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TWO IRISHMEN are recovering from gunshot wounds in a New York hospital after being shot by a security guard in a dispute over smoking at a bowling alley.
Gerard Hourigan from Limerick and Justin Donaghy from Navan, both age 29, were smoking indoors in a bowling alley in Queens at about 1.45am on Saturday when Michael Iavecchio (54), the bowling alley's security guard, told them to leave.
Mr Iavecchio then escorted them outside and a fight ensued. The guard, a retired policeman, pulled out his .380 calibre Ruger semi-automatic pistol and shot Mr Hourigan on the right side of the torso and Mr Donaghy in the stomach.
"This has been an enormous trauma," said a young American woman who identified herself as Mr Hourigan's wife. She was reached by telephone at the Elmhurst Hospital in Queens
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THE parents of an Irishman who was shot outside a New York bowling alley after he was thrown out for smoking inside the venue have flown to the US to be at their son's bedside.
Gerard Hourigan (29), from Upper Grange, Bruff, Co Limerick, was one of two Irishmen shot at a Queens bowling alley during an altercation with a security guard after the pair were escorted from the building for smoking. Mr Hourigan was shot in the stomach in the early hours of Saturday after he and his companion, Justin Donaghy (29), were brought out of the AMF 34th Avenue Lanes and a fight ensued with the security guard.
Mr Donaghy, from Meath, was also shot in the stomach, but both men are expected to survive the incident. They are also being charged in connection with the incident. . . .
The violent confrontation unfolded after Mr Iavecchio, who was armed, asked the men to leave the bowling alley because they were smoking cigarettes in a vestibule. The security guard escorted the men outside, where the ensuing fight and shooting were captured on CCTV.
For years, buying low-tax North Carolina cigarettes and selling them on the black market in a high-tax state up north has been an easy way to make big money for criminal enterprises.
Load up a van of Camels or Marlboros and reap a $100,000 profit to sell them if the destination is New York City, which has a $1.50-per-pack excise tax in addition to the $2.75 state cigarette tax.
"The cigarette tax evasion stampede is out of control," said Jim Calvin, president of the New York Association of Convenience Stores. More than half of cigarettes purchased in his state are bought without paying state or local taxes, largely because of out-of-state smuggling and Internet sales.
Catching people with North Carolina contraband is difficult because it's one of three states that don't require tax stamps affixed on every pack being sold.
Interest in restoring the stamps after a 16-year hiatus has been revived as a way to deter smuggling from North Carolina - and in an ironic change - into North Carolina. The state now may be the target for cheaper cigarettes from South Carolina . . .
"Criminal organizations all over the country exploit variants in state excise taxes and tax stamping laws to generate millions and millions of dollars in illicit profits," said Sandy Sands, a lobbyist representing Philip Morris USA, which wants the stamps restored.
Westchester residents awoke on a recent morning to news that Westchester County is facing a $60 million budget hole.
Just weeks into 2010, and we're already behind -- by a lot.
The grim news was delivered by newly elected County Executive Rob Astorino, who has the unenviable -- and always unpopular -- task of reining in spending wherever he can. Facing a $60 million deficit just weeks into his term, County Executive Astorino's job just got a lot tougher.
Westchester is not alone in projecting 2010 deficits. . . .
This is not a matter of sovereignty. New York has the power to collect tax on cigarettes that are sold to New Yorkers -- whether those cigarettes come from another state, another country or even a reservation. The Supreme Court said so. . . .
High taxes and spending are ruining New York state. But with the deficits we're facing now, it defies reason not to collect taxes already on the books, taxes that are legally owed.
We can't afford to wait any longer, Gov. Paterson. We need you to step up and start collecting the cigarette taxes now.
The Villager is reporting that Cooper Square Hotel developers Gregory Peck and Matt Moss have "finally caved" and agreed to neighbors' "tough terms for operating [the hotel's] outdoor areas."
Under the deal, outlined on local Community Board 3's Web site, the builders have agreed to restrict loiterers, taxis, and limos along East 5th Street and prohibit smoking on the hotel's second-floor terrace -- located just 30 inches from some neighbors' windows.
But it turns out you can also dial 311 to quit smoking!
If you do, you’ll be connected to one of about 50 people sitting in a well-lit room at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute up in Buffalo, NY. They’re waiting for your call.
There’s a 15-minute screening process where they ask you if you’ve ever smoked before and if you’ve had a heart attack in the last few weeks. Then you have to decide if you want them to send you a two-week supply of Nicorette gum or some nicotine lozenges.
I got Debbie. That’s not her real name.
Thank you for calling, this is Debbie speaking, how may I help you?
At Montague Street Bagels in Brooklyn Heights, customers don't have to look far for a reminder of the dangers of smoking. There's one sign showing a damaged brain next to the cash register and another sign with blackened lungs on the back wall.
Starting March 1, any city shops that sell cigarettes and other tobacco products that do not display these arresting anti-smoking signs risk fines of up to $2,000.
Yet Joseph Aceto, the owner of Montague Street Bagels, put up a sign next to their picture of damaged lungs that reads, "We are very sorry, but by the order of [New York City Department of Health], we are required to post this sign, or face a $2,000 fine!"
The store has received complaints about the DOH's signs, and Aceto said he's even lost a customer over the stomach-turning pictures. . . .
Other customers liked the warnings and argued that they aren't bothered by them, even when they buying a bagel.
"I think that sign is great, because it shows exactly what happens to your lungs if you do something as stupid as smoking," said customer Peter Woll.
"Hopefully it will help some people live longer," said customer Howard Abrams. . . .
Whether they love or hate the ads, New Yorkers can expect to see even more of them in the coming weeks, as business owners do their best to avoid the city's fines.
There are times when you can’t tell if the things you read are from The Onion or The Brooklyn Eagle. Today’s item, about the owner of Montague Street Bagels posting an apology for a NYC DOH mandated anti-smoking poster displayed in the store, is real:
Brooklyn Eagle: “We are sorry, but by order of NYC DOH we are required to post the sign or face a fine a $2,000 fine,” the notice explains.
A hand-written apology to customers for prominently displaying a large picture of cancer-riddled human lungs is posted at the checkout of a 24/7 Brooklyn Heights bagel and deli shop.
“We are sorry, but by order of NYC DOH we are required to post the sign or face a fine a $2,000 fine,” the notice explains . . .
Customers have complained that the ugly anti-smoking poster is out of place in a deli, he said. . . .
The poster is issued as part of New York City Department of Health “Quit Smoking” campaign, which features vivid pictures of various human body organs damaged by tobacco smoking. The posting in stores selling cigarettes is aimed at halting their purchase, the DOH says.
The budget proposed today by Governor David Paterson will improve both New York’s physical and financial health by raising the state cigarette tax by $1 per pack and increasing funding by $8.3 million for the state’s highly successful tobacco prevention and cessation program. These measures are a win-win-win solution for New York: a health win, a financial win and a political win that is popular with voters. Together, these steps will continue New York’s dramatic progress in reducing tobacco use and its devastating toll in health, lives and health care costs. And the cigarette tax will raise much-needed revenue to help balance the budget and fund vital programs.
We urge the Legislature to join Governor Paterson in raising the cigarette tax and increasing funding for tobacco prevention programs.
A beloved Brooklyn mom died in a smoky blaze early Monday despite her daughter's desperate attempt to save her, officials and neighbors said.
Flames and thick smoke engulfed Sandra Lubin's fifth-floor apartment in the Bayview Houses in Canarsie when a fire broke out just after 6 a.m.
Her daughter, Jessica, tried to pull her mom to safety, neighbors said.
"I heard her yelling, 'Mom! Mom! Mom!'" said Krisha Belgrove, who lives on the same floor. "And she tried to pull her out of the apartment but she just couldn't." . . .
Police said Lubin was smoking in bed and fell asleep.
Jan. 28 (Bloomberg) -- New York City pension funds are pressing as many as 15 companies including Bank of America Corp. and Humana Inc. to disclose campaign contributions as the U.S. Supreme Court ends a ban on corporate political spending.
The city's public advocate, Bill de Blasio, is encouraging other pension funds to follow New York's lead and file investor proxy resolutions calling for companies to report their campaign contributions and political spending. Five city pension funds had already submitted resolutions with the companies ahead of last week's Supreme Court decision, de Blasio said in a statement yesterday. . . .
The New York City Comptroller's office withdrew a proxy resolution for one of the 15 companies, Altria Group Inc., after "productive conversations" with executives at the tobacco producer, according to a company spokesman, Bill Phelps.
State Senate Democrats lit a fire under Gov. Paterson Thursday to collect taxes from cigarettes sold on Indian reservations.
The group argued that bootleg cigarettes bought at Indian reservations and sold on the street at a steep discount cost city bodegas, grocery stores and newstands $250 million a year in lost business - and $30 million a week in lost state tax revenue.
Sen. Carl Kruger (D-Brooklyn), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, hinted that he would oppose Paterson's effort to raise the state's current $2.75-per-pack cigarette tax by another $1 unless there is demonstrable action on collecting the taxes from reservation brokers.
"Right now, I think it would be hypocritical to support a tax increase on already taxed cigarettes while we show a blind eye to the untaxed cigarettes," Kruger said.
Bootleg wholesalers purchase the untaxed cigarettes at Indian reservations for as little as $4 a pack and then typically sell them at two packs for $10.
A gathering of elected officials sought to add pressure on Governor Paterson to begin collecting taxes for cigarettes sold to non-American Indians on reservations. The best line on the issue, which is sure to ignite strong resistance from the Seneca, came from state Senator Carl Kruger as he distilled the reticence to act on the issue down to this:
"Statements that came out of the executive were things like, 'We don't want to collect the tax for fear that we will shed a drop of blood. Well you know what, when an attempt was made, which lasted about 10 minutes, to collect the tax, some folks went out on a road and set some tires on fire. So everybody took a quick retreat, and the taxpayers of the state of New York lost billions of dollars."
He was referring to the road blockades installed by the Seneca tribe
On Tuesday I will be celebrating yet another birthday. . . . I will celebrate at Lit this coming Tuesday. . . .
Lit is in trouble. The smoking storm troopers have targeted it for closure and there is a chance they will succeed. . . .
The problem with electing a good man to a third term was always this dictatorship mentality. Is the Bloomberg administration so out of touch with reality that they will put hundreds of people out of work to enforce a no smoking ban? The ban is good. The way it is being enforced is nothing short of evil. It's not like people are smoking crack. Enforcement officials are coming into places late at night looking for cigarette butts on the floor and in garbage cans. They are taking photographs and are preparing cases to close at least five joints. What does a cigarette butt on the floor or in a wastebasket prove anyway? Is it there because a security guard asked a patron to put it out? Anyway I'm inviting you all to join me at Lit Tuesday night. They have a smoking section outside.