That Magic
East Hampton
April 7, 2025
To the Editor,
I appreciate The Star highlighting the then-upcoming concert by the Danish String Quartet. All the musicians who play as part of the Bridgehampton Chamber Music seasons are tremendous, and each concert is special in its own way, but Saturday’s concert with the D.S.Q. was something else again.
Though they did not play Scandinavian folk music Saturday, their three albums featuring it set them apart from other quartets. But something else: They have that ineffable magic that comes across both on recordings and live — as it did Saturday. We are so fortunate that they came to our neck of the woods.
TOM MACKEY
Wage Theft
East Hampton
April 2, 2025
To the Editor,
As a nation of immigrants, America has historically provided unparalleled opportunities for generations who have come to our shores for a better life. And, yes, there has also been a dark side to the immigrant experience, one of which continues today on the East End — wage theft. There’s the homeowner who hires young women to clean her house and buy expensive groceries or the contractor who requires workers to purchase materials for a project. In both instances, not only have these people not been reimbursed for the purchases, but they have not been paid the wages owed.
Today’s climate of fear renders the victims less likely to report such abuses and emboldens the violators. So, what can we do?
1. Support local organizations that help immigrants obtain redress, like OLA (Organizacion Latino Americana).
2. Alert our service providers to the issue.
3. Ask your contractor if he/she knows if the subcontractors they use pay their workers.
On behalf of Concerned Neighbors of Long island,
JOAN CASPI
FRED DOSS
TIM FRAZIER
JOAN OVERLOCK
JUDITH SCHNEIDER
MARK SUSSMAN
TESS WACHS
NORBERT WEISSBERG
Simply Takes Time
East Hampton
April 7, 2025
Dear David,
I write as a private citizen to offer that, while concerning, vacancies among important positions within the town’s various departments are being conflated to reflect poorly on the Planning Department.
Surely the departure of longtime staff, such as the Housing Authority’s director, Eric Schantz, is a loss and will be very difficult to fill. But that has nothing to do with how long it takes any applications to appear before the three agencies (architectural review board, zoning board of appeals, or planning board) that the Planning Department serves. Eric was in charge of a completely different and largely unrelated department. And, of course, the decades-old problem of maintaining staff from our talented, local population consistently diminishes as the costs of living rise disproportionately to salary levels. Though that, too, is being addressed.
What concerns me is the criticism of the planning process as it relates to applications that come before the town’s appointed agencies. I speak from experience as it was my great privilege to serve on the planning board for seven years, three as vice chair, and three years on the A.R.B., two as chair. The complaint that the system is broken because of the length of time it takes, in some instances, but certainly not all, applications to make it through the process leaves out critical pieces of information that I think it important for your readers to understand.
There is no doubt that the town needs more professional planners, attorneys, and other experts to help meet our mutually determined community goals as articulated in the zoning code and the town’s adopted comprehensive plan. But, in my experience, the applications that are submitted are more often than not incomplete, meaning critical pieces of required information are unavailable to the planners and board members to properly evaluate the application.
The application process may seem complicated, but the Planning Department makes planners available on an almost-daily basis, so that professional land-use planners, attorneys, and individuals submitting applications can consult them if they have questions or need help filling out the forms. I cannot tell you how many applications had to be sent back during my 10-year tenure because they lacked a current survey or the structure for which approval is sought was not present on the survey. Some of the deficiencies were almost comedic, except they took up everyone’s time to discover, process, return, and then, hopefully, re-evaluate when the application was actually complete. These are by no means the majority, as some applications come before us well articulated and complete. But, more often than not, some element is missing.
Site visits to verify in the field what is depicted on the survey are often necessary by both planning staff and board members. Oftentimes, homeowners make improvements unaware that approvals are necessary, which requires not only that they make an application for what was constructed without approval, but that they become subject to revisions to the project should it not meet the criteria, standard, or requirement, depending.
Oftentimes, contractors do the same thing — build it first, claim a sometimes real, sometimes imagined ignorance, then ask for forgiveness. Researching each application’s history, often with spotty details from applicants, is something the professional planners spend hours doing. This information helps the relevant boards to make educated decisions, based upon the regulations of our code, understanding the full breadth of the impacts of the application on neighboring parcels, traffic, density, water runoff, and pollution impacts, including referencing subdivision or building-envelope requirements which are often not uniform, covenants and restrictions that affect certain parcels, etc. The list is extensive.
This does not even account for the extraordinary environmental impacts that many development projects, variances, and other exceptions from the code create. These evaluations are even more in depth, in order to guarantee to the extent possible the long-term impacts of development in sensitive areas, and offer alternative development options or mitigation techniques to moderate the impacts. These are critical assessments for the environmental health and safety of our entire community and require time and attention to detail. And, the changing landscape, especially in coastal areas, complicates this process as well. The planning staff does an excellent job.
It must also be stated that the shoot-first-ask-questions-later approach of some developers also bogs down the system. Oftentimes, profit-hungry developers snatch up parcels at every opportunity, developing to the fullest extent, often with little regard for the impacts of that development on neighboring lots and/or the character of the neighborhood in which it is built, for the greatest return on their investment. We understand this is the capitalist system, but it puts a lot of pressure on the entire community and is often aesthetically out of step with the neighborhood. Plus, the scale of these projects is often so large that it takes many hours of review for both the Planning Department and agency representatives to get it right. It simply takes time. And, it’s crucial to give it that time, given the threat and frequency of legal action against these decisions. The process is important.
Further exacerbating the workload of all involved is the extraordinary appetite for squeezing every square inch of space out of a lot. Pushing the boundaries of wetlands, forest, farmland,and duneland, the many precious natural resources which define our beautiful community, means precious time is occupied with variances of as little as two or three feet, or some crazy thing. When is enough enough?
The town’s system of application evaluation is burdened but not broken. What is broken is the widely held concept that every single parcel should be built to the fullest potential and then some, finding ways around the code to squeeze every drop of real estate value out of it. Thank heavens the town board saw clear to, at long last, regulate house sizes. Make no mistake, there will be a flood of applications to avoid being the last application before the new law takes effect. And that will bog down the system as well.
Though bolstering the Planning Department with more professionals would undoubtedly be an asset, the question is not how to fix the town’s review process, but how to fix the voracious appetite of a development community which continues to place profit over process and community values.
Thanks,
KATHLEEN CUNNINGHAM
Address Core Issues
Amagansett
April 7, 2025
Dear David,
I am writing in response to your recent article, “Vacancies at Top in Key town Departments.” The ongoing exodus of department heads in our town government is alarming and raises pressing concerns about the managerial tone set by Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez and Deputy Supervisor Cate Rogers.
The resignation of key individuals, such as Rob Connelly and Jameson McWilliams from the attorneys’ offices, alongside vacancies in critical departments like Code Enforcement and Housing and Building, highlight significant leadership challenges in East Hampton Town. Despite claims of swift application processing due to improved workflow management, local voices like Jon Tarbet and even some departing employees underscore systemic issues beyond mere staffing shortages.
It is becoming increasingly evident that the challenges our town faces are deeply rooted in leadership practices. Effective governing goes beyond implementing digital platforms and hiring consultants. It requires creating an environment that values transparent communication, acknowledges employee contributions, and offers meaningful paths for professional development — areas where our current supervisors seem to fall short.
Kevin Cooper’s remarks emphasize a critical point: Leadership and management training is glaringly absent among our supervisors. This lack of experience in leading people likely contributes to dissatisfaction and a lack of retention among town employees. As Mr. Cooper aptly put it, supervisors should possess the skills to hire right, train effectively, and foster a positive morale within the team — skills that appear to be missing given the current situation.
While technological updates and external studies are noteworthy, they are not substitutes for leading with clarity and accountability. It’s time that our town leadership re-evaluate how they handle these vacancies and address the core issues of morale and workplace culture that drive dedicated employees to seek opportunities elsewhere.
As citizens of East Hampton, we deserve a town government that not only claims commitment to service and progress but actively demonstrates it through thoughtful leadership and tangible actions. I urge Supervisor Burke-Gonzalez and Deputy Supervisor Rogers to reflect deeply on the feedback from former employees and critics and initiate necessary changes in their leadership approach for the betterment of our community.
Sincerely,
RONA KLOPMAN
Broken System
Amagansett
April 6, 2025
To the Editor,
The rumors for months of a mass exodus have just begun at the Town of East Hampton. Jon Tarbet had some comments. I wonder if he knew what was going on since Rob Connelly used to work for him? I always found it interesting that Mr. Tarbet is a former town attorney who speaks of a “broken process.” Mr. Tarbet worked on the laws, then went into the private sector to represent his clients against the laws he helped bring to existence. Highlight the process, Jon, Bay View Avenue is still blocked by your client fast approaching 2,500 days. We can also look at that permit and see Joe Palermo’s name in the approval.
Kevin Cooper showed everyone how the system works. Work long enough to get your first pension then get as much as possible while waiting to collect. A broken system indeed. I wonder if this was the infamous New York State double-dip.
Eric Schantz leaving Housing and Community. I guess we’ll soon need to get the question in how couples at the Gansett Meadows are making a combined $138,000 and somehow are in “affordable housing”? Public records are telling if you know where to look. Then read between the lines and always follow the money. Feel free to pass that message along to members of the hierarchy at Amagansett School. They cannot figure that out to save face.
Still here,
JOE KARPINSKI
Following Through
North Haven
April 4, 2025
To the Editor,
Re: Your editorial “United We Stand: Bonac v. Oligarchy” of April 3, apparently The East Hampton Star enjoys its position as an echo chamber of the larger left-leaning national media. Merriam-Webster defines oligarchy: 1) government by the few, 2) a government in which a small group exercises control, especially for corrupt and selfish purposes, and autocracy defined as: 1) the authority or rule of an autocrat, 2) government in which one person possesses unlimited power.
I fail to see how either of these terms applies to the president’s exercise of executive power. The Department of Government Efficiency and Elon Musk serve in an advisory capacity and have no power to mandate changes. Some of DOGE’s recommendations fall within the president’s authority to make changes. Other recommendations will require Congress to act. We still have three branches of government, hardly an “oligarchy” (checks and balances). President Trump is following through on his campaign promises. His policies won the electoral vote, the popular vote, and both houses of Congress. I guess the left is losing its mind over the fact that their policies have been rejected and are reduced to screaming about a false narrative of the demise of our democracy.
There is too much power concentrated in Washington, D.C. Maybe a better idea would be to focus on freedom by checking the unlimited growth of government and “hands off” our tax dollars.
JOHN HOVEKAMP
Allegory for Our Time
East Hampton
April 5, 2025
Dear David,
The best allegory for our time is a fairy tale from Hans Christian Andersen, “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” A vain and clueless emperor is swindled into believing that imaginary fabric for his clothing is the most beautiful, and can be seen only by those who are very smart and loyal to him. Nobody around him will admit they see nothing, so the emperor struts forth naked, until a small child calls out, “The emperor has no clothes.”
In our time, the roles are reversed. In a democracy, the people are the emperor, and it is we who have been swindled. Donald Trump told us he was the smartest of all men, and he would make us the envy of the world. We followed him onto the world stage and now stand naked and reviled by every nation on earth.
Our friends and allies are now our enemies. Our enemies are laughing and celebrating as they watch President Trump disassemble the once-great nation. Our economy, the envy of the world only months ago, is collapsing like a sound house swallowed into a fissure in an earthquake. Jobs are evaporating, retirement savings are up in smoke, our vaunted rule by law rather than rule by men is a thing of memory.
Strangely, in the fairy tale, Andersen does not have the emperor admit he’s been swindled and dress himself. It ends as follows: “The Emperor shivered, for he suspected they were right. But he thought, ‘This procession must go on.’ So he walked on more proudly than ever, as his noblemen held high the train that wasn’t even there.”
In like fashion, our Republican noblemen, on the day after our stock market shed $5 trillion of its value, gathered around microphones to proclaim the swindler a genius and urge us to trust him. Not one Republican will admit that we have no clothes. But we can feel a draft. The swindler spent the evening basking in praise at a million-dollar-a-plate dinner at Mar-a-Lago.
DON MATHESON
No Laughing Times
Springs
April 7, 2025
To the Editor,
My wife and I attended the protest rally Saturday at Town Hall. It was well attended by mostly old hippies such as myself and my wife. Where were all the young people?
I remember protests headed by college-age kids back in the 1960s. The stakes are even higher now for all of us.
Hey, youth! We need you. Get on your social media “hot rods” and help make the next rally really large. You can make this happen!
The other thing I noticed — there was not one Latino person in sight. Either they were all rounded up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement or were busy eating your cats and dogs while you were out protesting. But these are certainly no laughing times, and I’m hoping the young get on board to help save their future.
THOMAS LAGRASSA
First Protest
East Hampton
April 6, 2025
Dear Editor:
This past cold and damp Saturday, I stood in front of East Hampton Town Hall from noon to 1 p.m., warmed by the crowd. My first protest. A lulu. Fabu.
The call: Anna Skrenta, chairwoman of the East Hampton Democratic Committee, friend, started it. “Will you and Juan Roldan (my Latino co-campaign worker from canvassing, brand-new member of the E.H. Dem Com) come to the Hands Off! East Hampton Fights Back rally, national protest, April 5, noon to 1. In front of Town Hall. Make a sign.” “Yes!” Thrilled. A chance to do something about my major, monster Trump-Musk angst at last.
The sign: I googled protest signs on Amazon. A tremendous array but couldn’t get delivery in time. An ex-Madison Avenue copywriter and art director, I’d do it myself. Went to Staples, got the biggest cardboard they had, 30-by-40-inch, Magic Markers in black, red, and blue. What to say? So many things. “Don’t Crash Our Party,” “Dump Trump,” “Hands Off! Social Security, the Smithsonian, National Parks, Our Bodies,” the list went on and on. Afraid that President Trump is getting away with downing, drowning, destroying our democracy, “RESIST!” summed it all up. Took two days. And I wrote a short poem.
The protest: A joint effort between Indivisible Eastern Long Island and East Hampton Dems, I got many online reminders, the last with ground rules — must be peaceful. Juan and I went early and parked behind brown-shingled Town Hall. At 11:15 we were among the first. Everyone was smiling, friendly, and helpful. Juan picked the perfect sign, “Hands Off Legal Immigrants.” He’s one. By 11:50, lots more people marched to the front, down a slope to Route 27.
We stood in the third row, uncertain of our safety — were there going to be MAGA bike riders? As cars went slowly by, they honked, drivers and passengers gave thumbs-up signs. We clapped. Some big trucks — Trumpers — ignored us. A chorus of boos. It was electric. Someone on a megaphone chanted. The crowd echoed, answered. I talked to strangers standing next to me, got to know their names and stories, bumped into a few friends, others in the distance. Everyone was upbeat, uplifted. I felt the energy, camaraderie fueled by outrage, connected by our urgent mission — express our anger, disapproval, save our democracy peacefully. Comrades in arms, indeed.
Little by little, Juan and I drifted to the front row where I put my graphic but much-too-big “RESIST” on the ground, in sight of traffic. A newbie, I hadn’t thought it through — I’d have to hold it up high. Heavy. The well-mannered anti-Trump crowd grew, carried colorful signs, addressing all my concerns — plus. Some were funny. “Send Musk to Mars.” There were only a few policemen, as it turned out not needed. I booed and rooted, chanted and clapped, enchanted. I was part of a movement that was going to make a difference. Haven’t felt that warm and fuzzy since after 9/11 when New Yorkers were nice.
The results: We saw Anna as we were leaving. “The count is 500 protesters, according to the police.” She later amended that to 650. A great success. I saw optimism, strength, determination and grit. Just like the faint yellow dusting of forsythia, first flower of spring, out sprang hope.
The poem:
Resist!
Resist!
I pray
Before
Our fifty
Shining stars
Fade away.
SUSAN ISRAELSON
Put an End to This
East Hampton Village
April 5, 2025
Dear East Hampton Star,
Sorry if this is long but there’s so much to say. I did my best. I’m writing this on Saturday, April 5 (2025 for completeness), which has been declared a day of protest against the insane Donald Trump administration. I had thought very hard about joining the protest scheduled to be at Town Hall today, but circumstances dictate that I need to be at home for this one. Instead, I’m writing this letter between chores.
If asked what I would protest against, the answer would be, “What am I not protesting?” Every action this current White House administration is taking seems designed not only to destroy the country but the world as a whole — at least the part of it that runs on money. This is not just making people’s lives uncomfortable but it’s actually directly killing them. The U.S. Agency for International Development was life support in many ways to millions of people around the world. From medical research and support to disaster relief to feeding the hungry, this program was seen as absolutely vital to worldwide physical and economic health. Now that it has been killed off by Donald Trump’s pet stinker, Elon Musk, people are starving to death — not enemies but people, especially children, who have no other way of supporting themselves.
The biggest and most recent debacle has been the tariffs, none of which make any political or economic sense. Even if you concede that President Trump has some kind of vendetta against most countries, you have to ask what he would have against polar bears, walruses, and penguins. He’s slapped islands with no human inhabitants with huge tariffs. What do we get from penguins which is worth taxing? Noise? Regurgitated fish?
Tokelau has a human population of less than 1,500 and is so remote it has no airport or seaport; it exports nothing and imports very little. What good does it do to slap it with any kind of tariff? And this is just one of many similar islands which have no appreciable commerce with the U.S. other than very extreme eco-tourism.
We need to get the congressional Republicans off their self-righteous, spineless duffs to put an end to this. They have the power of the purse, not the president. There was no economic state of emergency until the president declared economic war on our allies. Our allies!
I’m a huge fan of Social Security. I may never really need it but I happily paid into it during the years I worked. The problem is that many, if not most, people don’t understand how it works, least of all Elon Musk or President Trump who definitely won’t need it and seem to think that that money belongs in their pockets. Like all the funds in the U.S. Treasury which they want to convert to crypto, specifically those created by Elon Musk and Donald Trump. Now there’s a Ponzi scheme if ever there was one.
The best description of what has happened to this country, I invoke a quote from the film “Hook” delivered by Maggie Smith in the role of Granny Wendy: “Why, Peter! You’ve become a pirate!” This is exactly what has happened to this country since the election of Donald Trump. And it can’t be said enough that no one elected or even asked for Elon Musk to dismantle every major program of the United States government. Monty Python’s “The Crimson Permanent Assurance” sketch from “The Meaning of Life” is another good analogy — especially the ending.
The last subject, the place of honor, has to go to the disgusting takeover of the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Many readers will know that my father was Sheldon Harnick, the lyricist, songwriter, and translator. Were he still alive, he would be appalled at everything going on and not least what has happened to this institution, which he helped support. The Kennedy Center hosted many of his works, most notably in my memory “Rex” about King Henry VIII. Donald Trump has said that one of his three favorite musicals is “Fiddler On The Roof.” My father would be outraged, as the president obviously doesn’t understand the show at all. In a very real sense, Trump is the czar and the immigrants (legal or not) are the Jews like the people of Anatevka. In the face of the takeover I know that my father would have voted against allowing any of his works to be performed at the Kennedy Center while it was under this tyrannical, piratical new management.
If I were able to participate in the protests, my sign would paraphrase a lyric my father wrote:
“I can’t stand (Elon)! Throwing his weight around, so unbearably smug!
I can’t stand (Donald)! Spattering hate around with a cynical shrug!
Hate-filled, well-chilled hypocrites deciding who’s to live and who’s to die!
Playing God with a wave and a casual nod. You can’t always beat ’em but somebody’s got to try!”
Thanks for reading.
Sincerely,
MATT HARNICK
Wasteful Spending
Montauk
April 6, 2025
Dear David,
The Environmental Protection Agency funneled $2 billion to a nonprofit linked to Democrat Stacey Abrams for solar panels. This group only took in $100 in revenue.
Democrats see their golden goose threatened, as the left used the byzantine federal budget process to bankroll their outside political operation with billions of dollars in taxpayer money.
Dems want to raise taxes on Americans. As an American, I want to know how has the money I paid taxes for been spent.
Under Joe Biden, the explosion in federal spending was 27 times the population growth. Skyrocketing federal spending was the cause that sent inflation through the roof. Wasteful spending on leftist political activities might as well have been spent on lottery tickets, playing poker, or just hitting the slots, for all the good it did for the American people.
As long as federal spending remains out of control, there will be no chance to give the citizens of America relief from Joe Biden’s inflation crisis. We must deregulate the economy so goods and services will cost less.
In God and country,
BEA DERRICO
Want No Part
Amagansett
April 7, 2025
Dear Mr. Rattray,
It’s hard to keep up, isn’t it? I joined the April 5 “Hands Off” protests in spirit, my voice and placard raised for hours. But in reality, I was in New York City, where we are leaving our apartment (home-away-from-home) after decades. Going through the things that mysteriously accumulate over time, like dust bunnies under the bed, until you start digging. Through the closets, the files, the drawers. What should be kept, what should be donated, what thrown out. Must keep these pics of my grandson as an infant — he just turned 30 for God’s sake! And pics of my daughter as a 3-year-old. Now she’s — take a guess. Damn!
But I try to keep up. Try to look for headlines that don’t have the word “Trump” in them. There’s one! It’s about creamy chicken stew! I’ll definitely read that. But I also read the transcript of our president’s recent meeting at the White House with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. President Trump indicated that he and Mr. Rutte were good friends and that he’s doing a terrific job. And Mr. Rutte seemed grateful and definitely deferential to his “friend” on a variety of subjects. They agreed it was very important to end the war in Ukraine, which never would have happened if he’d been president. Sad. With thousands of people dying every week. The president said that he knew President Putin well and they would come to an agreement. It had to happen. The dying and destruction had to stop.
The president spoke about the logic of having Canada become part of the United States. He showed how great it would look on a map. Canada has been “ripping us off” for years. We don’t need Canada; they need us! The secretary-general nodded at this idea, but had no comment. No point in angering the president before lunch, or dinner.
President Trump also talked about Greenland and how much better it would be for all the Greenlanders when the United States is in charge. Again, Mr. Rutte nodded, though did not say, “Absolutely! Statehood for Greenland!” Then the president said, jokingly (or was it?), that he was willing to sweeten the deal for Denmark by offering not just cash, but Washington State as well, since it voted for Kamala Harris anyway and was filled with lefty socialists! Everyone in the Oval Office raised their eyebrows and cleared their throats at this suggestion. How could he be serious? But how could you know for sure?
Not missing a “news” opportunity, The Seattle Times did a quick poll of registered Washington voters to gauge their interest in being traded to Denmark. Surprisingly, 51.3 percent were in favor of the deal, indicating that having dual citizenship and membership in the European Union were appealing ideas. Even more compelling: having universal health care, at minimal cost. “Where do I sign?!” was pretty much the response for many Washingtonians. But he was probably joking about the trading thing, right? So much talk about free agents in sports right now. Who knows?
Not the case among Greenlanders, however, who appeared to want no part of being a part of the United States. (Which was painfully clear from Vice President JD Vance’s recent visit to the vast territory, where he was greeted with cultural frostbite.)
It’s hard to keep up, Mr. Rattray. But I’m trying to stay focused. Will Taylor get engaged to Travis? Will Post Malone stay with the country thing? Will Trump serve out his term? To paraphrase my own book, What will the world, and our country, be like when our newest granddaughter is my age, in 2098? So much work to do.
Always,
LYLE GREENFIELD
Eradication of Israel
North Haven
April 4, 2025
To the Editor,
Jeff Gewert (March 17 letter and prior “Guestwords” column) is entitled to his own opinion regarding his benevolent view of Hamas, but he is not entitled to his own facts. The fact that he refuses to face in his recurrent pandering to Hamas and his muzzling of the truth is that Hamas is a corrupt and violent terrorist organization that has as its principal goal the eradication of the nation-state of Israel and, where necessary, to that goal, the murder of Jews in Israel.
On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists entered Israeli territory and carried out an unprecedented reign of murder, immolation, and kidnapping of Israeli citizens. Woman were raped and beheaded. Babies were burned alive. Nevertheless, even with this barbarity, Israel has considered the creation of a side-by-side Palestinian state if certain security conditions could be met. But the Palestinians ruled by and sympathetic to Hamas refuse a two-state solution. Their goal is the eradication of Israel by any means possible, including, as promised, repeat instances of Oct. 7.
In our view, Israel must persist in its renewed aerial and ground war to destroy every vestige of Hamas. If so-called innocent Gazans must suffer because of the ruthless way they are used as pawns and shields by Hamas, well, that is the unfortunate scourge of war. This is a war for Israel’s survival, and Israel should not cower to the progressive left that was only too happy to dance in the streets on Oct. 8, 2023, to applaud the Hamas massacre.
East End Jews for Israel,
DAVID SAXE
MITCHELL AGOOS