WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES FEBRUARY 15, 2018 13
LETTERS AND COMMENTS OP-ED
TRUMP MILITARY
PARADE SHOULD
MARCH ON
As a veteran of the U.S. Navy of
the Vietnam era, I feel it is time to
honor our military for their service
to America.
Our brave men and women have
put their lives on the line preserving
freedom around the world. I
feel a parade honoring the Navy,
Army, Marines, Air Force, Coast
Guard, National Guard and Army
Reserves is needed. Now as
reported we have not done this
since the fi rst Gulf War in 1991.
I feel this is long overdue. So
let’s get it done, so we can truly
show appreciation for their sacrifi
ce to America and let us all wave
the American fl ag on that day.
Frederick R. Bedell Jr.,
Glen Oaks Village
Editor’s note: Every year, there
are many, many parades in communities
across Queens and the
United States which celebrate
the brave men and women of our
Armed Forces.
In covering Memorial Day
and Veterans Day celebrations,
our staff has observed, as active
participants, veterans groups and
even active service members — all
of whom take enormous pride in
the many fl ag-waving spectators
who line the streets and thank
them for their service.
While we understand that the
letter is referring to President
Trump’s reported request for a
massive military parade in Washington,
it must be noted that our
borough has honored our troops
many times over the years, and
always will.
Yet, we know that parades are
not enough. More must be done
to improve veterans’ lives here on
the homefront. Our thanks must
not only be visual gestures of gratitude;
it’s our duty to ensure that
our veterans find good-paying
jobs, proper medical care and a
place they can call home.
We believe that a far better
way to thank the troops would
be to use the funding required
for Trump’s military parade to
instead improve the medical treatment
of soldiers and veterans,
advance veteran employment programs
and fi nd permanent housing
for homeless veterans.
Robert Pozarycki, Editor-in-Chief
It’s time to reform New York voting laws
BY STATE SENATOR TOBY
ANN STAVISKY
Across the nation, we are seeing
voting rights under assault.
States with grotesquely gerrymandered
districts, which were drawn
in a totally partisan manner, are cutting
back on groundbreaking reforms such as
early voting and same-day voter registration
in the name of fi ghting “voter fraud.”
What is really happening is voter
suppression.
However, we aren’t seeing the same
rollbacks here in New York. Why? Because
New York remains a state with one
of the most antiquated voting systems in
the nation. In other words, we’re seeing
no scale back of reforms because there
are no reforms to scale back.
New York has the second worst voting
participation record in the nation,
with just 29 percent of eligible voters
participating. Think about that. Only
29 percent of a state with a population
of 19.75 million people vote in elections.
There are millions of New Yorkers who
aren’t having their voices heard, and
countless elections that could have been
swayed with their votes.
There is no doubt that a huge contributor
to this abysmal statistic is a lack of
serious voting reform, which is why I
stood with my colleagues a week ago to
support of a series of bills to protect and
expand New Yorkers’ voting rights.
These reforms include common-sense
bills such as early voting, same-day registration
and an expansion of absentee
voting, but also progressive initiatives
such as the Voter Empowerment Act
and the creation of a new electoral crime
for voter suppression. Democrats, like
myself, have been pushing for the enactment
of these bills for years, and yet
not one has been brought to the Republican
controlled Senate fl oor for a vote.
The threat to voting is real. In the
past fi ve years, we have seen the pivotal
protections of the Voting Rights Act
stripped and states require proof of identifi
cation (a protocol that has historically
disadvantaged low-income individuals
and people of color). Now, our president,
by openly questioning the 2016 election
numbers, has enabled states to continue
to gut voting laws. New York has always
been a leader in progressive thought and
policy. It is time our voting laws catch up
to that tradition.
Each year voting reforms are not enacted,
millions of New Yorkers are denied
a more modern and easier voting process.
We cannot allow for the suppression of
votes any longer. As we’ve seen this past
year, every vote counts, particularly in
state and local elections. Why then, is
there so much bureaucracy and red tape
to disenfranchise New Yorkers?
The fact is, our country was founded
on the notion that the people have the
power and that power in enacted through
elections. This tradition holds elected offi
cials accountable to their constituents,
making sure we serve in the best interest
of the public. We are doing a disservice
to them by not passing voting reforms.
My hope is that this will be the last
year my colleagues and I call for voting
reforms. I would love to see each of the
bills in this package passed. But I am
committed to keep fi ghting for truly
accessible elections for as long as it takes.
Stavisky represents the 16th Senatorial
District which covers a swath of central
and northeast Queens.
The next time you’re stuck in
traffi c on Queens Boulevard,
don’t feel so bad. Motorists
have been dealing with this for
decades, as this 1940 photo
from the Queens Library Digital
Archives demonstrates. This picture
shows a traffi c jam on the
boulevard eastbound near the
New York Connecting Railroad
bridge in Woodside. Send us
your historic photos of Queens
by email to editorial@qns.com
(subject: A Look Back) or mail
printed pictures to A Look Back,
℅ Schneps Communications,
38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY
11361. All mailed pictures will be
carefully returned to you.
A LOOK BACK
MOURNING BOY
LOST IN POND
TRAGEDY
The tragic death of an 11-yearold
boy and the injury to his
friend, both of whom had walked
onto a frozen pond in Forest
Park, is yet another reason why
nobody should walk on iced-over
ponds and lakes. All lakes and
ponds in our region are unsafe
to venture out into, and parents
should make sure that their children
keep off of them.
Our thoughts and prayers are
with the families of both of these
children, especially for the one
boy who did not survive because
he was trapped beneath the ice
for several minutes before he
and his friend were rescued. Our
most sincerest thanks to our fi rst
responders who worked as quickly
as they could to save both boys.
John Amato, Fresh Meadows
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publication or its staff .
