Letters to the Editor: 06.01.17

She Was Different

East Hampton

May 26, 2017

To the Editor:

Dina Merrill was the most gracious “socialite” to ever grace the Hamptons. My family had a fleeting connection with her; first my father’s meeting with her more than 50 years ago, and then my own about five years ago.

Dad worked for Ms. Merrill, having absolutely no idea who she was. Nonetheless, he came home after meeting her completely captivated. At dinner, he told us about this beautiful woman who sat down in her kitchen with him to settle up after a long day. He said that she was down to earth and that she could talk to him just like he was a friend.

My father worked for many wealthy customers; generally, he would interact with their residential help. Ms. Merrill, on the other hand, took an interest in Dad. It made an impression on him that lasted a lifetime. He knew by the location of her homes, both here and in the city, that she was “somebody,” as he put it, but she didn’t put on airs. She was different. It took a lot to impress my father so we knew that whoever it was, was special. 

After my mother learned his customer’s name, Mother was flabbergasted and starstruck, as only my mother could be. Dad then learned who Ms. Merrill was. All the glamour, stardom, and wealth that my mother relayed didn’t matter to him. What mattered was Ms. Merrill’s authenticity and her class.

After Dad died, I thought about his encounter with Ms. Merrill and how much it had meant to him. He talked about her for years. I wrote to her to relay her legacy to our family. In keeping with her affable nature, she invited me to join her for dinner. I met with her and her family at her home and enjoyed an evening of talking about her mother’s (Marjorie Merriweather Post’s) architectural legacy. I now share my father’s awe of a woman who was all too rare, especially in the world today.

My condolences to Ms. Merrill’s family. May she reap her reward in heaven.

NANCY R. PEPPARD

Grandfather’s Uniform

East Hampton

May 23, 2017 

Dear David:

As a longtime community member with my roots going back 13 generations in the area, I was greatly disappointed in the way I was treated on May 21, the day of the official opening of the lifesaving station in Amagansett, as my ancestors all were in the Life-Saving Service, including keepers of the Montauk Lighthouse. My great-great grandfather was Jonathon A. Miller (Montauk Lighthouse-keeper) and his father before him was also. My grandfather Russell Garfield Miller was in charge of the very lifesaving station in question for many years.

I know that there was an agenda of speakers and I thought it would be appropriate to dedicate my grandfather’s uniform to the station on this day. I did talk to one of the board members just before the ceremony started and was told they would notify the M.C. of my intentions after all the speakers had their say. I patiently (and proudly) waited until the last speaker had finished, and as I approached the M.C. and asked why he didn’t introduce me, he informed me that I could not speak and he indicated that it was not important enough to introduce me as a person of interest. 

I do realize that I was not originally an invited speaker, and perhaps they had their reasons for not asking me as my grandfather was a beloved and respected man in Amagansett who had stripes going the full length of his sleeves to show 35 honorable years to the Life-Saving Service. I don’t understand why they couldn’t have given me the respect of common courtesy to do what would have been the right thing to do — but they were not interested.

As a matter of fact, the master of ceremonies did agree to take the uniform, but he didn’t even ask me my grandfather’s name or any other pertinent details. 

To sum this up, that evening I talked to a board member to make arrangements for me to pick it up and take it back to my home where it has been for many years. The next morning I had a change of heart and decided to swallow my pride and leave my grandfather’s uniform at the station, which is a much more appropriate place to be than a closet in my house. 

I do hope that his spirit lives long at the station.

Sincerely,

MILTON L. MILLER JR.

P.S. Even though I lost my cool, I want to thank Chief Eric Best of the Montauk Coast Guard station for his kindness and attempts to make things better.

All Who Helped

East Hampton

May 22, 2017

To the Editor: 

On behalf of the East Hampton Chamber of Commerce, I want to sincerely thank all who helped create a grand day for our community: 

Mayor Rickenbach and the East Hampton Village Board for believing and supporting our vision, the Village Police Department for keeping us all safe and keeping the traffic flowing, and the village personnel who worked so hard.

Glenn Vickers and the  Y.M.C.A. East Hampton RECenter for creating and staffing a magical “Kidzone” that brought so much joy to our children. Morgan Vaughan and the crew at LTV for helping promote and document the day. The village merchants for their help and support. All of our wonderful nonprofit groups that worked so hard all day to share their causes and help make the community a better place for all of us. The artisans who brought their unique treasures to share with us. The East Hampton Democratic and Republican Parties for being back-to-back all day and still hugging goodbye at the end of the day. Our amazing musicians and stage crew who kept us dancing and entertained. The students from East Hampton High School who volunteered and worked so hard all day, Hamptons Free Ride for transporting those who needed a ride from our parking lots, The East Hampton Star for its continuing support, Mr. Gregory Mansley for all his hard work promoting and planning the fair.

A special thank-you to our sponsors: Tesla, Bridgehampton National Bank, United Healthcare, Bank of America, and Halstead Property. Without your support, it could not have happened.

Our friends at the Animal Rescue Fund and Gimme Shelter animal rescue for finding homes for over 10 dogs and cats. That is a real miracle!

Thank you to all our members of the Chamber of Commerce, current and future.

Most important, we want to thank you — the members of one of the most unique, creative, loving, magical, and beautiful communities in the world, for coming together to create an unbelievably special day we will always remember.

See you next year!

Sincerely,

STEVEN RINGEL

Executive Director 

East Hampton 

Chamber of Commerce

Spring Street Fair

East Hampton

May 23, 2017

Dear Editor,

I am writing to extend heartfelt gratitude and enthusiastic congratulations to the Village of East Hampton, its police force, and to the East Hampton Chamber of Commerce, led by Steve Ringel, for an unequivocally successful Spring Street Fair. The crowd was diverse, steady, and strong all day long. The upbeat energy and hometown pride were palpable! 

The event clearly took a significant amount of hard work and preparation, and I feel grateful to have had the chance to participate as both an artisan vendor (Creative Concrete Hamptons) and as a representative for a local nonprofit (the Hamptons International Film Festival). I’m sure I am not alone in looking forward to many more chamber-sponsored endeavors! 

MARISSA FRIEDES CANGIOLOSI

Garbage on the Earth

East Hampton

May 29, 2017

Dear David,

I’m often out in the amazing woods and on the beaches we are so fortunate to have access to in East Hampton. I often bring an empty clam bag to fill up with the garbage I come across on my hikes. Sadly, I have no trouble filling it each time. By far, the beverage containers (beer, water, tea) take up most of the room. There are also many helium balloons with ribbons and spent shotgun shells.

I am reminded of an old saying:

“He who scatters garbage on the earth, puts his ignorance on display.”

RANDY PARSONS

Will Be in Business

Wainscott

May 29, 2017 

To the Editor:

The board of directors of the Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center feels compelled to correct the totally unfounded claim by the president of the East Hampton School Board at its May 16 board meeting, and reported in the May 25 edition of The East Hampton Star, that the center is “not sure that they will be in business after next year.” Nothing can be further from the truth. The Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center remains well positioned and totally committed to continuing its long-term mission of providing critically needed and highly successful early childhood development programs to the East Hampton community, including our universal pre-K program. 

The center has successfully completed its mission for over 20 years. As a not-for-profit, we are dependent on constant fund-raising to supplement the financial support we receive from the East Hampton School Board. We are grateful to our generous donors who have supported our mission and programs over these many years. 

The center has proudly partnered with the East Hampton School District to provide a highly impactful pre-K program to the district’s students for the last 20 years. That program was expanded to full-day two years ago. The truth of the matter is the district’s tuition payments to the childhood center do not cover our full cost of providing a full-day pre-K program to their students. In fact, the center has provided annual subsidies to the pre-K program in excess of $200,000, amounts which the center must raise annually from our generous donors. Our subsidy will continue under this year’s contract.

Although the overall payment by the district will be increased by $144,000 this year, almost all of that increase represents an increase in the number of the district’s students (54 increasing to 72) attending the program — an increase in enrollment that requires the center to open and staff a fourth pre-K classroom. The district’s per-pupil contribution remains less than the center’s per-pupil costs to provide the program.

Given these circumstances, the board of directors of the Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center believes it would be imprudent for the center to enter into a five-year contract with the district at this time, which would contractually obligate the center to fund these annual subsidies. We believe that good stewardship requires such decisions to be reassessed annually. That fact, however, in no way should be interpreted by the district, our parents, or the community as a change to the center’s steadfast commitment to our mission, including our pre-K program, or to our longstanding partnership with the East Hampton School District. Our 20-year successful history confirms that fact. 

The board of directors remains highly confident in the center’s willingness and ability to maintain and to expand its programs, thanks to the efforts of our highly professional staff and our generous donors.  

Sincerely,

DAVID E. EAGAN

Vice Chairman

Board of Directors

Eleanor Whitmore Early 

Childhood Center

Sound Is the Bugaboo

East Hampton

May 25, 2017

Dear David,

This letter is in response to Patricia Nielsen s letter in the May 25 Star, passing along a complaint about LTV’s broadcast sound at the East Hampton School Board meetings.

As LTV’s executive director, I always want to hear if there is a problem with anything on our two channels — visual, audio, or otherwise — and am happy to help rectify any problems a viewer brings to my attention.

Sound is the bugaboo of any film or television studio or theater. It is wily, subjective, and clarity depends as much on the person speaking as the person listening. Therefore, I am very pleased that, as Ms. Nielsen points out, the sound quality at Town Hall is excellent. This is no mean feat and takes hours of careful planning and continued maintenance and fine-tuning. Both Town Hall and the Village Emergency Services Building boast mini directors’ stations where a videographer controls all aspects of the multi-camera shoots, including video and sound that is hard-wired into the building.

The East Hampton School Board is a location shoot, meaning we take everything with us. In the case of the East Hampton School Board (and the Springs School Board), that means a camera, sound board, and four mikes for the board, and the public’s mike at the lectern. Our one videographer handles all aspects of the setup and filming. And while filming, he must regulate sound for loud talkers, soft talkers, faraway talkers, and close talkers. Admittedly, some nights are less successful than others.

What I’ve described are reasons, not excuses. LTV takes great pains to air at the highest quality possible, and I apologize for the occasional misstep. The good news is, as technology gets better and better and less and less expensive, solutions are continually being introduced for this problem, and LTV has been working with the East Hampton School Board to improve its recording.

I thank Ms. Nielsen for writing to The Star, for watching LTV, and for being involved in local government, and encourage anyone with criticism or compliments regarding LTV’s broadcasts to call us at 631-537-2777 or email [email protected]. Remember, you can watch LTV via live streaming on our website, as well as find recent LTV shows, and government and school board meetings, on Video on Demand, also on our website.

Thank you,

MORGAN VAUGHAN

Commitment to Serve

Northwest Woods

May 24, 2017

Dear David,

I am writing to thank the Independence Party and its committee for endorsing my candidacy for town board. 

The Independence Party committee wanted to know more about my commitment to serve, and I was happy to explain that much of my career has been dedicated to protecting our town as much as possible. I raised my son here, and East Hampton is my home. I am running for town board to use my experience to make sure that the East Hampton we all love will be recognizable to future generations.

JEFF BRAGMAN

Need to Unite

Springs

May 29, 2017

Dear David,

I would like to introduce myself to Star readers as a candidate for East Hampton Town trustee in this November’s election. I am running for office for the first time. 

I am motivated to take this step because I want to help bring the community together to meet the great challenges we face in preserving our public trust. I want to work hard for a healthy environment in our waters, land, and shorelines.

I have seen many changes in the more-than half-century since I first came to this beautiful place. In 1967, my parents built a summer house in Springs. In 1980, my mother, Frances Alenikoff, an artist and choreographer, made it her main residence and then her only residence. I took care of my mother here before she passed away and decided to stay, moved by East Hampton’s extraordinary beauty and the passion our community feels for it. 

I had lived here previously for a time when my son was very young. I remember taking him almost daily to Maidstone Park, where he loved to climb a big boulder that jutted from the sand near the water’s edge. I remember carrying him on my shoulders as we waded through the forests of eelgrass that waved near the shoreline. I remember picking up starfish and horseshoe crabs that had been marooned on the beach.

My granddaughter, who joins me every summer, has never seen eelgrass or a horseshoe crab or a starfish on the beach. Nor has she eaten any local lobster — they are largely vanished from our waters, chased northward by a warming ocean.

Having known this area for so long, I see the threats we face and the even greater ones we face in the future, as sea level rise, ocean acidification, and overdevelopment put our traditional way of life as a fishing, farming, and resort community at risk. I know we need to unite to face those threats together. 

I have worked for a healthy environment for most of my life. I worked for nearly two decades as an educator and advocate for safe and healthy workplaces, training workers about chemical and other hazards. That work taught me how to understand science and share that understanding with the public.

Later, I became a journalist. Among other work, I wrote a column about sustainability for an online corporate social responsibility publication, and now I co-produce and host the radio program Sustainable East End (airing on WPKN each month). In between, I obtained a social work degree and worked as a therapist for families and individuals in crisis. Those careers taught me two important skills: how to be a good listener and how to delve deeply into an issue to find out what is really going on.

As a trustee, I pledge to bring these skills to bear in working together with all who love the East End to ensure our beautiful home survives and thrives now and long into the future. 

FRANCESCA RHEANNON

Preserve and Protect

East Hampton

May 28, 2017

Dear David,

This past month I had the great honor and privilege to be nominated by the Democratic Party as a candidate for the East Hampton Town Trustees. I am grateful to the members of the election committee and the chairwoman, Betty Mazur, for conducting a fair and professional screening process and for the remarkable opportunity now offered to me. I would like to share my reason for seeking the position. 

It is with pride and a deep commitment that I call East Hampton home. A resident of nearly 40 years, I raised my son here, and together we have enjoyed the natural beauty East Hampton is known for. We learned to sail together and my appreciation and respect for the harbors and open ocean grew.  

We have many problems and issues to solve together. We need safe drinking water and renewable energy sources. I want to make certain our harbors, ponds, ocean, and beaches are free from debris, pollutants, and harmful toxins. In an effort to preserve and protect our town’s environment we need to thoroughly explore the options available to achieve these goals.    

Our home features spectacular bays, harbors, beaches, preserved lands, hiking trails, and an abundance of magnificent wildlife. If we are to continue to enjoy these benefits we must carefully consider and actively work to ensure they are properly cared for. 

As a certified PADI rescue diver I am witness to the decline of our marine life caused by climate change. I believe we must look to the future and implement renewable energy resources that will benefit our community and strengthen our environment. Jacques Cousteau’s statement that people protect what they love rings true for me about East Hampton. 

I sincerely believe it is every person’s responsibility to in some measure give back to their community. It is imperative that we leave behind a future landscape for our children and their children and beyond. 

Regardless of political affiliation, the past election cycle was a wake-up call to ordinary people to become active in government. 

As a trustee, I pledge to devote myself to preserve and protect the fragility of our town’s natural resources.

SUSAN McGRAW KEBER

Lack of Heritage

Sebastian, Fla.

May 28, 2017

Dear David,

Just finished the Star of May 18 (wish the Postal Service was a bit faster) and the articles about the trustees and the party committees screening candidates for various town offices reminded me of a screening when I was a member of the Republican Committee and we were screening for several open trustee spots.

The various applicants put great importance on how many generations of Bonackers they claimed to represent.

Not to be outdone, Estelle Hulse, a trustee applicant, apologized for her lack of heritage, but indicated that although she wasn’t born here, she was conceived here.

Might be time to overhaul the requirements for holding office in East Hampton.

Best regards,

Ward A. Freese

Still Waiting

East Hampton

May 29, 2017

Hi, David,

I am writing to let your readers know that Betty Mazur’s letter to you last week titled “Absolutely Not True,” wherein she basically calls Manny Vilar, a candidate for East Hampton Town supervisor, a liar is not correct.

Let me start by saying I have known Manny since 1984, when we attended the Suffolk County Police Academy together. Manny has been my friend ever since and if he asked to be screened, then he asked to be screened. It’s that simple. However, I can give your readers a little more information and let them ecide who is telling the truth.

On March 9 I attended the Deepwater presentation at Clinton Academy. While there, I was talking with Peter Van Scoyoc and Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, both East Hampton Town Board members. I told them that I had inquired about screening with the Democratic committee and that no one had called me back.

Soon after that conversation, Phyllis Italiano introduced herself to me and explained that she is on the Democratic committee and Peter and Kathee had told her I was interested in screening with them. She gave me her card and told me to call the telephone number listed on the Democratic committee’s website, and Betty Mazur, the vice chairwoman of the Democratic committee, would call me back.

The next day I did exactly that and left a message for Betty and then sent an email to Phyllis thanking her for her help. I am still waiting for that call from Betty.

Prior to all of this I had called Christopher Kelley, former East Hampton Democratic Committee chairman, and had a conversation with him and told him I was interested in screening. He told me he would call me when the screenings began. I am still waiting for that call, too. I even had lunch with David Gruber, another former East Hampton Democratic Committee chairman, and he, too, knew that I was interested in screening with the Democrats.

The bottom line is that I made my intentions very well known and followed the procedure that was announced on the East Hampton Democratic Committee’s website and was not given the opportunity that Betty Mazur claims “everyone” is given. If they “missed” me, they certainly could have “missed” Manny.

I believe Betty owes my friend Manny an apology.

Thank you,

JERRY LARSEN



Mr. Larsen is running for East Hampton Town Board on the Republican ticket. Ed.

 Will Be Addressed

Amagansett

May 29, 2017

Dear Editor:

In response to Reggie Cornelia’s letter in last week’s Star, I suggest Reggie look at the East Hampton Town Republican Committee’s Facebook page to understand my comments to a reporter. 

The reason for my dismay was the picture of Manny Vilar, Jerry Larsen, and Paul Giardina standing with a cardboard cutout of Donald Trump stating, “If you want East Hampton to be like Washington vote for us.” Perhaps the East Hampton Republican Committee’s page had been hacked. Of course that picture is gone now, but there is more to view for those who are interested.

There was a dispute at the screening for candidates for the town board and I can honestly say that Kathee Burke-Gonzalez won that dispute over Jerry Larsen. Our screening committee understands that Mr. Larsen can run a primary. Independence Party voters can decide if we made the right choice

I certainly don’t sit at home all day and bake cookies; I go out and meet people who know and care about the problems that face East Hampton in the future. Water quality, and all the issues that Reggie talks about, will be addressed during the campaign, and the voters will decide in November.

I don’t have to question my choices. I am only one vote.

Sincerely yours,

ELAINE JONES

Chairwoman

East Hampton Independence Party

Montauk Airport

East Hampton

May 26, 2017

Dear David:

Tom Bogdan of Montauk United claims to represent the people of Montauk and their “way of life.” On the matter of airport noise, however, he is busily sticking it to the very people of Montauk he claims to represent. 

His letter and ad last week on the subject of airport noise are so filled with misinformation, disinformation, and wild conspiracy theories (not to mention mangled quotations that he attributes to me) that I couldn’t begin to untangle the mess. It would take an entire issue of your newspaper, at the very least.

Are the New Jersey helicopter companies whispering in his ear? Has he taken their money? Is it partisan politics disguised as community activism? Just ignorance matched with astonishing venom directed at anyone living west of Montauk who wants relief from the airport din? What have the people of East Hampton who don’t live in Montauk ever done to deserve such hatred?

I don’t know. But after helicopter interests spent $500,000 in 2015 trying to buy East Hampton’s election, they now have Mr. Bogdan doing their dirty work on the cheap, everything he can to prevent the Town of East Hampton from controlling traffic at its own airport to protect thousands of residents from airport noise.

So let’s keep it simple. Despite the welter of confused accusations, Mr. Bogdan makes two things perfectly clear: The first is that he is absolutely opposed to the Town of East Hampton in any way regulating traffic at East Hampton Airport to protect the rest of the community west of Montauk from noise pollution. 

The second is that he thinks the recommendation made by a citizens committee that I chair, that the Town of East Hampton purchase Montauk Airport, is part of a conspiracy to transfer helicopter operations from East Hampton Airport to Montauk Airport. That’s craziness. Nothing could be further from the truth. 

The reason we recommended that the town buy Montauk Airport is exactly the opposite, to make absolutely drop-dead certain that any noxious air traffic that cannot use East Hampton Airport due to rules adopted by the town, now or in the future, can never go to Montauk Airport. Never. 

How so? Because federal law prohibits local government from adopting any rules whatsoever for an airport that it does not own. If the Town of East Hampton has any authority to control air traffic, it is only the power to control access to an airport that it does own. Therefore, in order to ensure that no traffic is ever diverted from East Hampton Airport to Montauk Airport, the town must own and control both airports. It’s that simple. If the town did own both airports, it could adopt identical access rules for both, making certain that not a single aircraft operation is ever diverted to Montauk by rules adopted to protect the rest of us.

Even if the town did own both airports, it would still be prohibited by federal law from directing traffic away from one airport to the other. The most the town could do would be to apply identical access restrictions to both. For that reason, Mr. Bogdan’s theory that this is all a scheme to transfer air traffic to Montauk is pure hogwash.

The State of New York just adopted a law nullifying the rules the Town of East Hampton adopted to protect Montauk from abuses by Uber. That ought to be a painful lesson to all of us about what out-of-town, fat-cat bucks can do to prevent us here in East Hampton from controlling our own lives, community, and way of life.

If you live in Montauk, you should be demanding that the town buy Montauk Airport, as soon as possible, to get it under local, democratic control before the helicopter companies dig in there and then start spending their millions to stop you. It is the only way the town will ever have any ability to protect you from airport noise, including from the growing number of helicopters ferrying people to Montauk itself. The time to get control of that situation is now, before it gets worse and turns into Uber by air. 

Uber wasn’t a problem in the rest of East Hampton, only in Montauk. Think about what that means for Montauk. With the party set crashing in on you, and a resurgent Uber to ferry them about, helicopters are coming your way, no matter what happens at East Hampton Airport. In fact, there is already an Uber-like service for helicopters. It’s called Blade, and it has its longing, dollar-filled eyes on you.

If Tom Bogdan tells you otherwise, it’s because he has no idea what he is talking about. Anyone who wants to understand how federal aviation law affects our community is urged to get in touch with the Quiet Skies Coalition and get educated. This problem is too important to be left to know-nothings.

Sincerely,

DAVID GRUBER

Intolerable Mess

Wainscott

May 26, 2017

Dear David,

The articles this past week regarding the Part 161 study have the “frenemies” of the town getting their knickers in a twist. They caused this over the years, so they could run amok. Then a costly lawsuit to undo a reasonable effort by the town board to mitigate the horror they heaped upon us. Their attempt to buy the election failed, so they are like a burr under a saddle.

When this was a small airport, the local pilots were usually good neighbors. Then, thanks to Tom Knobel and the then-town board, it became the intolerable mess it is today. They stole our limited sense of peace and tranquillity. Their arrogance prevailed so they refused to abide by or even attempt to find a reasonable balance. One would think the complaints over the decades would resonate?

Every time we suffer the noise and disruption from low-flying planes, helicopters, and seaplanes, I wonder, if they were skywriters, would they print out “Thank you Tom Knobel and the then- town board, for creating this!” The sudden hand-wringing falls on deaf ears.

Who the airport serves, compared to who is adversely affected, seems out of balance. It is only an “asset” strictly because of the value of the land, since it only benefits a special minority interest. We have a town board that should serve the majority instead.

An asset would be a solar farm. That would benefit the town, which faces ever-increasing energy costs. A wide open space containing a park, which would provide a peaceful site.

In an added note, since it is a federally designated sole-source aquifer, whose protection is nonnegotiable, I ask what happened to the two national geological test wells that contained unidentifiable petrochemical solvents? What happened to the cleanup? Where are the Suffolk Health Department and building permits for the illegal bathrooms constructed in some of the hangars?

Times and things change, so maybe the town board should consider changing its viewpoint.

ARTHUR J. FRENCH

Test the Groundwater

East Hampton

May 28, 2017

Dear David,

“When we know better we do better,” is a nice saying, but it doesn’t seem to apply concerning a local sand-mining operation or our groundwater. A wise man of nature told our neighborhood group, Freetown Neighborhood Advisory Committee, a while ago, that “if that sandpit ever hits water, we have a problem. The aquifer is beneath and needs to be protected.” 

We heard him then and we often quote his words now, but sadly they fall on deaf ears. Maybe the town board is tired. Maybe they need a vacation or retirement. Some will go, others will try and stay. But should they? Why? Give me good reasons. We here in the woods of East Hampton need some attention. When neighbors south of the highway squeak and squalk, action is taken. That’s a fact no one can deny. We’re so tired of it. Are we not citizens too? Is our groundwater from the sole-source aquifer, not everyone’s out here? Sure it is. The water underneath us supplies the drinking-water wells. Not private wells, no — the public drinking water. 

But if you have private wells, pay attention too. The aquifer flows to the dreen and ponds and harbors and bays and ocean. So that includes all of us. You and me and everyone out here on this beautiful spit of land called the East End. And as it narrows toward Napeague and Montauk, it gets even more fragile. 

The dunes and so forth are barriers of protection. Look at a map. We exist in a fragile ecosystem that we must protect at all costs, or we won’t have this lovely place anymore. Other places, while not this best place ever, have had this happen when they did not take care enough and speak out to demand protection. We have groups out here, much bigger than ours, with revenue and donations and fund-raisers coming up with famous spokespeople, speaking to protect this land and water. Oh, that more than one would join our group and fight. That would be grand.

Why do you think everyone comes here? Because it’s bucolic, and the beaches are pristine. And yet “unspoiled” can disappear before your very eyes, if you let it. We don’t plan on letting it. Won’t you join us in our fight to save the groundwater and drinking water? Get on board, hop on our bandwagon, and start asking your candidates, right now, what they aim to do about protecting the water. I can’t get a clear answer from some of them, or even any real interest beyond broken-record excuses and rhetoric. It’s beyond disappointing; it’s downright frustrating, and so wrong. It’s foggy and murky like the groundwater sample we have. Pit water.

We want to know who is going to get into that sandpit on Middle Highway and officially test the damn groundwater? Monitoring wells does no good if no one is monitoring them. The sandpit is deeper and wider now and closer to the groundwater than ever. Open your eyes. We are not imagining it. It’s not personal against the Pat Bistrians who own the sandpit now, so far as they didn’t create it. Or allow it. That was the town, long ago, under some flimsy agreement with the Talmages, the original sandpit creators. That agreement should have been looked into down the road. But it never was, until we started talking about it a year ago and now, when our woods are being decimated and every tree cut down and the pit becomes a commercial business in a residentially zoned plot. 

That alone sounds wrong, doesn’t it? Because it is. We have always been about groundwater protection. You never heard one darn word about house values going down, here. But they will, with a giant crater in the middle of a residential neighborhood. We heard we have a famous neighbor now, nearby. Maybe he will help us in our fight for clean water and uncontaminated groundwater. We would love that! When will the powers that be listen, we ask over and over again? No one answers. With anything productive, that is, except: It was this way and so must remain so, until it cannot be mined any more and then. . . . 

And then, what? And at what cost? Contaminated groundwater? Oops, we made a mistake, they can say later. Or not. They can say nothing and do nothing because it’s not their job, they say. How lame, we say.

This is their town. It’s happening on their watch. The D.E.C. obviously doesn’t care. They issue permits year after year to these sandpit owners, and never look further than their uninterested noses. That is not good enough for us. So, we will pursue this to the end. The end of the water, the end of the woods, the end of the neighborhood. Whichever comes first. Polluted bay and harbors and ocean on the horizon, if no one listens to us and intervenes. The aquifer will be damned. That’s a nice legacy for our children and grandchildren. Real nice.

So when you get those mailers soon and brochures on the candidates, ask them what they stand for and what they have done and plan on doing bout the groundwater. We’d like to know. We sure aren’t voting for anyone who gives lip service and does nothing. Step aside and let others in who care. From trustees to the top spot, get ’er done, or move out of the way. We are no longer interested in the smiling and handshaking; they are meaningless. Put your money where your mouth is and save the groundwater. Vote for people who actually want to work for you and the issues in this town for the greater good. Not people you went to school with and someone who buys you a beer. 

Wake up, darlin’. Step out of the shallow water and dive into something that means something for the future of East Hampton Town. But be careful, don’t swallow the water in the process. “Wisdom and rainwater begin in low places.” Be careful when you step up onto that platform that your boots are not covered in horseshit.

NANCI LaGARENNE

Plant-Based Eating

East Hampton

May 22, 2017

Dear Editor:

This past Sunday, animal rights activists shut down the 146-year-old Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus after years of effectively exposing them for animal abuse. Can the meat and dairy industry be far behind? 

The shift toward plant-based eating is everywhere. Fast-food chains like Chipotle, Quiznos, Starbucks, Subway, Taco Bell, and Wendy’s offer plant-based options. Parade, Better Homes and Gardens, and Eating Well are all touting vegan recipes. Indeed, Global Meat News reports that nearly half of consumers are reducing their meat intake. Beef consumption has dropped by 43 percent in the past 40 years. Google’s C.E.O., Eric Schmidt, views replacement of meat by plant protein as the world’s number-one technical trend. The financial investment community is betting on innovative startups like Beyond Meat or Impossible Foods, while warning clients about “death of meat.” Even Tyson Foods’s new C.E.O., Tom Hayes, sees plant protein as the meat industry’s future. 

The industry needs to transition to plant-based foods, or shut down like the “Greatest Show on Earth.” In the meantime, every one of us can shut the meat and dairy industry out of our own kitchen by checking out the rich collection of plant-based entrees, milks, cheeses, and ice creams in our supermarket.

Sincerely, 

ELIJAH HANNESBURG

Nuclear Security

East Hampton 

May 27, 2017

To the Editor:

High officials of the United States administration are on record as saying that the upcoming nuclear posture review will have to consider whether a nuclear-weapons-free world is feasible. If the U.S. abandons its 50-year-old commitment to nuclear weapons abolition it will have disastrous consequences.

 Such a development would constitute a blatant violation of the obligation in Article Six of the Nonproliferation Treaty to negotiate in good faith for total nuclear disarmament. It would tell other countries that if one of the two major nuclear-armed superpowers ignores good faith the whole structure of international law begins to totter.

The word from Mumbai is that India is considering abandoning its no-first-use policy. Given the fact that India and Pakistan are the two countries most likely to use their nuclear weapons on each other this is an extremely worrisome development.

The ever-increasing mutual confrontation between the United States and North Korea is another troublesome move away from nuclear security.

The development by several countries of smaller nuclear weapons makes their use more likely. Should it really make a difference, legally or morally, that the detonation of a single such weapon would result in the death of “only” 10,000 persons rather than one million?

Given these and other developments, the world finds itself closer to the detonation, by accident or design, of a nuclear weapon, setting off a nuclear war, than at any time in the post-Cold War past. The abolition half of the grand abolition-for-nonproliferation bargain that is the nonproliferation treaty is in danger of being torn to shreds.

PETER WEISS

President Emeritus

Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy

James Comey

James Comey James Comey, Mr. six foot and eight

I’ve shortened your tenure — that proves I am great.

Three times you told me I am not under investigation

Let’s make that official, we’ll sign legislation.

You should have been nicer to Hillary, October was rough.

Go easy on her and the Russians, enough is enough.

We offered alternative facts from alternative folks

If the press could only keep up, they’d know it’s no hoax.

My merry-go-round of apologists, my jugglers four

Always some new way to explain, who knows what’s in store?

I’ve called you a grandstander and showboat — now you’re banned from the tent.

No more you, no more Ringling, cue the spotlight — I’m the last main event.

Now Robert Mueller is aboard, and I’m beginning to dread

What the heck will unravel when they tug the thread that is red?

I’m off to tour the world — who knows what I’ll find

But nothing will match my joy of things left behind.

Let’s meet again when I’m back, I’ll share photos of my inaugural crowd.

Bring your memos and notes, we’ll listen to my tapes — I’ll turn them up loud.

RON GORDON

Suspend Habeas Corpus

Sag Harbor

May 23, 2017

Dear David:

Another massacre has occurred by an Islamist extremist, this time in Manchester, England. This act of mass murder was done by someone on a terrorist watch list. It is amazing that we can spot terrorists, put them on a terrorist watch list, and then do nothing about them until they strike.

ISIS is at war with the West. What does it take for our governments to realize this and fight fire with fire? During the Second World War, F.D.R. interned thousands of Japanese living in the U.S.A. for the duration of the war. Most, if not all of them were innocent. We all allowed it, because we thought they were a potential threat to the homeland.

Our government has stated that it does not have the money or manpower to watch all the people on the U.S.A. terrorist watch list.

Why can’t we today, as we are fighting these evil people, take the people that are on our terrorist watch list and intern them as well, until ISIS is defeated? Most people say that we cannot do this because we are protected by the “writ of habeas corpus.” However, the Suspension Clause of the Constitution specifically included the English common law procedure in Article One, Section 9, clause 2, which demands that “the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it.”

Well, we are being invaded every day. We just do not know it until they strike. Will it take another Sept. 11 or worse to motivate our government to round up all terrorists on our terrorist watch list? Just today, the U.K. raised the terrorist threat level to critical, as they are very worried about another terrorist strike.

The strategy of ISIS is to either plant its agents or convert citizens to its cause to commit mass murder in our country and other countries. If that is not reason enough to suspend habeas corpus, then I do not know what is.

I recommend our government suspend the writ of habeas corpus and collect any person that ticks all the boxes to get on a terrorist watch list. Thereafter they should to be put in detention or deported from the U.S.A., if conditions warrant it, until ISIS is totally defeated. The cost will be less to put these people in detention and it will free up our agents to do their jobs rather than babysit the enemy. If doing this requires a declaration of war by Congress, then President Trump should seek this declaration.

THOMAS R. METZ

Honor and Fear

When we honor the fallen and dead

We’d be better off honoring the living instead

They are the ones who bear the burden of war

This is something we choose to ignore.

We watch it happen

And can’t do a thing

We’ve given our leaders the power of kings.

And so too, kingdoms must fall

We’ve done it to ourselves throughout the years

Electing our leaders based on our fears.

RICHARD SAWYER

Fox News Bombshell

Springs

May 25, 2017

To the Editor:

On May 17, Fox News and other outlets were featuring a bombshell, politically charged story.

According to “investigative sources” cited, Seth Rich, the Democratic National Committee staffer who was gunned down last summer by unknown assailants in the streets of D.C., leaked thousands of internal emails to Wikileaks before he was killed. Investigative reporting up to that point shows there was some degree of email exchange between Seth Rich and Wikileaks. According to homicide detectives in D.C., they believe that the answer to Seth Rich’s murder sits on his computer on a shelf at the D.C. police, or F.B.I. headquarters. 

Someone within the D.C. government, D.N.C., or Clinton team is blocking the murder investigation from going forward.

On Dec. 22, 2016, The East Hampton Star published my letter “From the inside,” concerning the “Putin hacking” and “Wikileaks from Russia.” In it I wrote that “I am bracing myself for the biggest, hardiest laugh of the year, I suggest that you do, too. Slowly but surely the evidence is developing and beginning to point to the real source of the leaks — from the inside of the Demo­cratic Party. Yes, an inside job. Disgruntled? Revengeful? Sense of humor? Who knows, who cares, as long as the truth was revealed, and lots of it. Stand by for a monumental train wreck. Hope the casualties are minimal.”

True, honest, fearless, “From the Inside.” Genuine reporting. Keep it up, Star! 

EDWARD A. WAGSCHAL