April 28: LIRR gap fix costs, school board spending bias, campaign issues

April 28, 2008

LIRR gap fix getting too costly

Another $9.4 million for metal plates ["LIRR widens gap-fix plan, puts cost at $46M," News, April 25]? How much more will the riders or taxpayers be asked to cough up because people are too lazy, careless or stupid to step over a 6-8-inch space. Enough is enough.

Gerard Sewell

West Babylon

School boards are biased on spending

Up in Albany, they are at it again. Escalating school taxes are eating us alive, but the politicians are afraid to address the real problem. The STAR program was only a Band-Aid that gave some of us temporary relief, and now our legislators are trying to invent another one ["Income-based cap on school taxes praised," News, April 24]. This time a "circuit breaker" law is proposed. It would give some tax relief to those with lower incomes, but it would also reduce school revenue. They want the state of New York to make up the difference.

All of this tinkering is strictly with the funding side of the equation. The real problem however, is with school spending. It has been going up three times faster than the rate of inflation, but this is the political third rail. Politicians are afraid to touch it. Few people want to serve on our school boards; it's a no-pay job. As a consequence, board after board is packed with teachers, the spouses of teachers and their best friends in the PTA. In their hands, school spending is out of control.

The teachers union, the most powerful lobby in the state, likes things just the way they are. What legislator who wants to be re-elected would attempt to limit school spending?

James E. Stubenrauch

Massapequa

Focus on issues of importance

A letter concerning Barack Obama's choice to not wear a flag pin during a debate worries me about the upcoming election ["The flag is a powerful symbol," News, April 24].

Is this what people are worried about - whether or not the man wore a pin? How often he attends church? These things are distractions from the issues. The candidates' stance on health care, the war in Iraq, the oil crisis and our foreign policy should be what voters are worried about. Not flag pins.

Kevin Adelwerth

Moriches

Credit card security working?

Regarding the postal worker who was caught recently stealing and using credit cards intended for others ["Mail clerk charged in credit theft," News, April 22]: I have seen no mention of the failure of the supposed system credit card companies use when sending new credit cards to their customers. I am referring to the label on the new card that says call from your home phone to activate the card. Did he somehow foil that system, or did he find out that it simply does not work? I think the public should know in either case. If he foiled the system, we should know that it happened.

If the system did not work, the credit card companies need to be required to beef up their security systems. Innocent people do not need to be put through the hassles of unauthorized use of their credit cards.

Ronald Bode

Amityville

Book-sales field was level

Regarding "Internet prices going up" [News, April 24]: The bookstore owner welcoming the legislation doesn't get it. Were I to purchase an item in his store, unlike at a Web site, I would pay sales tax. However, unlike the Web site purchase, I would not be required to pay shipping costs. The reality is that the playing field was already level.

Brian Moore

Smithtown

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