Right now, on March 7, 2008, many folks in my county and community of about 300,000 people, Rockland County, New York, including myself, are clamoring for Regime Change at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). We are clamoring for the ouster of the federal agency's current acting head, Acting Administrator Robert Allan ("Bobby") Sturgell. Clamoring along with us, are many of the 30,000,000 American citizens residing in the northeastern United States (NY, NJ, PA, CT, DE), and many other FAA-aggrieved good and decent folk across our country of over 300,000,000. We are using the blogosphere, the old-fashioned power of petition, and every other conceivable lawful means available and necessary, to get this dirty job done.
The frenzy has caused me to want to step back for a minute. Hence this blog.
How did this all get started?
First, one of my all-time heroes, a man serving as Rockland County Legislator at the time, Mr. Patrick (Pat) Withers, called me on the phone in the Summer of 2007. Pat reads newspapers cover-to-cover every day. Pat saw a brief article in the Bergen Record (Bergen County, New Jersey). The blurb gave virtually a same-day warning about a meeting with Bergen County residents and the FAA in Woodcliff Lake, NJ - regarding a new proposed federal flight plan that threatened their homes. Pat is from Suffern, NY, on the state line, and knows this area. Pat knew right away that Woodcliff Lake was only about 4 miles from us in New York, and that we were thereby threatened, too.
Why did Pat call me? For one thing, he is a friend. For another thing, he knows that I have a particular problem with dumb governmental agencies and dumb companies that bully and victimize regular people like ourselves. The funny thing is - be it a dumb agency, or a dumb company - they each act in almost exactly the same way. Bad film companies and bad record labels are often run by publicists. And guess what? Bad federal governmental agencies are, also, often run by publicists. Spin doctors are paid to specifically not tell the truth. It all comes together. It all makes sense. Wag that dog.
This is where we start. Rockland County, New York. The Summer of 2007. After Pat attended the meeting in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey, he said to me: "John, you're not going to believe this". Pat was right. I didn't. At first. We started clamoring for our (other) local and other officials to put pressure on the FAA, to get us a meeting with the FAA. Our local officials, and our community, were collectively successful in that regard. This was essentially the first, and second, of many victories to come. What happened at the July 12, 2007 and July 30, 2007 FAA/Rockland meetings is subject for another few blog entries. For now, here are copies of my letters to (NY) Congressman Eliot Engel, and to (NY) Senator Charles Schumer, which I sent to each of them the day after the first of the two Rockland County meetings with the FAA.
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Law Office of John J. Tormey III, Esq.
John J. Tormey III, PLLC
217 East 86th Street, PMB 221
New York, NY 10028 USA
(212) 410-4142 (phone)
(212) 410-2380 (fax)
e-mail: brightline@att.net
http://www.tormey.org
John J. Tormey III
P.O. Box 918
Pearl River, NY 10965 USA
(845) 735-9691 (phone and voicemail)
July 13, 2007
VIA FAX, E-MAIL, and U.S. MAIL
Mr. Britt McEachern
The Honorable Eliot L. Engel, United States Congressman
United States House of Representatives
2161 Rayburn HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515 USA
VIA U.S. MAIL
The Honorable Eliot L. Engel, United States Congressman
261 West Nyack Road
West Nyack, NY 10994 USA
Re: The F.A.A.’s Horrific Scheme To Direct Airplane Traffic Over Rockland County
Dear Britt, and Congressman Engel:
Britt, thank you for your time on the phone yesterday, and for working so hard to help us Rockland County residents on this frightening issue.
Congressman Engel, I hope that you remember me from our correspondence when you first took responsibility over Rockland County, and when we met thereafter at John Hall’s victory celebration on election night last year.
I was the Ramapo televised gathering last night. Your impassioned words on the speakerphone not only came through loud and clear in terms of their decibel level, but were exactly what the situation called for. I saw the looks on the faces of the F.A.A. officials present, and they heard you loud and clear, too.
Please enlist me as a private citizen in the continued fight against the proposed F.A.A. flight plan. Please tell me who I can write, and what I can do. A copy of my letter of today to Senator Schumer is attached/enclosed as an example and for your reference.
Britt, please feel free to ring me back whenever you have a chance, per my voicemail message to you of today.
All my best, and thank you again.
Very truly yours,
John J. Tormey III, Esq.
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Law Office of John J. Tormey III, Esq.
John J. Tormey III, PLLC
217 East 86th Street, PMB 221
New York, NY 10028 USA
(212) 410-4142 (phone)
(212) 410-2380 (fax)
e-mail: brightline@att.net
http://www.tormey.org
John J. Tormey III
P.O. Box 918
Pearl River, NY 10965 USA
(845) 735-9691 (phone and voicemail)
July 13, 2007
URGENT
VIA FAX: 1-202-228-3027, E-MAIL: “senator@schumer.senate.gov”, and U.S. MAIL
Honorable Senator Charles E. (Chuck) Schumer (D-NY)
United States Senate
SH-313 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-3201 USA
VIA FAX: 1-212-486-7693, E-MAIL: “senator@schumer.senate.gov”, and U.S. MAIL
Honorable Senator Charles E. (Chuck) Schumer (D-NY)
757 Third Avenue, Suite 17-02
New York, NY 10017 USA
VIA FAX: 1-518-431-4076, E-MAIL: “senator@schumer.senate.gov”, and U.S. MAIL
Honorable Senator Charles E. (Chuck) Schumer (D-NY)
Leo O’Brien Building, Room 420
Albany, NY 12207 USA
Re: The F.A.A.’s Horrific Scheme To Direct Airplane Traffic Over Rockland County
Dear Senator Schumer:
I ... met you on the campaign trail on 86th Street and Broadway. You were very kind. You told me that I could come to you on any issue of concern to New York. I have never bothered you before. It is now years later. I am taking you up on your offer.
The F.A.A., in an utter lack of wisdom and judgment, has determined to fly between 400-600 Newark-bound jets a day, at altitudes as low as 4,000 feet, over Rockland County, over the densely-populated Town of Orangetown, and over the densely populated Hamlet of Pearl River. When occurring, if occurring, this will destroy the quality of my life and the property value of my already-purchased home. I moved to Pearl River to escape noise, pollution, risk, and agita. I am outraged. Similarly outraged are my fellow residents of Pearl River, Orangetown, and Rockland.
Unbelievably, the F.A.A. seeks to deprive us Rocklanders of a fair hearing on the plan, or any hearing, at which we can be heard and voice our objections. The F.A.A. is about to render a decision and snuff out any comment or comment period. They did this on purpose to squelch our voices, thinking that we Rocklanders were the path of least resistance, and too dumb, poor, apathetic and disenfranchised to put up a fight. This purposeful steamrollering by the F.A.A. is an abject denial of our due process rights as New Yorkers and Americans.
Worse yet, it is already painfully obvious that the F.A.A. could fix this problem easily and permanently, if they would simply expend a modicum of effort to do so. I attended the televised gathering in Ramapo last night in which Supervisor St. Lawrence interviewed F.A.A. officials. By the admission of the F.A.A.’s own power-point presentation and own officials, the currently-planned route purposefully... places the jumbo jets directly over the heads of homeowners, churches, schools, and citizens generally - our heads. Why public officials would purposefully steer jet traffic away from uninhabited terrain in favor of terrorizing the daily lives of working people -including the many first responders who daily service the city and live in Pearl River - is beyond logic and comprehension...
Finally, I want to express my personal concern that, to my knowledge, neither I nor my fellow Rocklanders have heard you take a firm stand against this horrific F.A.A. plan that threatens to destroy our lives and our property. Yet you are our Senator. [Some] sent representatives to last night’s Ramapo gathering, who along with many others spoke forcefully against the F.A.A.’s hare-brained and destructive plan. The room was full of local legislators, mayors, trustees, and other officials. Yet you are the one who should be guiding the opposition to this disaster-in-the-making.
Please, Senator Schumer, fix this problem, and make the F.A.A. re-draw the flight plan. Let us know that you are with us - that you care about us, your constituents - and that you are protecting us.
I and my neighbors will appreciate your reply and reaction.
Very truly yours,
John J. Tormey III, Esq.
