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QC01212016

FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com JANUARY 21, 2016 • THE QUEENS COURIER 27 oped   letters & comments THREE BILLION REASONS NOT TO SUPPORT PENN STATION PROJECT Cuomo’s proposed $3 billion New Penn Station Improvements Project fails to add any new track or platform capacity for Amtrak, New Jersey Transit, Long Island Rail Road or future Metro North Rail Road service. “What do you think of the proposed modernization of Penn Station?” (Street Talk by Erica Siudzinski — Jan. 14). These improvements are necessary to accommodate thousands of new riders and run additional trains during peak a.m. and p.m. rush hours. It also missed a key low-cost option that could benefi t tens of thousands of riders. Until the 1970s, both LIRR and NJ Transit riders exiting east at Penn Station had a direct underground passageway known as the Hilton Corridor. It was also known as the Gimbel’s passageway. This provided a simple indoor connection to the 34th Street-Herald Square IND and BMT subway, along with Port Authority Trans Hudson (PATH) station complex. It could be rebuilt for $150 million today. Larry Penner, Great Neck CITY COOKING THE BOOKS ON SCHOOL SUSPENSIONS? The general population probably feels that if school suspensions are down, it must mean that discipline has improved. And the mainstream public likely assumes that if graduation rates soar, it signifi es a heightened commitment to learning and achievement of a reasonable standard of knowledge. And most New Yorkers would conclude that a high percentage of students in attendance is a refl ection of a well-run school. All wrong. Or at least not necessarily right. Even if there were no such thing as “cooking the books,” the statistics don’t mirror the level of teaching or learning. Unfortunately, the incentives for creating false impressions by the creation or misapplication of data is irresistible to many principals seeking a bonus or promotion. If the public truly wants to see reality as it is, they must suspend some of their naive trust and become a trifl e more cynical. Mayhem and suppression of the evidence, including failure to fi le reports and complaints and badgering victims to remain silent, conspire to keep the suspension fi gures looking good. Enforcing no standards will enable more students to meet them and qualify for graduation. Letting the kids effectively run the school will make it a magnet for socialization and the incidence of absenteeism will plummet. Ron Isaac, Fresh Meadows RISE OF TRUMP NOT BASED ON AMERICAN REALITY The far right has claimed for years that the interests of the nation are under attack and American exceptionalism no longer exists due to liberal policies and a compliant media. Reality has nothing to do with core beliefs. The resiliency and strength of the U.S. is a fable to Donald Trump and his acolytes. Trump is the messianic preacher sent to return America to greatness. The Constitution, Bill of Rights and the Supreme Court be damned. Once Trump is in the White House, the sky will be forever American red, white and blue. America, which has been blessed with some of the greatest national leaders the world has known, currently demands a man who has bit lines, sound bites, outlines with no policies and fabricated outcomes. Trump, who clearly believes “We have a problem!” and offers nothing to correct these wrongs except to demean others, will surely lead us to the promised land. Years of talk radio has given voice to slanted truths, vitriol and blame pointing. After all, if the U.S. is the most powerful nation, how can it be that others have rights rather than be subservient to U.S. wishes? How can a nation of immigrants permit Muslims to our borders? How can we permit voters who disagree with us to vote? How could America have a black president? To address and cure the “evils” that threaten us daily, the U.S. now requires an entertainer whose assured promise will be to make us laugh — many with tears in their eyes other than joy. Our allies and enemies will join in differing degrees of wonderment. After four years of a Trump administration, the U.S. will be forever changed. That is if there is a U.S. after four years of Trump! Ed Horn, Baldwin TAKING GUNS OFF OUR STREETS BY CITY COUNCILMAN RORY LANCMAN Last year didn’t start out well for crime reduction. Shootings were up slightly from the same period the previous year. How then did we end 2015 with fewer shootings than ever before, with crime throughout the city reaching historic lows in almost all categories? Indeed, our city is safer than ever before, thanks to the dedication of our police officers and additional funding for our cops from the City Council. But perhaps the biggest factor in reducing crime goes to the NYPD’s use of targeted strategies and new technologies, like ShotSpotter, to aggressively investigate all shootings and get guns off our streets. This week, I was proud to stand with the mayor, the police commissioner, all fi ve district attorneys and both U.S. attorneys to announce the newest blueprint for further getting guns off our streets. Project Fast Track, a targeted, systemwide focus on the limited number of individuals who are responsible for gun violence in our city, will ensure that our murder rate, which increased slightly this year, gets lower than it has ever been before. Project Fast Track is a partnership between the NYPD, the Offi ce of Court Administration and district attorneys to get guns off our streets before they kill by aggressively investigating and prosecuting gun possession. Currently, these cases take far too long to wind their way through the cases, and they are lost all too often because of inadequate evidence. The creation of a Gun Violence Suppression Division in the NYPD will ensure that our offi cers step up their gun investigations. This 200 offi cer strong unit will focus on illegal fi rearms investigations, as well as shootings and gangs. These offi cers will work directly with district attorneys’ offi ces to improve evidence gathering and police training, to ensure that cases are successful. Additionally, the Offi ce of the Chief Medical Examiner will receive $2 million a year to quickly test DNA from all illegal guns. These dedicated efforts mean that when a gun case goes to court, it will be the strongest case possible. Fewer violent criminals will be able to walk on a technicality. Equally important, however, is the swift justice component of Project Fast Track. Our city’s speedy trial crisis means that offenders can sometimes spend two years walking around on our streets before they get convicted and sent to prison. Too many gun criminals enjoy relative impunity, occasionally spending a night or two in jail but failing to see appropriate consequences for their dangerous actions. By creating a dedicated judicial team to handle illegal gun cases in Brooklyn, these cases will be processed rapidly and violent criminals will be put behind bars. Project Fast Track is starting in Brooklyn because Brooklyn has some of the highest rates of gun violence in our city, and a much lower conviction rate than other boroughs. In Queens, District Attorney Brown has aggressively prosecuted gun cases for many years, and has the highest prison rate in any borough. Project Fast Track will still help Queens, however. Better police procedures and evidence testing will help cases in every borough. Next year, we want to have the lowest murder rate this city has ever seen. Project Fast Track can help make that happen. City Councilman Rory I. Lancman represents the 24th Council District and chairs the Committee on Courts & Legal Services. A LOOK BACK With Catholic Schools Week on the horizon, we thought it would be the perfect time to share this historic photo of second graders on the day of their fi rst Communion in the 1950’s at Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal School in Ridgewood. OLMM, as it is affectionally known in Ridgewood, merged following the 2008-09 school year with neighboring St. Aloysius School to form the Notre Dame Catholic Academy of Ridgewood. The academy operates out of OLMM’s former schoolhouse at the corner of 61st and Bleecker streets. We want your historic photos of Queens! Email them to editorial@queenscourier.com, or mail them to The Queens Courier, 38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361. All mailed photographs will be carefully returned upon request.


QC01212016
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