Letters to the Editor: From 33 to 47

Laurel

From 33 to 47

My heart breaks for my grandchildren and other young people. Nothing about this presidency resembles those of my lifetime:

• Truman led the rebuilding of Europe after World War II. (Trump’s destroying those alliances)
• Eisenhower, who created our interstate highway system, was an authentic Army general. (Trump plays make-believe, posting his image as a WWII general.)
• Kennedy navigated the Cuban Missile Crisis diplomatically. His Peace Corps continues to inspire volunteers. For his military service, he received the Purple Heart. (Trump wants his name on the Kennedy Center.)
• Johnson gave us the Civil Rights Act of 1964. (Trump claimed white people were “very badly treated.”)
• Nixon created the Environmental Protection Act. When embattled by lies and corruption, his Republican party put country first, convincing him to resign. (Today it’s Trump’s party.)
• Ford signed the Helsinki Accords, inspiring the worldwide Human Rights Watch. (Weakened by Trump.)
• Carter mediated peace between Egypt and Israel and created the energy department. (Trump opposes renewable energy.)
  Reagan lessened cold war tensions. (Trump created others, with allies.)
• Bush41 signed the Americans with Disabilities Act. (Trump publicly mocked a disabled reporter.)
• Clinton created jobs. (Trump slashed about 300,000.)
• Bush43 created the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, saving millions of lives. (Dismantled after Trump’s USAID cuts.)
• Obama signed the Affordable Care Act, and joined The Paris Agreement on Climate Change. (Trump pulled us out of it.)
• Biden supported civil rights for minorities and women. (Trump dismantled Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policies.)

All presidents disliked criticism by journalists. Trump exhibits his dislike with attacks: “shut up,” “treasonous scum” and “enemies of the people.”

Watching our country’s peaceful transfer of power, I’ve felt patriotism and pride, even when my candidate didn’t win. Trump gave us something different: watching rioters attack our Capitol. One-third of our country still supports this reckless man; some call themselves Christians.

When this is over, we have crucial work to do. Especially for the children, who we know learn what they live.

Mary Ellen Tomaszewski

Southold

Failing policies

Trump’s policies are clearly failing. His hand-picked Fed chair, Kevin Warsh, said that inflation was too high. As such, the Fed board voted unanimously to raise rates to combat the persistent inflation since Trump took office in January 2025.

Cleverly, Mr. Bittner’s letter (‘Policies are working,” Sept. 17) referenced Core CPI, which excludes energy and food. Energy, including gas and home heating oil, is devastating American consumers, along with runaway prices for food. Trump promised that he would bring prices down on everything right away. Either he was deliberately deceiving the voters or he didn’t know what he was talking about.

As we can all see, prices are continuing to rise under Trump’s second administration. Mr. Bittner is “cherry picking” statistics and time frames to show Biden in the worst possible light and to show Trump in the most favorable light. This is precisely what my college course in statistics covered in its review of “How to Lie with Statistics.”

I am willing to stipulate that inflation rose dramatically during Biden’s tenure. I think he over-stimulated the economy to try to quickly recover from the effects of the COVID pandemic. However, his administration got overall Inflation (including energy and food) down to 3% by the end of his term in 2025. Under Trump, overall inflation has risen to 3.36%.

It is farcical to exclude energy and food costs, which we all consume. No matter how you cut it, we are all suffering under Trump’s Tariffs (which are a tax that has raised the cost of many vital consumer goods) and Trump’s war of choice in Iran, which is dragging on and has increased the cost of gas and home heating oil.

Dick Sheehan

Southold

Thank you

Thank you to the community, friends and relatives of Walter Berry for all your condolences, cards, flowers, meals, masses and your help and support during Walter’s sickness and his passing.
We appreciated all of it.

The Berry family

Mattituck

I’m pro Peckham

I write to support Will Peckham’s proposal to build three small agricultural buildings and a small home for his family on the 14.3 acres he purchased from the Peconic Land Trust. The Trust purchased this land to preserve it forever for agricultural use only, including buildings necessary for agriculture. This is what Mr. Peckham will do; his plan requires no variances.

We all treasure our open space – our farmland. However, small farmers can’t farm without barns, processing space and homes. Some neighbors object because of the size of his buildings, but they are tiny: 4,846 square feet of farm buildings and his 1,519-square-foot home, covering only 1% of his land. (Compare this to the acres of greenhouses across New Suffolk Avenue.)

They claim he could sell the land, opening it for later intensive development, ignoring the permanent restrictions imposed by the town and Trust. I know Will Peckham. He is an honest, hardworking young man in an unpredictable North Fork business to support his family while caring for our community and environment. If our town can’t approve Will’s proposal, where else might he and other small farmers find suitable land they can afford: nowhere? We need our farmers. They need our support.

I urge our Planning Board to approve Will’s proposal. Southold Town needs open space, small farms and small farmers.

With respect to your articles on this proposal, they have, in my opinion, been unfair to Mr. Peckham’s proposal, more interested in sensationalism than accurate reporting, emphasizing protesting neighbors over those who support his proposal. You reported neighbors’ objections without doing the due diligence to ensure that what they say and what you print is accurate. This is a disservice to your own editorial standards and to everyone who lives on the North Fork.

Bill Carmean

Cutchogue

Is LaLota truthful?

Our Congressional representative, Nick LaLota, is running for reelection. He has a commercial running with the principal claim that he is responsible for enacting an increase in the SALT deduction from $10,000 to $40,000. That’s just a false claim.

The SALT deduction increase is part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, [and] Mr. LaLota was only one of 216 Republican Congress members who voted on this bill. The principal advocate for pressing the White House to eliminate the SALT limitation entirely was Congressman Andrew Garbarino of New York’s Second District — not Nick LaLota, who has put out a commercial claiming it as his own. So yes, he may have cast his 1/216 (0.004%) vote in favor of the OBBBA, but the fact is that his vote benefits high-income earners and wealthy households the most, especially the top 20% and top 1%, who receive most of the tax cuts in that bill.

In January 2024, LaLota publicly endorsed Donald Trump, stating that Trump’s policies “made our nation stronger and had us on track to prosperity.” That was two and a half years ago. And while you’re filling up your car at more than $5 per gallon, or food shopping at double the previous prices, LaLota’s “track to prosperity” statement begs the question, “So, how are we doing two and a half years later?”

The bottom line is that Nick LaLota is saddled with Donald Trump around his neck. He owns the Trump record because he’s been a part of it and he’s one of the enablers who has permitted our country to decline by every national and international standard. We no longer have anyone who trusts our country’s word thanks to the LaLotas of our Congress. Does this explain why he won’t hold a Town Hall meeting?

Michael Levy

Southold

Beach permit is no ‘panacea’

Your Aug. 27 issue had a Letter to the Editor (“Parking panacea?”) that is well-written but might cause confusion and cost residents. A Southold beach parking permit does not excuse drivers from paying for parking at Greenport spots. It is an excellent suggestion, but does not (yet, at least) solve the problem.

I just called the Southold Town Clerk’s office, which confirmed that a beach parking permit does not excuse parkers from paying at meters for Greenport parking. I hope this letter helps visitors parking in Greenport to avoid parking fines. I also hope that I am not the only one who reads the letters to Times Review so others know that parking in Greenport is not free to permit holders.

Paul May