Midwood and Borough Park are getting a network of 100 surveillance cameras, ostensibly to prevent another tragedy like the 2011 kidnapping and murder of 8-year-old Leiby Kletzky. But questions remain regarding who will be monitoring the $1 million taxpayer-funded system, and whether the resources are being properly spent.

Republican State Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and Assemblyman Dov Hikind spearheaded The Leiby Kletzky Security Initiative, which essentially steers a $1 million grant to Agudath Israel, a Haredi umbrella organization that has lobbied officials on a range of issues. Agudath Israel will then pay SecurityWatch24, "the exclusive security partner of the Brooklyn Nets," to install and maintain the cameras.

From the AP report:

The New York Police Department referred all questions about the security system to Secure Watch 24, which didn't respond to requests for comment.

Hikind said police and volunteer police groups would have access to the cameras after a significant crime only by making formal requests to Secure Watch 24.

"God forbid something happens, there's an incident, the police will have access to the video tape," he said.

This differs from the position Hikind gave The Jewish Daily Forward last year: "The police department would always go first. Or the Shomrim and the police department could see them at the same time."

In Kletzky's case, the Shomrim were faulted for not contacting the NYPD immediately after receiving Kletzky's father's report on his missing son.

There's also the matter of having private groups reviewing security footage paid for by public money.

"I've never heard of the city farming out surveillance power like this," NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman told the AP. "This horrific crime generated enormous pain in the community, but it's naive to think that a network of surveillance cameras is the answer to fears for the safety of our children."

Tony Herbert, a longtime community advocate in Brooklyn, said that the resources were coming to Midwood and Borough Park and not the more crime-riddled areas of Brownsville or Bed-Stuy because their officials held more sway in Albany.

"It's who you know and who you can get to pull the purse strings to come to your rescue. All we can do is jump up and down and make some noise to put a fire under the feet of our elected officials."

Assemblyman Hikind maintained that the cameras are still very necessary: "It's not that we have more crime than another community, but being that it's a Jewish area, there's probably at least the potential for more anti-Semitic acts."

Source: Gothamist

Onelki Garcia, Shawn Tolleson among 4 dodgers pitchers added to AFL roster

The Dodgers have eight players on the roster of the Glendale Desert Dogs, who will play their home Arizona Fall League Games at Camelback Ranch.

PHOENIX -- The Dodgers added a quartet of pitchers to their Arizona Fall League contingent on Tuesday, as Onelki Garcia, Shawn Tolleson, Yimi Garcia and Mike Thomas were added to the roster of the Glendale Desert Dogs.

The Dodgers have eight players on the team, headlined by top prospect Corey Seager, along with catchers Chris O'Brien and Pratt Maynard, and outfielder Brian Cavazos-Galvez. The AFL begins play on Oct. 8 and will run through Nov. 16.

Tolleson had his season cut short by surgery to repair a herniated disc in his back in April, and his recovery was halted after a hip injury. He pitched in just one game for the Dodgers, on April 12 in Arizona, and walked both batters he faced. Tolleson, on the 60-day disabled list, is currently rehabbing at Camelback Ranch and has joined the Dodgers to be with the team during their series against the Diamondbacks.

Onelki Garcia was called up by the Dodgers on Sept. 11, and has appeared in two games. He has faced just seven batters and has four walks and allowed a home run. The southpaw was 2-4 with a 2.90 ERA in 35 games between Double-A Chattanooga and Triple-A Albuquerque this season, with 67 strikeouts and 35 walks in 62 innings. Garcia held left-handed minor league batters to 11 singles in 74 at-bats this season, hitting .149/.281/.149 against him.

Yimi Garcia, who turned 23 on Aug. 18, was the closer for Double-A Chattanooga this season, and struck out 85 batters against just 14 walks in 60⅓ innings. He recorded 19 saves and 2.54 in 49 games with the Lookouts.

Thomas, 24, was drafted by the Dodgers in the 35th round in 2011. He began the season with Class-A Rancho Cuamonga but after 11 relief appearances with promoted to Double-A. He combined for 68 strikeouts and 24 walks in 59⅔ innings across two levels in 2013 with 11 saves and a 2.87 ERA.

Source: Truebluela

Posted September 21, 2013

Snaps Judgments from the Week 4 midday slate. For more content, check out our early Snaps.

* No. 22 notre Dame 17, Michigan State 13: When penalties are the story of a game, fans know it wasn't an elite heavyweight bout. Yet flags dominated the matchup between the Spartans and Fighting Irish on Saturday. Michigan State saw yellow all day and ended up with 115 penalty yards, including a number of questionable pass interference calls that led to Notre Dame points.

With very little flow on offense, coach Mark Dantonio's team couldn't afford to give away first downs. It kept happening, and Michigan State finished with just 254 total yards. Meanwhile, it was clear from the onset that Notre Dame was going to go vertical against a stout Spartans' front, and although quarterback Tommy Rees wasn't great (14-of-34, 142 yards, one touchdown), he - and the pass interference calls - did just enough to keep the Irish moving downfield.

#NotreDame has now given up more touchdowns in the red zone in 2013 than they did in 2012. Eight more games to play.

- Dan Murphy (@BGI_DanMurphy) September 21, 2013

Despite the Irish surrendering another red-zone touchdown, Notre Dame's defense kept the meager Michigan State attack in check, allowing an average of 3.6 yards per play. The Spartans had a chance to take the lead in the waning moments of the fourth quarter, but in a puzzling decision, quarterback Andrew Maxwell was brought in and the offense promptly stalled. On fourth-and-20, Maxwell scrambled and instead of throwing the ball and ran out of bounds after a harmless eight-yard gain.

Notre Dame improves to 3-1 with a home date against Oklahoma looming next Saturday. The Irish haven't looked like world-beaters on either side of the ball, and the Sooners should provide a real test for their defense. [RECAP l BOX]

* No. 19 Florida 31, Tennessee 17: This game was ugly, and Florida quarterback Jeff Driskel injured his ankle and will miss the remainder of the season. Backup Tyler Murphy, who combined for 218 total yards (134 passing, 84 rushing), takes over as the Gators' new starter. Andy Staples' was in Gainesville and will have more from the scene shortly. Check it out, if you dare.

* USC 17, Utah State 14: The Trojans' offense remains a work in progress, but their defense is quickly proving it's good enough to keep the team in games. USC contained electric quarterback Chuckie Keeton and Utah State, forcing third-and-long situations for much of the afternoon. It was difficult for Keeton to get things going with his legs, and he was forced to settle into a role as a pocket passer.

To his credit, Keeton made the most of some opportunities, throwing for 178 yards and two scores with no interceptions. But the USC defense held the Aggies to just 284 yards on the day.

On offense, the Trojans relied heavily on running back Tre Madden, who carried 24 times for 94 yards and a touchdown. Quarterback Cody Kessler went 13-of-27 for 164 yards and a score. USC's issues are fixed by any means, but this was an encouraging win for coach Lane Kiffin. A loss would have only added to the criticism he's heard in recent weeks. [RECAP l BOX]

* Rutgers 28, Arkansas 24 The Razorbacks entered this game looking to continue their strong start under new coach Bret Bielema. Arkansas won its previous three games rather easily, and it looked for a while like the Hogs were going to handle a feisty Rutgers team on the road. They went up 10-0 in the first quarter with a field goal and a Tevin Mitchel pick-six.

After the two teams exchanged blows in the second half, however, the Arkansas collapse was on. Rutgers quarterback Gary Nova (22-of-43, 346 yards, three touchdowns, one interception) surged, throwing for two fourth-quarter scores to give the Scarlet Knights an impressive victory over an SEC foe. Just think: Had Rutgers been able to pull out its opening Thursday game against Fresno State, it would be 4-0 with wins over one of the best Mountain West teams and an SEC opponent.

For Bielema, the loss squashed hopes of a 4-0 start with a treacherous start to SEC play around the corner. Arkansas takes on Texas A&M, Florida, South Carolina and Alabama over its next four games. [RECAP l BOX]

* No. 20 Baylor 70, Louisiana-Monroe 7: The Art Briles Absolute Destruction Show rolls on. At one point, the Bears had 35 points on just 15 offensive plays, thanks in part to a pair of first-quarter defensive touchdowns. Quarterback Bryce Petty (351 passing yards, 26 rushing yards, five total touchdowns) and running back Lance Seastrunk (10 carries, 156 yards, one touchdown) were superb despite playing sparingly in the second half.

Baylor's competition hasn't been stellar to date, but its offense hasn't shown any signs of slowing down heading into Big 12 play. It simply has too many playmakers and too many options. Even more impressive is Baylor's scoring disparity: The Bears have outscored their opening three opponents 209 to 23. [RECAP l BOX]

* No. 17 Washington 56, Idaho State 0: This was a nice tune-up game for the Huskies, who now must face Arizona, Stanford, Oregon and Arizona State in succession. Things were easy from the get-go, as Washington led 42-0 at halftime. Quarterback Keith Price went 16-of-21 for 213 yards and three scores (he also added a rushing touchdown) before resting the second half. Running back Bishop Sankey had only four carries, but he made them count, racking up 77 yards and a touchdown.

* No. 18 Northwestern 35, Maine 21: It wasn't as flashy as some of the other ranked teams' cupcake wins, but Northwestern did what it needed to in order to improve to 4-0 entering its bye week, with the Wildcats staring down an Oct. 5 home game against Ohio State. Quarterbacks Kain Colter and Trevor Siemian combined to go just 10-of-17, but the Wildcats' defense was stellar until the fourth quarter. Damien Proby and Dean Lowry both scored defensive touchdowns.

* Maryland 37, West Virginia 0: What an example of two programs moving in completely different directions:

Raise your hand if you predicted this the night of '11 Orange Bowl: Since WVU hung 70 on Clemson, Mounties are 9-8 and Tigers 14-2.

- Larry Williams (@LarryWilliamsTI) September 21, 2013

Maryland looks like it's steadily getting better, and the offense appears sharp under quarterback C.J. Brown (217 passing yards, 26 rushing yards, two total touchdowns). West Virginia, on the other hand, can't stop anybody and is still trying to find an offensive identity.

This is the most points #WVU has allowed in a shutout loss since a 48-0 loss to Washington & Jefferson in 1914.

- Patrick Southern (@patricksouthern) September 21, 2013

The Mountaineers had just 179 yards and six first downs to go along with six turnovers. It also marked the first time West Virginia was shutout since 2001, per USA Today's Paul Myerberg.

* No. 24 Wisconsin 41, Purdue 10: The Badgers needed a bounce-back game after last week's controversial loss to Arizona State, and Wisconsin established its offense from the start. The Badgers want to run the ball, and they're at their best when running as frequently as possible.

Coach Gary Andersen's team finished with 388 yards on the ground, with tailbacks Melvin Gordon (147 yards, three touchdowns) and James White (145 yards, one touchdown) both averaging more than nine yards a carry. In the win, White passed Larry Emery to move onto Wisconsin's top-10 all-time rushing list, despite never having started a game. [RECAP l BOX]

* Nebraska 59, South Dakota State 20: It won't quiet coach Bo Pelini's critics by any stretch of the imagination, but after allowing 17 first-quarter points, the Cornhuskers' defense rallied to allow just three points the rest of the way. Huskers quarterback Taylor Martinez missed the game with turf toe, but the duo of Tommy Armstrong and Ron Kellogg were efficient in relief, combining to go 20-of-24 with two touchdowns. Running backs Imani Cross and Ameer Abdullah added 199 yards and three scores on the ground.

Source: Campus Union - SI.com

My husband and I have been married a little over 1¹/₂ years and are still adjusting to living together, I guess.

Several months ago I suggested that we each take two weekday nights and that person would be responsible for planning and cooking the meal on those days. I was getting resentful that I seemed to be the one cooking more and didn't like the feeling of being always responsible for dinner. We both like to cook but my husband views cooking more as a hobby and his wanting to cook is very mood-based (which doesn't lend itself to weekly meal planning).

He is frustrated by the schedule because it turns cooking into a chore, and some days he would be happy eating cereal for dinner. I'm more practical about meals (yes, dinner is a chore but we still have to eat!) and cooking for my partner motivates me to make something healthy.

Anyway, now I feel like I'm forcing this schedule on him, ruining his love of cooking. But I also feel resentful that it is usually on his nights to cook that he feels like cereal, so no one cooks a "real" meal for me.

Should we just do our own thing at dinner time? I'll cook when I feel like it and he'll do the same, even if that means it only happens twice a month? I know that bean-counting is dangerous to a relationship and I don't want to do it but I can't push away this creeping resentment.

Dinner Time

Just to get it out of the way, I'm having an eye-roll over the idea that cooking twice a week is too much of a buzzkill for him to bear. Poor Poor Poohpie!!!

Okay, enough of that; I can snark all day from my desk chair, but you can't. You have to live in this marriage.

And, too, there is a way to look at this that shows respect for his joy of cooking without making him a net drag on your marriage.

While "I cook for you and you serve me corn flakes" may be technically accurate, it's a micro look at a macro arrangement. There's no shortage of jobs required to keep a household running, and there's also a wide range of normal for what a functional household looks like.

Since you feel strongly about dinner, then consider shouldering most of it - and have your husband assume a different burden of similar weight. For example, he can certainly shop for the groceries and do all the dishes (assuming he has no special nostalgia for non-coerced dishwasher loading).

Even that is almost too micro, since it all revolves around food. If you broaden the discussion to everything that must be done to keep your lives running - dining, cleaning, laundry, errands, pet care, home/yard/car maintenance, account-watching and bill-paying, financial planning, health insurance forms, medical appointments, taxes, extended-family contact (calls, cards, gifts, thank-yous), vacation planning - then you'll be on to a division of labor that's truly equitable. That is, as long as that's the result you both sincerely want and are both willing to work to achieve.

Write to Carolyn Hax, Style, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20071, or tellme@washpost.com. Sign up for Carolyn Hax's column, delivered to your inbox early each morning, at http://bit.ly/haxpost.

Source: Washingtonpost