Latest news with #Quaker
New York Post
2 days ago
- New York Post
LI driver burns to death crashing into historic Quaker meeting house — and cops won't rule out possible hate crime
A Long Island driver burned to death early Thursday when his car burst into flames after smashing into a historic Quaker meeting house — and cops are not ruling out the crash was a potential hate crime. The unidentified SUV operator swerved off the road at high speed and crashed into the Quaker Society of Friends Meeting House in Manhasset off Northern Boulevard in Nassau County just before 6 a.m., instantly engulfing the vehicle in flames, authorities said. The white car was registered to a 41-year-old man from New Rochelle in Westchester County, but authorities could not confirm if the owner was behind the wheel at the time. 4 Authorities could not confirm that the owner of the car was behind the wheel at the time of the crash. Facebook/Manhasset-Lakeville Volunteer Fire Department 4 The meeting-house site dates back to 1650, when a structure was originally built there and obtained by local colonial Quakers in 1703. Eyewitness News ABC7NY Cops said they are investigating why the driver swerved into the historic building and refused to rule anything out, including whether the incident could have been a targeted attack or a hate crime. Arson investigators and the county bomb squad were on the scene backing up the fire marshal and detectives. The fire from the car badly damaged the left side of the building. The meeting-house site dates back to 1650, when a structure was originally built there and obtained by local colonial Quakers in 1703. The meeting house burned down during the Revolutionary War but was rebuilt in the 1800s, and the property is also home to Long Island's oldest and largest oak tree. The site is listed in the US National Register of Historic Places. 4 Crews arrived and found a vehicle which had struck the building and fully engulfed in flames. Facebook/Manhasset-Lakeville Volunteer Fire Department 4 The building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009. Eyewitness News ABC7NY 'It's a special place,' said Dick Lopez, a member of the Quaker community, to CBS News. He said the home is used as a religious meeting place and a home-schooling center for local Quakers and a variety of art and culture programs the community holds. Firefighters from four departments responded to the scene: The Manhasset-Lakeville Fire Department first and then firefighters from Port Washington, Plandome and Great Neck.
The Guardian
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
We should all grieve about the state of the world. It can be an integral part of activism
Time, it seems, is moving in strange ways for many of us. A colleague recently said, 'mourning, reckoning and activism all seem to require different speeds,' and I'm grateful to her for that. I've often thought that the 'gear-shift' between my paid work and the unpaid beautiful work of mothering feels like a rusty old manual car that I don't quite understand how to drive. Lurch. Clunk. Add to that combination of work and parenting the immanent collapse of the world one was raised in, and there is a lot more grit than just clunky gears. The thing is, the world isn't changing: our illusions about 'the west' are finally being pulled down, and with it, our perceptions of time. When I was last able to visit the UK, where I lived for nearly 18 years, and which I consider (in confusing and complex ways) my home, one of my oldest and dearest poetry friends was in the midst of a family difficulty outside the scope of their usual experience. When Mick was 80, his sister, Quaker activist Gaie Delap, had been imprisoned for action against climate change. At the time of my visit, Mick and the rest of the family was in the midst of getting her case into the media as much as possible, because Gaie was supposed to have a tag fitted that allowed her to be in home detention, but for months, a tag could allegedly not be found. The point is, the UK government spent time and money imprisoning a 78-year-old woman trying to protest against governmental failures around climate change, because her heart is breaking for her grandchildren. And the government would rather put her in prison than do a damn thing to curtail climate change. Sitting across from Mick and crying with him about his sister who was in prison, who was suffering ill effects to her mental and physical health due to the conditions there, was humbling for many reasons. Here were the elders I was longing for, the intergenerational grieving and fighting for justice that I'd been wondering about. I love that many people in their generation are fighting, and moreover – psychologically and perhaps spiritually more important – I appreciate their acknowledgment of the pain and suffering that is impacting us all. They are suffering it, too, and they are also fighting. They are grieving, openly. There is solidarity in that. I, and many of us from inherited Puritanical backgrounds, are not taught to express grief. Stoicism was upheld as much more laudable, but we've learned, often the hard way, that damming the river only causes it to burst the banks somewhere further downstream. Think of this generationally. As writer-activist adrienne maree brown writes: 'This palpable, active, ongoing grief is a non-negotiable part of this period of immense change. Grief is one of the most beautiful and difficult ways we love. As we grieve we feel our humanity and connection to each other.' Solidarity in grief creates connection, community and spirit, that keeps us going. There are many cultures and communities that have been doing this long before I began to realise it, but I'm grateful to come to it, finally. Importantly, acknowledging the interconnected collapse and brutality of western settler-colonialism, capitalism, the military-industrial complex, genocide and climate change does not mean an individual has to feel like it is their fault. Yes, we can do better. We can always 'fail better', as Beckett writes. But the tricky bit here is that if one feels it is their fault, they often react antagonistically – they pull back. They shut down; don't want to talk about it: 'it's not my fault'. Instead, I suggest we all grieve. Find others with whom it is safe to grieve. As Joshua Schrei says in The Emerald podcast, sit with your neighbour and breathe, together. Feelings of reactivity create severance. But, looking at Joanna Macy's writing, grief is an integral part of activism. So is gratitude. Think of a set of scales, perhaps: grief on one side, gratitude on the other. Activism sits in the middle. And what is activism, we might ask? It's taken me a while to understand that it comes in many forms. I hope, in some small way, this writing is activism. The millions of people out on the streets, across the world, civilians marching, together, waving flags and protecting their neighbours, or speaking out in support of people across the world whom they've never met: this is also activism. And grief. Sitting with your friend, or your mother, or your neighbour, and grieving. The time it takes will ebb and flow in unfamiliar ways: allow it. Feeling the pain and complexity, together – that is activism, too. Kelley Swain works in the field of medical and health humanities. She is a PhD candidate at the University of Tasmania, working on a project about poetry and motherhood
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Sunday hunting proposal passes Pa. House. What's next?
A hunter walks across a field. (Getty Images) For the second year in a row, a proposal to repeal Pennsylvania's Sunday hunting prohibition passed the state House in bipartisan fashion this week. After Wednesday's vote, a bevy of organizations have weighed in with some arguing it's past time to end the ban, while others say it would be a step backwards for the outdoor experience in Pennsylvania. As the debate moves to the Senate, a key committee chair told the Capital-Star he's still evaluating House Bill 1431, but the legislation advancing seems like good news. Senate Game and Fisheries Committee Chairperson Greg Rothman (R-Cumberland) said he expects to have a debate and vote on it in the near future. 'I think it's an idea that's time has come,' Rothman told the Capital-Star on Thursday. 'Other states allow it. What we want to be doing as a state government is to promote hunting and make it as accessible as possible, especially to working families and to younger people.' 'And I think Sunday (hunting) gives them more opportunities,' he added. 'So the more opportunities to hunt gets more hunters, and helps us keep this great tradition alive in Pennsylvania.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE The sale of hunting licenses generated more than $59 million in revenue for the Game Commission last year. Rothman said he supports Sen. Dan Laughlin's (R-Erie) proposal to end the ban and believes that proposal would have the support in the chamber. Rothman said state Rep. Mandy Steele (D-Allegheny) assured him the language in her proposal is the same in Laughlin's. While the bill proposed by Laughlin also has the support of Sen. James Malone (D-Lancaster), the minority chair of the Senate Game and Fisheries Committee, Rothman wants to go over the details of Steele's proposal to see if it can also pass the chamber. Steele described the state's ban as 'archaic' and 'not based in the reality of today.' Pennsylvania expanded Sunday hunting in 2019 when Gov. Tom Wolf signed a law to allow hunting on three Sundays each year: One during archery season, one during rifle season, and one Sunday selected by the Game Commission. Laughlin also led that effort. Prior to the 2019 expansion, hunting had been mostly illegal on Sundays for over 200 years under the state's Blue Laws, which stem from the Quaker foundations of the commonwealth and barred certain activities on the sabbath. 'It's a law that most states have eliminated long ago,' Steele said during debate on the House floor, noting that with a Monday to Friday workweek, most people only have Saturday to hunt. 'Not being able to hunt on Sundays creates major hurdles for busy families. It's a significant barrier for working people.' Steele described herself as 'not a typical hunter' and someone who did not grow up learning to hunt. But she spent a lot of time outdoors and later picked it up as an adult and mother of four children. She said she's been welcomed into the hunting community wholeheartedly. 'It has been a gratifying experience,' Steele said. Her proposal is backed by the Pennsylvania Game Commission, Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen and Conservationists, Hunter Nation, Hunters United for Sunday Hunting, and Backcountry Hunters & Anglers. The Game Commission celebrated the bill advancing Wednesday, issuing a statement referencing a number of reasons that it backs the measure. 'Though hunters play an active role in helping to manage wildlife populations through the purchase of their licenses and other revenue they generate, they also fund wildlife conservation at a larger scale, for all species,' Game Commission Executive Director Steve Smith said. 'For those reasons and others, it's important to keep hunters engaged and providing the valuable service they do. These bills would help accomplish that.' 'One of the biggest reasons hunters stop hunting is a lack of time,' he added. 'While no one can add hours to the day or days to the week, removing the prohibition on Sunday hunting holds the potential to add significantly more time to the hunting calendar and keep hunters hunting.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau said expanding hunting could help reduce crop damage across the state by better managing deer populations. The bill would require at least one member of the Game Commission's Board of Commissioners to have an agriculture background. The bill passed by a 131-72 vote on Wednesday, with support from most Democrats. Republicans were more divided on the matter. The House unanimously approved an amendment to H.B. 1431, to restore the hunting rights of people charged with trespassing immediately upon their acquittal or dismissal of the charges. Other amendments were rejected, including one defeated along party lines that would move the first day of deer hunting season to the Monday after Thanksgiving. The debate around Sunday hunting in Pennsylvania is far from new. Last session, the House passed Steele's bill to repeal the Sunday hunting ban by a 129-73 vote. That bill did not advance in the Senate. Rep. David Maloney, minority chairperson of the House Game and Fisheries Committee, opposed H.B. 1431 and argued that it is 'not a simple Sunday hunting piece of legislation.' Touting his experience with hunting from a young age, Maloney said the bill would have 'unintended consequences.' The problems Maloney had with the proposal included the language regarding trespassing penalties, the requirement for a member of the agriculture community to be on the Game Commission Board, the power given to farmers to hunt deer, and negative impacts on waterfowl hunters. He also said he doesn't buy the supporters' argument about free time. Maloney said since he began hunting at age 12, the opportunities to hunt throughout the year have more than doubled. Maloney also said he believes the bill is unconstitutional because it violates the requirement that legislation must be limited to a single subject. For that reason, Maloney said he doesn't believe the Senate would consider it or Gov. Josh Shapiro would sign it. Rep. Greg Vitali (D-Delaware), one of the three Democrats who did not vote in support of H.B. 1431, said the Pennsylvania chapter of the Sierra Club, the Keystone Trails Association, and the Pennsylvania Parks and Forest Foundation oppose the bill. Jen Quinn, legislative and political director for the Pennsylvania Chapter of the Sierra Club, told the Capital-Star the organization supports hunting and effective management of the deer population, but cited a number of concerns she has with the proposal. 'Our concern is that when people know there are hunters in the woods, are they going to stay out?' Quinn said. She noted that it is relatively safe to be in the woods with hunters, but there are people who may decide to stay home instead of enjoying the outdoors when hunters are out. Quinn also said she doesn't think the legislation would address the problem of deer overpopulation and the decline in hunting licenses. 'I doubt adding one more day will fix this, because the state did add three Sundays a few years ago, and it didn't reverse that trend,' Quinn said. She also said that the organization supports phasing out lead ammunition, arguing that it is harmful to wildlife. Brook Lenker, executive director of the Keystone Trails Association, said the organization was disappointed that H.B. 1431 passed the House, even though it anticipated it might move on to the Senate. He's holding out hope that the Senate won't pass the bill. 'We just feel that additional Sundays open to hunting has the potential to erode quality hiking opportunities on Pennsylvania's trails … a lot of hiking occurs on weekends,' Lenker told the Capital-Star. Steele or Laughlin's proposal would have to receive a vote in the Senate Game and Fisheries Committee before it could advance to a full vote in the chamber. The Senate is slated to return to session on Monday, June 23. Earlier this year, both Steele and Laughlin, who are leading the efforts in their respective chambers again this session, told the Capital-Star that they were optimistic the bill could get across the finish line.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Yahoo
Community remembers woman killed while walking dog in Germantown
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Community members are mourning the loss of a woman killed while walking along a crosswalk in Germantown Sunday evening. The community is mourning the loss of Dorothy 'Dot' Dobbins, who was killed by a driver while walking on a 3rd Avenue North crosswalk Sunday evening. On Tuesday afternoon, the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure installed new pedestrian placards reminding drivers to yield to pedestrians. ORIGINAL STORY: Woman dead after being hit by vehicle while walking dog in Germantown 'A bunch of us reacted this morning to a report in the paper that described her as an elderly, old woman. That was not Dot Dobbins,' longtime friend and colleague Irwin Venick said. 'Dot was 77 years old, but she was active and engaged in work that she loved.' Venick met Dobbins at Vanderbilt Law School in 1971. She would go on to have a respected career in family law, and also join the local Lawyers' Association for Women. She was best known for her work as part of the the Alternatives to Violence Project. 'She's traveled the world. She's engaged with all sorts of groups encouraging people to talk, to engage [and] to reduce violence in their lives,' Venick said. 'So between that, her family, and Germantown Commons, and Quaker meetings, she has had a very active and full life.' Perhaps drivers taking a more 'peaceful' approach as they cross is a small part of the bigger legacy Dobbins leaves behind. Cyclist transported to Nashville hospital via helicopter after crash in Clarksville 'Emails have been flowing around ever since Monday — people expressing shock over Dot's loss, and she leaves a major hole in the hearts of many,' Venick said. As of publication, no charges have been filed. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Guardian
05-06-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Anthony Arnold obituary
My father, Anthony Arnold, who has died unexpectedly aged 67, was a historical instrument maker, a Quaker and an advocate for equality. He dedicated his life to finely crafting baroque and Renaissance instruments, with his earlier years focused on recorders and the later ones on flutes. He set up his own business to produce instruments by hand and, a perfectionist, would spend days working on each one until it was faultless. He also took a keen interest in restoration of musical instruments from woodwind to harpsichords, violins and viols. Born in Belfast, to Elsie (nee Dawrant), a teacher and research assistant, and Denis Arnold, a music lecturer at Queen's University Belfast, Anthony was encouraged to follow his passions by his father, who later became Heather professor of music at Oxford University. The family moved from city to city for Denis's career, with spells in Venice, Hull and Nottingham. While at Mundella grammar school in Nottingham, Anthony developed an interest in making wind instruments;. This led to him studying instrument repair at Newark Technical College, from 1975 to 1977. Anthony became a Quaker in his 20s; he once lived in the flat attached to the Nottingham Quaker meeting house and administered the running of the building. He would attend anti-war demonstrations with handmade placards inscribed with statements such as Vivaldi Not Violence and Brahms Not Bombs. He met Wendy Hancock, a professional flautist, in the mid-1970s, and they bought a house in a village on the outskirts of Nottingham, which allowed her to teach from home while he produced instruments in the adjoining workshop. They married in 2015. Anthony was a devoted husband who took care of Wendy, who died in 2016, during a long period of coping with cancer. His project after her death was to recreate the glass flutes owned by Henry VIII that had fascinated Wendy. Examining frescoes in the Veneto, Italy, alongside other works, Anthony continued to research the use of glass flutes during the Renaissance. He worked alongside a glass-blower in Murano to discover the techniques used at the time and the sound profile of these instruments, a project that continued up to his death. Anthony is survived by his children, Helen and me, and his brother, Christopher.
