'Women (and men) take note" Letter to the editor Diana Staats

Women (and Men) - Take Note

With President Trump and Vice President Pence working hard to limit and eliminate contraception access and abortion services to low income women, we in NY State should be thankful for Governor Cuomo’s initiative for women’s empowerment: the Women’s Opportunity Agenda. As part of this agenda Governor Cuomo has included two critical amendments in his Fiscal Year 2019 State budget that directly impact women’s health concerns: The Comprehensive Contraceptive Coverage Act ( CCCA ) and the Reproductive  Healthcare Act (RHA). His Women’s Opportunity Agenda report also includes long overdue support for the Equal Rights Amendment which will protect against discrimination on the basis of sex in the NY State Constitution.

The CCCA will require that all women have access to low cost (or free) birth control. It would also cover the full cost of a vasectomy, thus covering birth control for men for the first time. Currently, cuts to federal aid for Title X funding  (a program which supports family planning for those considered  low-income and those that are uninsured) has put this access at risk. Without contraceptive choice and access, many more women will be dealing with unintended pregnancies and we are likely to see an increase in unintended pregnancies and unplanned births. The CCCA if passed, will protect this right for the women and men of New York State.

Governor Cuomo’s inclusion of the RHA is also critical. Although NY State was at one time considered to be a vanguard in women’s health care legislation, the 47 year old NY State Abortion Law urgently needs updating.  Our current NY State statute criminalizes abortions performed after the 24^th week unless it is necessary to preserve a woman’s life. No one wants to undergo a late term abortion, but when a woman’s health is at risk or when the fetus is not viable, having an abortion should not be a criminal act.  Although Roe V. Wade currently allows for a woman to have an abortion if her health is at risk (unlike the current NY law), there is a real possibility that Roe v. Wade will be overturned under the Trump/Pence administration. We can’t wait, NY State needs to bring its abortion laws into the 21st century.

One would have thought that equal rights for women, women’s reproductive health care support and access to abortion were all issues that were cemented and settled in the 1970’s. It is inconceivable that in 2018 an impulsive, playboy, philanderer president would be siding with those who want to limit access to reproductive health care, limit access to birth control and punish women who have made the decision to have an abortion.

If you are concerned about these issues, here is what you should do:

●        Contact your state senator and John Flanagan, the NY State Senate Majority Leader (phone: 631-361-2154), to urge them to support the CCCA and the RHA and the Governor’s Women’s Agenda. These bills are in the current budget which must be passed before the state legislature on or before April 1^st.

●        Join the Women’s Issues Committee of U-Act which is actively educating local residents on issues related to women’s rights and health concerns. The meeting schedule for this group is available at the Ulster Activists webpage (www.ulsteractivists.org).

●        Attend an informational presentation (offered by U-Act Women’s Issues Committee) on April 12th at SUNY New Paltz. (More information is available at the U-Act website.)

NY York State women (and men) deserve ready access to affordable birth control and the ability to make their own choices on when and if to become a parent.

 Diana Staats , Highland

Publishing history:

New Paltz Times 3/33/8

"Protect our Democracy" letter to the editor Hal Chorny

 Nero fiddled while Rome burned. Donald Trump is no musician but praised Putin while his cronies hacked our elections and set up means to disrupt our infrastructure. The Russians are now able to plunge us into darkness and cause chaos in our systems. Trump finally spoke out against Russian aggression but his action consisted mainly of words. The sanctions he imposed were unanimously passed by Congress months ago while Trump has made no attempt to implement them. Mueller is investigating why Trump is so cozy with the Russians.

There also is a House Committee investigating Trump's ties to Russia. The Republican part cleared Trump of all suspicions. The Democrats on the Committee have strong evidence of illegal activities which the Russians could use to blackmail Trump. Democrats are insisting their Republican colleagues ignored potent leads in order to whitewash their investigation.

Our country is clearly in danger. An investigation of Trump's disregard of the dangers must proceed. Efforts to block Mueller's investigation have been promoted by some Republicans while the Russians have gained a position which could devastate the United States. Election Day in November is not soon enough to vote every national Republican out of office, starting with Congressman John Faso. We may be called upon sooner to protect our democracy.

Hal Chorny

New Paltz Tiimes 3/22/18

"New Racial Equity Board Committee: Thanks NP BOE " Letter to the editor Maggie Veve

New Racial Equity Board Committee: Thanks NP BOE


Dear Board Members,
This is written as an open letter to you and the greater New Paltz school community in the spirit of believing that each of you, as I, have a deep commitment and responsibility to our school community.
We are at a critical juncture with the New Paltz School District. This juncture parallels what is happening in our country. Across the nation, there are troubling and increasingly evident forces trying to consolidate unbalanced, authoritative power. The means used to this end have been blatantly racist, sexist, and fascist. At the same time, there are those who are trying to meet these forces with public outcries, political action and grass roots resistance. Fortunately, the latter is taking hold in a wave of political activism not seen for many years.
Here in our school district, people of color and our allies have become heavily involved in undoing the impact of bigotry and racism for our students and community, culminating in the recent request to establish a standing Board of Education Racial Equity Committee. This is a much-needed anti-racism structure, needed to study, recommend and, as appropriate, encourage racial equity work of the District. You, as our elected representatives, responded courageously by having several community dialogues on our school race issues. Most importantly, you voted to establish such a committee at the March 14, 2018 BOE meeting!! For this I am very thankful and unusually optimistic. Speaking for myself, and already hearing directly from people of color and our allies, I have good reason to be hopeful for the continuing anti-racism work of the BOE. Again, Thank you! Gracias! Asante!

Sincerely,

Maggie Veve

Publishing history:

New Paltz Times 3/22/18

"Distinguished' Letter to the editor Jo salas

Distinguished

Hugh Reynolds asks “Why haven’t any of the six candidates yet distinguished themselves from the others?” (March 15). He hasn’t been paying attention. These candidates are anything but clones, though all are courageous and determined. One, Jeff Beals, stands out in important ways: he is genuinely progressive, with explicit commitments to Medicare for All, ending fossil fuel dependence, and refocusing the economy on working people instead of big corporations. 

Unlike some of the others, he is running a Bernie-style grassroots campaign, with unpaid volunteers and small contributions from ordinary people rather than powerful lobbying firms. And, alone among the candidates, Jeff has substantial foreign policy experience as a former US diplomat in the Middle East. He knows what he’s talking about when he advocates diplomacy instead of endless war. 

Distinguished indeed. 

Jo Salas

New Paltz

"An appeal to gun owners" Letter to the editor Carole Ford

An appeal to gun owners

Many well-meaning people feel deeply about defending their right to own guns. I am not a gun owner, but in a culture beset with so much random violence, having a weapon to protect yourself and your loved ones may not be entirely unreasonable.

Yet, if you are a gun owner, there is an argument I would make in appealing to you to support some restrictions, particularly regarding assault weapons.

We have many rights that are not absolute; there are many examples of acceptable restrictions. Obviously, we aren’t allowed to drive without proving that we are capable. Or drink alcohol until we reach the minimum age. We understand government’s function in issuing regulations and restrictions which try to balance individual rights with the benefit to society.

Certainly, banning assault weapons would infringe upon the enjoyment of using them for target practice, or other legal pursuits. And, of course, it would mean that you would have to find an alternative weapon for your security. But isn’t that a reasonable trade-off for keeping society safe from those, mentally unstable or otherwise, in schools or elsewhere, for whom assault weapons are the weapons of choice for mass murder?

If the federal government won’t act, state governments must. Other measures can help, but without banning assault weapons, they are band-aids. Please support the demonstrations coming up on March 14^th and 24^th and the national school walkout on April 20 which will be asking for additional regulations. You, the gun owners, are most important.

Dr. Carole Ford, 

Publishing history

Albany Times Union 3/13/18
Middletown Records 3/23/18
Kingston Freemn 3/26/18

"Which Faso" Letter to the editor Tom Denton

Which Faso

            NYTimes headline, 2/28--“Guns Create a Political Minefield in the Midterms:  After Florida Shooting, Candidates Carefully Adjust Views.”  And so we see those adjustments in the recent statements from Rep. John Faso.  His 2/16 public statement offered his prayers and the assertion that “the shooter shouldn’t have been eligible to purchase firearms.”  In a more hopeful development, his 2/23 response evolved.  Although criticizing the FBI, he 1) repeated his support for strengthened background checks, 2) agreed that a ban on bump stocks should be examined, and 3) said we should “seriously explore” raising the age to buy semiautomatic weapons.

 

Rep. Faso promotes himself as a moderate member of the Problem Solvers Caucus in Congress.  We are encouraged to believe that he will work hard to advance his proposals.  Contrast these statements on his web site:  he is “proud” of his “A” NRA rating; he says he will fight “liberal efforts to trample on our freedoms”; he voted for a House bill loosening restrictions on carrying concealed guns across state lines.

 

In a 2/22 C-SPAN interview, Rep. Faso rejected as an “outlandish smear” the claim that the NRA’s $8,000 donation to him would influence his votes and offered a defense of the NRA lobby: some NRA members work for police, fire, and emergency departments and are “enmeshed in our community, and . . . to say that they somehow don’t care about school shootings and other violence is really an outright lie.”

Oh.  Other adjustments.  Have you or I lately attacked the police, firefighters, and first responders, accusing them of not caring about the shooting?  Doubt it.  This adjustment telegraphs to those who might be uneasy about what they perceive as his waffling on gun rights.

 

 “Chameleon”:  a lizard . . . that changes its skin color to match its surroundings so that it cannot be seen (Cambridge Online Dictionary).

Publishing history

            Oneonta Daily Star                 3/7

            Sullivan Democrat                  3/12

            River Reporter                        3/14

            Shawangunk Journal              3/15

            Daily Freeman                        3/13

            New Paltz Times                    3/15

" I have a gun" Letter to the editor Karen Cathers

Dear Editors,

I have a gun. My father was proud of my skill when he taught me to shoot at age 8. I have shot a rabid fox and a couple of possums who were after my chickens.

But I never had a desire to get an AR-15 to go after the chicken predators. Or even to blow away the occasional trespasser or robber that might show up to get drug money.

Thinking like an apocalyptic, fearful racist, however, I see the need for AR-15s.

If you believe, like Pence, that the Rapture is coming, and the worthy will be lifted into God's Kingdom.

If you believe, like many, that a race war is imminent.

Then you will protect your home and family with lots of big guns and armament.

The real danger is racism, fear and religious extremism.

And the gun companies love it. They will use some of their millions to encourage fear and gun purchases and buy legislators' loyalty. It's an investment in THEIR future without regard to STUDENTS' futures. It's big business controlling our legislators and running our government. That is part of the definition of Fascism.

That's how I make "sense" of Parkland, and Columbine, and Sandy Hook, and the other school shootings that have killed 219 students.

Support the Student Walk Out on March 14, 2018 and join the March 24, 2018 Nation-wide march for SANE gun-control laws.

And spread love in whatever way you can. 

Karen Cathers

Publishing history

Daily  Freeman 2/28/18

New Paltz Times 3/1/18

Poughkeepsie journal 3/3/18

Times Herald Record 3/5/18

"Financially support Mr. Faso's Democratic opponent in November" Letter to the editor Diana Staats

Financially support Mr. Faso's Democratic opponent in November

Congressman John Faso believes that the right (for a violence prone 19 year old) to buy an  AR-15   trumps the right to life for  the  17  young people and school staff that were killed in the February 14^th massacre at  Marjory Stoneman High School. Mr. Faso sees nothing amiss with a problem gambler who amasses 55 firearms in less than one year (23 of which were used to kill 58 people and injure 851 in Las Vegas last October). Neither the Florida shooter nor the Las Vegas gunman were flagged in any sort of background check. I cannot understand this.

Congressman Faso received $5950 dollars from the NRA for his 2016 congressional campaign. Mr. Faso voted in support of the “Concealed Carry” law in April of last year. Mr. Faso also supported the “Hearing Protection Act” a misleading name for an  act which allows shooters to equip their guns and assault weapons with silencers. It is no surprise that Mr. Faso has an “ A” rating from the NRA. If you are one of the 423,911 active voters from Mr. Faso’s congressional district that believes we are long overdue for legislation to curtail gun violence, I strongly encourage you to financially support Mr. Faso’s Democratic opponent in November. There must be at least 5,950 people in NY District 19 who would be willing to donate $1 or more towards the prospect on more sensible gun control legislation.

Diana Staats

Publishing history:

New Paltz Times 3-1-18

"Let's get real" Letter to the editor Doris Chorny

Representative John Faso’s position regarding the south Florida school shooting is sure to please the NRA!  It is mealy-mouthed and spineless.  He suggests we “consider raising the age for purchase of semi-automatic firearms to age 21 as well as other measures to better protect schools.” He doesn’t want to ban automatic weapons and only supports “strengthened background checks.”

Let’s get real.  The majority of guns used in 17 recent mass shootings were bought legally following federal background checks.  At least 9 of those 17 shooters had criminal records and/or known mental health problems.

Since 2013 a gun was discharged on school property 290 times!  It is generally estimated that there are more guns than people in the United States.  We’re talking over 310 million.

John Faso, your stance shows you are more beholden to the NRA than your constituents.  We of the 19^th Congressional District deserve someone who cares about us.

Publishing history:

New Paltz times 3/1/18

Daily Freeman 3/1/18