Buffalo speaks up: Letters to the editor for the week of Jul. 12, 2024
- Updated
Our weekly round-up of letters published in the Buffalo News.
The Supreme Court has made it perfectly clear they are totally political, at least the male majority members. They also have made it totally clear that they feel one man can be above the law and that the rule of law can be interpreted to suit their agenda. This misuse of their judicial function disrupts the balance of power that is necessary to keep our democracy intact. Even their delay in judgment so that Donald Trump can avoid a court date before the November election shows how far the wheels have come off the judiciary cart.
History will judge them harshly, but at the moment, the congressional ethics branch must act to hold the judicial branch accountable if our democratic way of life is to survive. Large gifts from rich influencers only add to the public’s misgivings. And if those gifts were not properly reported, that crosses a line into criminal activity.
Accountability equals integrity. The Supreme Court should be looking up to that and not down at it.
Joseph Allen
Buffalo
The president’s authority is defined and limited by the Constitution, not by the president.
The Constitution does not grant to the president the authority to exercise a constitutional power to nullify a constitutional duty. If it did, the president would be above the Constitution, not subject to it.
If a president uses his constitutional powers to nullify his constitutional duties then he has, in effect, granted to himself the absolute power to “rewrite,” i.e., amend the Constitution, as it pertains to him, to rid himself of any duty anytime it suits or benefits him personally to do so.
It should not matter one iota if the president acts in his official capacity or not. If he uses the ‘color of his office’ to violate the Constitution and the laws of the United States, he violates his sworn, constitutional duties to “faithfully execute” the laws and to “preserve, protect, and defend” the Constitution of the United States.
In such a case, the president should be held to account - civilly or criminally. Our Constitution does not grant to the president immunity when acting, officially or unofficially, in violation of his constitutional authority.
Maurice F. Baggiano
Jamestown
My original church, Our Lady of the Rosary in Niagara Falls, was sold decades ago to a minister who has since grown his congregation and is rebuilding this church. St. George's on Falls Street was purchased for $70,000 just before Easter Sunday by an Anglican bishop from Canada. Ask anyone in the neighborhood about the work of Joann Lorenzo, and they will immediately recognize her home base at this church. This community outreach is now doing the Lord’s work in a community that needs it most.
Buffalo also has examples of churches, once the center of sacraments, now home to trade skill education. Last year, I toured Assembly 160, a fascinating space where talented woodworking craftsmen mentor young aspiring tradespeople. Buffalo even experimented with converting a church building into a small grade school, which later became the King Urban Life Center, a remarkable operation connecting the community with resources far beyond local opportunities.
Today, I ask my Western New York faith community to imagine the future of their churches. Could a Buffalo Niagara Hostel be located in Niagara Falls? A small resettlement center in a former school? A reuse home builders' supply store in a gym? A museum of religious artifacts? Reimagined athletic spaces? Engineering offices?
The closing of many places of worship is both a curse and a blessing if a thoughtful transition happens. It is a moment for the laity of each faith community to rise to the challenge and reimagine these spaces for future generations.
Guy Zaczek
Niagara Falls
I am glad that climate change was brought up in the presidential debate. Policies that address climate change would help American business compete with other countries whose production processes are much dirtier than ours. They would expand the economy and reduce costs for consumers. All candidates should be talking about solutions to climate change as it affects all of us.
As a lifelong Republican and a member of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby, I know that conservation is Conservative!
Rob Johnson
Medina
I am a Democratic voter through and through, but regarding President Joe Biden at present, I have serious concerns. I would like to see him go through extensive neurological testing and if issues are discovered, Biden could comfortably withdraw from the 2024 campaign, stepping aside with a strong sense of accomplishment as well as tremendous honesty, honor, integrity and dignity.
Marcia Rashman Frankel
Williamsville
Very accurate column in Sunday’s Buffalo News by Susan Estrich (“Is this really the best our country can do? Biden is much diminished”), which is equally frightening.
Three hundred million people, and we can’t do better than this at a time when both Russia and China are both flexing their muscles?
If God is ever going to bless America, now is the time.
Anthony H. Gioia
Buffalo
How very serendipitous. On the exact same day that Joe Biden gave a less than exemplary presidential debate performance, the Supreme Court was forced to issue a corrected version of the Ohio v. EPA court decision because the opinion penned by 56-year-old justice Neil Gorsuch carried an incorrect term five times. It appears that they used the term nitrous oxide (an anesthetic commonly referred to as laughing gas) instead of the correct nitrogen oxide, an air pollutant.
So, to put this in context, a Supreme Court justice (and staff) with ample time for deliberation erred in terminology requiring a revision of the ruling while the 81-year-old president, with severe time constraints on his responses attempting to present his administration’s accomplishments (whilst his opponent simply spewed a litany of lies and conspiracy theories dating back eight years) fumbled and is under fire.
Let me be clear. It was not a good look for Joe Biden.
No single individual knows everything or can remember every detail all the time. Gorsuch deals with one case at a time. Biden must juggle domestic and foreign policies and more. Gorsuch had law clerks to catch his error. Debaters have no assistants on stage.
Donald Trump is a great pugilist. That doesn’t qualify him to be president.
Helen Shoff
West Seneca
Many remember the late President Lyndon Johnson for succeeding President John F. Kennedy after his assassination in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963. Others remember him for his domestic Great Society program, which included Civil Rights, Medicare, Medicaid, War on Poverty and Public Broadcasting and a friend of Israel. There was also other foreign policy, most notably the Vietnam War. Few remember his other landmark legislation. This was the foundation for federal financial support of public transportation.
July 2024 marks the 60th Anniversary of federal government support for public transportation. The success of public transportation can be traced back to one of the late President Lyndon Johnson's greatest accomplishments which continues benefiting many Americans today. On July 9th, 1964 he signed the "Urban Mass Transportation Act of 1964" into law. Subsequently this has resulted in the investment over time of several hundred billion dollars into public transportation. The Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority has benefited by over $1.70 billion in grants from the United States Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration (previously known as the Urban Mass Transportation Administration), going back to 1973. A majority of the NFTA bus and light rail capital program, including buses, light rail cars, para transit vehicles, bus garages, light rail yard, compressed natural gas fueling stations, fare collection equipment, automatic vehicle locator equipment, real time communications systems to notify riders for anticipated arrival of the next bus, shelters, bus stop signs and other support equipment necessary to run the system were all paid for primarily with federal funding.
Depending upon where you live, consider the public transportation alternative. Try riding a NFTA Metro bus, para transit or light rail vehicle.
The ability to travel from home to workplace, school, shopping, entertainment, medical, library etc. is a factor when moving to a new neighborhood. Economically successful communities are not 100% dependent on automobiles as the sole means of mobility. Seniors, students, low and middle income people need these transportation alternatives. Investment in public transportation today contributes to economic growth, employment and a stronger economy. Dollar for dollar, it is one of the best investments we can make.
Larry Penner
Great Neck
Transportation advocate
Historian
I enjoyed reading Robert Fellmeth’s opinion on democracy in June 23, Sunday Viewpoints section.
He made some thoughtful points. That said, I believe his logic is flawed on limiting the Electoral College and in the rank order of his recommendations.
The founders of the nation knew that having a simple majority was not always the best solution. Guardrails to ensure equity were required.
The Electoral College is set up so that the voice of the smaller portions of the populations are not merely overrun by the wishes of those in larger areas.
The president must be the president for the whole country, not just being popular in densely populated areas.
Think of how, in New York State today, how we have downstate representation consistently ignoring or overriding the needs of Upstate.
A simple majority rule has made New York State a runaway tax and spend state. Can we argue that majority rule is a good thing in New York?
For those that complain about the composition of the Supreme Court today, recall that the confirmation of federal judges used to require 60 votes of approval in the U.S. Senate.
When Harry Reid was Senate Majority Leader, the Democratic majority was having difficulty getting their federal judge nominees confirmed.
So, he led the movement to change the confirmation of federal judges to a simple majority. The guardrail that prevented far left or far right leaning judges being confirmed was removed as it was unlikely when 60 votes were required.
Problem solved, until President Trump got to nominate three judges for the Supreme Court. In this case, however, there is outrage on a simple majority process.
My point is some things are too important to let a simple majority decide.
As for the order of Fellmeth’s recommended actions, I would move reducing the federal deficit to the top priority.
Nations and empires have crumbled under the weight of debt. See the British and Roman Empires as examples.
If finances are in order, all other things can be addressed. If not, we will eventually cease to exist as debt will crush our nation and ambitions.
Jeffrey N. Johnson
Lancaster
By looking to air condition their classrooms, do we coddle our teenagers? (“Too hot? Really? Stop coddling kids.”) the June 29 letter writer asserts that, "I went to school during the 1960s and 1970s. We had the same conditions and we survived."
But he did not have the same conditions. Our climate has gotten warmer. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the average annual temperature in the lower 48 states of the U.S. rose from 51.6 degrees in 1970 to 55.6 in 2023. And each year gets hotter still, as the atmosphere retains more heat - and more water vapor.
Say the letter writer took exams in 1970. His classroom temperature in June might have been four degrees cooler and less humid. There is a big difference between, say, 76 and 80 degrees. Another effect of climate change is that we are subject to much greater risk of extreme weather, such as heat waves in June, when kids are taking their exams.
Adapting to the changing climate means adapting our way of life, in ways big and small. If that includes air conditioning schools, so be it. More broadly, we need to embrace new technologies that generate heat and energy without fossil fuels, the main drivers of climate change. We should press elected officials to protect the long-term health and safety of New York's kids. Gov. Hochul, in particular, should take heed.
Suzanne Coogan
Warsaw
OK, so Joe Biden lost the first debate. He couldn’t keep up with Donald Trump’s rampage of lies. Let’s remember Barack Obama lost his first debate to Mitt Romney too. He was just too passive but came out firing big time during the second debate. Let’s hope Biden does the same.
In the big picture of things let’s not lose sight of some of the egregious things Trump has done: ruined abortion health care, nixed the bipartisan border deal because it would make Biden look good, threatened pull out of NATO and invited Vladimir Putin to attack its members, opposed all gun control legislation in the face of a gun killing epidemic, encouraged physical revenge against his opposition, incited and supported the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol, stole top secret nuclear information, etc. But the one that hit hardest home for me was his criticism of Gold Star families of which I am one. Trump, an obvious draft dodger coward, when invited to visit a war cemetery in France is supposed to have said, “Why would I want to visit those suckers and losers.” For me whose father died in the Normandy invasion fighting for the freedom that now Trump enjoys, and I’m sure for other Gold Star families, he could not have made a more hurtful and despicable statement. Losing the first debate pales in comparison to these derelict transgressions.
Gerald "Jerry" Kelly
Buffalo
“Feeble octogenarian,” “shuffling,” “hospice patient lost on their way to the bathroom,” are just a few of the recent escalating ageist and biased remarks about President Biden, who has dedicated 60 years to public service not to personal gain. Would you use these adjectives to describe your parents, grandparents, or a teacher or colleague?
As a career gerontological nurse specialist and an older person myself, I am both dismayed and insulted by the ageist rhetoric dominating the current public discourse across a variety of media. The Gerontological Society of America has made significant efforts to cultivate awareness of implicit bias toward older people and to influence policies and programs that benefit all of us as we age. The Reframing Aging Initiative provides evidence-based guidelines for communicating about older people and aging across all communication platforms. A place to begin is to use neutral terms such as “older people,” “older adults” or “older Americans,” not elderly or seniors, and certainly not frail or feeble, or similar “other-ing” terms that stoke stereotypes.
Older people are a backbone in our communities, contributing abilities and knowledge as engaged professionals, family caregivers, grandparents raising grandchildren, and serving as volunteers in every imaginable corner of our communities. Aging generates experiences that inform decision making, expand networks, and deepen relationships and judgment. Let’s insist that across all communication platforms we set our biases aside to reframe and reinforce older people as capable of meaningful responsibilities and relationships, and whose judgment reflects those to make this a reality.
Sherry Pomeroy
Orchard Park
Joe Biden may not be ready to run a marathon, but he is capable of continuing his presidency. A president doesn't work in a vacuum where he has to have all the facts and numbers on so many issues memorized. He has access to advisors and a vast amount of information plus technology. His experience and integrity help him to produce effective results.
What we need is someone who can be trusted and who has our country's safety and prosperity as his highest goals, someone who respects its people - even his adversaries. The other choice, Donald Trump, has consistently shown that his highest priority is himself and his self-aggrandizement. Take him at his word when he says he'll want a third term (and will appoint Supreme Court justices that would allow that if he does win). His best friends seem to be Vladimir Putin and North Korea's horrible leader. Many of the steps Trump has told us he'll take are the kind that Hitler took as he worked his scheme.
Trump is not respected by America's friends and not feared by the free world's enemies.
Even if he were asleep, Joe Biden is a far greater asset and, more importantly, less of a real threat to our country than Trump awake.
I fell for the Trump scheme the first time around (and didn't like some of Hillary Clinton's programs) but, when he showed his true self, that vote became one of my biggest regrets - a mistake none of us should ever make again.
Jim Castiglione
Buffalo
My whole life, I've been extremely interested in the presidential election process, starting with the primaries and conventions right through the debates and November election. Lately however, I can't help but feel disillusioned by the whole process.
It's downright scary the degree to which obscene amounts of money have come to impact our national political scene. And this level of influence hurtled completely out of control with the ridiculous 2010 Supreme Court Citizen's United ruling, which permits unlimited campaign contributions to political candidates from corporations and wealthy donors.
While mudslinging has been present from the earliest years of American politics, there has always been some degree of dignity and civility between competing presidential candidates until recently. And while the truth has always been stretched and statements exaggerated, we have now entered an age in which rampant misinformation, nastiness and overt hostility reign.
How sad is it that microphones in presidential debates actually have to be muted in order that the one speaking can proceed without being constantly interrupted by his opponent? Such nice role modeling for America's youth. And how did it ever come to the loser of an election not only refusing to accept the will of the voters, but also exhorting his supporters to violently overturn the election results?
This is not the America my father and thousands of other brave soldiers risked their lives for. I guess what concerns me more than anything is the overwhelming number of American voters who are fine with this new status quo: utter contempt for other viewpoints and a willingness to support candidates who could care less about the principles upon which our great nation was founded.
Michael Scully
Williamsville
I recently read the article published on June 24 titled “State urged to OK alternatives for overdose reversal”.
After reading the article, I felt your readers should be provided with some additional information.
First, the New York State Department of Health (DOH) is spending millions of their tax dollars purchasing only one version of naloxone, even though there are a multitude of naloxone products approved by the FDA as safe and effective that are available for purchase. DOH has had an exclusive arrangement with the maker of that one product for years. No one can ensure that such an exclusive arrangement is resulting in the best possible pricing for the product.
DOH can, and should, do what the legislation referenced in the article asks for - make all forms of naloxone available. They can do that by immediately issuing an open, competitive procurement where only those naloxone products that offer their best price will be purchased and distributed in New York State.
If DOH refuses to issue such a procurement, the state Comptroller should order them to conduct such a procurement. At a time when New York State has seen a 73% increase in overdose deaths since 2018; it would seem to make good sense to spend your money to buy as much of this life-saving product as possible.
Robert Kent
Fmr. General Counsel
White House Office
Nat. Drug Control Policy;
NYS Office, Addiction Svcs. & Supports
Congratulations SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States). With your decision to legalize “gratuities” for government officials, we have now reached undeveloped nation status. I imagine this will open the door to all kinds of pay-to-play schemes. Need a building permit? Grease a palm. Want an easement? Open your wallet. It’s so generous of those justices that are getting rich from bribes they receive on the court to declare open season at city hall. The right truly has no bottom.
Mark Carrow
East Aurora
We very much enjoyed another concert by James Taylor and his Troupe at Darien. It is so great that iconic talents visit Buffalo. What's not so great is attempting to exit the park after the concert - unless you pay $50 for premier parking. While there were copious numbers of people directing us to a space, there was absolutely no one guiding drivers out. We luckily parked next to happy party people who were savvy enough to bring snacks and beverages to wait out the crowd. They convinced two other drivers to let us cut in line after we sat still for 20 minutes. Great people! Alas! As we got about 100 yards from the street, there were eight uniformed men huddled together flashing lights at drivers directing them out. We didn't need you there - we needed you all along the exit route. A very frustrating end to an otherwise great night.
Sandy Witman
Williamsville
I am distressed and disappointed.
I watched the debate, every single minute of it.
I also watched much of the post-debate coverage that evening.
I understand that President Biden had a terrible performance. No question.
The coverage that night, after the debate, was almost entirely about Biden’s terrible performance.
I actually understand that.
It is now a couple of weeks later and the stations, including those that I watch, continue to spend much of their programming covering President Biden’s poor performance.
What is distressing and disappointing is that the stations do not, do not, spend equal time dissecting the lies that the former president spewed. What about time spent fact checking everything he said? The other thing that stations could spend hours on are the questions that the former president refused to answer or merely deflected. Several questions did not even come close to being answered. Spend some time on that! One question that sticks in my mind that went unanswered, despite being asked multiple times, was related to the former president’s stance on deportation of immigrants. No answer.
I have a question that continues to linger in my mind is what are “Black jobs”? The former president said that immigrants are taking away “Black jobs.” What are those?
I encourage all stations and platforms to spend equal time on each candidate’s debate performance. Equal coverage.
Ann Converso, RN
Lawtons
I optimistically characterize myself as an “upper octogenarian”, which is to say I am older than President Biden. And I, too, have been wrestling with a problem. Background: I grew up on the water – lifeguard, competitive swimmer, sailor, rode out a Category 2 hurricane on a destroyer, canoed Cattaraugus Creek during spring run-off and so on.
Which leads to my problem: I need a lighter canoe. My current one is fine, but now it is too heavy for me to lift onto my car or over the beach as I always have. Yes, I can still paddle very well, but not as far or fast as I used to. My ability to cope with unexpected changing conditions is admittedly limited.
What should I do? Does it make sense for me to invest in a lighter boat and continue taking chances? Or should I accept the reality of my inexorably progressing age? It is a tough decision. I love being on the water and the paddle work which I can do so well, but it is not going to get any easier and it could quickly result in a tragedy. All said, I probably should conclude that I must give up solo canoeing.
I hope President Biden can accept his reality, too. He should allow Democrats to field a capable candidate to defeat his regrettable opponent and lead our country away from the chaos promised by MAGA Republicans. Otherwise, we may be up a creek …
Andrew Graham
Buffalo
Liberal democracies live or die by the principle of the rule of law.
The Supreme Court has again tossed aside precedent - in the case of presidential immunity - and, astonishingly, abrogated to itself new judicial powers in the overturn of the Chevron doctrine.
The reactionary - one can hardly call them conservatives! – faction on SCOTUS has just created a new judicial power out of thin air – the biggest grab of judicial power since John Marshall (Marbury v. Madison). In their overturning of the Chevron doctrine, the Court claims the power to second-guess Congress at every administrative turn.
The Court has likewise created a new doctrine of sovereign impunity - to be distinguished from sovereign immunity, which protects the executive from prosecution of illegal acts taken by the president, especially during times of war. It can be argued that sovereign immunity is necessary to allow the executive to conduct the defense of the nation unhampered by legal niceties. But it was understood that the minute s/he leaves office, they're subject to prosecution for any crimes they may have committed while in office, on the idea that no one is above the law. The Court has seemingly tossed this understanding of presidential immunity out the window.
Our founders must be spinning in their graves. Not only is none of this "in the Constitution, “the idea of sovereign impunity goes against everything they believed in.
Douglas Aerie
Buffalo
More like this...
The Supreme Court has made it perfectly clear they are totally political, at least the male majority members. They also have made it totally clear that they feel one man can be above the law and that the rule of law can be interpreted to suit their agenda. This misuse of their judicial function disrupts the balance of power that is necessary to keep our democracy intact. Even their delay in judgment so that Donald Trump can avoid a court date before the November election shows how far the wheels have come off the judiciary cart.
History will judge them harshly, but at the moment, the congressional ethics branch must act to hold the judicial branch accountable if our democratic way of life is to survive. Large gifts from rich influencers only add to the public’s misgivings. And if those gifts were not properly reported, that crosses a line into criminal activity.
Accountability equals integrity. The Supreme Court should be looking up to that and not down at it.
Joseph Allen
Buffalo
The president’s authority is defined and limited by the Constitution, not by the president.
The Constitution does not grant to the president the authority to exercise a constitutional power to nullify a constitutional duty. If it did, the president would be above the Constitution, not subject to it.
If a president uses his constitutional powers to nullify his constitutional duties then he has, in effect, granted to himself the absolute power to “rewrite,” i.e., amend the Constitution, as it pertains to him, to rid himself of any duty anytime it suits or benefits him personally to do so.
It should not matter one iota if the president acts in his official capacity or not. If he uses the ‘color of his office’ to violate the Constitution and the laws of the United States, he violates his sworn, constitutional duties to “faithfully execute” the laws and to “preserve, protect, and defend” the Constitution of the United States.
In such a case, the president should be held to account - civilly or criminally. Our Constitution does not grant to the president immunity when acting, officially or unofficially, in violation of his constitutional authority.
Maurice F. Baggiano
Jamestown
My original church, Our Lady of the Rosary in Niagara Falls, was sold decades ago to a minister who has since grown his congregation and is rebuilding this church. St. George's on Falls Street was purchased for $70,000 just before Easter Sunday by an Anglican bishop from Canada. Ask anyone in the neighborhood about the work of Joann Lorenzo, and they will immediately recognize her home base at this church. This community outreach is now doing the Lord’s work in a community that needs it most.
Buffalo also has examples of churches, once the center of sacraments, now home to trade skill education. Last year, I toured Assembly 160, a fascinating space where talented woodworking craftsmen mentor young aspiring tradespeople. Buffalo even experimented with converting a church building into a small grade school, which later became the King Urban Life Center, a remarkable operation connecting the community with resources far beyond local opportunities.
Today, I ask my Western New York faith community to imagine the future of their churches. Could a Buffalo Niagara Hostel be located in Niagara Falls? A small resettlement center in a former school? A reuse home builders' supply store in a gym? A museum of religious artifacts? Reimagined athletic spaces? Engineering offices?
The closing of many places of worship is both a curse and a blessing if a thoughtful transition happens. It is a moment for the laity of each faith community to rise to the challenge and reimagine these spaces for future generations.
Guy Zaczek
Niagara Falls
I am glad that climate change was brought up in the presidential debate. Policies that address climate change would help American business compete with other countries whose production processes are much dirtier than ours. They would expand the economy and reduce costs for consumers. All candidates should be talking about solutions to climate change as it affects all of us.
As a lifelong Republican and a member of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby, I know that conservation is Conservative!
Rob Johnson
Medina
I am a Democratic voter through and through, but regarding President Joe Biden at present, I have serious concerns. I would like to see him go through extensive neurological testing and if issues are discovered, Biden could comfortably withdraw from the 2024 campaign, stepping aside with a strong sense of accomplishment as well as tremendous honesty, honor, integrity and dignity.
Marcia Rashman Frankel
Williamsville
Very accurate column in Sunday’s Buffalo News by Susan Estrich (“Is this really the best our country can do? Biden is much diminished”), which is equally frightening.
Three hundred million people, and we can’t do better than this at a time when both Russia and China are both flexing their muscles?
If God is ever going to bless America, now is the time.
Anthony H. Gioia
Buffalo
How very serendipitous. On the exact same day that Joe Biden gave a less than exemplary presidential debate performance, the Supreme Court was forced to issue a corrected version of the Ohio v. EPA court decision because the opinion penned by 56-year-old justice Neil Gorsuch carried an incorrect term five times. It appears that they used the term nitrous oxide (an anesthetic commonly referred to as laughing gas) instead of the correct nitrogen oxide, an air pollutant.
So, to put this in context, a Supreme Court justice (and staff) with ample time for deliberation erred in terminology requiring a revision of the ruling while the 81-year-old president, with severe time constraints on his responses attempting to present his administration’s accomplishments (whilst his opponent simply spewed a litany of lies and conspiracy theories dating back eight years) fumbled and is under fire.
Let me be clear. It was not a good look for Joe Biden.
No single individual knows everything or can remember every detail all the time. Gorsuch deals with one case at a time. Biden must juggle domestic and foreign policies and more. Gorsuch had law clerks to catch his error. Debaters have no assistants on stage.
Donald Trump is a great pugilist. That doesn’t qualify him to be president.
Helen Shoff
West Seneca
Many remember the late President Lyndon Johnson for succeeding President John F. Kennedy after his assassination in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963. Others remember him for his domestic Great Society program, which included Civil Rights, Medicare, Medicaid, War on Poverty and Public Broadcasting and a friend of Israel. There was also other foreign policy, most notably the Vietnam War. Few remember his other landmark legislation. This was the foundation for federal financial support of public transportation.
July 2024 marks the 60th Anniversary of federal government support for public transportation. The success of public transportation can be traced back to one of the late President Lyndon Johnson's greatest accomplishments which continues benefiting many Americans today. On July 9th, 1964 he signed the "Urban Mass Transportation Act of 1964" into law. Subsequently this has resulted in the investment over time of several hundred billion dollars into public transportation. The Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority has benefited by over $1.70 billion in grants from the United States Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration (previously known as the Urban Mass Transportation Administration), going back to 1973. A majority of the NFTA bus and light rail capital program, including buses, light rail cars, para transit vehicles, bus garages, light rail yard, compressed natural gas fueling stations, fare collection equipment, automatic vehicle locator equipment, real time communications systems to notify riders for anticipated arrival of the next bus, shelters, bus stop signs and other support equipment necessary to run the system were all paid for primarily with federal funding.
Depending upon where you live, consider the public transportation alternative. Try riding a NFTA Metro bus, para transit or light rail vehicle.
The ability to travel from home to workplace, school, shopping, entertainment, medical, library etc. is a factor when moving to a new neighborhood. Economically successful communities are not 100% dependent on automobiles as the sole means of mobility. Seniors, students, low and middle income people need these transportation alternatives. Investment in public transportation today contributes to economic growth, employment and a stronger economy. Dollar for dollar, it is one of the best investments we can make.
Larry Penner
Great Neck
Transportation advocate
Historian
I enjoyed reading Robert Fellmeth’s opinion on democracy in June 23, Sunday Viewpoints section.
He made some thoughtful points. That said, I believe his logic is flawed on limiting the Electoral College and in the rank order of his recommendations.
The founders of the nation knew that having a simple majority was not always the best solution. Guardrails to ensure equity were required.
The Electoral College is set up so that the voice of the smaller portions of the populations are not merely overrun by the wishes of those in larger areas.
The president must be the president for the whole country, not just being popular in densely populated areas.
Think of how, in New York State today, how we have downstate representation consistently ignoring or overriding the needs of Upstate.
A simple majority rule has made New York State a runaway tax and spend state. Can we argue that majority rule is a good thing in New York?
For those that complain about the composition of the Supreme Court today, recall that the confirmation of federal judges used to require 60 votes of approval in the U.S. Senate.
When Harry Reid was Senate Majority Leader, the Democratic majority was having difficulty getting their federal judge nominees confirmed.
So, he led the movement to change the confirmation of federal judges to a simple majority. The guardrail that prevented far left or far right leaning judges being confirmed was removed as it was unlikely when 60 votes were required.
Problem solved, until President Trump got to nominate three judges for the Supreme Court. In this case, however, there is outrage on a simple majority process.
My point is some things are too important to let a simple majority decide.
As for the order of Fellmeth’s recommended actions, I would move reducing the federal deficit to the top priority.
Nations and empires have crumbled under the weight of debt. See the British and Roman Empires as examples.
If finances are in order, all other things can be addressed. If not, we will eventually cease to exist as debt will crush our nation and ambitions.
Jeffrey N. Johnson
Lancaster
By looking to air condition their classrooms, do we coddle our teenagers? (“Too hot? Really? Stop coddling kids.”) the June 29 letter writer asserts that, "I went to school during the 1960s and 1970s. We had the same conditions and we survived."
But he did not have the same conditions. Our climate has gotten warmer. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the average annual temperature in the lower 48 states of the U.S. rose from 51.6 degrees in 1970 to 55.6 in 2023. And each year gets hotter still, as the atmosphere retains more heat - and more water vapor.
Say the letter writer took exams in 1970. His classroom temperature in June might have been four degrees cooler and less humid. There is a big difference between, say, 76 and 80 degrees. Another effect of climate change is that we are subject to much greater risk of extreme weather, such as heat waves in June, when kids are taking their exams.
Adapting to the changing climate means adapting our way of life, in ways big and small. If that includes air conditioning schools, so be it. More broadly, we need to embrace new technologies that generate heat and energy without fossil fuels, the main drivers of climate change. We should press elected officials to protect the long-term health and safety of New York's kids. Gov. Hochul, in particular, should take heed.
Suzanne Coogan
Warsaw
OK, so Joe Biden lost the first debate. He couldn’t keep up with Donald Trump’s rampage of lies. Let’s remember Barack Obama lost his first debate to Mitt Romney too. He was just too passive but came out firing big time during the second debate. Let’s hope Biden does the same.
In the big picture of things let’s not lose sight of some of the egregious things Trump has done: ruined abortion health care, nixed the bipartisan border deal because it would make Biden look good, threatened pull out of NATO and invited Vladimir Putin to attack its members, opposed all gun control legislation in the face of a gun killing epidemic, encouraged physical revenge against his opposition, incited and supported the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol, stole top secret nuclear information, etc. But the one that hit hardest home for me was his criticism of Gold Star families of which I am one. Trump, an obvious draft dodger coward, when invited to visit a war cemetery in France is supposed to have said, “Why would I want to visit those suckers and losers.” For me whose father died in the Normandy invasion fighting for the freedom that now Trump enjoys, and I’m sure for other Gold Star families, he could not have made a more hurtful and despicable statement. Losing the first debate pales in comparison to these derelict transgressions.
Gerald "Jerry" Kelly
Buffalo
“Feeble octogenarian,” “shuffling,” “hospice patient lost on their way to the bathroom,” are just a few of the recent escalating ageist and biased remarks about President Biden, who has dedicated 60 years to public service not to personal gain. Would you use these adjectives to describe your parents, grandparents, or a teacher or colleague?
As a career gerontological nurse specialist and an older person myself, I am both dismayed and insulted by the ageist rhetoric dominating the current public discourse across a variety of media. The Gerontological Society of America has made significant efforts to cultivate awareness of implicit bias toward older people and to influence policies and programs that benefit all of us as we age. The Reframing Aging Initiative provides evidence-based guidelines for communicating about older people and aging across all communication platforms. A place to begin is to use neutral terms such as “older people,” “older adults” or “older Americans,” not elderly or seniors, and certainly not frail or feeble, or similar “other-ing” terms that stoke stereotypes.
Older people are a backbone in our communities, contributing abilities and knowledge as engaged professionals, family caregivers, grandparents raising grandchildren, and serving as volunteers in every imaginable corner of our communities. Aging generates experiences that inform decision making, expand networks, and deepen relationships and judgment. Let’s insist that across all communication platforms we set our biases aside to reframe and reinforce older people as capable of meaningful responsibilities and relationships, and whose judgment reflects those to make this a reality.
Sherry Pomeroy
Orchard Park
Joe Biden may not be ready to run a marathon, but he is capable of continuing his presidency. A president doesn't work in a vacuum where he has to have all the facts and numbers on so many issues memorized. He has access to advisors and a vast amount of information plus technology. His experience and integrity help him to produce effective results.
What we need is someone who can be trusted and who has our country's safety and prosperity as his highest goals, someone who respects its people - even his adversaries. The other choice, Donald Trump, has consistently shown that his highest priority is himself and his self-aggrandizement. Take him at his word when he says he'll want a third term (and will appoint Supreme Court justices that would allow that if he does win). His best friends seem to be Vladimir Putin and North Korea's horrible leader. Many of the steps Trump has told us he'll take are the kind that Hitler took as he worked his scheme.
Trump is not respected by America's friends and not feared by the free world's enemies.
Even if he were asleep, Joe Biden is a far greater asset and, more importantly, less of a real threat to our country than Trump awake.
I fell for the Trump scheme the first time around (and didn't like some of Hillary Clinton's programs) but, when he showed his true self, that vote became one of my biggest regrets - a mistake none of us should ever make again.
Jim Castiglione
Buffalo
My whole life, I've been extremely interested in the presidential election process, starting with the primaries and conventions right through the debates and November election. Lately however, I can't help but feel disillusioned by the whole process.
It's downright scary the degree to which obscene amounts of money have come to impact our national political scene. And this level of influence hurtled completely out of control with the ridiculous 2010 Supreme Court Citizen's United ruling, which permits unlimited campaign contributions to political candidates from corporations and wealthy donors.
While mudslinging has been present from the earliest years of American politics, there has always been some degree of dignity and civility between competing presidential candidates until recently. And while the truth has always been stretched and statements exaggerated, we have now entered an age in which rampant misinformation, nastiness and overt hostility reign.
How sad is it that microphones in presidential debates actually have to be muted in order that the one speaking can proceed without being constantly interrupted by his opponent? Such nice role modeling for America's youth. And how did it ever come to the loser of an election not only refusing to accept the will of the voters, but also exhorting his supporters to violently overturn the election results?
This is not the America my father and thousands of other brave soldiers risked their lives for. I guess what concerns me more than anything is the overwhelming number of American voters who are fine with this new status quo: utter contempt for other viewpoints and a willingness to support candidates who could care less about the principles upon which our great nation was founded.
Michael Scully
Williamsville
I recently read the article published on June 24 titled “State urged to OK alternatives for overdose reversal”.
After reading the article, I felt your readers should be provided with some additional information.
First, the New York State Department of Health (DOH) is spending millions of their tax dollars purchasing only one version of naloxone, even though there are a multitude of naloxone products approved by the FDA as safe and effective that are available for purchase. DOH has had an exclusive arrangement with the maker of that one product for years. No one can ensure that such an exclusive arrangement is resulting in the best possible pricing for the product.
DOH can, and should, do what the legislation referenced in the article asks for - make all forms of naloxone available. They can do that by immediately issuing an open, competitive procurement where only those naloxone products that offer their best price will be purchased and distributed in New York State.
If DOH refuses to issue such a procurement, the state Comptroller should order them to conduct such a procurement. At a time when New York State has seen a 73% increase in overdose deaths since 2018; it would seem to make good sense to spend your money to buy as much of this life-saving product as possible.
Robert Kent
Fmr. General Counsel
White House Office
Nat. Drug Control Policy;
NYS Office, Addiction Svcs. & Supports
Congratulations SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States). With your decision to legalize “gratuities” for government officials, we have now reached undeveloped nation status. I imagine this will open the door to all kinds of pay-to-play schemes. Need a building permit? Grease a palm. Want an easement? Open your wallet. It’s so generous of those justices that are getting rich from bribes they receive on the court to declare open season at city hall. The right truly has no bottom.
Mark Carrow
East Aurora
We very much enjoyed another concert by James Taylor and his Troupe at Darien. It is so great that iconic talents visit Buffalo. What's not so great is attempting to exit the park after the concert - unless you pay $50 for premier parking. While there were copious numbers of people directing us to a space, there was absolutely no one guiding drivers out. We luckily parked next to happy party people who were savvy enough to bring snacks and beverages to wait out the crowd. They convinced two other drivers to let us cut in line after we sat still for 20 minutes. Great people! Alas! As we got about 100 yards from the street, there were eight uniformed men huddled together flashing lights at drivers directing them out. We didn't need you there - we needed you all along the exit route. A very frustrating end to an otherwise great night.
Sandy Witman
Williamsville
I am distressed and disappointed.
I watched the debate, every single minute of it.
I also watched much of the post-debate coverage that evening.
I understand that President Biden had a terrible performance. No question.
The coverage that night, after the debate, was almost entirely about Biden’s terrible performance.
I actually understand that.
It is now a couple of weeks later and the stations, including those that I watch, continue to spend much of their programming covering President Biden’s poor performance.
What is distressing and disappointing is that the stations do not, do not, spend equal time dissecting the lies that the former president spewed. What about time spent fact checking everything he said? The other thing that stations could spend hours on are the questions that the former president refused to answer or merely deflected. Several questions did not even come close to being answered. Spend some time on that! One question that sticks in my mind that went unanswered, despite being asked multiple times, was related to the former president’s stance on deportation of immigrants. No answer.
I have a question that continues to linger in my mind is what are “Black jobs”? The former president said that immigrants are taking away “Black jobs.” What are those?
I encourage all stations and platforms to spend equal time on each candidate’s debate performance. Equal coverage.
Ann Converso, RN
Lawtons
I optimistically characterize myself as an “upper octogenarian”, which is to say I am older than President Biden. And I, too, have been wrestling with a problem. Background: I grew up on the water – lifeguard, competitive swimmer, sailor, rode out a Category 2 hurricane on a destroyer, canoed Cattaraugus Creek during spring run-off and so on.
Which leads to my problem: I need a lighter canoe. My current one is fine, but now it is too heavy for me to lift onto my car or over the beach as I always have. Yes, I can still paddle very well, but not as far or fast as I used to. My ability to cope with unexpected changing conditions is admittedly limited.
What should I do? Does it make sense for me to invest in a lighter boat and continue taking chances? Or should I accept the reality of my inexorably progressing age? It is a tough decision. I love being on the water and the paddle work which I can do so well, but it is not going to get any easier and it could quickly result in a tragedy. All said, I probably should conclude that I must give up solo canoeing.
I hope President Biden can accept his reality, too. He should allow Democrats to field a capable candidate to defeat his regrettable opponent and lead our country away from the chaos promised by MAGA Republicans. Otherwise, we may be up a creek …
Andrew Graham
Buffalo
Liberal democracies live or die by the principle of the rule of law.
The Supreme Court has again tossed aside precedent - in the case of presidential immunity - and, astonishingly, abrogated to itself new judicial powers in the overturn of the Chevron doctrine.
The reactionary - one can hardly call them conservatives! – faction on SCOTUS has just created a new judicial power out of thin air – the biggest grab of judicial power since John Marshall (Marbury v. Madison). In their overturning of the Chevron doctrine, the Court claims the power to second-guess Congress at every administrative turn.
The Court has likewise created a new doctrine of sovereign impunity - to be distinguished from sovereign immunity, which protects the executive from prosecution of illegal acts taken by the president, especially during times of war. It can be argued that sovereign immunity is necessary to allow the executive to conduct the defense of the nation unhampered by legal niceties. But it was understood that the minute s/he leaves office, they're subject to prosecution for any crimes they may have committed while in office, on the idea that no one is above the law. The Court has seemingly tossed this understanding of presidential immunity out the window.
Our founders must be spinning in their graves. Not only is none of this "in the Constitution, “the idea of sovereign impunity goes against everything they believed in.
Douglas Aerie
Buffalo
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