger from this area.

Annual fire hydrant testing is often a legal requirement. And a fine opportunity to observe the condition of a street’s drainage. Herkimer’s the only place we’ve ever lived where this test wasn’t conducted by uniformed fire department personnel, but rather by what appeared to have been a contractor, who moved along briskly, splashing unconcerned through the standing water.

Why should you care? Stormwater control is key to preventing property damage from floods. Wet basements support mold, and mildew and destroy infrastructure. In many cases, damage to basements is not covered by insurance. Also, the documented failure of a municipality to remedy this threat leaves it open to a liability suit by homeowners and flood insurers in the event of negligence preceding a loss. (A blog post, for example, is legally admissible documentation.)

Living in your cozy village is great but it does not protect you from flood damage. Whether you’re a homeowner, renter, or both, you can lose valuable assets if stormwater drainage isn’t well-managed by your municipality.

Because of climate change, there is a vast increase in unpredictable flash floods caused by rainfall. In several states, people have died when driving flooded streets.

A cautionary tale

In not so-far away Vermont, July 2023 floods damaged more than 4,000 homes and 800 businesses. NOAA reported rivers rising 20 feet above normal. (Below image by NOAA.) 

Floodready.Vermont.gov reported the following damages resulting from July 2023 flooding:

“We all know people whose lives were turned upside down. Homes washed away. Bridges and roads were decimated. The costs for a small state were immense – about $63 million in insurance claims, $153 million in state and local costs, and a staggering $603 million in federal outlays – all from one storm.”

A Lesson to All from Maui

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by Linda Kaidan

Maui, one of the most beautiful destinations on earth, has suffered maximum devistation of its natural resources, people and economy, and further shaken confidence in the sustainability of our planet.

The root cause? A deadly combination of very dry air and hurricane winds.  Can we prevent this from happening again? 

Yes! Here is an inexpensive, recent technology developed by UC Berkeley, which will help keep moisture where it needs to be anywhere on our planet. In forests, deserts and in our very own Adirondacks Park . We will save lives and gain confidence that we can curb climate chaos on our way to controling the devastation which has stunned and terrorized all of  us.

The above video shows how we can extract water from air even in very dry places. The result can produce onsite water throughout the day,  reducing the likelihood of disasterous fires.

Open Season on Herkimer Elders As District Attorney Carpenter Waves His Magic Wand

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Stephen Ames Berry

In March, with a wave of his magic plea bargaining wand, Herkimer District Attorney Jeffrey Carpenter signaled open season on Herkimer elders. 

Ignoring a tough new law written to protect the elderly from violence, Carpenter offered a sweetheart plea deal to a 21-year-old thug who violently attacked a 74-year-old retired Special Needs teacher. The thug was fined $100 and went home on probation. The vicious assault, captured on two cameras, left the victim unconscious and bleeding on the sidewalk with a traumatic brain injury, from which he still suffers. 

The message to Herkimer’s criminals? It’s ok to beat up the old folks–Jeff Carpenter’s got your back.  No jail, no bail, a chump-change fine. Enjoy!

Herkimer DA Jeffrey Carpenter, the People's Attorney.
Herkimer DA Jeffrey Carpenter, the People’s Attorney.

Here’s how Carpenter flouted a tough New York law written to protect elders, putting a vicious criminal back on the street. It’s the same technique he’s long used to make Herkimer unsafe.

On 9/30/22, I was assaulted by Jordan Bormann, the 21-year-old son of our neighboring drug thug family. I was videoing harassment of my wife. The hefty young Bormann left me out cold and bleeding on the sidewalk with a deep brain bleed. Then kicked me as I lay unconscious. Medevaced to Albany Medical, I was treated for a subdural hematoma. If he’d shoved me a little harder or kicked me in the head, he could have killed me.

Here’s one of two videos of the attack given to Herkimer PD, as captured on two of our 22 security cameras: 

The Herkimer Police first tried to ignore the incident, aided by the bogus report of the responding officer, Jason Crippen, who wrote Bormann’s attack up as harassment–by me. (I’d previously reported Crippen for a rich history of alleged malfeasance.)

Alas for the coverup! I made it home alive and filed a video-based complaint. Which the Herkimer PD was compelled to act on–the clips from our security cameras left them no wiggle room.  Jordan Bormann was arrested and properly charged under New York Penal Law 120.05(12), Assault in the Second Degree, a Class D Violent Felony: 

…when with intent to cause physical injury to a person who is sixty-five years of age or older, he or she causes such injury to such person, and the actor is more than ten years younger than such person…

Effective in 2019 and cosponsored by Herkimer State Senator James Seward, the law recognizes the “uniquely depraved and heinous nature of attacks on the vulnerable elderly.” It carries a sentence of up to 7 years in prison, with a minimum required sentence of 2 years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000.

Two brief court appearances later, Bormann was back on the street and home free. For this we have our District Attorney, Jeffrey Carpenter to thank.

People v. Jordan Bormann– Illustrated

 Herkimer's 21 year old Jordan Borman stars as Nasty Green Dragon Cited With Felony Assault of 74 year old neighbor gets 0 jail time in a Herkimer County court. Thanks Jeffery Carpenter DA!Jordan Bormann savagely attacks his elderly neighbor…DA Carpenter waves his magic wand

…transforming Bormann into a free man.

Legal Process Just As Brief and Cartoonish

Jordan Bormann’s Arraignment 10/19/22

Absent was my advocate, the People’s Attorney, District Attorney Jeffrey Carpenter. Or anyone from his office, 7 miles away.

Based on my complaint and accompanying video of the attack, Bormann was arrested on 10/19/22 and arraigned that day for felony assault before Judge Joshua P. Bannister in Little Falls City Court. Banister is a practicing attorney and a fairly new part-time jurist. Present in the court were Judge Bannister, the court clerk, and Jordan Bormann. Bormann was represented by his court-appointed attorney, Joesph Macri, Esq., of Herkimer, appearing online.

Absent was my advocate, the People’s Attorney, District Attorney Jeffrey Carpenter. Or anyone from his office, 7 miles away.

Judge Bannister several times expressed his opinion that the bail request of $2,500  was “a little light”(p.10) for a violent felony assault on an elder.

But DA Carpenter did send in a bail request. Even with bail reform, New York law still permits bail or jail in violent felony cases. Judge Bannister several times expressed his opinion that Carpenter’s bail request of $2,500 was “a little light” for a violent felony assault on an elder. (arraignment transcript, p.10, below) Had DA Carpenter been there, he might have argued in support of his bail request. But he wasn’t.

Bormann’s attorney argued for his client’s release pending trial. Bormann, obviously well-prepped, offered a litany of lies in reply to Judge Bannister’s questions:

Bormann’s only relationship to teaching  is attacking a 74-year-old retired Special Needs teacher, sending him to the hospital with a traumatic brain injury.

Jordan Bormann’s Well-Rehearsed Litany of Lies
1. Bormann told the Court that he wanted to be a teacher and was an online education student in early childhood development at Utica College. (transcript, p.5). He said that it was his third year at that school. 
Utica College became Utica University 8 months previously, in February of 2022. It doesn’t offer an online early childhood development program or any degree in education. 

Bormann’s only relationship to teaching is attacking a 74-year-old retired Special Needs teacher, sending him to the hospital with a traumatic brain injury.

2. Bormann said he lives with his parents and three siblings, ages 20, 16 and 13. (p.6)
We lived next door to Bormann for three long years. Other than Bormann, the only child of the family there was his younger brother, about 13. Bormann’s parents are long separated; his father hasn’t lived there for several years. His mother’s Facebook page lists her marital status as “separated.”)

3. Bormann said his mother, Kimberly Bormann Vargas, is looking for work. She appears to work as a drug dealer, operating out of the long-time officially ignored retail drug trafficking property they lived in.

4. Bormann said he works at Lowes, about 20 hours a week. He may since he and his family moved on 1/8/23, but in the years he lived next door, he appeared to be a leisurely part of his mother’s alleged drug business. This is him in my drug house post photo.  Mostly he hung out on the porch with his friends, rarely rising before early afternoon. 

Herkimer's Jordan Bormann, the day he violently assaulted his 74 year-old neighbor.
Herkimer’s camera-shy Jordan Bormann, the day he violently assaulted his 74-year-old neighbor.

DA Carpenter’s Nonappearance Assures Bormann’s Release

With DA Carpenter a no-show, Judge Bannister released Bormann without bail, setting him free with only a monitoring bracelet from the Probation Department and a Protection Order directing him to stay clear of me. (p.11)

Carpenter’s absence gave Bormann and his attorney free rein to argue unopposed for the dangerous and volatile Bormann’s release, and without cost to him:
Bormann had never been arrested before. (Not unusual, given Herkimer’s habitual tolorance of crimes situated at entrenched trafficking properties.) (p.10):

Bormann’s family was poor–bail would be a financial hardship. (p.8)
Bormann was both working and working toward a degree. (p.5)
Bormann has ties to the community. (p.7)

Jordan Bormann Felony Assault Arraignment Transcript 10/19/22

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A trial date of 4/19/23 in county court was assigned. Felonies are tried only in the county court.

Bormann told the judge he was concerned that I’d use the Protection Order to try to entrap him into a probation violation, falsely stating that my wife and I were always hanging in front of his house (which happens to abut his porch and is impossible to avoid if we walk from our driveway to the public sidewalk). Bormann’s attorney told him to call the District Attorney or the Herkimer Police if I “maliciously used” the protection order. (p.12-13)

 Jordan Bormann was given first-class treatment, his bail-free release eased by the absence of District Attorney Carpenter. The Herkimer PD gave him a ride home from the Probation Department, a 1/2 mile away.

Later that same morning, Officer Jason Crippen appeared at our door and handed me a copy of the Protection Order, shook my hand, and left. An hour later, Bormann and his mother were enjoying takeout on their front porch, across the driveway from our living room window.

Herkimer Monster Mom Kim Vargas

Jordan Bormann’s mother, Kimberly Bormann Vargas. (No, not a caricature.) Jordan Bormann, left rear.

Only later did I discover Crippen’s malicious role in support of my attacker, intentionally not requesting videos of the attack and blaming me for instigating it. Through DA Carpenter, this bogus report would later further deprive me of the protection of law.

Bormann’s 10/22/22 Protection Order–Note the Charge is Class D Violent Felony, Assault on Elder

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I settled down to slowly heal, buffeted by headaches, dizziness, and hypersomnia from the attack. All of which I put in my victim statement for the court, and submitted to DA Carpenter’s office, along with photos of my injury and the pool of my blood I was left lying unconscious in. 

Bormann;s unconscious victim bled profusely.

Jordan Bormann’s unconscious victim bled profusely.

Herkimer's Jordan Bormann's handwork.

Bormann’s handiwork required much stapling.

While awaiting Bormann’s April felony hearing in county court, I had the pleasure of watching him over the next five months, 15 yards away on his front porch, smoking smelly stuff, enjoying more takeout and hanging with his friends. 

New Protection Order Reveals DA Carpenter’s Magic Wand At Work

On 3/17/22, I was stunned to receive a fresh one-year-only protection order from the Little Falls City Court. There would be no felony trial.  District Attorney Carpenter had waved his magic wand, downgrading Bormann’s felony charge to a misdemeanor. It was over.

Rather than being tried under law for felony assault on an elder with serious injury, which carries a mandatory prison sentence, basher Bormann copped to a 3rd-degree misdemeanor assault charge. It’s an appropriate charge for a barroom brawl with minor injury.

Bormann’s 3/16/23 Protection Order–for Misdemeanor Assault

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Slam, Bam, Thank You, Ma’am: Jordan Bormann’s Sentencing

Here’s the transcript from Bormann’s 3/16/23 sentencing hearing before Little Falls City Court Judge Sarah M. Brinski. Brinski is a part-time judge with a full-time law practice. District Attorney Carpenter was present. I wasn’t–his office had said they’d let me know if the original trial date and place changed. They didn’t.

Although a misdemeanor assault can carry a one-year prison sentence and a $1,000 fine, Carpenter had proposed a sentence of two years probation and a $100.00 fine, which Judge Brinski approved.

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Did the Court ever see my victim impact statement, forwarded to DA Carpenter at his request? A judge can reject a plea bargain agreement and send it for trial on the original charge. 

Bravo Zulu! High-Five All Around for District Attorney Carpenter’s Office

The ever-surly Bormann seemed to feel he’d suffered enough.

At their request, I gave copies of my unreimbursed medical expenses to Carpenter’s staff. I was told the DA would seek a money judgment for restitution. Not true: the sentencing transcript revealed that I am responsible for requesting a separate hearing seeking reimbursement from my attacker, at which Bormann would be present. Neither he nor I liked that. The ever-surly Bormann seemed to feel he’d suffered enough.

I was also told by the DA Carpenter’s victims services coordinator that she’d forward a copy of my medical statements to New York’s Victim Services for payment. That never happened. Nor did it for my wife and co-blogger Linda, when she was beaten in the street by a different drug gang member.  (Herkimer’s drug and child traffickers hate us and our tell-all blog.) 

A few months after his sentencing, Bormann’s mother secured a mortgage and the family moved to a new home. (Perhaps the Cartel has a credit union for its franchisees?)

The federal surveillance drones that hovered over their part of Pleasant Avenue are gone, hopefully taking up station above the new Bormann-Vargas home, God help their neighbors. After decades of gang occupation, quiet has returned to Herkimer’s Pleasant Avenue.

Carpenter never intended to prosecute the case. He was always going to plea bargain it, no matter how heinous the assault. Young thug Jordan Bormann was always destined to fly free.

The Outrage Continues: DA Carpenter and Dodgy Herkimer Cop Jason Crippen

Jason Crippen, Herkimer's Dog Enticement Officer
Jason Crippen, Herkimer’s Dog Enticement Officer

A few weeks before Bormann received his get-out-of-jail-free card from DA Carpenter, New York’s Office of Victim’s Services (OVS) advised me that Carpenter had told them I was partially responsible for Bormann’s attacking me.  I would be penalized 25% of any medical expense reimbursement:

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Here’s Cirppen’s incident report, lovingly annotated by me:

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Carpenter’s mindless parroting of Crippen’s disproven report was an example of the unconcern and indifference Carpenter displayed throughout this case. Surely his initial felony charge against Bormann was based on my irrefutable video evidence showing Bormann’s unprovoked attack on me?  Why then did he just regurgitate Crippen’s bogus report? Or did he never even look at the evidence?

The only plausible explanation? I believe Carpenter never intended to prosecute the case. He had no need to look at the evidence. He always intended to plea bargain it. If I’d been killed, would he have looked at it, or just accepted Crippen’s report and moved on, just another oldster dead by misadventure? Not prosecuting felonies is what Carpenter does, says his old boss. As a Herkimer criminal, young thug Jordan Bormann was always destined to fly free.

Carpenter’s Old Boss, Judge Michael Daley, Calls Him Out

Carpenter’s old boss, former Herkimer County District Attorney and retired Supreme Court Judge Michael Daley, says sweetheart deals are the norm for Carpenter: 

“Every felony is plea bargained and violent criminals put back in our community. There is a statute in place and that must be followed. When you plea bargain every single case, what that tells me is that the offers are so low that the defendant has to take them.  When you’re offering such sweetheart deals that the defendants can’t turn them down, you end up with no trials.”

Judge Michael Daily

Daley ran for District Attorney against Carpenter in 2016, campaigning under the slogan “Make Herkimer Safe Again.” Carpenter, as he does, toadholed throughout the election. The Republican Party ole boy network had his back, refusing to set up a debate between the two candidates, according to Daley, leaving Carpetner’s assertions of his history of felony convictions unchallenged.

Carpenter had more lawn signs than Daley. Carpenter won. It wasn’t even close. Carpenter ran unopposed in 2020. As folks here say with a shrug, “It’s Herkimer.”

Que Bono? Who Profits from Jeffrey Carpenter’s Sweetheart Deals with Criminals? Herkimer’s Gangs

Plea bargaining’s a hidden process. Only the outcome is public. We’re forced to rely upon the presumed integrity of the negotiators, as attorneys and officers of the court.  If money changes hands to sweeten the deal, we’d never know.

Carpenter’s freewheeling use of prosecutorial discretion to flout New York law, aided by bail reform, helped make Herkimer a welcoming criminal haven. Well-staffed trafficking gangs, operated with impunity out of police-safe properties, terrorizing the law-abiding and dominating streets. Herkimer police, whose chiefs report to Carpenter, were and still are reluctant to register complaints. Bloggers, the last bastion of genuine journalism in Herkimer, justly fear for their lives. In our 9 years in Herkimer, we’ve been harassed, vandalized, beaten in the street, and much poisoned. 

Thanks to climate change, Herkimer is an area in transition. Whatever recent improvements we’re seeing as the swamp drains of criminals aren’t due to DA Carpetner’s kindnesses to the worst among us, but to increased Federal and state law enforcement–those aren’t Jeff Carpenter’s drones up there. The gangs and their useful idiots in Herkimer government never saw how profoundly climate change would impact the region. 

As chip fabs build out in the Mohawk Valley and climate emigres continue to arrive here, waving their checkbooks, authentic law enforcement is ramping up. Carpenter and his magic misdemeanor wand won’t survive the increased scrutiny. Like the gangs, the welfare of the community requires that Jeffrey Carpenter be sent packing. Election 2024 is the next best chance.

Betray the public trust? Always expect that knock on the door.

New York’s New Commission On Prosecutorial Misconduct 

Plea bargaining takes place in the dark. Jeffrey Carpetner’s alleged extensive use of plea bargaining should be investigated for a pattern of misconduct.  For that, we need the State of New York.

After much opposition from New York State’s prosecutors, New York’s new Commission on Prosecutorial Misconduct is about to open for business, the first in the nation.  I’ll post when that happens and how to file a complaint. I can’t be the only one with just a grievance against District Attorney Carpenter.  I’ll be first in line with my complaint. There’s no statute of limitations on administrative punishment for attorney misconduct. 

Criminal Lawyers and The Hardcore Gang Unit

When we lived in Los Angeles, I worked with some of the prosecutors from the LA District Attorney’s Hardcore Gang Unit. (For the record, then-gang unit prosecutor Lance Ito is one of the world’s funniest comedians.)

The gang prosecutors were brought in by the California State Bar’s discipline branch to investigate years of backlogged complaints against California attorneys. We went back, and back and back through years of attorney misconduct complaints from people who’d lost their homes, their savings, their freedom, their sanity.  Attorneys found guilty were publically censured. Some were disbarred. Some went to prison. Shock, amazement, consternation, whining, when that knock on the door finally came: “But it was a long time ago! What about forgiveness?”

Betray the public trust? Always expect that knock on the door.

Ban the Fat Fairy!
Oust Jeffrey Carpenter!
Herkimer DA Election November 2024

Jeffrey Carpenter has been Herkimer County District Attorney since 2013. He’s up for reelection again in 2024. This is July of 2023–not too early for viable candidates for Herkimer District Attorney to consider running for office. They might begin by researching Carpetner’s history of plea bargains. See if Judge Dailey’s charges of all those sweetheart deals are valid. If so, highlight them on social media, in the press and in public debates at election time. Don’t let Carpenter hide and stonewall as he did with Judge Daley in 2016. 

A great campaign platform is one of reform. Here’s Bill Daley’s from 2016:

“I will stand up to our crime problem by seeking lengthy sentences for child molesters, rapists, murderers, robbers and other violent felons. I will review and present cases left dormant by my opponent to the grand jury, including infant deaths, serial forgeries, police misconduct, and domestic violence cases, and end the ‘good-ole-boy’ system in Herkimer County.”

And so say we all.

============================

About the Art

A special thank you to my wife, computer software developer and artist Linda Kaidan, and her colleague, OpenAI’s DALL·E 2.  From a draft of this post and guidance from Linda, DALL·E 2 created the cartoon characters lampooning People v. Jordan Bormman.

herkimerpost.com crime editor Stephen Ames Berry is a four-times published author, a former officer of Harvard University and a magna cum laude graduate of Boston University. A veteran of US Army Intelligence, Berry was a Special Needs teacher for behaviorally challenged teens in Florida. 

 

Quebec Forest Fires Burn Out of Control Endangering Air Quality in Canada and US

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Linda Kaidan

Why our air quality is awful 🙂

K95 and N95 masks will help prevent respiratory problems. Amazon has “Cherislpy 10pcs PM2.5 Activated Carbon Filter Mouth Mask Filters Breathing Insert Protective Mask Filter for Men Women,Anti Pollution Washable Cotton for Adults Outdoor Activities (10pcs)” Price is $5 for 10.

It is recommended that children, pets and people with breathing problems should remain indoors.

Canada does not have the resources needed to control the majority of these forest fires. Other countries are pitching in to help.

Accelerating Ocean Rise Will Flood 38% of US Population by 2050

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Water from the Greenland ice sheet flows through heather and peat during unseasonably warm weather on Aug. 1, 2019. Credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Linda Kaidan

Above photo Greenland Ice Sheet Melting( InsideClimateNews.org Bob Berwyn)

We’ve been doing a lousy job of predicting the effects of climate change on our planet.

We underestimate anticipated damage and have insufficient relief available on a national scale. 

Data from NOAA.gov and the US Census tells us that 127 M/334 M  or 38% of US Citizens live in coastal counties.

They are in serious danger of coastal flooding in the near future. 

In 2023 New York State is leading the nation on per capita Gross Domestic Product with $87,457. MA follows with $84,651 and WA with $80,708. In comparison, FL Per Capita GDP was reported as $49,053, and TX  $58,102.  (reported by worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/gdp-by-state).

The Great Depression of 1929-1939 was an economic apocalypse on a worldwide scale.

People were starving and homeless. The USA Work Program was created to give people paid jobs. People who joined the WPA improved public infrastructure while learning valuable skills. They built state parks, schools, and roads. 

We should have a New York State work/training program that educates people, creates infrastructure, and offers paid jobs.

We are sorry that rich people in NYC’s wealthy suburbs voted against creating ADU-type housing during this climate change crisis. A work-training-infrastructure program at our state or national level can make our future much brighter.

Phys.org (The American Geophysical Union) predicts that the collapse of the Greenland Ice sheet is imminent

It will raise the sea level by 23 ft when completely melted.

Let’s Plan on Preparing

Last April, Harold Warnless of The Guardian, anticipated a two-foot rise by  2040 and a 3-foot rise by 2050. I bet most people are NOT prepared for this! We must be ready by moving away from the coast and by having national and state programs that will help us maintain a healthy economy and provide self-sufficiency and adequate education and infrastructure.
Let’s do better!

Human vs Robot: ADU News from University of Maine and Mighty Buildings

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Linda Kaidan

 

The University of Maine recently created the first bio-printed home.

To build this groundbreaking economically constructed home, they replaced concrete with wood waste material. Recycled wood waste is superior to concrete because it is an excellent insulator and is completely biodegradable! Well-designed 3-D printed homes can be built in as little as a single day. Quick construction means great cost savings and easily tested reliability. Some reports indicate that Robot constructed homes can last between 100 and 300 years!

Mighty Buidings is a well-established robotic home-building company based in California.

California, Maine, and New York all share a common problem. There is an extreme shortage of affordable homes. A great way to fight this shortage is to have local robotics driven 3 D factories employing reliable national building standards. Let’s work together to include our national talents and abilities in creating high-quality affordable homes for our citizens 🙂

Can humans working slower be just as effective?

While robot construction of ADUS can be very time efficient we should also consider how effective even self trained humans can be in creating highly affordable living spaces   The following youtube exemplifies the work of a self taught builder who created a home with bedroom, kitchen, office and shower for $15,000.

Ding Dong! Kim Vargas Moves On

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Stephen Ames Berry

Herkimer drug thug Kim Vargas goes from success to success: after several years of harassment and drug trafficking along Pleasant Avenue, she wrapped up her stint next door by helping her son Jordan Bormann on his way to prison,  charged with a class D violent felony. Jordan Bormann, 21, assaulted an elderly neighbor, sending the old veteran to Albany Medical center with a traumatic brain injury. 

Vargas, the subject of many herkimerpost.com articles, enjoyed a two-and-a-half-year reign of unchecked criminality next door to us at 328 Pleasant Avenue, long a gang sanctuary and retail drug thug front. 

328 Pleasant in the past has been tenanted by such local gang luminaries as Curtis Doolen, aka Curtis Cool, Xavier Rowe, Amanda West and unnamed crew members of gang chieftain Stanley Sykes’ drug and child trafficking gang. It is the next-to-the-last property on Pleasant Avenue to be emptied of Herkimer drug and child trafficking filth. (Landlord Jay Smith’s properties comprising Herkimer’s Historic Child Trafficking Hub remain unflushed.)

This March makes our ninth year in Herkimer. For seven of those years, 328 Pleasant Avenue has been tenanted by a succession of low criminal types trafficking drugs and occasionally kids, and doing their inept best to force the “weak old people” from “their” street. As with all else in their wretched lives, they failed. Here’s a 328 Pleasant Avenue rogues gallery:

The Froth On the Scum Of The Earth: 328 Pleasant Avenue Rogues Gallery

Herkimer Monster Mom Kim Vargas
Herkimer Monster Mom Kim Vargas
Herkimer elder-basher Jordan Bormann, unfortunate son of Kimberly (Bormann) Vargas, with vile friends on porch of 328 Pleasant Avenue.
Herkimer elder-basher Jordan Bormann, unfortunate son of Kimberly (Bormann) Vargas, with vile friends on the porch of 328 Pleasant Avenue.
Kim Vargas' son Jordan Bormann assaults elderly neighbor in front of 328 Pleasant Avenue, causing traumatic brain injury. Officer Jason Crippen investigation, found elderly neighbor guilty of the assault. Reinvestigation based on victim's survei9llance cam footage saw Bormann charged with Class D Violent Felony.
Kim Vargas’ son Jordan Bormann assaults elderly neighbor in front of 328 Pleasant Avenue, causing traumatic brain injury. Officer Jason Crippen’s investigation found elderly neighbor guilty of the assault. Reinvestigation based on victim’s surveillance cam footage saw Bormann charged with Class D Violent Felony.
Curtis Cool, aka Curtis Doolen, harassing elderly neighbors from 328 Pleasant Avenue.
Curtis Cool. Cop-coddled Herkimer drug thug and probable child trafficker ally, menacing his neighbors from driveway of 328 Pleasant Avenue.
328 Pleasant Avenue's Amanda West menacing old folks on their porch.
328 Pleasant Avenue’s wacky Amanda West harassing old folks on their neighboring porch.
328 Pleasant Avenue's Xavier Rowe harassing neighboring old folks.
328 Pleasant Avenue’s Xavier Rowe harassing neighboring old folks.

Herkimer police officer Jason Crippen responding to Kim Vargas' call. from 328 Pleasant Avenue. Crippen threatened us with arrest for using foul language in our driveway.
Herkimer police officer Jason Crippen responding to Kim Vargas’ call. from 328 Pleasant Avenue. Crippen threatened one of us with arrest for using foul language in our driveway.

I’ve speculated at length as to who controls 328 Pleasant Avenue, using it as a retail drug trafficking front. The demographics of the Herkimer area are rapidly going upscale.  We’ll see if they sell the place or move another set of gang scum in there. Whatever happens, there are a lot of surveillance drones around and our cameras stand ready.

How Can An ADU Help the Housing Crisis in Upstate NY?

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Help solve housing crisis! Approve ADU Housing NOW!
14.5 M housing units suffered damage in the last year due to severe weather. ADUs can help solve our immediate housing crisis.

Linda J. Kaidan

Accessory Dwellings to the Rescue NYS

Nationwide extreme weather has magnified the severe housing crisis in upstate NY.  On 2/17/22 The Washington Post reported that 14.5 million dwelling units sustained property losses in the preceding 12 months. Damages totaled about  $57 Million by November 17, 2022.  The current US population is  333 M and there is 1 housing unit for every 2.5 people (US Census).

36.25 M people suffered damage to their homes from severe weather in a 1-year period. (36.25 M / 333 M ) or 10% of the US population in a single year!

ADU is an accessory dwelling unit that can be attached or detachedNew York State Senate Bill S4547A 2021-2022,  which has not yet passed, proposes the legalization of ADUs on properties zoned residential, with the expectation that it will help homeowners earn some income while proving affordable rental housing in a tight market. The American Institute of Architects describes ADUs as attached or detached units situated on a single lot. They may include garage apartments, finished basements, or in-law suites.

In New York State some municipalities provide legal zoning for ADUs! Where can we build an ADU?

In Utica, NY you can build an ADU up to 800 SF.

Syracuse ADU zoning is defined in the document Rezone Syracuse Ordinance  December 2019.

Neither Albany, NY nor New York City have approved ADU construction. Overall it appears that little headway in ADU permitting has been achieved in New York State’s urban areas. It seems very sad that zoning is not more flexible, especially as it would help create more affordable housing, provide extra income to homeowners and stretch urban infrastructure.  Let’s hope we can change some minds soon.

333 Pleasant Avenue Apprentice Vandals Bombard House

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Stephen Ames Berry

This pair of apprentice vandals from 333 Pleasant Avenue have been bombarding our house daily this week with ice balls. They took out a window. 333’s the former Barton Gang place, across the street from us. Joyce Barton and her crew left it with kindred spirits, who are apparently raising their kids in the Herkimer gang tradition of vandalism and harassment. 

Herkimer gang kids are weaponized from an early age. Our former neighbor, child trafficker  and arch-poisoner Stanley Sykes trained his kids on us early: 

The young man who’s the principal thrower is careful to video his work–assume he’s being paid. Assume probably by neighboring drug thug and monster mom Kim Vargas, who’s upset that her son Jordan Bormann’s facing a felony prison sentence for savaging an elderly neighbor in the street.

333 Pleasaant Avenue Herkimer apprentice vandal joyfully breaking window with fresh iceball.
333 Pleasant Avenue apprentice vandal joyfully breaking window with fresh iceball.
333 Pleasant Avenyue, Herkimer. The Joyce Bartons moved on, their trash heaped propuidly behind them.
333 Pleasant Avenue, Herkimer. The Joyce Bartons moved on, their trash heaped proudly. behind them.
Herkimer Monster Mom Kim Vargas
Herkimer Monster Mom Kim Vargas

Will send this on to the police. They’ll have a chat with the kids and their folks.