CUTCHOGUE
Solving water woes
Long Island has a growing crisis of groundwater levels. High water use by both residents and businesses contributes to the depletion of the aquifer beneath us — which is our only fresh water supply.
As we continue to increase population, this water use will only increase, further reducing the groundwater levels. Saltwater from the oceans that surround us is and will continue contaminating that groundwater, especially in coastal areas.
This is an existential threat to Long Island’s future. I’m suggesting that our local governments should invest in desalinization plants using this water to replace the present groundwater loss in our wells.
Why not use the vast ocean that surrounds us to our benefit?
Bob Bittner
MATTITUCK
Open letter to Congressman LaLota
I am very concerned about the president indiscriminately pardoning the criminals that stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6. How does this make me feel safer? How do the families of those who died as a result of the action of these insurgents feel? How can those who were in the Capitol building that day say that it was not that bad? I saw the whole thing live on TV! The Republican party has to stop gaslighting us! This action by President Trump was a disgrace and a slap in the face of every law enforcer, judicial officer and jury in this country. This was not a peaceful protest! The silence from the Republican party is embarrassing.
How does this action lower my grocery bill, gas bill or taxes, or give me better health care? All it does is put very dangerous people back on the street. Many of us will remember this next election. Trump lost in 2020, but he refuses to move forward. It is very tiring to hear him moan about poor, poor him. I thought this time he would have finally grown up.
I hope Congress grows up and starts to think about the people who put them in power. Trump is a lame duck president. The Republican party cannot silently stand by his wrong and quite frankly unconstitutional and un-American way of acting. I am trusting that you, Mr. LaLota, will be strong enough to do what is right for your constituents.
Elena Grefe
SOUTHOLD
Danger ahead
“The Trump administration threatened employees last week with ‘adverse consequences’ if they fail to report on colleagues who defy orders to purge diversity, equity and inclusion efforts from their agencies.” I was lucky; I had 12 years of a fine education provided by the Sisters of St. Joseph in grammar school and the Daughters of Wisdom in high school. They taught us about the teachings of the Nazis in the Germany of the 1930s: Turn in your Jewish neighbors. It makes my blood run cold and if it doesn’t for you I fear you are inhabiting that river in Egypt – da Nile.
Rosellen Storm
AQUEBOGUE
Enforce IRCA of 1986
Trump’s immigration clamp down would not be happening at all if our town governments and our federal government had and continued to enforce the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. It is still here. It did not disappear. It was the 1986 Act that focuses on employers hiring illegal immigrants — also known as the Simpson-Mazzoli Act [and the] Reagan Amnesty Act. Does anybody remember that?
This is what happened to it: Our local governments didn’t, haven’t and won’t enforce it.
Our federal government didn’t, hasn’t and won’t enforce it. Why? Payoffs. Solutions to the current illegal immigration problem can start small: Tell your business owner friend to hire legal citizens first, and/ or H-1B Visa college graduates — it is an opportune pathway to citizenship.
Don’t accept the “normalcy” of our politicians accepting hush money from the über wealthy and business owners who employ undocumented immigrants. Don’t accept the “normalcy” of your business owner friends who have staffed their businesses with undocumented immigrants so your business owner friend can make their profit margins and enjoy their surplus. Rather hire legal citizens and H-B1 visa-holding college graduates. It worked in 1980s in the Hamptons when businesses hired Irish H-B1-holding college graduates. I worked with them when I was a college student in the Hamptons.
Moving forward from this day, demand that our local governments enforce the IRCA of 1986. No excuses. This current chaos would never have happened if it had been enforced. This is not the solution. IRCA-1986 is the solution.
Celeste Tracy
CUTCHOGUE
EVs have it easy
Thanks for the interesting article on EVs (“EVs on the rise across Long Island,” Jan. 16). But it should be pointed out that EVs do not pay road tax as the rest of us do at the pump.
They are typically heavier than gas cars and thus cause more wear on our roads.
Richard Brewster