Needs of Our Families
Springs
June 12, 2025
To the Editor,
My dream was to move to Springs, which my husband and I finally pulled off five years ago — the best decision of our lives. It was just at the beginning of Covid, and my first two activities, in this order, were to sign up for weekly delivery of The East Hampton Star and contact our local food pantry to begin volunteering. My memories are so very vivid of my Mom over 40 years ago (may she rest in peace) reclining in her lounge chair weekly reading The Star. As they say, history truly repeats itself.
I feel blessed beyond measure for our year-round community and how we support and care about each other to manage our daily lives in a very expensive area of Long Island. Living in Springs and working weekly at our food pantry has opened my eyes to the needs of our families who work in our community to keep us fed, homes cleaned, pampered, and so more. Many of our families work two jobs and yet deeply struggle to pay their monthly bills and feed their families with local and healthy choices.
On June 28 we are hosting our garden party in the Springs at a beautiful home of an extremely generous couple. You can find tickets and details on our website, springsfoodpantry.com, and I ask that if you are reading this that you, please, consider the needs of so many of our local families and how your support can truly make a difference.
With much gratitude,
AMY LEOPOLD
Forward-Thinking
East Hampton
June 12, 2025
Dear Editor,
I would like to commend the East Hampton Town Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez and the town board for their outstanding work in getting the traffic circle installed at the intersection of Stephen Hand’s Path and Long Lane.
Shortly before moving near that intersection in 1998, I learned that a man had been tragically killed there. Over the years, as traffic steadily increased, the intersection became more and more hazardous. In the summer months, cars would back up along Two Holes of Water Road and Long Lane. Drivers tired of waiting and those unable to detect the speed of oncoming cars made poor decisions. Long school buses barely had enough time to clear the intersection before cars came speeding around the bend. I witnessed countless close calls and heard the sirens of far too many accidents.
For years, previous boards discussed the problem, but no action was taken. This board, however, made it a priority. They identified a smart, forward-thinking solution, developed a plan, and followed through — completing the traffic circle on schedule, ahead of during the busy summer season.
By ignoring outdated approaches and the inevitable resistance to change, the town chose a modern roundabout that now moves traffic smoothly and effectively through the intersection. As a year-round neighbor of the new traffic circle, I’m thrilled by how efficiently — and more important, how safely — drivers are now able to move through the area.
This project is a shining example of local government at its best: identifying a public safety issue, acting decisively, and delivering a successful solution. Bravo!
Gratefully,
HILARY OSBORN
Noise-Related
East Hampton Village
June 15, 2025
David,
I admire Michael Aaron’s tenacity in his valiant fight against Mill Hill Realty’s proposed restaurant and brewery.
Unfortunately, for so many reasons, it’s a bridge too far.
Sound Sense, the acoustical engineers, serves one master — Mill Hill. Their goal is to mitigate any opposition. How do they plan to ease Mr. Aaron’s noise-related concerns? Will a decibel meter be in place to quantify the sound intensity? In most municipalities, any noise exceeding 70 decibels is considered disturbing. Moreover, residential limits usually start at 60 or 55 dB (the equivalent noise of a regular vacuum cleaner). Will Sound Sense agree to these limits?
I applaud Alex Balsam’s goal of “Mr. Aaron to have a big smile on his face when he comes to our friends and family opening.” But, what about opening day plus 1? Perhaps a masonry yard or auto repair shop is not such a bad idea.
I’m a little suspicious of Marcos Baladron’s commitment to not allow special events over 50 people without a permit. What specific tracking mechanisms are in place?
Moreover, Mr. Baladron should be aware that “any code violations shall be enforced by any duly constituted law enforcement officer, including any Code Enforcement officer, having jurisdiction within the Village of East Hampton.” His role is administration, not enforcement.
Finally, for Mr. Aaron’s sake, I wouldn’t encourage the formation of a subcommittee. Who do you think will be hand-picking members?
DAVID GANZ
Bend the Knee
Amagansett
June 16, 2025
To the Editor,
People who claim they want no kings and wish to not bend the knee need to put all eyes on East Hampton. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation just bent and bowed to a homeowner on Bay View Avenue. This was in the way of giving a new permit to the homeowner of 117 Bay View Avenue whose cubes fell in a section after the last storm, in late May.
I can see why the latest court date was “continued” again on May 27. I guess this was so revisions could be submitted to the D.E.C. on May 28. The plans still show the very specific 30-foot stretch between the properties’ property lines.
Now all eyes on, in my opinion, the most important and what can be the sternest form of government, local. Town of East Hampton, June 16, is day 2,533 access has been blocked by an illegal obstruction.
Will the Town of East Hampton and subsequent town departments enforce the code and law, as they’ve been repeatedly asked? Or will they appease and bend the knee? Beholden to one — or all? We’ll be watching.
Still here,
JOE KARPINSKI
A Stark Reminder
East Hampton Village
June 14, 2025
Dear East Hampton Star,
As I write I’m listening to the wonderful din coming from Town Hall. I live close enough to be able to hear all the cheering and car horns and, for once, it’s noise which is welcome. It’s good to know that this community can really come together and make their voices heard. I want everyone who participated to know that I am definitely there, too, even if I’m slightly removed from the actual protest. In the words of the chant some time ago, “No Trump. No fear!” and I would also quote the chant from the 1960s “Power to the people!” I’m just old enough to remember the sit-ins in Central Park on the Great Lawn and Sheep Meadow. Back then it was a war being protested. Today we are standing up against full-on tyranny.
On the downside, since I am home and have been listening to the news, I’ve heard a piece of news which may not have reached many at the protest yet. Two senators have been shot in Minnesota, along with their spouses. One couple is dead. The others are both in the hospital in critical condition. It’s a stark reminder that we live in times which could be considered the most dangerous to our country both existentially and physically. Lawlessness is on the rise thanks to President Trump giving his loyal subjects the green light to commit violence in his name. I refer to the pardoning of thousands of violent people who participated in an armed insurgency at his request on Jan. 6, 2021.
In my last letter I mentioned “Fiddler on the Roof.” My father also wrote lyrics for “Fiorello!” about the former New York senator and mayor of New York City, Fiorello La Guardia. I’m reminded of the song “Man on the Side of the Angels” a lot these days. Fiorello began his career not as a politician but as a lawyer supporting those who could not afford legal representation, which included many immigrants. He often worked pro bono, and those who worked in his office were not paid well but stayed with him because they believed in the work they were all doing and also because he tried to make sure everyone got at least something salarywise before taking home his own check.
This is relevant since I’ve heard a rumor that President Donald Trump might want to try to rename La Guardia Airport after himself. If this were to happen it would be the greatest of all ironies — an airport named for a man who was an advocate for the poor and immigrant communities being renamed for a man who hates immigrants and poor people and thinks only of himself. Both men were famous New Yorkers, which adds to the irony. President Trump is the modern equivalent of Boss Tweed, whom Fiorello LaGuardia had to contend with throughout his career.
Thanks as always for reading.
Sincerely,
MATT HARNICK
Not Worried
East Hampton
June 16, 2025
To the Editor,
I am not worried about tanks coming down our street in East Hampton. We have too many potholes.
I am also not worried that our citizenry will be cowed by the cow in the White House. Attending our No Kings protest Saturday was duty, yes, but it was a lot of fun.
The cow has no clothes.
TOM MACKEY
Never Dreamed
Plainview
June 15, 2025
To the Editor,
When my mother was born on June 14, 1917, her birthdate was already celebrated annually as our nation’s Flag Day. When she died at age 95 in 2013, she had never dreamed that one day the president of the United States would honor her June 14 birthday with a $45 million parade in our country’s capital.
So, to all Americans to whom this past Saturday was merely No Kings Day, try to pretend that all of the Washington, D.C., celebration was in honor of an ordinary but decent American named Linda Siegelman.
Signed, her proud son Richard.
RICHARD SIEGELMAN
A Chilling Message
Sag Harbor
June 11, 2025
Dear Editor,
What’s happening in Los Angeles and across the country right now is deeply troubling. Immigration raids are targeting families — fathers, mothers, children — without meaningful questioning or due process. People are being handcuffed at their workplaces and their lives disrupted simply for trying to make a living. These raids are not just targeting dangerous criminals; they’re tearing apart the fabric of our communities.
To make matters worse, we see peaceful protesters met with the National Guard, a chilling message that dissent is no longer tolerated, that we’re only free to agree with the current administration. It sends the message that some people, particularly those of us with brown skin, are automatically suspect, unworthy of the due process that is supposed to be the cornerstone of our justice system.
I want to be clear: Like many, I believe in a safe community. I do not oppose the detention, or even deportation, of individuals who pose a legitimate threat to public safety. But what’s happening now is not about protecting us. It’s about sowing fear and division.
Silence fuels this administration’s actions. Speaking up is not just an option, it is our duty. Our communities deserve to be safe, and safe does not mean silent. Reach out to your elected officials. Demand that they stand up for due process and human dignity. Talk to your friends and family. Organize and show up. Peaceful protest has brought about real change in this country before, and it can again.
This is not just about immigrants; it’s about who we are as a people. Raids in our communities, fear in our neighborhoods, and the erosion of due process affect every single one of us, directly or indirectly. We cannot allow this to define us.
Speak up. Protect our community. Choose humanity over fear.
Sincerely,
YESENIA QUICHIMBO
Back to the Future
Montauk
June 15, 2025
Dear David,
In the 19th century, the Irish statesman Edmund Burke wrote, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” In the 20th century the Shoah survivor Elie Wiesel, whose entire family was murdered by German Nazis, wrote in his memoir “Night” that “silence kills.” Both were prophetic.
Our nation is now experiencing a back to the future moment. In Nazi Germany, the agents of the government could kidnap anybody they wanted without a warrant. These victims would disappear. In Trump’s America, anyone can be kidnapped without a warrant. The only difference is that the Gestapo agents did not wear masks. In the U.S.A., the ICE agents wear masks. Are they not proud of their role in kidnapping undocumented immigrants, Green Card holders, visa applicants, American citizens, and students who advocated the end to the genocide of 55,000 civilians in Gaza by Trump’s best bro Netanyahu? None of those students who were kidnapped ever supported the Hamas butchers.
We have now entered a new era with the murder of a Democratic state legislator and her husband in Minnesota and the attempted murder of a Democratic state senator and his wife by an individual who obviously did not like democratic values, like free speech. This is just the beginning of the MAGA movement to destroy political dissent.
Trump will go down as the most-corrupt, criminal felon, rapist, and wannabe dictator, or king, in American history. His spineless and corrupt Republican regime supporters will be treated less kindly because they all knew that Trump was mentally deficient for human decency but they all kissed his huge buttocks when he wanted. Many are praying for an early demise, but then they would have to try to deal with the hypocrite, JD Vance. He once ate dogs and cats with his constituents. Yuk yuk!!
God bless the U.S.A., democracy, civil rights, and the Constitution.
BRIAN POPE
Wreak Havoc
Montauk
June 14, 2025
Dear David,
“There was no violence in L.A. in response to ICE raids” claims Maxine Waters. CNN states the violence you’re watching on your TV is made up. How dumb do these people think we are?
Democrats have, as usual, resorted to violence to mark their spot and anti-American objectives. Democrats consistently encourage violence, allow criminals into our country, welcome them with open arms, and then organize mobs to wreak havoc on our citizens.
If you want to protest, do it peacefully. Don’t get involved with the agitators. These activists are being paid big money to do as much damage as possible.
When someone throws bottles, bricks, concrete, Molotov cocktails, spits at police, uses explosives, burns the American flag, you have just made yourself a criminal rioter. You should be arrested and make a home in jail, with very few rights. Better yet, be sent to Russia, live by their rules.
It’s time to stop trying to make the American citizens dumb. We see through your insinuation. You think you’re getting over on us. Fed up is all I can say, except take CNN, MSNBC off the air. Their lies have gone too far,
In God and country,
BEA DERRICO
Demand Change
Amagansett
June 16, 2025
Dear Mr. Rattray,
I don’t know much about history. No, I’m not referring to the song, though I definitely prefer Sam Cooke’s version to James Taylor’s. I mean I literally do not know much about history, but recent images of masked immigration enforcement and removal operations officers handcuffing undocumented immigrants and taking them away to somewhere, presumably for deportation, brought a word to my head. The word was Gestapo, the secret police of Nazi Germany, whose most heinous actions involved the rounding up of Jews for removal to concentration camps, where millions were slaughtered. Unprecedented crimes of genocide, ethnic cleansing.
Yes, I’ve gone too far with this comparison. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is not committing genocide. But ethnic cleansing? Maybe it amounts to that on some level. I mean, look at the ethnicity of those being rounded up by the ICE officers: pretty consistently folks from south of the border. It was the masks that set me off, Mr. Rattray. The optics. It felt like Trump’s “secret service” fulfilling his campaign promise, which no longer had much to do with the “rapists and drug dealers” he would rid the country of. It was all the undocumented non-citizens. Round ‘em up; ship ‘em out.
But suddenly, a happy change of direction? After increasing pressure, lobbying, from the agricultural and hospitality industries (i.e., political pressure from the “base”), decrying the removal of their valuable immigrant work force and the dire economic consequences therefrom, the president has announced that ICE will step back on enforcement for those industries. Thus, we have a new layer of discrimination within the broader mandate: the unlucky millions who happen to not work on a farm or in a hotel or restaurant. Think for a moment about the scores of landscaping crews in our community. The painters, masons, carpenters, roofers, vineyard workers, cleaning persons — who will speak out and “lobby” for their collective importance to ours and to every community?
It’s one thing to take a firm position on immigration and another to have no strategy other than deportation. Where is the bipartisan, comprehensive plan to legalize the status of long-term immigrant families and workers so vital to this country? There is presently none. Guess I must be dreaming, because all previous attempts to address this complex issue have been crushed in partisan votes on the House floor.
Let me bring back the eloquent voice of Mr. Sam Cooke: “It’s been a long, a long time coming, but I know a change gon’ come. Oh yes, it will.” Yes, it will — but only if we demand it.
Regards,
LYLE GREENFIELD
Limit Exposure
Montauk
June 16, 2025
To the Editor:
Warning to Beachgoers: Limit your exposure to the sun. If you get too brown, you might get picked up by ICE.
BILL CRAIN