Letters to the Editor: ‘Sustainable’?
Calverton
‘Sustainable’?
Beware of the word “sustainable.” With regard to farming, it is a meaningless word.
But the biggest crime is that [those who tout the designation] are not being honest with us. They deny that the word is 95% marketing, 5% environmental.
I have been a certified organic farmer for 40 years. The Farrm along with The Green Thumb were the first organic farms on Long Island (1990). We have been eating and drinking poison for years. Not because of the farmer, but because we have put the bottom line over health and we have been fed — no pun intended — misinformation.
Do not be fooled by buzzwords like “sustainable.” The product just costs more.
Reginald Farr
Mr. Farr is co-owner of Farrm Wine in Calverton, which recently received the Environmentalist of the Year award from the Sierra Club of Long Island.
Orient
Scenic vistas in peril
The Tuthill Oysterponds Holding Company’s 80/60 Conservation Subdivision spans four large parcels in Orient: North and South Dyer and North and South Brown.
Covenants and restrictions for the conservation areas are a threat to the most iconic of Orient’s scenic vistas, inherent in the South Dyer section. The applicant’s proposed uses for the conservation areas include large object storage, large scale events, family nonprofit and for-profit businesses, undefined animal husbandry, and lack of guidance for new construction associated with pre-existing farm stand and aquaculture businesses. A community-based “scenic committee” can assist the Planning Board in crafting clearly defined covenants and restrictions with critical language that can be enforced.
There is no good reason for or benefit to the Rackett’s Court access scenario. It ignores the “Farm Road” that can serve the aquaculture business and the new lots. An independent analysis concludes the Farm Road access route is the best and only alternative, benefiting the applicant and addressing concerns of Rackett’s Court residents.
To correct the record, South Dyer’s new residential lots are within the Orient Historic District, subject to Historic Preservation Commission approval.
Southold Town and its Planning Board must advocate for, and negotiate on behalf of, the community and perform good planning practices to ensure future generations can cherish what exists today.
Barbara Cohen
SaveOrientVistas.org
Southold
Lack of compassion
I am so blessed to be able to afford heat. My heart weeps for those who can’t. The Trump administration has abruptly laid off the entire staff running a $4.1 billion program to help low-income households across the United States pay their heating and cooling bills.
Rosellen Storm
Mattituck
Protests to protect our rights
Thank you for covering the April 5 protests in Greenport. It’s essential that we continue to spotlight citizens exercising their constitutional rights. This demonstration wasn’t just about one issue, it was about protecting the very freedoms that define us as Americans.
I’m proud of every individual who braved the weather to stand up for human rights, especially in a time when so many of them are under threat. Laws restricting access to abortion are not just political talking points — they have real consequences. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, maternal mortality has increased in states with abortion bans, especially for women of color and low-income women. These policies are costing lives.
Support for our veterans is also being quietly dismantled under this administration. The Department of Veterans Affairs has faced renewed budget pressures, and proposed staffing cuts have jeopardized services. Programs specifically targeting PTSD treatment and veteran suicide prevention have seen funding delays, despite suicide remaining one of the leading causes of death among veterans. Social Security and Medicare are again under attack. New proposals to raise the retirement age and shift funding to private investment accounts would devastate seniors and those with disabilities who depend on these benefits.
And let’s talk about Elon Musk, who now has clear influence within our federal government. Democracy means government by the people, not rule by tech oligarchs. We didn’t vote for Elon Musk, yet somehow his opinions seem to carry more weight than those of elected officials. That should alarm all of us.
When I commented on The Suffolk Times post in support of the protesters, I received an onslaught of hostile, bitter responses. It’s a dark reminder of how deep the divisions run in this country. These same people defend the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol . How can we call ourselves the land of the free when we justify violence in the name of power?
Peaceful protest is a cornerstone of democracy. Insults and misinformation are not. We must remain vigilant, informed and united. The future of our rights depends on it.
Debra Stepnowski Fraenkel
East Marion
Third time’s a charm
I am writing regarding two letters published in the April 3rd edition in correction of the letter “History Erased” from the March 20 issue.
Both writers accurately attribute the speech to FDR [not Churchill], but get the quote from his Dec. 8, 1941, address to Congress wrong. The correct quote is: “Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a DATE which will live in infamy …”
F.B. Fall
Cutchogue
Emotional and organized
This past week we have seen an organized effort to make “domestic terrorism” normal. Rational thought has given way to mob rule and crazies. Resistance toward the administration and Musk, egged on by the words of congresswomen such as [Jasmine] Crockett and [Pramila] Jayapal and Gov. [Tim] Walz has turned violent!
Please stop spreading lies and fear simply because this administration has taken a different approach to cutting out waste and fraud — which your party has said you would do, but haven’t gotten around to, ever.
It is so ironic that a Democratic president once said, “We have nothing to fear but fear itself,” as his party now pushes fear at every turn. That fear exploded in rage against an American car company and people who own and build those cars — innocent people.
This administration’s rational and data-driven approach toward wasteful government spending is refreshing. Right-sizing government employees should be a desirable result for both parties, just as it is in the private sector.
Ending such waste as providing an Environment Museum at a taxpayer cost of about $5 million, which only saw 1,900 people visit last year, is certainly justified, as are other such items on the DOGE website.
But none of those listed savings should be a call for violence or fear-mongering.
Bob Bittner
Cutchogue
Incorrect ‘facts’?
In the April 3 letter “Incorrect ‘Facts’?” the writer who declared that mention of the Tuskegee Airmen was not deleted from the website of the Arlington National Cemetery did not spell Franklin “Deleno” Roosevelt’s name correctly. He is correct, though, that searching “Tuskegee” will pull up an essay — from 2016.
Here’s what NPR said: “Arlington National Cemetery has begun wiping from its website histories highlighting Black, Hispanic and women veterans. The change is in line with President Trump’s directive to remove references to and support for diversity, equity and inclusion from the federal government.”
George Orwell famously said, “Ignorance is strength.” Perhaps true for Trump supporters but alarming for the rest of us.
William Sertl
Southold
A part-time president
Last week we learned that four American servicemen tragically perished in an accident during a training exercise in Lithuania. On Thursday, we saw video of the solemn passing of hearses carrying these soldiers through Vilnius, the country’s capital. The streets were lined with residents and servicemen from both [countries], some were tearful in their grief. The onlookers holding both Lithuanian and American flags included both the President and First Lady of that country, a possible future target of Putin’s expansionist ambitions. They are a small country and extremely aware of and grateful for how American presence in Europe has been a deterrence to that.
The four bodies arrived by air from Europe at the airbase in Dover, Del. Oftentimes the American president will attend a Dignified Transfer to pay the respects of a grateful nation. But did Trump attend? Was he participating in important Oval Office meetings or greeting a visiting Head of State? No, no and no!
Instead, Trump was at his golf resort in Florida, greeting the Saudi sponsors at a dinner Thursday evening and had another scheduled on Friday. He is more concerned with the revenue generated by his enterprises than with honoring those who serve this country, and uplifting the lives of ordinary individuals. He is certainly a commander in chief in name only, a part-time president!
Philip Wasilausky
Wading River
Cut real waste
Our First District congressman, Nick LaLota, recently said in a news story that he supports efforts “to root out waste, fraud and abuse.” Well, don’t we all. But how does he define waste, fraud and abuse? Is it the Social Security Administration workers who staff the call centers? Is it the federal health professionals who help ailing World Trade Center first responders? Is it the dedicated rangers who keep our national parks open and safe? So many of these important federal workers have been fired by the White House in the name of government efficiency.
Mr. LaLota should insist that the Trump administration first get its own house in order. Two examples: Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. authorized a new and completely unnecessary study of links between childhood vaccinations and autism. There is already a wealth of research showing that vaccines do not cause autism. And he has hired a well-known vaccine skeptic, Dr. David Geier, as a data analyst for the study.
Secondly, according to The Huffington Post, the federal government has already spent more than $26 million to underwrite President Trump’s frequent golf trips to Florida — some 18 days on the Florida links in just his first two months in office. Costs include travel aboard Air Force One, transporting motorcade equipment and security personnel.
Apparently it’s not waste, fraud and abuse if Republicans do it!
Martin Skrocki
Greenport
Chris will be missed
The goal of a local paper is to inform and be relevant. Chris Francescani’s careful and factual reporting on issues of importance to your readers will be greatly missed. He’s a hard worker. For a moment he made your paper relevant and informative. Hopefully, we will be hearing from him soon in some other media.
Meanwhile, keep up on the obits and real estate ads as you drift into irrelevance.
John Kramer
Cutchogue
Let’s be clear
Congressman Nick LaLota is a Republican. He is also a Trump enabler. What that means is a vote next year for Nick LaLota is a vote to keep the Republican enablers in charge, which in fact is a vote for Donald Trump.
Mr. LaLota may be a very nice guy, but a vote for Nick LaLota is a vote to crash the economy. It’s a vote to set fire to your retirement or college funds. It’s a vote to send innocent people to a hellhole of a prison in El Salvador without the slightest due process. It’s a vote to fire capable people who’ve been running our government and replace them with Trump supplicants who have no credentials, no skills, no empathy and no business having these jobs.
Let’s be clear: Mr. LaLota is worse than Trump. We know who Trump is. So does Mr. LaLota. The only way to change the way Trump behaves is to change the people who enable him to be a bully and Mr. LaLota is right at the front of the line.
A vote for Nick LaLota is a vote to continue this nightmare.
Michael Levy
Mattituck
Potential Pottersville?
I am a fan of old Hollywood movies and one of my favorites is “It’s a Wonderful Life,” where the bucolic and peaceful Bedford Falls in an alternate universe becomes Pottersville, a debaucherous community of honky-tonks and casinos. It’s not my job to tell others what to do, however, in this case, I think the people of Southold should understand the town administration’s review and mistaken and premature public release earlier this month of the Draft Code and Map and how it will affect them. If not familiar, you can find it online at southoldzoningupdate.com/, where you’ll see sweeping and broad changes proposed to all aspects of life in Southold, from a new zoning map to new zoning districts and changes in permitted uses.
While a working document and not yet complete it begs many questions about the direction and future of Southold, which, in my opinion, will become Pottersville if we do not speak up now.
Historically, when the code is silent on a specicic use, it is not permitted. Why, then, would those involved in updating our code, to more accurately reflect Southold as it is today, add various definitions including: adult bookstore, adult clubs or adult eating or drinking club, adult entertainment, adult massage parlor, adult novelty shop, adult theater, adult use/medical cannabis dispensary and adult video store — and that’s only from the A’s. According to the website, “Approximately 180 terms were added to the list of definitions and approximately 70 terms were removed.”
The town gave SportsEast a pass, despite enthusiastic support for a much-needed recreation facility. Other local businesses and farms struggle to compete with the ever increasing suburbanization and traffic in town. Who will be Southold’s first applicant seeking to establish an “adult” business and how will the community respond?
Let’s hope that, like George Bailey, we wake up and participate in the process to ensure that Southold remains the bucolic and beautiful place it always was.
Nicholas Planamento
Mr. Planamento is a member of the Southold Zoning Board of Appeals and a current candidate running for a seat on the Town Board.
