WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES JANUARY 31, 2019 13
WHO
PAYS FOR
EQUAL FARES?
There is more to NYC Comptroller
Scott Stringer’s proposal to expand
the Long Island Rail Road Atlantic
Branch southeast Queens Commuter
Rail Fare Equalization program to all
NYC residents.
There are signifi cant unresolved
fi nancial and peak service capacity issues.
This would allow NYC residents
to pay a discounted fare on both Long
Island and Metro North Rail Roads
including a free transfer to the NYC
Transit Subway.
Why didn’t Stringer also include
a reduction in the cost of any NYC
Transit or MTA Express Bus Service
from $6.50 to $2.75 as well? Many
traveling from two-fare (bus to
subway) neighborhoods understand
that they are paying for a premium
service.
We are all already aware what
happens due to equipment malfunction,
inclement weather, switching or
crossing gate problems on the LIRR.
Don’t forget service disruptions, due
to storm or signal problems in the East
River Tunnels.
Who will cover the cost of $100 to
$200 million in revenue losses for the
LIRR, Metro North and NYC Transit?
The $32 billion MTA 2015 - 2019 Five
Year Capital Program includes no
funding to implement this proposal.
The MTA has no surplus operating
dollars available to cover these costs.
Neither Governor Cuomo nor Mayor
de Blasio are off ering funding for this
new program.
Larry Penner,
Great Neck
ANGERED OVER
JUDGE’S SENTENCE
I am appalled over a decision by
Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Ruth
Shillingford who gave a gangbanger
what amounts to a slap on the wrist for
permanently leaving a police offi cer
with brain damage.
Detective Dalsh Veve suff ered brain
damage at the hands of Justin Murrell,
who was a 15-year-old at the time. Murrell
was driving a stolen Honda and
dragged Veve for three blocks. Murell
had a lengthy record. He should have
been convicted of attempted murder
but was convicted with a lesser charge.
As Police Benevolent Association
President Patrick Lynch said, “The
judge spit on every shield on every
chest in the city.” I totally agree!
This egregious decision by the judge
is a insult to Police Detective Veve and
to his family who only wanted justice.
This is a travesty and a insult to police
offi cers everywhere who only want to
protect the many from harm.
Frederick R. Bedell Jr.,
Glen Oaks Village
Editor’s note: Murrell received
a prison sentence of between 1 ⅓
and 4 years after his conviction
of an assault charge, which
carried a maximum sentence
of 10 years imprisonment.
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(Subject: Letter to the Editor) or leave a
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The views expressed in all letters and
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this newspaper or its staff .
LETTERS AND COMMENTS
Welcoming Amazon and success
BY JOHN CIAFONE
I was troubled to see the staged
protest against Amazon by a few
people and organizations that don’t
represent the mainstream beliefs of
Queens residents.
Businesses such as Amazon do help
the economy by providing goods at
decent prices and more importantly,
hiring workers who pay taxes and pass
their hard earned money into the local
economy boosting restaurants, cafes,
eateries, bars, delis, laundromats,
supermarkets, dry cleaners, gyms,
beauty salons, tailors, nail salons and
taxi services, to mention a few.
While a company like Amazon
didn’t need tax savings and other incentive
packages, their impact in Long
Island City and in New York City will
make us exceed Silicon Valley in the
number of technology jobs, adding to
an economy already boosted by Cornell
Science Technology Center and
Google in downtown Manhattan.
The old adage in business is that you
have to spend money to make money.
While New York is hemorrhaging
people every year to other states and
the continuous downturn in jobs
from Wall Street to major NYC banks,
Amazon in LIC is much added relief to
our challenging economy. Make no
mistake, Amazon is not a saint. It has
destroyed retail corridors throughout
our country by giving a consumer
the ability to shop electronically for
almost anything and receive it on
their doorstep within two days, free
of postage. All you need to do is walk
down Steinway Street, in Astoria, to
see the real damage.
But we can’t blame Amazon. It is
technology that changes our course of
events. It is technology, coupled with
the internet that has eliminated the
need for many mundane jobs.
Technology has brought enormous
and mind-boggling wealth to
individuals like Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg,
Bill Gates, Warren Buff et and
Michael Bloomberg. We must embrace
technology along with its good and bad
eff ects.
However, we do not need to demonize
Amazon or even Target. We must
embrace them for what they will
provide to us and our economy. Had
Amazon not selected Long Island City,
it could have gone to Brooklyn, Manhattan
or the Bronx, New Jersey and
Chicago; the latter three off ered billions
of dollars of more tax incentives
and grants than New York in obtaining
Amazon. In Long Island City, Amazon
promises to build a new school and
provide 25,000 jobs.
Long Island City should be proud. I
remember the days when I was a high
school student at the old Long Island
City High School near Queens Plaza.
It was the late 80s. The half-naked
prostitutes were roaming the streets
during the early aft ernoons. The crack
epidemic was rampant and needles
littered the streets in Long Island City.
Crime was unbearable, and I recall
many times where I was robbed as a
student coming home from school.
Like Times Square, you wouldn’t risk
being at Queens Plaza aft er dusk out
of fear for your life. How times have
changed.
The addition of Amazon and other
companies prevents us from the
ravages of Detroit, which was once
cherished and now downtrodden.
Let’s all come together and accept
that we live in America and not some
communist country that seeks to
demonize the wealthy and successful
individuals who dared, worked hard
and earned the American dream. I love
Long Island City and welcome my new
neighbor, Amazon, with only the best.
John J. Ciafone is a practicing attorney
and a life-long resident of the Astoria/
Long Island City area.
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