32 The QUEE NS Courier • january 31, 2013 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com editorial THE QUEENS Schneps Communications, 38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361 718-224-5863 • Fax 718-224-5441 website: www.queenscourier.com e-mail:[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Entire Contents Copyright 2013 by The Queens Courier All letters sent to THE QUEENS COURIER should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, as well as affiliation, indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Name withheld on request. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, AS WELL AS OP-ED PIECES IN NO WAY REFLECT THE PAPER’S POSITION. No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of THE QUEENS COURIER. The publishers will not be responsible for any error in advertising beyond the cost of the space occupied by the error. Errors must be reported to THE QUEENS COURIER within five days of publication. Ad position cannot be guaranteed unless paid prior to publication. Schneps Communications assumes no liability for the content or reply to any ads. The advertiser assumes all liability for the content of and all replies. The advertiser agrees to hold The Quens Courier and its employees harmless from all cost, expenses, liabilities, and damages resulting from or caused by the publication or recording placed by the advertiser or any reply to any such advertisement. IDENTIFY THIS PLACE letters Victoria Schneps-Yunis Joshua A. Schneps Bob Brennan Tonia N. Cimino Amy Amato-Sanchez Nirmal Singh Wayne Robins Graziella Zerilli Stephen Reina Ron Torina, Jennifer Decio, Cheryl Gallagher Melisa Chan, Alexa Altman, Terence Cullen Cristabelle Tumola, Maggie Hayes Cliff Kasden, Samantha Sohmer, Elizabeth Aloni Cristabelle Tumola Bill Krese Jan DiGeronimo Louise Cavaliere Celeste Alamin Maria Valencia Victoria Schneps-Yunis Joshua A. Schneps Publisher & E ditor Co-Publisher Associate Publisher Editor-In-Chief VP, Events, Web & Social Media Art Director Copy Editor Assistant to Publisher Assistant Art Director Artists Staff Reporters Contributing Reporters Web Editor Editorial Cartoonist Director, Business Developm ent Senior Acc ount Executive Classified Manager Controller President & CEO Vice President To find out the answer to last week’s “Identify this place” please visit www.QueensCourier.com Truth behind gun debate People have committed evil acts since Cain killed Abel, yet we persist in the delusion that we can legislate evil into extinction. Good people will abide by the law. Criminals will always find their way around it, so before we accept any new firearms legislation, it would behoove us to review and examine the efficacy and consequences of such legislation and contemplate the ramifications. The greatest human tragedies and the greatest loss of innocent human life can be attributed to governments and not to lone gunmen in malls, movie theatres and schools. Registration and confiscation of firearms preceded the extermination of millions of Armenians by the Turks and Jews by Nazi Germany, just to cite a few examples. History informs us that gun control is not about guns, it’s about control. Our founding fathers in their infinite wisdom put the Second Amendment in place in case politicians ignore the others; it’s definitely not about hunting. Gun-banners don’t hate guns. They just don’t like the idea of average citizens having access to them. They don’t complain about military style uniforms and the heavy duty firearms granted to police and other government authorities. They consider themselves elites with privileges who depend on guns without which they could accomplish none of their goals and employ armed body guards for their protection. They are eager and willing to disarm the rest of us and designate where we live, work and play “gun-free” zones where insane killers can inflict maximum mayhem with minimum risk. The current gun debate isn’t about whether guns are good or bad, but about which particular groups of people are entitled to own them. Opponents of public gun ownership don’t hate guns. They hate the public. Ed Konecnik Flushing Expedite Sandy help Three months after Sandy’s devastating sweep through our region, there are still hundreds of people who cannot return to their homes. Why is the repair and rebuilding process moving so slowly? What happened to all of the money from FEMA and other government agencies who were supposed to assist in this Herculean task? Families should not have to live in tent shelters or still not have heat and hot water in homes that they have returned to. If our government can assist other countries all over the world in times of other disasters, then why can’t it assist our own citizens first and foremost? Remember,as the adage says “Charity begins at home.” Let’s get our citizens who need this help get it - NOW! We are not living in a third world country, we are living in America, the greatest country in the world! John Amato Fresh Meadows Celebrating Grand Central Let us all rejoice in celebrating the 100th anniversary of Grand Central Terminal, which first opened on February 2, 1913. Contrast this with the late, great Penn Station Terminal, which was destroyed in the name of progress in 1962. Fast forward 51 years later. Penn Station is still a shell of its former glory. There is no natural lighting, decent food court, gourmet food shops, upscale stores or quality restaurants. Most Long Island Rail Road and New Jersey Transit commuters rush in and out each day. Grand Central Terminal has high ceilings, natural light, a food court, gourmet food shops, upscale stores and great restaurants such as the Oyster Bar. Not only do Metro-North commuters have a real terminal, but they are joined on a daily basis by thousands of people who work nearby and patronize the great food court, quality restaurants and stores. LIRR commuters just have a station. LIRR riders look forward to 2019 when the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) Eastside Access project provides a direct connection to Grand Central Station via the 63rd Street tunnel and reaches beneficial use. We can then join our Metro-North comrades in utilizing this great institution to and from work. Larry Penner Danger underground He sprang into action – and now, so should we. It was just another day for 33-year-old Ramiro Ocasio as he stood waiting on the platform of the 59th Street and Lexington Avenue subway station. But when an elderly man tumbled onto the tracks – another potential victim in the string of recent subway fatalities – Ocasio did not hesitate. Unconcerned for his own safety and powered by adrenaline, Ocasio hopped into the ditch, grabbed the man by his collar and waist and hoisted him back onto the platform. As the train barreled down on him – and as he realized he may not make it out in time – five sets of hands clutched his and heaved him to safety. What Ocasio did was nothing short of heroic. But the fanfare should not die down once the humble hero is given his due praise. His act of bravery should be a call to action for politicians and the MTA to do something about the threat that lurks underground. According to preliminary MTA numbers, in 2012, 141 people were struck by trains, 55 killed. But that’s not all: • 54 people were struck on the tracks. • 51 contacted a moving train while on the platform. • There were 33 suicides/attempted suicides • Three riders fell between cars. And according to Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, the number of subway fatalities this year puts New York City on pace for 100 subway deaths in 2013, well above last year’s five-year high of 55 deaths. There were three deaths within a 24-hour period on the weekend of January 19. Obviously, something’s wrong. The MTA needs to investigate safety measures – and institute them as quickly as possible. MTA brass has already said they want conductors to slow down when pulling into the station. But that’s not enough. Perhaps there needs to be safety glass or some kind of barrier to keep people from tumbling onto the tracks. Or perhaps there should be MTA patrols to ensure that passengers arrive at their destinations safely. It seems that riding the rails gets more and more expensive, but we’re sure straphangers won’t mind paying more if it ensures their safety. After all, not every stop is equipped with someone willing to save a life.
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