Gerrymandering, Musk's bid to buy Twitter, and student loans 

Junking the idea of gerrymandering

Oh, the sweet irony. New York State's top court rules that the Democrats illegally manipulated maps for congressional election redistricting to benefit themselves ["Top N.Y. court tosses maps," News, April 28]. "Who'da thunk it?" It's called gerrymandering, the same accusation the Democrats levied against Republicans for what seems like eternity.

It’s time to start electing strong leaders who are statesmen and stateswomen, whose word is their bond. Not those who will say and do anything to get elected and then reelected. Elect those who will not cater to special interest groups but will instead put aside their partisanship and work together for the good of us all, New Yorkers and Americans alike, regardless of party distinctions.

John Cilento, Plainview

What’s scary about this ruling is it was 4-3. The New York State Constitution is clear that the redistricting must come from a panel of an equal number of Republicans and Democrats, which must try two times to strike a compromise before allowing the State Legislature to draw the maps.

If our top state justices can’t interpret the state Constitution properly, maybe they need to be removed from office.

Thomas Speicher, Levittown

The dangers of Musk entering social media

Elon Musk will control a huge segment of social media ["Twitter, free speech and ads," LI Business, April 27]. Is he the one who should be doing this? There is no denying that he is brilliant, but from many accounts, he certainly isn’t social. There are several reports about his being rude and demeaning to employees, which may be why he's less concerned about people mistreating each other online. He has only been on the giving end, not the receiving side.

Do we want him allowing all the abusers who have lost their Twitter privileges back on? There are many online who are simply rude, responding with insults to anyone who disagrees with them. These are the people who spend time in “Twitter jail.” But there are also the predators and abusers who have been banned permanently.

The First Amendment gives us the right to publicly voice our opinions without reprisal. Social media is a private business, with the right to choose who they do business with, as long as its practices are not discriminatory. A store owner can ban you for abusing his employees or fellow customers. This isn’t rocket science.

Robert Broder, Stony Brook

Elon Musk will spend $44 billion to try save Twitter, believing in having more free speech ["Musk seals Twitter deal," News, April 26]. I believe this is a mistake and will be impossible to regulate. There are too many fanatics with weird beliefs in the world. He could have done a lot more by buying into Boeing. He has shown the world that by building a SpaceX rocket, he surely could build a safe plane that will have a better effect in bringing the world together with travel.
Martin Blumberg, Melville

All student loans need not be too costly

"The price of those loans" [LI Business, April 26] spoke of the hardships of adults who are prevented from “saving for retirement or emergencies, buying a home or paying off other debt, like credit cards.” An array of additional hardships was not mentioned: students forced to live in the parents' home long after graduation; the inability to free income to purchase a car; creating a negative impact on one’s credit ratings; and prolonged stress and anxiety that often lead to depression and worse. The situation is exacerbated when many of those saddled with stifling student debt do not graduate, leaving them without the ability to repay their loans.

For my family — four children, my brother and myself — none of the above happened because we chose to start our college educations at Nassau Community College. Freshman year, we took elective courses that enabled us to choose, then prepare for, several careers that were satisfying and well paying. We all graduated from college with bachelor’s degrees, and some with master’s degrees, without the crushing debt and hardships that accompany it.

Stefan Krompier, Hauppauge

The writer is president of the Adjunct Faculty Association at Nassau Community College.

With all the talk about student loan forgiveness ["Hints at student loan debt relief," News, April 26], what about those of us who worked hard to make sure that the cost of our children’s colleges was paid for? What about those of us who counseled our children about which schools and majors would provide them with gainful employment? Why should I have to pay for people who chose schools that they could not afford and majors that had no chance of providing decent employment opportunities? Like millions of others, I'm sure, I am tired of, in effect, feeling punished for doing the right thing.

Rich Corso, Oceanside