Voting, Trump and the 2020 election

Here’s a solution I believe would prevent voter fraud with mail-in voting [“Mail-in voting, USPS draw reactions,” Letters, Aug. 18]. Every living U.S. citizen of voting age with a Social Security number will receive a mail-in ballot. Social Security knows when a recipient dies; payments stop almost immediately. If you receive your Social Security check by mail or by direct deposit, your address is where your ballot will be sent. You have three months to inform Social Security of a new address if you’ve moved. Minors with Social Security numbers will not receive ballots. Ballots will have a section where the voter must enter a thumbprint. If a ballot is questioned, the thumb print must match the name on the ballot. That’s proof of the voter’s ID. To Democrats who say that requesting voter IDs is racist and many voters don’t have an ID, everyone has a thumb! I suggest the penalties for voter fraud be substantial — two years in prison and a $5,000 fine for each fake ballot submitted.

Robert Kralick,

Glen Head

It took a while to get there, but when President Richard Nixon took his last helicopter ride 46 years ago, the country knew with certainty that he was, in fact, a crook. Fast-forward to President Donald Trump. While he is having Attorney General Bill Barr, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, et al. go around the Constitution and essentially destroy the underpinnings of our democracy, he is taking on the big issue himself: stealing an election [“Call for Postal relief,” News, Aug. 18]. Yes, the U.S. Postal Service has been hemorrhaging money for decades. So Trump decides to appoint another lackey to run the agency and, poof, mailboxes disappear in the middle of the night. At least Trump said he’s doing this to prevent mail-in ballots. He finally told the truth. Too bad Trump can’t make the coronavirus disappear like the mailboxes.

Chris Marzuk,

Greenlawn

A letter writer finds it “incredible that we can wait in line in a grocery store for 30 minutes, get a haircut, go to the library and much more, but we can’t go to a spacious school gym and cast a vote” [“Mail-in voting, USPS draw reactions,” Aug. 18]. Ignoring the fact that many polling places are not in “spacious school gyms,” what the writer fails to understand — or acknowledge — is that many people, for health or other reasons, cannot or will not go to grocery stores or other public places. Additionally, while New York may be relatively safe right now, the coronavirus is still raging in many places in the country. At a time when the president is doing everything in his power to suppress the vote, we should make it easier, not harder, for all citizens to exercise their right to vote.

Michael Golden,

Great Neck

It’s a two-way street for motorcycles, cars

I could not believe Matt Davies’ essay on why motorcycle-car collisions have increased [“My rules of the road for drivers, motorcyclists,” Opinion, Aug. 15]. If Davies has recently been traveling the highways of Long Island, Connecticut and Vermont, as I have, he would have observed something entirely different. Just a week earlier, on a long car ride home from Vermont, we observed groups of some five, six or more motorcycle riders speeding, cutting off drivers and riding in between lanes. It was akin to watching a video game. They were absolutely not adhering to the rules of the road. Who hasn’t experienced hearing a motorcycle coming close to your vehicle but you cannot see it because it’s between the lanes to beat traffic. Sorry, I cannot agree with the statement “every car is planning to pull out in front of every motorcycle.” To me, if the rules of the road are followed, we would all be safer.

Mary Ellen Heaney,

Massapequa

Matt Davies must travel different Long Island roads than I do or he has a rather biased view from his two-wheeled vehicle than I do from my four-wheeled one. First, let’s look at the physical nature of motorcycles compared with cars: They are much smaller (taking up less of a driver’s field of view), faster, more maneuverable, and less common on the road than cars, leading motorists to forget they share the road with them. Second, an overwhelming majority of motorcyclists (my assessment from driving 40 years): They speed, don’t signal lane changes (which many car drivers are also guilty of), and they weave through traffic. Davies is right to recognize that “every driver could inadvertently kill me” so he must ride differently than most motorcyclists. However, most car drivers must have experienced the fright of a motorcycle roaring past and scaring the heck out of them. Only occasionally do I see a motorcyclist who obeys the speed limit, uses directional signals and stays in his lane. I want to wave to that rider and yell out my heartfelt thanks for helping keep us all safe. Maybe it’s Davies himself rolling by.

Ronald Oriani,

Baldwin

While I agree wholeheartedly that drivers who deliberately turn into motorcycles should be punished to the full extent of the law, I would like to present another side. In many years of driving, I have seen numerous motorcycles disobeying the rules of the road. Some zoom by cars at ridiculous speeds. What’s worse is motorcyclists don’t always stay in their lanes. I’m confident that many have seen motorcyclists driving between cars on crowded roads, often at high speeds. This is dangerous and disturbing. I believe many of these accidents could be avoided if motorcyclists would stay in their lanes and use common sense.

Rich Levens,

Lynbrook

Matt Davies’ essay calls for a simple response. He says that motorists often fail to see motorcycles. I have been driving on Long Island for 50 years and observed that most riders wear the same uniform: black helmet, black leather jacket and blue jeans. If you want to be seen, wear light-colored clothing or even an orange vest similar to what highway construction workers wear. It may detract from the outlaw biker image, but it may save your life.

Stephen Sullivan,

West Babylon

Leaders need to speak with one voice

I have been a trustee on Long Island school boards for more than 30 years. I often am at odds with my colleagues, offering the lone “nay” vote numerous times. School board decisions are made by majority vote. Individual votes are meaningless. Once the vote is taken, the decision belongs to the entire board. I may be unhappy, but it is my duty to support the vote and never undermine it.

Nationally, one major problem today is our government is not speaking with one voice. A difference of opinion and a good dialogue are great, but constant backstabbing on both sides as well as a president who goes out of his way to undermine any decision by others that he doesn’t like is destroying this country. Until our so-called leaders get their act together and support each other, we will have a bigger problem than COVID-19. The country is being split into two by politics instead of becoming stronger through respect, common sense and scientific facts.

Anyone can lead in good times. It is in the heat of a major crisis that true leaders emerge and solve the problem instead of creating bigger ones.

Michael Weinick,

Merrick

Editor’s note: The writer is on the Nassau BOCES board and was on the boards of two Merrick school districts.