Who Needs The Hamptons When You Can Barbecue In Brownsville?

Struggling to find people who will stay in town this weekend, the Daily News is forced to traipse out to the city’s poorer census tracts:

The Hamptons and the Jersey Shore may seem inviting, but it’s a shorter trip to the southern shores of Brooklyn, where some said they would go to catch one last dip in the ocean.

“I am going to Coney Island Beach to relax and enjoy myself,” said Mike Owens, 37, of Crown Heights, a courthouse maintenance worker in downtown Brooklyn. “Plus, it’s my birthday, so I am really going to have fun.”

Others were craving some excitement on their mini-vacation.

“I am going to a big party on Sunday,” said Kevin Chinnis, 32, a concierge from East New York. “On Monday, I am going to the Caribbean Day Parade.”

It also was time to kick back and use the time off to bond with family and friends.

“I am going to stay with the kids and take them to Astroland, maybe to a movie,” said Louis Epps, 44, of Bedford-Stuyvesant, who also does courthouse maintenance. “Whatever they want to do.”

“I am headed to a bunch of barbecues with friends and family,” said Dane Conde, 48, a mail sorter from Brownsville. “We all just get together, eat, drink and catch up.”

Others are just looking to lay low, relax and check out a flick.

“I’m going to see ‘The Descent,'” said Shelly Edwards, 38, of East New York. “I hear it’s really good.” [Emph. added to underscore the obvious]

Better headline: “Economy Lags For Many”

Build Your Own No Parking Zone

Renegade signage causes havoc in DUMBO; DOT flummoxed:

A “No Parking” sign mysteriously appeared on a stretch of Front St. in Brooklyn this week, prompting the police to ticket and tow cars left there.

The only problem, the city Transportation Department said yesterday, is that there are no parking restrictions on the south side of Front St., between Washington and Main Sts. — and they have no idea who put up the official sign.

“This is crazy,” cried towing victim David Bourgeois, a 38-year-old freelance writer who lives in the neighborhood.

It was the latest twist in a Twilight Zone-like week for Bourgeois, who parked his Mini Cooper on Front St. Sunday night when the sign — barring parking from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays — wasn’t there.

When he went to check on his wheels Wednesday morning, the sign was there — and his car was gone.

He found his Mini in a police tow pound in Brooklyn Wednesday night. He paid $205 to drive it to freedom. Adding insult to injury, a $60 parking ticket was on the windshield.

“It’s just outrageous,” he said. “I’m definitely going to fight this.”

DOT spokeswoman Kay Sarlin said the agency would work with the city Finance Department to dismiss the ticket. An NYPD spokesman said officials were looking into waiving the towing fee.

Score One For Opportunism

Meanwhile, The New York Times Editorial Board endorses David Yassky in no uncertain terms:

Mr. Yassky is undoubtedly an opportunist, as are most politicians and certainly all those in this race. But far more important is his stellar record on the Council, leading groundbreaking work on gun control, affordable housing, the environment and jobs creation — all important to the 11th District.

Backstory: The Post Oppo Research Machine Chugs Along; See, The Thing Is Was, Senior Year Was Just Such A Blur For Me . . .; Excitement!; Well, That’s A Relief!; Pay To Campaign!; Recipe For Hitting The Front Page Of The Sunday Times: Just Add Sharpton; You Know You’ve Jumped The Shark When . . .; Unite To Stop White Individuals!; The Sad Thing Is That It Was Probably A Carefully Crafted Statement; How Do We Put This? Let’s Just Say Identity Politics Still Exists . . .; Barack Obama: Some Guy They Stuck In There; Nothing Against Your Policies, It’s Just The Color Of Your Skin.

The Iraq War As A Distraction . . . From The Battle Of Brooklyn

Perhaps I dismissed too hastily the power of Jack Murtha’s endorsement. I had no idea that the main issue for voters in the 11th Congressional District is the war in Iraq*. And the candidates are now tripping over themselves to prove that they’re more antiwar than the competition:

For the four Democrats running for Congress in central Brooklyn, there may be differing views on a host of subjects. But on one topic there is strong agreement: They all contend that the United States’ military involvement in Iraq is a bad thing and that the troops should be pulled out as soon as possible.

All the candidates contend that the war is an issue that could energize voters to support them. But with their unanimous opposition to the war, the candidates find themselves trying to outdo each other in fashioning themselves as the antiwar candidate in what has become the city’s most fiercely contested, unpredictable primary battle.

One candidate, Chris Owens, has recorded an antiwar song that he is trying to get radio stations to play. Another, City Councilwoman Yvette D. Clarke, trotted out an icon of the antiwar movement, Representative John P. Murtha, to appeal for votes in brownstone Brooklyn yesterday.

The 11th Congressional District includes neighborhoods like Park Slope and Prospect Heights, hotbeds of antagonism toward the Bush administration. And the candidates say these are areas where voter turnout is expected to be higher than in the rest of the district, and where the issue of Iraq looms large.

So each of the candidates has been looking for attention-worthy methods of playing the Iraq card. Those methods range from the traditional to the highly unconventional.

. . .

For his part, the younger Mr. Owens is not content to confine his outspoken opposition to the war to position papers on the Internet or mailings to voters. The song he composed and recorded, “Love Is the Way,” was originally written as a protest tune during the administration of President Ronald Reagan. But Mr. Owens has refashioned the tune in a fusion of Middle Eastern and reggae styles with lyrics demanding that President Bush withdraw the troops from Iraq.

Mr. Owens said that he was trying to get the song played “in stations that focus on young people,” adding that it could motivate younger voters to go to the polls for the Sept. 12 Democratic primary (the song opens with Mr. Owens, the lead vocalist on the recording, identifying himself).

. . .

For Mr. Yassky, the issue has been the centerpiece of three of his many mailings to voters. One piece states: “The best way to honor our troops is to bring them home.” “I have strong feeling about this war,” Mr. Yassky said yesterday. “But I must say, I haven’t recorded a song yet.”

You can download Chris Owens’ “Love Is The Way” by visiting his website.

*By the way, is there anyone in the country who wants more war in Iraq? And wouldn’t this have been a more substantive issue in, say, 2002?

Clarke Wraps Up All-Important Murtha Endorsement

Your latest 11th Congressional District news . . . controversial Congressman Jack Murtha — who is on the right side of the Iraq War for a, er, primary in the 11th Congressional District but the wrong side of basically every other issue CD11 voters care about has endorsed (!) Yvette Clarke:

City Councilwoman Yvette Clarke (D-Flatbush), one of four Democratic hopefuls for the 11th congressional seat, announced a high-profile endorsement by Pennsylvania Rep. Jack Murtha, trumpeting him as a leading figure against the war in Iraq.

But Clarke’s opponents quickly pointed to Murtha’s anti-abortion stance and opposition to gun control.

. . .

Murtha earned an “A” rating from the National Rifle Association in 2004 for his votes against gun control — while most city reps got an “F.”

Murtha also earned a 0 out of 5 on a 2005 scorecard by the pro-choice group NARAL, compared to the 5s given to most city politicians.

“We’ll take the support of [Attorney General] Eliot Spitzer, [former Mayor] David Dinkins and Brooklyn’s teachers over a pro-gun, anti-choice, out-of-state congressman any day,” said state Sen. Carl Andrews’ spokeswoman Melissa DeRosa, referring to Andrews’ own endorsements in the race.

Clarke defended Murtha’s endorsement and said her own views on social issues are more important than Murtha’s.

“The voters know where I stand, and they’ll be voting for me on [Sept. 12].”

Opposition research . . . complete!

Meanwhile, David Yassky works hard to distance himself from one of the more controversial developers in Brooklyn (outside that one guy , of course):

Meanwhile, City Councilman David Yassky (D-Brooklyn Heights) came under fire for nearly allowing controversial Brooklyn architect Robert Scarano to host a fund-raiser for him that was slated for last night.

The event, to be held at Scarano’s DUMBO offices, was abruptly canceled yesterday following calls by the Daily News.

. . .

A Yassky campaign spokesman would not discuss why the Scarano fund-raising event was canceled except to say, “The campaign didn’t think it was appropriate.”

Yassky has come under fire in the past for taking money from developers, while Scarano has sparked criticism in some neighborhoods for building condos that critics say are too big.

Scarano also was investigated by the Buildings Department for allegedly unsafe practices following worker injuries. He settled with the city last month and agreed to forfeit signing off on his own building plans.

Is it that hard to run a campaign, people? Come on!