As schools shut, some need lunches

With schools closed because of the coronavirus and thus no school lunches, families who rely on schools to feed their children may be unable to feed all family members lunch, especially if they’re relying on food stamps for all or most of their groceries. Food that should last a week will now last, say, only four days because these families were not expecting to feed children weekday lunches at home. Families also may not have enough time to go shopping unexpectedly. And some schools offer breakfast as well as lunch.

We must not allow these children to go hungry. How do we do this? Inform as many federal and state officials as possible, along with the news media and social networking. A government agency and/or the Red Cross could take charge.

Michael Newler,

Plainview

Why is there such a shortage of hand sanitizer [“Public asked to report price gouging,” News, March 9]? It’s not like we don’t know how to make it. Why must the public resort to making its own from YouTube videos? Now, not only are many store shelves devoid of sanitizer, but also there’s virtually no aloe or alcohol, which are the ingredients to make it at home. It’s ridiculous because this simple fix would limit the frantic search and keep the public calm. I also see products claiming to be sanitizer as fake and possibly dangerous.

The government can allay our fears and stress by making sure there is an abundance of hand sanitizer. Why are situations complicated when the answers are simple?

Myra Sherr,

Hewlett

A neighbor, on his post on our local neighborhood online forum, offered to do shopping for older people in the area to help them during the coronavirus crisis. Quickly, it was followed by numerous replies offering the same thing. I love it when an act of kindness starts an avalanche of humanity.

Tedd Levy,

Woodbury

Paper bag fees are like a new tax

I remember when grocery stores offered both paper and plastic bags at no additional charge, but then the paper bags slowly went away. I am not sure if paper bags are more expensive than plastic bags, but if they are, New York has found a way to allow businesses to offset that higher cost and siphon off a little for the state as well [“Left holding the bag? Plastic ban explained,” News, Feb. 23].

The paper bag fee is really a tax. The first five cents charged for a paper bag will go toward both the state’s Environmental Protection Fund (three cents ) and to localities (two cents) for buying reusable shopping bags for residents in low-income areas. You have the mandated socialist redistribution of money with the two cents diverted, and you have a system that harms the economy because it is designed to raise the cost of items produced from fossil fuel and, in this case, the cost of replacements. New York State has found a way to get itself off the hook as the one to blame for a new tax and has made our neighborhood retailer the bad guy.

Chris Wales,

Mineola

New York State needs to suspend the ban on single-use plastic bags until the coronavirus is under control. I believe making New Yorkers use reusable cloth bags could help spread the virus. Disposable single-use plastic bags are the way to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.

Steven Factor,

Plainview

Let’s be clear about ‘open borders’

A letter writer who responded to another letter, about the National Rifle Association [“Turning the tables on Dem policies,” March 11], lamented about “the Democrats’ open borders.” Fact: No Democratic politician is calling for open borders.

John Mulvey,

Blue Point

Who to blame for bad state roadways

Regarding the editorial about the state Department of Transportation not fixing roads [“Making LI roads a priority,” March 11], the real issue is Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s policies that are turning the state into a failed European welfare state. New York has a $6 billion deficit and in my view that is due to Medicaid overspending and the new minimum wage as two of the causes. The governor is defunding state agencies to support his progressive agenda of expanding Medicaid and green energy. When the funds for roads are allocated, then the roads get repaved. The governor and State Legislature are responsible to allocate funds for roads. But the main reason roads aren’t repaired rests with those who voted for the governor, the legislators and those who support them in the media.

So next time you hit a pothole and bend a rim, look in the mirror and blame the person you see. The blame is yours.

Darryl Dowers,

Oyster Bay