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editorial 24 THE COURIER SUN • MARCH 10, 2016 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com sun WWW.COURIERSUN.COM VICTORIA SCHNEPS-YUNIS JOSHUA A. SCHNEPS BOB BRENNAN ROBERT POZARYCKI AMY AMATO-SANCHEZ NIRMAL SINGH ALAN SELTZER STEPHEN REINA RON TORINA, JENNIFER DECIO, CHERYL GALLAGHER KATRINA MEDOFF, ANTHONY GIUDICE, ANGELA MATUA, ALINA SURIEL CLIFF KASDEN, SAMANTHA SOHMER, ELIZABETH ALONI DEMETRA PLAGAKIS WARREN SUSSMAN CELESTE ALAMIN MARIA VALENCIA VICTORIA SCHNEPS-YUNIS JOSHUA A. SCHNEPS PUBLISHER & EDITOR 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 EVENTS MANAGER SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE CLASSIFIED MANAGER CONTROLLER PRESIDENT & CEO VICE PRESIDENT Schneps Communications, 38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361 718-224-5863 • Fax 718-224-5441 Sales Fax: 718-631-3498 www.qns.com editorial e-mail: editorial@queenscourier.com for advertising e-mail: ads@queenscourier.com Entire Contents Copyright 2015 by The Courier Sun All letters sent to THE COURIER SUN should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should include a full address and home and offi ce telephone numbers, where available, as well as affi liation, indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Name withheld on request. No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of THE COURIER SUN. 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 COURIER SUN within fi ve days of publication. Ad position cannot be guaranteed unless paid prior to publication. VIctoria Media Services 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 COURIER SUN 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. SNAPS QUEENS QUEENS ZOO FUN/ PHOTO BY MICHELLE LONG Send us your photos of Queens and you could see them online or in our paper! Submit them to us tag @queenscourier on Instagram, Facebook page, tweeting @queenscourier or by emailing editorial@qns.com (subject: Queens Snaps).  letters & comments LAMENTING THE LOSS OF A GREAT FIRST LADY The death of former fi rst lady Nancy Reagan at the age of 94 leaves a void in our nation. She was former president Ronald Reagan’s source of energy, wisdom and compassion, especially during those last 10 years of his life, when he was being ravaged by Alzheimer’s disease. She always carried herself with poise and dignity and never was afraid to speak her mind. Our nation has lost a wonderful person and all Americans offer their deepest condolences to her children, relatives and friends. Now she is with her husband together forever at last. John Amato, Fresh Meadows HIGHER MINIMUM WAGES MEAN A STRONGER ECONOMY As a businessman here in Queens, it is in my interest to have a $15 an hour minimum wage. In addition to raising the wage of the most poorly paid workers, a $15 minimum wage will push up the wages of everyone else. That will mean more people who have discretionary income — and can afford to buy our books. Henry Ford proved that this works back in the 1920s, when he paid his factory workers higher-than-usual wages. FDR proved that this works in the 1930s and 1940s. And more recently, Seattle and San Francisco have created booming local economies — with a higher minimum wage. Goldman Sachs economists found that states where the minimum wage increased had faster employment growth. In addition, a living minimum wage means that fewer people will need food stamps and welfare, so governments will be able to reallocate sorely needed funds to education and infrastructure. This will provide an additional boost to the economy. Governor Cuomo has introduced legislation that would raise the minimum wage in New York to $15. We should all contact our elected offi cials and ask them to support it so we can all benefi t from a faster-growing economy. David R. Yale, Bayside BLAME AND FIRE EVERYONE FOR ILLEGAL CONVERSIONS Regarding illegal conversions in Bayside: The fact that you can purchase a house with a stop work order and open violations and have a legal closing is criminal. Buildings Commissioner Rick Chandler, the Department of Buildings and Mayor de Blasio should be ashamed of themselves. Don’t vote for de Blasio! He is personally responsible for allowing this situation to not only continue, but get worse and worse, year after year. I will vote for the fi rst candidate who promises to fi re everyone at the DOB! QNS user Squirt All aboard for more rail in Queens During his visit to our offi ce last week, Mayor Bill de Blasio sang the praises of the proposed Brooklyn Queens Connector streetcar on the East River waterfront between Brooklyn and Queens. It’s an exciting idea that could be a real boon to help address the borough’s need for additional public transportation options. Before the mayor announced the Connector plan at his State of the City address last month, Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley proposed a bold venture to institute a light rail plan in western Queens along Long Island Rail Road tracks currently being used for freight service but that used to be part of the LIRR’s commuter rail network. Her idea won the support of the local community board, and on March 7, Queens Borough President Melinda Katz announced that she, too, was on board with the light rail proposal. It’s wonderful that the city’s top elected offi cials are recognizing that Queens — more populated and transit starved than ever before in its history — needs to grow its transit infrastructure beyond adding or modifying bus lines on already crowded streets. But this is where the rubber meets the road — or, in this case, the metal axles hit the rail. Everyone’s talking about improving public transportation; now they must make the fi nancial commitment to get the job done. Streetcars, which 50 years ago were thought to be antiquated, are now the wave of our transit future. They could be used on major arteries and highways — such as Queens Boulevard, the Long Island Expressway and Francis Lewis Boulevard — to shuttle passengers to major transit hubs and commuter rail stations. Think of how long it’s taking and how expensive it is to build the Second Avenue Subway, an idea many decades in the making and still not near completion. A streetcar network would be costly, but not nearly as expensive or timeconsuming as it would to build a new subway tunnel or two below Queens streets. Let’s make an investment in better transit for all. Let’s build a streetcar network in Queens! Rest in Peace, Mrs. Reagan For the fi rst few years of her life, Nancy Reagan — one of the most revered First Ladies in American history — resided in Flushing. This little factoid surfaced following news on Sunday that Reagan — the beloved wife of the late President Ronald Reagan — died of heart failure at the age of 94. A part of her childhood was spent in a home located at what was formerly 417 Amity St., which is now known as 149-40 Roosevelt Ave. It’s a nondescript house, and up until now, few people realized it once had such a famous resident. Born Anne Frances Robbins, she moved to Chicago with her divorced mother and changed her name when her mother married neurosurgeon Dr. Loyal Davis. While pursuing an acting career, she met Ronald Reagan; they were wed in New York in 1952, and she would remain by his side as he moved out of acting and into public offi ce — fi rst as California governor, then as president. During her husband’s two terms in the White House, Nancy Reagan took a proactive role in the fi ght against drug use with her “Just Say No” campaign and supporting tougher gun laws. After her husband left the White House, Nancy Reagan endured the struggles of the sunset of his life, as he suffered from the devastating effects of Alzheimer’s disease until his death in 2004. This native of Queens left an indelible mark on American life, and it’s fi tting her memory be honored in some way. We urge the city to support a measure renaming the Flushing block that Nancy Davis Reagan once called home be renamed in her honor. May Nancy Reagan rest in peace with her Ronnie, knowing that her contributions will live on forever.


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