Letter: Prominence for female athletes

Are we ever going to stop shouting stereotype, discrimination or racist right away when somebody makes a statement or observation? I shook my head in confusion when I read "Tuning out stereotype," about Little League pitcher Mo'ne Davis [Sports, Nov. 2].

There have been hundreds of Mo'ne Davises playing Little League for decades. Where have the media and sponsors been? All the years that girls' and women's sports were not covered or supported set the stage for this so-called stereotyping.

Had sports fans around the world been exposed to the same coverage and sponsorship that govern boys' and men's sports, no one would say anyone runs, throws or plays golf "like a girl."

I'm the father of a very athletic daughter who could run circles around most boys in almost every sport. Our family has never uttered the words "like a girl," because we see what she and the girls on her teams are capable of.

Tony Antonelli, Islip

Bad experience with PSEG's phones

After repeated emails, bill inserts and news stories about how PSEG Long Island is so much better prepared to communicate during an outage, this morning I got to see the results firsthand. I woke up to a power outage ["No power for 1,600 residents," News, Nov. 3].

I called the toll-free number, and on my first attempt all the circuits were busy. On my second attempt, I had to navigate through a voice menu that took more time than I wanted to spend to let them know I had no power.

The system couldn't find my records based on my phone number, even though I recently updated it after receiving an email on storm preparedness, and I was sent to wait for a representative with "an anticipated wait time" of two minutes.

After 63 minutes of waiting, I received the response, "Your call cannot be completed as dialed," and I was disconnected. I wonder what the response would have been if PSEG hadn't spent nearly $11.6 million on a new phone system?

Joseph Cortese, Franklin Square

Voting's a right earned by sacrifice

I voted because of the millions of Americans before me who never could ["Make your mark," Editorial, Nov. 2].

I voted because of the thousands of Americans who lived, fought and died before me so that I could do so. If you didn't vote, and were asked to give a good reason, do you think you could?

David Robins, Garden City

Bowhunting on Kings Park trail

Regarding "Kings Park arrows are far from school" [Letters, Oct. 28], the state built a trail through a wooded area on Meadow Road in Kings Park. Two months ago, I called the state Department of Environmental Conservation to ask why. I was told the trail is for the people of Kings Park, so they can enjoy nature, so kids can ride their bikes, and so parents can take their kids on walks.

Then I read that bowhunters kill deer on this same trail. I was driving by last week and saw a woman pushing a baby carriage and two toddlers walking with her. Behind her was a man dressed in hunting gear, carrying a bow and arrow.

I pulled over immediately and called to the woman that she was in danger and to come back. She did without hesitation, and I called the police.

When a police officer came, I asked him where was the sign warning people that they're killing deer on this trail? He said there's no sign, and I asked him what it would take to stop this killing in a residential neighborhood. He said to call the state.

Do we have to wait for a child to get an arrow in the back? Suffolk County or the state should do something about it now.

Barbara Williams, Kings Park

Fracking opponents and NY politics

"Fracking drilling delay" [News, Oct. 30] does an injustice to readers on the issue of hydrofracking by ignoring the broader issues and framing it as an election season decision.

Here are some of the inconvenient facts that should be considered. Natural gas is a fossil fuel and produces greenhouse emissions. The idea that it is a clean fuel is a false, considering the methane produced and released into the atmosphere during extraction.

Hydrofracking will not create long-term, stable jobs for the local economy. The jobs will be for out-of-state people with the training and the skills to do this work.

Geology experts say that the New York shale formations are shallow and thin, unlike those of Pennsylvania, and the expected reserves in New York are smaller. There will, however, be increased truck traffic and pollution in the communities with wells, wasting of fresh water and disposal of fracking waste.

On Sept. 21, hundreds of thousands of citizens marched in New York City to demand action on climate change and responsible policies from our government. Global warming, climate change, whatever you want to call it, is caused by our insatiable need for energy. Let's turn the focus to solving the real problem with renewable and sustainable solutions. Natural gas is neither.

Monica Weiss, Jamaica