A Chinese Sage Named Bob
Bob Herman '41 has been all over the map, professionally speaking. A distinguished professor, a public executive, and an international adviser in economics, Herman, however, has never set foot in China. So becoming a Chinese version of Dear Abby…now, that's a story worth telling!
The closest he's come to China was in 2002, playing ping-pong in California with the editor of Overseas English and English Salon, popular Chinese-English magazines aimed at young people. She had read his poems in an anthology, and invited him to write a column espousing his philosophy of life.
He now writes for both monthly magazines, and each month reaches hundreds of thousands of readers. The column's popularity in China encouraged him to publish his first book, Adventures of the Mind: Wit & Wisdom with Bob (reviewed in the Winter 2005 issue of this magazine). With translations into Chinese on facing pages, the book is a compilation of Herman's essays and poems on subjects from education to animals to the universe to love and aging. He also includes a selection of letters from his Chinese readers. A second book, consisting of 50 of his poems, and titled Poetic Journey, is following hot on the heels of the first. And a third book of essays is in the works.
Of the 85-year-old Herman, says Mayha Zhang, president and publisher of PS Leaf Books in La Quinta, California, “Bob may be the best foreign columnist in today's China.” He spends one to two hours every day, responding to an average of six daily emails from all over China, from readers looking for his advice and thanking him for his insights. Themes range from love to death to time to change; he avoids politics and religion. In his world, armaments would be edible, the words “mine” and “yours” would be outlawed, and “there would be no important people…no unimportant people…just people!” He encourages readers to view themselves as threads in the “tapestry” of community. And he views life as an unending journey, where the destination is never reached. He donates the $150 he is paid for each column to Chinese orphanages.
Herman began writing poetry seriously after his 1999 retirement and has since been published in five anthologies, including Color of Wind, Heart Speak, and After the Rain.
A philosophy major at Union, Herman went on to complete an MA at the University of Cincinnati and a PhD in Economics and Public Policy from NYU. A career economist and administrator, he held several posts under New York State Governors Dewey, Harriman, and Rockefeller, then served in high-ranking staff positions for the leaders of the state Assembly and Senate over the next quarter-century. He also served as adviser to more than a dozen foreign governments from 1956 to 1976. “I've been present when a lot of big decisions were made,” he admits. “But I've always stayed out of the limelight. I think what's done is more important than who did it.”
He also taught courses in public administration and economics at the University at Albany's Graduate School of Public Affairs, Syracuse University, the World Bank, City University of New York, and the Sage Colleges, and was chair of the Economics Department at Union for five years. He spent nineteen years as director of the Institute for Traffic Safety Management and Research, affiliated with the University at Albany's Rockefeller College.
In retirement, he has continued to be an active writer, lecturer, and economist, and has listed “the survival of the planet” as his greatest concern and “being alive and active” as his greatest joy.
His pearls of wit and wisdom, which have been called “Bobisms,” are a big hit in China. They're catching on at home as well: The Albany Times-Union recently included a feature on him, as did The Jewish World on its front page. “My book was a topic of the London Observer, and I did a lengthy interview for BBC and another with CNN. Most recently, AARP did an interview for the February AARP Bulletin. Reuters and the London Observer also published interviews, and I'm scheduled to do one with Guide Post.” Herman is gratified by the response.
One of his favorite letters came from a ten-year-old girl during the recent SARS epidemic. She wrote that she was afraid of death and wanted help in overcoming her fears. “It's amazing that a foreigner can understand me so well …you are a good listener and also a patient teacher,” wrote “Connie” from Tianjin. (Like many of his Chinese correspondents, she uses an “adopted” English name.)
A teacher from Shanghai named “Shelley” also enjoys Herman's columns. “I have designed a new activity for students in my class,” she says, “based on Bob's column, for we can benefit not only from the beautiful and easily understood language but also from his intelligent thoughts.”
On the subject of time, Herman writes: “Each of us has a limited amount. How we use our time is the guiding force of our lives. How we spend our time tells other people who we are. We define ourselves by our use of time. We are what we do!” On travel, writes Herman, “We can travel physically and see new sights and hear new sounds. We can also travel mentally and emotionally and even spiritually. These forms of nonphysical travel can be just as satisfactory as having to transport one's body from one place to another.”
“The theme throughout these writings is that learning and laughter are the fellow travelers that we need on our journey through life,” explains Herman. “Our learning must give us the wisdom to settle controversies peaceably.” In addition to learning and laughter, Herman also promotes enjoyment and sharing and writes about war and how society needs to work for peace, concluding, “We are going to grow up or blow up.”
Three alumni named to '40 Under 40'
Three Union College alumni-Ted Eveleth '87, Kate Hedgeman '96, and John Vero '97-have been selected as young area business leaders in the annual “40 Under 40” program. Now in its fifth year, the program recognizes outstanding members of the business community under the age of 40. The list of winners includes entrepreneurs, CEOs, bankers and small business owners from companies throughout the Capital Region. Selections were made by a panel of area business leaders from nearly 200 nominations.
Eveleth is president and chief executive officer of Cyclics Corp., a manufacturer of plastic products based in Schenectady and Schwarzheide, Germany. After graduating from Union with a degree in economics, Eveleth received an MBA from Cornell University and worked for companies in Boston and Washington, D.C. Upon returning to the Capital Region, he founded Cyclics with former Union classmate (and “40 Under 40” recipient) John Ciovacco.
Cyclics has grown from a five-person company to one with nearly 100 employees on two continents and a $40 million production plant.
It was named The Business Review's Most Promising New Enterprise in 2003, and the Schenectady Chamber of Commerce Outstanding New Enterprise in 2002. Eveleth has encouraged employee involvement in the community through participation in United Way and with Junior Achievement.
Hedgeman, a native of Albany, graduated magna cum laude from Union with a degree in political science. After a year in Washington, D.C., working in government relations, she returned to attend law school. She received her law degree in 2000 from Albany Law, where she was an associate editor of The Albany Law Review and awarded the Dominick Gabrielli award for excellence in Appellate Moot Court.
Hedgeman is an associate attorney with the Albany law firm of Hiscock & Barclay, LLP, where she practices in the areas of commercial and civil litigation municipal law and government relations. She is a recipient of the 2004 New York State Multiple Sclerosis Society Corporate Achievers award for excellence in community service. She also founded GenNEXT, a business council of the Albany-Colonie Regional Chamber of Commerce for business professionals ages 23-40.
Vero graduated from Union with a degree in political science and went on to receive a law degree from Albany Law School. He is an associate at Whiteman Osterman & Hanna in Albany as a member of the firm's corporate, commercial real estate, healthcare and governmental relations practice groups. While at Albany Law, Vero was a member of the National Moot Court Appellate Team and managing editor of research and writing for the Albany Law Journal of Science and Technology. He is also a former member of the School's board of trustees (2000-2003).
Vero is a member of the board of associates at the College of Saint Rose in Albany, and a member of the Union College Alumni Council. In addition, he is vice chair and steering committee member of the GenNEXT Council and a member of the Board of Managers of the Albany YMCA.
“40 Under 40” is sponsored by the Capital District Business Review, Fox 23 News and Key Bank. Winners were recognized at a luncheon in May at the Crowne Plaza in Albany.
Previous winners include Union alumni John Ciovacco '87, chairman of Cyclics Corporation in 2004 and Wayne MacDougall '86 in 2002, the chief financial officer of MapInfo Corporation.
In addition, business magazine Crains NY announced their list of '40 under Forty' for 2005. Union alumni Kevin Rampe and Devin Wenig, both from the class of 1988, were chosen. Rampe was president of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. Wenig is president of Reuters Customer Segments.
It could happen again
On March 31, 2005, Theresa Schiavo passed away. The cardiac arrest that left her-a young and vibrant woman-in a permanent vegetative state for the fifteen previous years was by far the greater tragedy. In the months before her death, the case drew a storm of attention from the legal and political establishment, the media, and the public. In the very eye of the storm was legal scholar and medical ethics expert Barbara Noah '89, professor of law at the University of Florida.
“As others have observed,” says Noah, “Theresa's medical situation was not unusual; many individuals in the U.S. are in a permanent vegetative state and receive nutrition and hydration through a feeding tube. Many other families have faced difficult decisions about whether and when to discontinue life supportive measures in these cases. Some of these families have disagreed and have turned to the courts to resolve the dispute. What's different about Theresa's case was how politicians and pro-life interest groups took her very private struggle and the private dispute between Michael Schiavo and the Schindlers for their own ends.”
What was the most extraordinary aspect of this exceptional case? Noah responds, “The Congressional intervention was extraordinary. To my knowledge, Congress has never before interfered in a healthcare decision-making dispute. Ultimately, this intervention failed. Both the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida and the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals declined to issue an injunction (which would have required reinsertion of the feeding tube) to keep Theresa alive while they heard the case. The U.S. Supreme Court also declined, without comment, to intervene.
“The case attracted attention nationwide from politicians and religious groups, however, so it was unsurprising that Congress opted to try to obtain an injunction to reinsert the feeding tube pending further litigation. Quite clearly, various conservative politicians and political groups viewed this as an opportunity to gain ground in the battle to retain and expand Republican control of Congress and the White House.”
What was Noah's role in the case? “Special legislation enacted in fall 2003 to 'stay' the removal of Theresa's feeding tube also required the appointment of an independent guardian who would investigate the facts of the case and provide advice to the Governor on how to proceed. I was one of several faculty members at various Florida universities contacted by the court about my willingness to serve as guardian. Because I had recently taken a public position criticizing the legislative and executive branch intervention in the case (in interviews with several newspapers), and because I believed it unlikely that the Governor would give serious consideration to any guardian's recommendation unless that person advocated continued tube feeding, I declined the invitation to serve. I have written extensively about the case, however, and I continue to talk with the news media about various legal and ethical issues implicated in the dispute.”
Does Noah think the whole concept of patients' rights will change now? “Apart from its constitutional failings, the Florida legislature's 2003 intervention in the dispute created a dangerous precedent and could have grave consequences for patients and healthcare providers in Florida. The recent Congressional intervention raised similar concerns. Although the 2003 legislation was carefully tailored to address only Theresa's circumstances, nothing would prevent the Florida legislature from opting to use a similar mechanism to intervene in these or other sorts of cases, such as
disputes about abortion rights, decisions about organ and tissue donation, or disputes among family members over appropriate medical treatment for a gravely ill child. Although that legislation was deemed unconstitutional on separation-of-powers grounds, Florida and other state legislatures could choose to intervene again in similar future disputes, leaving the courts to evaluate the constitutionality of such interference after the fact.
“The most recent state bills avoided the legal problems associated with legislation directed at a single individual case (although these bills were undoubtedly designed to address the Schiavo dispute). Instead, they created new problems by seeking to change the fundamental principles of end-of-life decision making in Florida and to apply these changes retroactively. Although none of the bills passed, through its continuous meddling in a single difficult end-of-life decision, arrived at after careful consideration during seven years of grueling litigation, the Florida legislature and the Governor succeeded in unsettling, at least temporarily, the basic presumptions under which the state's citizens make choices (or postpone making choices) about end-of-life care.
“The dispute over Theresa's case rages on, partly because it raises a question of ethical rather than scientific futility. No one can argue that the artificial nutrition and hydration constitute a scientifically ineffective treatment; it 'worked' in the sense that it kept Theresa's body alive. Unfortunately, this vitalist view of life directly conflicts with the uncomfortable perception that the quality of Theresa's life renders continued treatment ethically inappropriate. Physicians caring for patients in a permanent vegetative state frequently reach the conclusion that continuing with tube feeding and other measures is ethically futile, despite the fact that these interventions keep the patient alive. Because judgments about ethical futility require inherently subjective assessments regarding 'benefit' to the patient, however, it is important to tread carefully when considering a conclusion that a particular intervention for a particular patient is ethically futile. The touchstone principle of autonomy is meant to remind us that, whenever possible, the conclusion that continued treatment represents an ethically futile choice should rest on the individual patient's own values, preferences, and beliefs.
“Using legal mechanisms to decide end-of-life disputes does nothing to resolve the underlying ethical conflicts. Because this country consists of individuals with diverse and strongly held religious and ethical convictions, however, achieving consensus on these sorts of questions seems unrealistic. This lack of consensus starkly illustrates why we need legal mechanisms that preserve the individual's right to make decisions without interference from the government. Everyone wants to retain the freedom to make choices about end-of-life care based on their own values and beliefs, rather than allowing these decisions to be made according to the will of the majority or the wishes of those in political power. Unfortunately, as the Schiavo case demonstrates, there are those who, while retaining freedom of choice for themselves, hypocritically seek to impose their will on others who do not share their views. In view of this, anyone of any age who has strong feelings about what kind of care they want in the event of serious or terminal illness should put those wishes in writing and share them with family members immediately.”
The making of a legal mind
Barbara Noah, who received a bachelor's degree in English Literature from Union, went on to Harvard, studied law, and received her JD. After a couple of years in private practice with a small firm in Washington, D.C., that specialized in food and drug law, she taught as an adjunct at the University of Florida and then joined the College of Law in 1998 in a full-time academic position. She specializes in healthcare law and ethics, and has taught law students as well as students at UF's medical school and college of health professions. She has also written about a variety of health-related issues, like the regulation of tobacco products, racial disparities in healthcare delivery, prescription drug safety, clinical research law and ethics, as well as the Schiavo litigation.
This summer, Noah returns to her native western Massachusetts, to join the faculty at Western New England College School of Law as an associate professor, where she will teach torts, health law subjects, and insurance law. She will continue her research agenda, focusing on pediatric drug testing and safety issues and affirmative action and cultural competence training in medical education.
Her experience as a Union undergraduate, says Noah, “provided me with invaluable preparation for law school. The faculty of the English Department, as well as those in the other Humanities departments, do a wonderful job of teaching critical thinking and writing skills. I have relied continuously on these skills during and after law school, both in private practice and in academia. I truly appreciated the small college environment, which provided the opportunity to get to know professors and to receive detailed feedback about my work.”
California Cornucopia
What does springtime say to you? To Maria Helm Sinskey '83, it says: Jumbo poached asparagus vinaigrette and a glass of pinot blanc from the family vineyard. Sinskey, of Napa, Calif., was named one of the nation's best new chefs by Food & Wine magazine, as well as Rising Star Chef by the San Francisco Chronicle in 1996. Today, she directs the culinary program at Robert Sinskey Vineyards, regularly entertaining chefs, food writers, and sommeliers at the wine country home that looks like something out of Gourmet magazine, overseeing the organic vegetable gardens at the winery (her husband, Robert, is the vintner), and taking care of daughters Ella, 6, and Lexi, 4.
Sinskey has been a chef and food writer for the past 18 years. Through her writing and teaching, she promotes organic and sustainable farming and the creation of healthy food sources for us and our children.
In her cooking, she says, “I use a lot of olive oil-kind of a Mediterranean style. Not that I don't use butter or cream-I do-but so often, fat can be a flavor crutch.”
She believes in using organic meats, poultry, wild fish, and seasonal organic vegetables. “We have gardens and fruit trees, so I grow most of our food for three seasons. I supply the kitchen at the vineyard.”
She loves springtime especially because the jumbo asparagus is really sweet. “I poach it and make vinaigrette. Or I poach leeks in vinaigrette-so satisfying. Our pinot blanc goes well with vegetables that are hard to match up with wines. I also love spring lamb, which we get locally. Braised lamb shoulder is one of those great cuts. And with lamb, our cabernet franc is a killer! And then strawberries, of course! I love strawberry profiteroles!”
Sinskey's first book, The Vineyard Kitchen: Menus Inspired by the Seasons, published in 2003 by HarperCollins, received high praise. And Sinskey was happy that “I managed to meld my cooking experience with my background in English at Union. The book is still selling steadily. It isn't trendy-no 30-minute meals, or low-carb, or low-fat-just an honest book about food. My editor is happy, thinks it will continue to sell for years – a very usable book,” she says. “The recipes work.”
She has strong opinions on nutrition and education. Her second book will include advice on how to find quality produce and meat. “Forget 'natural' and 'no hormones' on meat labels in the market-what's important is to get meat grown without antibiotics, which are fed to many ani- mals-it's unnecessary and damaging to our health.” She's on the boards of both her daughters' schools and believes that “Education needs to be interdisciplinary-because everything is interrelated.”
Sinskey's earliest memories are of family and food, her Italian great-grandmother standing over a pot of sauce, her own mother, Barbara Helm, in the kitchen. She fondly recalls her father, attorney Robert Helm, one-time counselor to New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller, bringing home lobsters and sausages and unwinding in the kitchen as he made weekend dinners. After college, when she took a public relations position in Boston, her life revolved around food. She began cooking for musician friends and catering for rock 'n' roll concerts. “It was completely illegal.
I didn't know you had to have a license,” Sinskey says. “Bands kept hiring me because I wasn't that expensive and I loved cooking.”
After high school, she had wanted to go to culinary school, but her father insisted that she get a liberal arts degree first. Sinskey says she was a pretty average student at Union, though she loved the education she got here. It was a rocky start, she admits: “I was on academic warning after my first semester, so my parents stopped giving me money. I wound up washing dishes in the cafeteria-but I loved it and was really good at it. Then I started working in the kitchen, giving unsolicited (and sometimes unwelcome) advice on how to prepare the food. I became the food steward in my sorority house (Sigma Delta Tau), and senior year, when they couldn't find a cook, I became house chef.”
Her writing ability began to emerge as well. In senior year, “I did an honors thesis incorporating Ezra Pound and political science-he was the only artist ever convicted of treason. As an artist, he believed he was entitled to freedom of speech, but his Cantos were ruled anti-government propaganda. I had to convince [Prof.] Harry Martin that I was capable of doing this thesis, and he ended up letting me do it.”
After college, “I took a year off, was going to apply to law school, but my father said, 'I don't think you'd be a good lawyer-you're too idealistic-you'd always be standing up for the little guy-why not put your energy into cooking instead?' He thought there were plenty of lawyers in the world; but not nearly enough fine chefs.”
So Sinskey enrolled at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco, graduating in 1987. She served an apprenticeship at the Conditerie Tivoli Pastry School in Denmark and then returned to San Francisco and a job as pastry chef at the Sherman House. After advancing to executive chef there, she took over the kitchen at PlumpJack, a French-American bistro and one of the city's hottest restaurants. Soon she was also overseeing kitchens at a second PlumpJack in Lake Tahoe and the Balboa Cafe in San Francisco. She didn't quit until she was pregnant with Lexi and was bringing six-month-old Ella into the restaurant with her. The commute from Napa had worn thin.
Where does she go these days to get away from it all? “I never get away from it! I'm really intense when I cook. I get very focused on what I'm doing. I cook dinner just about every night. Simple things, like pasta. The kids will roll the pasta and mess with the pasta machine while I'm cooking the meat. They love it. I don't press it on them- I want them to love it.
“And our work also takes us to amazing places. For example, last summer we traveled cross-country in a renovated '46 Spartan trailer, visiting organic farms, small cheese producers, in places like Kentucky and Ohio. In Kentucky there are incentives now for farmers to grow food rather than tobacco, and a lot of these farmers are choosing to go organic. My husband took pictures. We hope we'll be able to make a book of these travels some day.”
Halibut with Corn and Chanterelles
From The Vineyard Kitchen: Menus Inspired by the Seasons by Maria Helm Sinskey
Makes 8 servings
6 large ears sweet corn
2 pounds chanterelle mushrooms
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
salt
freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1 medium shallot, peeled, trimmed and minced
1 clove garlic, peeled, trimmed and minced
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup vegetable stock or water
8 (6-ounce) halibut fillets without skin
1 bunch of chives, chopped, for garnish
Husk the corn. Remove as much of the silk from the kernels as you can. Place a small cutting board in the center of a sheet pan. Break the cobs in half and lean the end of the cob on the cutting board. Slice the kernels off the cob using a sharp knife. The sheet pan will catch the kernels and keep them from spreading and littering your kitchen floor. Reserve the kernels in a small bowl and discard the cobs.
Clean the chanterelles by cutting off the very bottom of the stem. Brush off the dirt with a small soft brush. If they are really dirty, clean them by filling a large bowl with water and quickly dipping the mushrooms in and swishing them around. Drain them well before sautéing.
Heat 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat until it bubbles and begins to brown. Add the cleaned mushrooms and sauté until all of their liquid has evaporated and the mushrooms are lightly browned, about 10 minutes, longer if the mushrooms are very wet. Season mushrooms with salt and pepper and add the thyme, shallot, and garlic. Saute 3 minutes more to cook the shallot and garlic. Add the white wine to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes. Reserve.
Heat the oven to 400 degrees. In a separate pan, heat 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium-high heat until it is lightly browned. Add the corn to the pan. Saute the corn until it is tender, about 5 minutes. Taste for seasoning; add the stock or water and 2 tablespoons of the butter. Bring to a boil and check the seasoning. Cover to keep warm while cooking the fish. Season both sides of the halibut fillets with salt and pepper. Place the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in a large nonstick ovenproof sauté pan and brown lightly over medium-high heat. Add the fish and sauté until golden, about 5 minutes, turn over and place in the heated oven for 7 to 10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. The fish will flake when gently pressed in the center. Remove the fish to a plate to stop the cooking.
Fold the corn and chanterelle in one pan and bring to a simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon the mixture into a large flat bowl or plate. Place the halibut on top. Garnish with chopped chives.
Variation: Substitute seared scallops or roasted split lobster for the halibut.
For those of you who are landlocked, herb-roasted chicken or a pork roast also works very well.