Electricity costs, Blakeman, abortion, Greenland

The big energy risk is electricity costs

Newsday’s recent coverage of battery energy storage focused heavily on fear while giving little coverage to the real crisis facing residents: unaffordable electricity bills [“LI battery storage plans struggle to take charge,” News, Jan. 12]. When energy reporting emphasizes hypothetical risks but ignores the proven costs of maintaining an outdated, fossil-fuel-dependent grid, it does readers a disservice.

Long Island already has some of the highest electricity rates in the country, and families are feeling the strain every month. Framing clean energy solutions as a threat, without acknowledging the very real cost of maintaining our aging fossil fuel system, risks distracting from the true drivers of rising bills.

Clean energy is not a luxury. It is a necessary tool. Energy storage, renewable generation, and grid modernization are proven solutions that help utilities avoid expensive peak power purchases and emergency fixes — savings that flow back to ratepayers. When paired with strong safety standards and oversight, these technologies make the grid more resilient and more affordable.

We can continue paying more for an outdated system, or we can invest in solutions that can lower costs. Doing nothing will not make energy cheaper. Affordable, reliable energy is not a partisan issue. It is a kitchen table issue. And clean energy, done right, is part of the solution.

— Melissa J. Parrott, Sayville

The writer is executive director of Renewable Energy Long Island.

Blakeman response nothing to laugh at

I read with great disappointment — not amusement — “Blakeman: Address a ‘Saturday Night Live’ skit” [News, Jan. 14]. Rather than offering a substantive response to Gov. Kathy Hochul’s State of the State address, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman chose to dismiss it with insults and mockery.

This approach follows a familiar and tired political playbook: Substitute ridicule for ideas and hope voters mistake derision for leadership.

Blakeman appears to believe that educated, informed New Yorkers can be swayed by name-calling alone. That strategy has worn thin.

What exactly is so “funny” about a governor proposing to accelerate home construction, expand child care subsidies and access to prekindergarten, cap state taxes on tips, and establish vaccination standards to protect children’s health? These are serious proposals aimed at addressing real challenges facing families across New York. They deserve thoughtful debate, not late night-style punchlines.

If Blakeman wishes to critique policy, he should begin by addressing his own record. When a politician lacks constructive solutions, insults become a convenient distraction.

— Susan Feifer, Massapequa

Abortion stance needs clarification

Bruce Blakeman’s anecdote about a conversation with his mother on abortion left me nonplussed [“Blakeman opens up on abortion rights support in Albany,” News, Jan. 15].

I was disappointed that his comments did nothing to explain how he would govern on the abortion issue and instead raised questions.

He was correct that some on the political right “may have a problem with that.” I do and I will, along with others, I expect, now take my support for Blakeman to the sidelines pending clarification of his full position on abortion.

— John F. DeMarle, East Patchogue

Color me sad over Greenland ruckus

It’s sad and unbelievable to see NATO troops going into Greenland to defend President Donald Trump’s aggression against an ally and a member of NATO [“Takeover of Greenland ‘unfathomable’: official,” World, Jan. 14]. Trump’s position contradicts the norms of international relations, established after World War II to make sure people like Adolf Hitler would never come to power again.

Trump apparently thinks he can invade a country without cause. Why isn’t he helping Ukraine win a war against a real dictator, Russian President Vladimir Putin?

We now live in a country that some hardly recognize, not to mention how the rest of the world perceives us.

Sadly, we’re no longer a “shining city on a hill” — we’re a laughingstock of the world.

Hopefully one day, we’ll be able to get our dignity back and be proud again.

— Ann Leahy, Wantagh

Our country is in danger. We are now threatening our allies with a Greenland invasion. I want to know where our Congress has gone. Why aren’t the members upset that their influence and power have been lost? They must step up to this attack on our democratic ideals.

I implore the members of Congress to stop thinking about saving their jobs and concentrate on saving our country.

— Dom Gervasi, Wantagh