Let's not welcome wild animals to Long Island

I read, with dismay, about the two breeding pairs of coyotes in Nassau County ["Experts: 2 pairs of coyotes now official Nassau dwellers," News, Dec. 2]. The article implies that this is a good thing and that having two pairs is beneficial to "help the species settle in." Why should we help them? If this were any other invasive species — murder hornets, Asian long-horned beetles or stink bugs, to name a few — we would have no trouble trying to stop the damage to our homes, trees or native bee population by trying to keep the invaders at bay. Why is it any different with a mammal invader? Certainly, they pose a threat to people, their children and their pets, as the article acknowledges. But should humans residing in the area sit idly while the coyote population grows and becomes a bigger threat? Coyotes apparently are not native to Long Island and have nothing here to control their population growth. I say the breeding pairs should be humanely removed from the area as a matter of public safety. Suburban Long Island is not the place for wild carnivores.

Andrew Scott,

Hempstead

Good roundup, any way you slice it

Amid all the bad news of 2020, your annual roundup of Long Island’s best pizza was a delight ["Pizza passion," exploreLI, Dec. 3]. Even if I never get to sample any of the 22 named pizzerias, just reading about them was satisfying enough. Congratulations on a very well-written review.

Jill Murman Payne,

Long Beach

GOP has created its own monster

If it weren’t so serious, it would be amusing watching congressional Republicans trying to deal with the monster they have created. Either by outspoken support of the president’s lies, or their complicit silence in not calling him out on them, they’ve now created a situation where they don’t want their supporters to believe the lies, but they also can’t admit that they were lied to. They need their constituents to vote in the Georgia runoffs, but they have told them that our elections are corrupt. How do they convince them to "waste" their time going out to vote Jan. 5 for what they have told them is a rigged election process? The past four years have taught us that many of President Donald Trump’s supporters stick with the original lie, even when he attempts to walk it back. But he’s not doing that now, so it’s up to the GOP to convince them that their vote is not worthless. Trump claimed the 2016 vote was rigged because he didn’t win the popular vote, and he’s doubling down this year because he lost outright. They have dug themselves into a hole that I believe may take years to dig their way out of.

Robert Broder,

Stony Brook

Perhaps Dems should use Republicans’ line

With virtually all the mail-in ballots counted on Long Island and Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) retaining his seat in Congress, Democrats should act like President Donald Trump and say the election was "rigged" ["Zeldin holds onto House seat after mail-in ballots counted," News, Dec. 1]. Seriously, the same Republicans who gerrymandered, changed voter registration laws, purged voter rolls, vilified mail-in voting, eliminated polling and drop-off sites, and reduced the U.S. Postal Service now claim that President-elect Joe Biden cheated. Really?

Joseph Rella,

Farmingdale

Provide up-to-date election results

Weeks after the general election, votes are still being tallied and races have yet to be called. What’s worse is that the public isn’t given access to up-to-date vote totals, leaving many wondering who’s on track to be their next representative. In Suffolk County, the latest results posted on the Board of Elections website include only in-person votes counted on Election Day. The more than 150,000 absentee ballots cast in Suffolk County aren’t included in this count. Absentee ballots could move the needle on some of these races, so it’s imperative that the public be kept up to date on the most recent and accurate vote totals. Assembly Bill A10941 would require the Board of Elections to, in a timely manner, make available up-to-date election results as each election district is counted. This would allow the public and the media to know who’s ahead without having to rely on word-of-mouth or rumors floating around social media. I urge the State Legislature to pass this bill, and the governor to sign it into law.

Luca Rallis,

Greenport

Country must get back to basics

Whatever political party we may believe in or we feel to be correct, we should not lose sight of the fact that we live in the United States of America. We may originally come from different countries but should be treated with respect and equality as Americans. We have freedom to speak and be heard and should not infringe on the rights of those with whom we disagree. This country didn’t become the best country in the world overnight. Let us get back to what is really important and to treat others as we would like to be treated. That is truly the United States of America.

Robert Hayes,

Hempstead