Letters to the Editor

Local opinions submitted to the Staten Island Advance

• YOUR OPINION
For the first time in many years, I'm excited about a local election. That election is for the New York State Senate and the candidate I'm excited about is Joe Pancila. Joe has been a community leader for decades. He has given of himself and his family, fighting many undesirable projects that his community and Staten Islanders oppose.

• YOUR OPINION
I read the article "Push to close schools on Muslim holidays" (Advance, Sept. 27), saying to myself, finally my son would be able to go for his prayers on Eid, until I arrived at the sentence where "Mr. Bloomberg keeps on stalling the bill, adding that students cannot afford any more holidays and this will open doors for other religious holidays."

• YOUR OPINION
However, imagine if Barack Obama, instead of McCain, had been the POW who signed the statement confessing to wrongs committed by him and the United States against North Vietnam. GOP partisans in their remarks and commercials would be calling Obama a traitor who should have been court-marshaled, and who should not be campaigning for the presidency.

• YOUR OPINION
Fortunately for us, his constituents, Fossella turned out to be on the losing side when all the votes were counted. His was one of 112 votes against this pro-consumer legislation, versus 312 votes in favor.

• YOUR OPINION
Subject: Lessons learned -- community board review of proposed group home on Carteret Street.

• YOUR OPINION
Re: "A vision for reviving the Island: Urban planners present study for revitalizing the borough's shores and other areas":

• YOUR OPINION
When the Staten Island Growth Task Force instituted a new rule requiring two parking spaces on residential lots, one of which was to be in a paved side yard beyond the building facade, I pointed out that this would end up requiring nearly the whole yard to be paved in concrete, since the driveway to the garage wouldn't count as a second space.

• YOUR OPINION
I read Ms. Stevie Lacy-Pendleton's article "Sometimes 'angels' do walk among us" [Advance, Sept. 9] and I cried. I have read her previous articles on the mysterious "St. Michael," and all of his good deeds, and always wondered who is this wonderful human being.

• YOUR OPINION
Hospitals on Staten Island need HHC $$ immediately to improve their services

• YOUR OPINION
Fall guys. Recently, the General Accounting Office in Washington reported the results of its study on the amount of taxes paid by corporations doing business in the United States in the years 2002 to 2005. Amazingly, more than half of U.S. corporations paid no tax!

• YOUR OPINION
Principals and teachers shouldn't get bonuses for doing their jobs

• YOUR OPINION
To Richard DiMaio of Tampa, Fla. [Your Opinion, Sept. 28], who thinks Joe Pancila is a very hard worker and should be state senator:

• YOUR OPINION
The logic of "Holtje's Law" is simple: The ratio of market value of assets vs. funds on deposit must be within range of the Federal Reserve's ability to maintain control over the money supply.

• YOUR OPINION
Polls overwhelmingly show a public that sees voting for this bailout bill as an act of economic treason whereby the bipartisan Washington elite robs taxpayer cash to give their campaign contributors a trillion-dollar gift.

• YOUR OPINION
We are being told by politicians that Congress must pass a $700-billion dollar bailout plan immediately in order to quell the current economic crisis.

• YOUR OPINION
Re: The proposed bailout of the skunks:

• YOUR OPINION
My school, Our Lady Queen of Peace, entered the Disability Awareness Contest, sponsored by State Assemblyman Mike Cusick. The contest asked students to make a poster with the theme, "What disability means to me." One of my students earned first place -- thus entitling her and her class to a pizza party.

• YOUR OPINION
On Friday, Sept. 12, at 7:53 a.m., my daughters were crossing in the crosswalk at Yetman Avenue and Amboy Road on their way to school. There was no crossing guard on duty.

• YOUR OPINION
The choices for president this election year are very unattractive in light of the fact that our country is in dire need of strong, foreign affairs leadership; sound and workable solutions to our nation's dismal economic outlook and strategic withdrawal of our admirable troops from Iraq and elsewhere -- sooner rather than later.

• YOUR OPINION
Someone please inform Dr. Mohammad Khalid [Your Opinion, Sept. 23: "Abolish term limits so Bloomberg can stay in City Hall for four more years"] that voters chose to have a change in politicians every eight years in not one referendum, but in two different referendums. Term limits must remain exactly as the majority of people mandated.

• YOUR OPINION
Re: Tompkinsville -- slum deluxe.

• $700 BILLION to save the country's economy

• YOUR OPINION
After flying to my hometown of Staten Island specifically to attend the 9/11 memorial services at the site of the former World Trade Center, I was dismayed by three things:

• YOUR OPINION
I am writing in response to a story in last Saturday's Advance: "Bad to worse on Clove Road."

• YOUR OPINION
After reading the Sept. 21 Advance article titled "Showdown brews over facility for mentally ill," I felt compelled to write. Most of the people of Staten Island are very sympathetic to the plight of the mentally ill and want proper housing and care for them. But the facility at Fort Place, which Mr. James Molinaro supports, is the wrong location. There are eight schools within 1 mile of this site.

• YOUR OPINION
Let's form new group to rescue the National Lighthouse Museum

• YOUR OPINION
Welcome to the new U.S.S.A. -- United Socialist States of America

• YOUR OPINION
The article "The Swing" [Advance, Sept. 9] by Andrea Giambrone both gladdened my heart and brought tears to my eyes.

• YOUR OPINION
I am writing to respond to the letter by Brianna Tenore in the Sept.16 edition of the paper about 9/11 becoming a national holiday.

• YOUR OPINION
I appreciated your insightful article on the Narrows Road milling disaster [Sept. 9, "Paving project has drivers shaking heads"].

• YOUR OPINION
Your Aug. 28 article "Global warming may be at a 'tipping point,'" which pointed out that "Sea ice in the Arctic Ocean [is] at second-lowest level in three decades" should, along with the recent reports about severe storms, droughts, wild fires and floods, convince us that that the world is rapidly approaching an unprecedented catastrophe.

• YOUR OPINION
Term limits should be abolished for good.

• YOUR OPINION
An open letter to Sen. John McCain:

• YOUR OPINION
Residents from Staten Island to Long Island can all agree with your excellent editorial "Sheldon Silver, reformer" (Sept. 17).

• YOUR OPINION
I was confused by the recent headline on an E.J. Dionne column: "Obama the fulfillment of 60-year-old promise."

• YOUR OPINION
Back in February of this year, I had the honor of speaking at the Families on the Move Legislative Breakfast about the shameful practice of treating and housing emotionally fragile children seeking acute psychiatric care alongside chronically mentally ill adults.

• YOUR OPINION
As I read Saturday's Advance (Sept. 13) about the McKee/Staten Island Tech (MSIT) boys soccer team's third straight win in this young season, a couple thoughts came to me.

• YOUR OPINION
My wife and I took our son, grandchildren and a young friend to see the wonderful movie Wall.E. This film is right on target regarding our pollution of our beloved earth. Everyone, old or young, should see this movie and perhaps learn from it.

• YOUR OPINION
So Vino Fossella, the "disgraced" congressman, wants to throw his hat back into the ring. A little time has gone by and we haven't really seen or heard from him lately. So are we now supposed to just forgive and forget the shame and humiliation he not only brought down upon himself and his own family, but also for the rest of us who had come to admire and put our trust and faith in him?

• YOUR OPINION
Middle school is better for adolescents than the alternative of K-8 education

• YOUR OPINION
Children who have behavior disability need expert help with their education

• YOUR OPINION
This Sept. 11th, I once again felt the eerie stillness of lower Manhattan. It was as real as the buildings, and it shined a light on the tawdry farce called the race for the presidency. It's two years along now with the end in sight, and the signal-to-noise ratio has never been lower.

• YOUR OPINION
According to the New York State Board of Elections latest data, there are 201,794 registered voters (Democrat and Republican) on Staten Island. Only 21,833 (10.8 percent) voted in the primary on Sept. 9.

• YOUR OPINION
Let me start by stating I'm retired on disability from the Department of Sanitation, injured on the job doing what I loved -- repairing cars and trucks. And now I have to get around in a power wheelchair.

• YOUR OPINION
Joan Martin's comments on the litter inside the Greenbelt are right on [Your Opinion, Sept. 11, "Litter breeds litter inside the Greenbelt"].

• YOUR OPINION
On the seventh anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001, we once again remembered that tragic day that we will never forget -- a day when so many of our loved ones were taken away from us.

• YOUR OPINION
The Sunday, Aug. 17, letter by Steve Yannolo of Dongan Hills [Your Opinion, "Muslim-Americans are still Muslims first"] was a clear verbal attack on Dr. Mohammed Khalid and Miss Kiran Syed.

• YOUR OPINION
The following was sent to Capt. Richard Gutch, commanding officer of the 123rd Precinct on Staten Island:

• YOUR OPINION
We did some research about stem cells because several members of our family have inherited an illness that involves the cerebellum part of the brain called ataxia.

• YOUR OPINION
It's time to establish "Staten Island Day" in New York State law, and Aug. 20 should be that day.

• WHAT BOOKS DID MAYOR PALIN SEEK TO BAN -- AND WHY?

• YOUR OPINION
I wish manufacturers would just raise their prices instead of reducing quantities.

• YOUR OPINION
As the leaders of Israel and Palestinians are attempting to reach a basic understanding before the Bush administration departs, now is the time to discuss the refugee problem.

• YOUR OPINION
LIFE OF CARRIAGE HORSE IN NEW YORK CITY IS MARKED BY DAILY MISERY AND SUFFERING

• YOUR OPINION
Now that the bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is a done deal, at the expense of the over-burdened taxpayer, how long will it take our elected representatives to begin an investigation into the mountain of fraudulent mortgage applications?

• YOUR OPINION
I am pleased to learn that Joe Pancila is running for the New York State Senate as the Democratic nominee. I have known Joe for the past 40 years. Joe has dedicated his life to the betterment of Staten Island through his undying commitment to community service, leadership activities and by helping children learn. Joe is a shining example of a person who has made a deep impact on the lives of those he has come in contact with.

• YOUR OPINION
Poor conditions at NYCHA facilities are a cause of concern for seniors

• YOUR OPINION
What a humbling experience it was for me to be recently installed as the new president of the Richmond County Bar Association.

• YOUR OPINION
As vice president of the Livingston Community Association, a fourth-generation Staten Islander with three in the West Brighton area, I cannot hold my tongue any longer on two of the hottest topics of the summer.

• YOUR OPINION
On Sept. 30, my husband was handed a flyer about a Community Board meeting to oppose the SIDDSO from putting "retards" in a group home on Carteret Street.

• YOUR OPINION
The following was sent to the commanding officer of the 122nd Precinct on Staten Island:

• YOUR OPINION
Just because you have a candidate's lawn sign doesn't mean you have to vote for them. Lawn signs are among the first ways that candidates indulge their foolish fantasies of notoriety (and believe me, it is all about that).

• YOUR OPINION
Thank you for your editorial of Aug. 26 regarding the good sense of moving forward with a wind-power energy source. Add solar, wave, and geothermal where appropriate, and let's get busy. If we had listened to Jimmy Carter in the 1970s, we would be way ahead in these accomplishments now.