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Monday, April 21, 2008

Sunday was the last day of Pope Benedict XVI’s six-day visit to the United States. The first event was a visit to the World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan, New York City, New York.

The Pope rode his Popemobile down a ramp, to the bottom of the site. Accompanied by Cardinal Edward Egan, the archbishop of New York, he knelt at a rectangular pool and prayed silently for the victims of the September 11 attacks. Then he held up a single lit candle, before he began to speak.

“Turn to your way of love those whose hearts and minds are consumed with hatred,” the Pope said. “Grant that those whose lives were spared may live so that lives lost here may not have been lost in vain.”

“God of peace, bring your peace to our violent world; peace in the hearts of all men and women and peace among the nations of the earth,” he said. Afterwards, he met with family members of 16 of the victims and also with four of the rescue workers.

“I didn’t really have anything to say to him,” George Bachmann, a now-retired fire fighter, who broke his back and suffered burns as a first responder. “Being in his presence was enough for me.”

In the afternoon on Sunday, Benedict XVI travelled to The Bronx to hold Mass at Yankee Stadium, which is the home stadium for the New York Yankees baseball team. The stadium has been the scene of papal Masses by Paul VI in 1965 and John Paul II in 1979.

The Popemobile entered the stadium at 2:19 p.m. EDT (UTC-4) and drove around the baseball field in front of the crowd of over 57,000.

“Your pastoral visit is for all of us gathered here in New York a blessing for which we are all grateful,” said Cardinal Egan in his introduction. “It is an extraordinary privilege to be allowed to tell you what a deep and appreciated grace your presence is for all of us.”

Benedict XVI told the crowd that the Mass was “a summons to move forward with firm resolve to use wisely the blessings of freedom, in order to build a future of hope for coming generations.”

During the homily, the Pope said “The Gospel teaches us that true freedom, the freedom of the children of God, is found only in the self-surrender which is part of the mystery of love. Only by losing ourselves, the Lord tells us, do we truly find ourselves.” He also touched on the subjects of peace, human rights and religious freedom which had been hallmarks of his previous addresses while in the United States.

It also marked the 200th anniversary of the archdioces in New York, Philadelphia, Boston and Louisville, which were all created in April 1808.

“It’s like Jesus Christ visiting America,” Clemens Semon, 50, a resident of Ozone Park, Queens who immigrated from Ivory Coast told The New York Times. “You see how many pack together, come together to see him? He’s a unifier, he brings hope and peace.”

Vice President Dick Cheney and his wife Lynne Cheney joined the Pope for the farewell ceremony at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. Senator and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and former President Bill Clinton had been expected, but did not attend. They were even mentioned in Cheney’s prepared remarks.

“You’ve encountered a nation facing many challenges, but with more blessings than anyone could count,” Cheney said in his five-minute speech. “All Americans respect your message of peace, justice and freedom.”

In the Pope’s remarks, the pontiff mentioned the visit to the World Trade Center site, “My visit this morning to Ground Zero will remain firmly etched in my memory.” His last comment as he turned to leave was, “May God Bless America.”

Benedict XVI waved goodbye from the doorway of his Alitalia “Shepherd One” at 8:40 p.m. EDT.

The papal airplane “Shepherd One” touched down at Rome Ciampino Airport, Italy, at 10:40 a.m. CEST (UTC+2) on Monday.

Sunday, July 1, 2007

A young woman was killed Friday night after an accident occurred on a gyrating ride at the Playland amusement park in Rye, New York in the United States. The woman, Gabriela Garin, was a worker at the amusement park, and had worked there for the past seven years.

The accident occurred near the end of Garin’s shift; as she was loading riders onto the ride. The ride’s new operator, unaware of Garin’s presence, started the ride while Garin was still on it. The new operator then noticed Garin, and shut the ride down in 20 seconds, but Garin had already been ejected from the ride and killed, according to a park spokesperson.

The ride is an attraction that spins people around in two-seat cars, inside a darkened tent to flashing lights and music.

This incident is not the first in the ride’s history. In 2004, a seven-year-old from Connecticut managed to free herself from the ride’s restraining bars, and climb onto the front edge of her seat. She fell soon after the ride started. A safety precaution was put in place after this incident, however, the spokesperson acknowledged that it was not followed when Garin was killed.

The company which owns the ride shut it down, along with two other rides it owns at the park.

This is the fourth fatality in the park’s history. The park features more than 50 rides, a pool, and a beach. It attracts more than 1 million visitors annually.

Tuesday, March 22, 2005

Longtime Los Angeles architect Thom Mayne was awarded this year’s Pritzker Architecture Prize. Established in 1979 to honor “consistent and significant contributions to humanity,” the prize is considered by many to be the highest honor in the field. The award includes a bronze medallion and US$100,000. Mayne was the first American to receive it in 14 years; previous American recipients include Robert Venturi (1991) and Frank Gehry (1989).

Mayne earned his architecture degree from the University of Southern California in 1968. A few years later he founded his own architecture school, the Southern California Institute of Architecture, which remains to this day. He then moved to Los Angeles, where in addition to running a firm, Morphosis, he teaches architecture at UCLA.

Mayne’s earlier work, considered “angry” and “brooding”, was outside of the architectural mainstream. His style was often called bold and audacious. This style has recently become more accepted, as Morphosis won contracts to design government buildings in California, Oregon, and Washington, DC. The firm also designed an Olympic village in Queens, in preparation for the city’s 2012 Olympics bid.

On receiving the prize, Mayne said, “This is such a big deal….it is not in my nature to think about being the one who prevails. For my whole life, I’ve always seen myself as an outsider.”

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Buffalo, New York —The proposed Elmwood Village Hotel got the final approval it needed from the city of Buffalo’s Planning Board this morning.

In a unanimous vote, the Board approved most of the design and site plan of the hotel.

The Elmwood Village Hotel is a proposed hotel by Savarino Construction Services Corporation and is designed by architect Karl Frizlen of the Frizlen Group. It is to be placed on the corner of Elmwood and Forest Avenues in Buffalo and will require the demolition of at least five properties (1109-1121 Elmwood).

Despite the fact that today’s meeting was not a “public hearing”, several citizens lashed out at the Board after the approval.

“Thanks for destroying Buffalo,” said one man.

“[I am] disgusted. Because they did not allow the community to speak, it is the bastardization of the concepts of justice and democracy, and that’s what happened [today],” said Clarence Carnahan, a local business owner and concerned citizen, to Wikinews. He also referred to some board members as “immoral pigs.”

“[I feel] frustration because no one could speak. I was going to address the displacement of all the shops that are there and that they should be grand-fathered into the new space. We did not get to say that. [I am disappointed] that they are endorsing this enormous monstrosity.” said Nancy Pollina, co-owner of Don Apparel with Patty Morris at 1119 Elmwood.

Although the Board approved the hotel proposal, Savarino Construction must still go before the board to approve things such as signage and lighting. The Planning Board meets again on April 11, 2006 at 8:00a.m., but it is unknown if the hotel proposal will be on the agenda.

Pano Georgiadis, owner of Pano’s Restaurant at 1081 Elmwood and owner of 605 Forest Avenue in Buffalo, threatened to sue Savarino Construction at a public meeting on March 15, 2006 saying, “if you try to get a variance to change the code, I will sue you. This is my home, number one. If you go against city code, and you try to do the most rooms with a minimal amount of parking, again, I will sue you.”

Today, Georgiadis confirmed to Wikinews that he is “definitely” suing, but that his “situation is different” as compared to others looking into legal action. “This is my property. They did it [changed the code] without my approval.”

Last week, the Common Council voted and approved the rezoning of all five properties including 605 Forest.

Some are also considering taking the case to the New York State Supreme Court to “seek an injunction”and would go “pro se, meaning I am going to present the case myself,” said Carnahan.

Despite the approvals by the Common Council and Planning Board, organizers schedulaed another protest for Saturday April 1, 2006 at 2:00p.m. on the proposed site at Forest and Elmwood.

“We are not going to go down without a fight. We are going to go kicking and screaming,” said Pollina.