28 The QUEE NS Courier • april 11, 2013 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com editorial letters CHAIN OF FOOLS Our faith in our elected officials was inexorably shaken last week when two Queens politicians and a borough GOP boss were among six officials arrested by the FBI for conspiring to rig the mayoral election. State Senator Malcolm Smith allegedly bribed county GOP leaders to let him run for mayor as a Republican, according to the Southern District U.S. Attorney and FBI. Councilmember Dan Halloran is accused of setting up meetings between Smith and county leaders and negotiating payouts. He allegedly pocketed nearly $21,000 in cash in exchange for his help, officials said. Smith, a registered Democrat, needed consent from three of the city’s five Republican Party county chairmen to appear on the Republican ballot for city’s 2013 mayoral election. Vincent Tabone, vice chair of the Queens County Republican Party, and Joseph Savino, chair of the Bronx County GOP, were part of the conspiracy scheme, officials said. The pair took at least $40,000 in cash bribes in return for their support, a 28-page federal criminal complaint detailed. Now, with the fate of their districts in question – and the leaders of the Queens GOP calling for a changing of the guard – one has to ask: what about the voters? What of the hard-working men and women who diligently go to the polls every Election Day to do their duties as good Americans and vote into office those candidates who will hold up the ideals on which our great country was founded? If you ask us, it is John Q. Public who loses out when our leaders place the value of a dollar over the importance and function of government. AWARD-WINNING TEAM You, our readers and advertisers, have come to recognize The Queens Courier as a bastion of good journalism and look to us as a source of local, breaking and other news, as well as a resource for your life. Well, this past weekend the New York Press Association recognized us too. Not only are we the first-place winners of the New York Press Association’s (NYPA) Past Presidents’ Award for General Excellence two years in a row, but our staff of talented writers and artists walked away with numerous other accolades. For our coverage of Sandy and other news events throughout the year, we won first place Best In-Depth Reporting and second place Best Spot News Coverage. Our talented staff also took home awards for Best Special Section Advertising and a first-place win for Best Special Section Cover. And our website, www.queenscourier.com – your source for breaking news – was classified by judges as “well organized and relevant,” in its second place win for Best Newspaper Website. As we move ahead, we remain committed to bringing you the most up-todate, informative, moving news. We will continue to be committed to overall excellence and your ultimate source for Queens news, both in print and online. Victoria Schneps-Yunis Joshua A. Schneps Bob Brennan Tonia N. Cimino Amy Amato-Sanchez Nirmal Singh Graziella Zerilli Stephen Reina Ron Torina, Jennifer Decio, Cheryl Gallagher Melisa Chan, Terence Cullen, Cristabelle Tumola Maggie Hayes, Angy Altamirano Cliff Kasden, Samantha Sohmer, Elizabeth Aloni Cristabelle Tumola Bill Krese Jan DiGeronimo Maria Romero Louise Cavaliere Celeste Alamin Maria Valencia Daphne Fortunate Victoria Schneps-Yunis Joshua A. Schneps Publisher & E ditor Co-Publisher Associate Publisher Editor-In-Chief VP, Events, Web & Social Media Art Director Assistant to Publisher Assistant Art Director Artists Staff Reporters Contributing Reporters Web Editor Editorial Cartoonist Director, Business Developm ent Events Manager Senior Acc ount Executive Classified Manager Controller Office Manager President & CEO Vice President 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. A sad loss The passing of movie critic Roger Ebert is going to leave a huge void in the movie industry. He was a true professional and always a gentleman to all who knew and worked with him. His very candid movie reviews were always a hit with the public. He did not let the cancer that was ravaging him stop him from doing his job even to the very end. John Amato Fresh Meadows Too much hooplah As a civic leader in eastern Queens, I made it my business to vote in the participatory budgeting process that my Councilmember, Mark Weprin, was sponsoring. Last week I traveled to the Samuel Field Y in Little Neck where the councilmember›s staff was working the tables and providing ballots for those who wished to vote. When I asked for a ballot I was told I must first fill out a short form and provide photo ID. I thought this was odd since Weprin and so many other NYC legislators are so strongly opposed to a photo ID requirement for voting in real elections. If it›s not OK to ask for photo ID when voting for president or governor, why is it OK to do so with participatory budgeting? Nevertheless, I presented my driver’s license and filled out the ballot access form which asked for my name, address, telephone number and date of birth. As someone who has been victimized by identity theft in the past, I refused to write down my date of birth. There are three pieces of information I do not readily provide; date of birth, Social Security number and mother’s maiden name. I asked why it was necessary to write down my date of birth since they could easily check it on my driver’s license. I was told it was necessary to prove that I was over 16, which is the minimum age for participatory budget voting. Since I was born prior to 1960, I think it was obvious that I was over 16. I wondered to myself, “Whatever happened to critical thinking skills?” I asked the Weprin staff member to call the councilmember›s office and get permission to give me a ballot so I could vote for funding of specific community projects that would help our local schools and the volunteer ambulance corps. The Weprin staffer in charge of the participatory budget project said that if I refused to write down my date of birth I could not vote. Was I the only disenfranchised voter? Later that day, I learned that two other people had also been disenfranchised because they also refused to provide their date of birth. I wonder too, why the voting process for participatory budgeting was so much more rigorous than the one put in place for voting in real elections for mayor, governor or president. I can’t help but think now that the participatory budgeting was being used as a way for councilmembers to harvest voter data information for their use in upcoming elections. How else to explain being denied the right to vote and the photo ID requirement? Bob Friedrich Glen Oaks Pols have forgotten their values I found it quite disturbing to read about the elected officials who were arrested for alleged misconduct and bribery. Senator Malcolm Smith allegedly engaged in a scheme with various Republicans, such as Councilmember Dan Halloran, to rig the mayoral race. Halloran was thought to be trustworthy. What happened? These men and women in state and city government have forgotten why they were elected — to serve and protect the people who put them in office. We need to elect those people that are dedicated to those principles and values that best serve the populace. Frederick R. Bedell Jr. Glen Oaks Village The pain of loss Your feature, “The power of being there,” was right on. Last May, after suffering through the ravages of Pulmonary Fibrosis, an illness with no known cause, treatment or cure, my wife of almost 50 years, Lois, succumbed at Weill- Cornell, where she was treated with love and care from a professional and devoted staff. We were all there with her and will always remember that last, final moment. We could not have carried on through birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, etc. without the love, prayers and concern of our friends and family. I can easily say that I know how you feel, but no two people grieve alike. However, we both have those memories of our soulmates, the loves of our lives, to strengthen us in these trying times. Vincent Arcuri, Jr. Chairperson, Community Board 5 THE QUEENS
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