WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES SEPTEMBER 27, 2018 13
TED CRUZ’S
LINGUINE, AND
THE FALL OF THE
REPUBLIC
More than a thousand immigrant
children, many of whom came with
parents seeking refugee status fl eeing
murderous gangs funded by the drug
addiction of suburban teenagers in
America, are still missing, some likely
traffi cked as sex slaves.
Puerto Rico is still struggling to put
the lights back on aft er a hurricane
that killed 3,000 people, which the
president still denies even happened.
Cancer patients may lose their life-sustaining
health care and special education
students may lose their IEPs, but only if
they’re poor and black or brown.
Three times in two decades the
party that got the most votes in an
election didn’t actually win. The
political party that did, conspired to
leave open a Supreme Court seat for
almost a year in order to allow their
guy to appoint someone of their own
liking, then they openly bragged
about it and got away with it. Now
they’re trying to force through an alleged
sexual assaulter into a lifetime
appointment on the highest court in
the land, regardless of whether or
not he tried to rape a girl, while they
openly admit it.
The president, meanwhile, is regularly
threatening to obstruct justice by
trying to interfere with an independent
investigation into whether or
not he conspired with a foreign government
to undermine the integrity
of our political campaigns.
A Neo-Nazi ran a woman over with
a car at a protest.
Men, angry that women won’t satisfy
their sexual desires at will, are
going on killing sprees.
A gay couple was beaten in Brooklyn
by a bigot; a black man was stabbed by
a racist in Times Square; a woman
in Nassau County carries a whistle
everywhere she goes because she
was sexually assaulted by a group of
teenagers; and immigrants right here
in Queens are afraid to leave their
homes because their neighbors are
intimidating them by threatening to
call ICE.
But Ted Cruz couldn’t eat his linguine
at a fancy Washington, D.C.,
restaurant because of protesters —
and that is what’s going to destroy our
Republic.
All right.
Domenick Raft er, Ozone Park
YOU CALL
THAT A PRIMARY
WIN?
Governor Andrew Cuomo shouldn’t
be proud of his 2018 Democratic Party
Primary win. Out of 5,621,822 registered
active potential Democrats statewide,
only 975,552 voted him, while
511,585 voted for Cynthia Nixon. That
means 4,134,685 who voted for “none
of the above” by staying home.
In reality, when you add up the combined
votes of Nixon with those who
stayed home, less than 18 percent of
registered Democrats supported Cuomo.
He had the benefi ts and perks of
eight years being governor, including
daily free media coverage, and
periodic mailings from state agencies
and authorities at taxpayers’ expense
promoting his accomplishments.
Virtually every state Democratic
Party city, state and federal elected
official, district and county leader,
local club house along with most labor
unions endorsed him. This included
mailings, phone banks and get out
the vote drives. He raised over $32
million, and Cuomo spent over $25
million on the primary campaign. This
included a media buy in the millions;
his campaign commercials ran 24/7 on
most channels for weeks. His primary
opponent Cynthia Nixon raised $2.5
million.
Ms. Nixon was vastly outspent and
could aff ord a very limited media buy
to get her message out.
Larry Penner, Great Neck
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LETTERS AND COMMENTS
Why solar power is Viable option for NY
BY COSTA CONSTANTINIDES
The election of real Democrats in
the primaries earlier this month
is proof voters across in the
Empire State want real, progressive
change when it comes to issues like the
environment.
That’s why committing to 1 million
solar-powered homes across the state
over the next fi ve years — along with
implementing supportive policy
mechanisms — is a bold, essential, and
attainable step we should take.
For the fi rst time in years, New York
could have a Democrat-led state Senate
that should recognize the dangers of a
rising global temperature. We know too
well that climate change is more than a
looming threat; it is extreme weather
that has pummeled our region in the last
decade. Just ask the Rockaway residents
still rebuilding six years aft er Sandy,
or commuters bracing for the lengthy
L train shutdown over storm damage.
New York City has sought to reduce
its reliance on dirty fossil fuels with
various forms of cleaner, renewable
energy. It’s paramount here in western
Queens, where adult asthma hospitalization
rates are higher than the boroughwide
average as our residents deal
with high density and cramped streets.
Soot from the Ravenswood Power
Plant fi nds its way into the lungs of
public housing residents who live
downwind of its smokestacks. That
just shouldn’t be.
Plummeting prices are making solar
a cost-eff ective, signifi cantly cleaner
alternative to fossil fuels. That’s why,
in February 2016, the City Council
passed my bill to promote solar panels
on city-owned buildings wherever
possible, because government should
lead by example.
In my native Astoria, we have allocated
funds to install panels on two
schools as well as one of the busiest
branches of the Queens Library system.
Our next generation of leaders
will come of age seeing fi rst-hand how
renewable energy can directly aff ect
their lives on a daily basis.
Consumers have taken note, too, and
the Empire State now boasts 700 solar
companies who employ a combined
9,000 workers. Nearly 100,000 installations
have generated enough power
for 225,000 homes – making us the
11th-best state for solar energy. That
600% increase of installations since
2011 has catapulted New York into the
top ten for growth potential.
We cannot rest on our laurels, however,
because there’s always more
to be done. The right solar policies
could equal 20,000 employees in the
industry over the next three years,
according to a recent jobs study. And
there’s no reason why New York City
shouldn’t carry a large swath of those
jobs, be it in engineering, design, construction,
or installation.
That’s why I believe committing
to 1 million solar-powered homes
by 2023, including for 100,000
low-income households, will be a watershed
moment for New York State.
Indeed, it would make costs cheaper,
especially for families struggling to
make ends meet. More importantly,
solar can keep the air cleaner in working
class communities like Queens
– such as those living in the shadow of
Ravenswood.
Community solar ensures that the
nearly half of New Yorkers who rent or
live in multi-family buildings get the
same bill-saving benefi ts.
I look forward to working our
partners in state government and
our stakeholders in fi rst making this
commitment, then following through
to make this a greener state, a greener
city, and a greener Queens.
Constantinides represents the City
Council’s 22nd District and is chair
of the Committee on Environmental
Protection.