Won't Forget
East Hampton
May 27, 2025
Dear Editor,
I went to the Vietnam Memorial Wall the other day at the American Legion. Years ago, I went to the original in D.C. The result was the same.
Three of my schoolmates are remembered on the wall. Just seeing their names unleashes more tears. But in the last 50 years or so, I have often shed these tears.
They were brave and outstanding young men, and I mourn just not them but their wives-to-be, their unborn children, and grandchildren. I am lucky, blessed, and thankful to have all three and to live here in East Hampton. I just wish my wife could know their wives and my children know their children, and my grandkids could run and play on the beach with their grandkids.
The wall here is being dismantled and trucked some other place, thanks to a very generous and thoughtful gentleman. But don't worry, fellows, I'll remember the wall and I won't forget you. Ever.
Yours,
ART MCCANN
Community Effort
East Hampton
May 29, 2025
David,
On behalf of the officers and members of American Legion Post 419 and Veterans of Foreign War Post 550, we'd like to offer our sincere thanks for all of the individuals and organizations who made our combined posts' Memorial Day events such a success this year. In addition to our busy normal holiday routine of placing cemetery flags, performing honors, and conducting the parade, we took on an additional challenge of hosting the Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall at Post 419. This exhibit was the inspiration of our recently departed former Post 419 commander, Lee O'Toole, who had previously hosted this display over a decade ago. From all accounts, this tribute to our Vietnam vets (and Desert Storm and post-9/11 vets) was truly appreciated by the community and a resounding success.
We'd like to take this public opportunity to thank and formally recognize Dave Martin of Post 419, who aggressively volunteered to serve as the project organizer and head fundraiser for the entire effort. He was able to successfully deliver Lee's vision of the Traveling Wall back to East Hampton for all to experience.
Many thanks also go out to all our Posts' members, countless local businesses and civic organizations, and those of the general public who donated their valuable time, talents, and resources to ensure a successful event. This was truly a community effort, which represents the enduring patriotic and grateful character of our residents. The members of American Legion Post 419 and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 550 stand ready to continue to serve you all. Thank you all again.
For God and country,
JEFF KIGER
East Hampton American Legion Post 419 commander
BILLY MOTT
East Hampton Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 550 commander
Very Helpful
East Hampton
May 30, 2025
Dear Editor,
The landscape committee at Windmill Village would like to thank Mariah Whitmore and the staff of Whitmores Nursery for their help with our native garden project at the entrance of our complex.
Windmill I was awarded a grant from ReWild to purchase native plants for that area, as well as having their expertise in planning the garden.
In addition to ReWild's help, the Whitmores staff was very helpful preparing the area for planting, extending our irrigation to the garden, and they will mulch the area now once the plants are in. Without their help, it would have been very hard for us seniors to do this on our own.
It is nice to know that even though East Hampton has changed, you will still have businesses that help the local people.
Sincerely,
PENNY DAUCH
Give Us All Freedom
North Haven
June 2, 2025
Dear David:
June is known now as Pride Month. It's such a good label because we all need to consider refreshing the pride we have in ourselves, our friends and family, our community, our work, our own ideals, and our country. Is it a false pride, or can we be genuinely proud of ourselves now?
June has always brought us this beautiful spring season that transitions to summer, inviting us all to enjoy our environment and each other as we return to outdoor activities that restore our physical health and the joy of outdoor recreation.
Our thoughts become liberated from stuffy confined isolation and mass media, allowing us to see the world as it actually exists. We may even become better able to understand and appreciate those people once easily dismissed as "others" in our community. Perhaps we will see our own errors of judgment and be willing to reconsider.
Democracy and social behavior matured over many years, and civil rights became law. Harmful discrimination of racial identity, gender identity, and religious identity started to become unacceptable. Police training and behavior has improved tremendously. More still needs to be done.
June 28, 1969, is the date when frequent police harassment of the gay community led to the culture shock now known as the Stonewall Rebellion. It was definitely not a riot at the beginning, because it was actually a rebellion against the brutal prejudicial police behavior. Only when the police started physically injuring people could one reasonably say that the police had caused a riot. I remember this well, as I was peacefully inside the club that Friday night until the police raid in those early Sunday morning hours.
From that time forward it became clear people of diverse sexual preferences and identities belong as legitimate members of the lawful community. Commemorative marches became annual events known as pride parades. June became recognized as Pride Month in the United States, originally commemorating that Stonewall Rebellion.
In 1999, President Bill Clinton issued his proclamation that June be known as Gay and Lesbian Pride Month. In 2011, Barack Obama expanded the official Pride Month recognition to include the entire L.G.B.T. community. In 2017, Donald Trump declined to offer federal recognition of Pride Month, though he issued supportive public statements in a series of tweets in 2019. In 2021, Joe Biden recognized Pride Month and vowed to push for L.G.B.T. rights in the United States, despite previously voting in the Senate against same-sex marriage and school education of L.G.B.T. topics. Pride Month has since grown into a global celebration of L.G.B.T.Q.+ culture and identity. Official themes for Pride Month in 2025 now vary across different organizations and events.
I suggest the best theme today that might bind us all together in a peaceful freedom is the one adopted by WorldPride Washington, D.C., 2025 that features the theme the Fabric of Freedom.
Our own national fabric seems now torn apart but still able to be repaired. The hostility and damaging behavior that has become so common among our communities -- and in current government behavior -- demands a more-peaceful and cooperative understanding. As a nation we are losing our ability to be proud of ourselves. We have been acting shamefully at home and in the international arena. We must recover from this madness and regain the honest pride we always felt that we deserved. That will give us all the freedom we all deserve.
This month, let's join together in celebrating a renewed pride in ourselves and community. Perhaps you will attend the Hamptons Pride Parade June 7? We are very fortunate a local educator, Tom House, founded this event four years ago to celebrate East Hampton's healthy, inclusive place in history.
Happy Pride Month,
ANTHONY CORON
Where Kids Ride
Montauk
May 29, 2025
Dear Editor,
I was driving home from work on Saturday -- when Montauk had the music festival -- at 3 p.m. As I drove on Essex Street to Fairview where I live, two boys were riding bikes in front of me. As there was no place to move over, they tried to pedal faster on the road.
I reached them, but not wanting to go around them, I slowed down. Behind me was a driver that couldn't wait, so he flew around me, just missing three bikers on the other side. He barely missed not riding right into them.
There is no room for a car and a bike on this road. I write this letter to ask the parents: Find out where your kids ride. Please, not down Essex Street.
Since I had stopped my car, I wouldn't have killed those kids, but the other driver might have, and I don't want to be a witness.
My sister also had an incident rising on Essex Street with kids on bikes -- they couldn't move over. She stopped, opened her window, and told them to be careful. They all laughed and made fun of her. Pretty sad.
ROBERT WICKLEIN
Tireless Efforts
Amagansett
June 2, 2025
Dear David,
Congratulations to Kristen Peterson and Wayne Gauger for re-election to the Amagansett School Board.
As I walked through the doors of Amagansett to vote with my daughter, I felt a surge of nostalgia and pride, knowing that I had graduated from this very school and that my daughters were the fourth generation to carry on the legacy. As I walked in, memories of dropping off my daughters for their first day of pre-K 3 with Peggy Bianchi and Roberta Bass came rushing back, and I was struck by the remarkable growth and progress they had made throughout the years at Amagansett School. Walking into the gym and seeing their names on the walls alongside their fellow graduates was a heartwarming experience, and I couldn't help but think of all the wonderful moments they had shared in gym class with Coach Rogers. I also remembered the late nights and hard work that went into creating the science fair projects displayed in the gym and the collaborative spirit that made every PTA event a triumph for all the students. The Thanksgiving feast with the turkey wobble was a beloved tradition that brought us all together.
Thanks to the tireless efforts of dedicated teachers like Kelly White, Ashley Blackburn, Jason Hancock, Nancy Peters, Kathy Solomon, and Theresa English, pre-k to 6th-grade students experienced a nurturing environment that fostered unparalleled growth, exploration, and learning. As graduates of Amagansett School, my daughters and many students went on to excel in middle school, high school, and college, proudly earning their degrees and realizing their full potential.
I am confident that the Amagansett School will continue to thrive for many generations under the superintendent, Michael Rogers's, and the school board's leadership.
Sincerely,
VICKI LITTMAN
Seen Smiling
Montauk
June 2, 2025
David,
For the second year in a row, the East Hampton Little League organized a trip to Citi Field for our youngsters on Sunday. The Metropolitans were victorious over the Colorado Rockies that afternoon with home runs from the big three to thrill our young players. I wanted to commend the Little League board for once again providing a wonderful experience to the young men and women who fill our baseball and softball fields nightly in the spring. Parents, coaches, and players could be seen smiling from ear to ear all afternoon. East Hampton Little League, thank you.
NICK FINAZZO
Seven Miles South
Springs
June 2, 2025
To the Editor,
Thank you, Marine Patrol. I wrote a similar note four years ago thanking basically the same lot of first responders: the always bright and attentive East Hampton 911 dispatch operators, the Coast Guard, but this time, aside from the Coast Guard, who have genuinely saved my life and others several times, I'd like to add the East Hampton Marine Patrol as a resource that goes above and beyond.
Yes, it very embarrassing announcing that I'm am basically an incompetent waterman. Still, this was a bona fide rescue of a elderly male guest I had on board who was in severe distress both emotionally and physically.
My boat, a 26-foot center console, had broken down on the second Sunday of May seven miles south of Montauk Point. We were at anchor but we were heavily rocking; the man had had a operation a month before and started shrieking about abdominal pain (unbeknownst to me, the man had a hernia operation a month before). It was Mother's Day; I called various services to be towed in, but, despite a cash offer, no one responded.
I was prepared to spend the night but I could not take the hysterics anymore. I finally called 911 and they quickly and efficiently sent these brave civil servants, who were kind and professional: Derek Paulsen and Drew Smith, East Hampton Town Marine Patrol, and Laura DeVito of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. (I hope I never run into the latter again.)
Gratefully,
JEFF NICHOLS
Stellar Theater
East Hampton
June 1, 2025
Dear David,
We may be a hundred miles from Broadway but we have some stellar theater right in our backyard. I'm not talking Bay Street or Guild Hall, though they have wonderful performances. I'm talking about a local theater group called South Fork Performing Arts & Black Box Performance Project, comprising teens and children. Tamara Froebel Salkin, its director, has such obvious talent and dedication to put on show after show where these young people not only shine, but are as hard-working, serious, and talented as those treading the boards in the big city.
Last night's performance of Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" was beyond my expectations. I was riveted, as was the whole audience, where you could hear a pin drop. The dialogue was spot-on, evocative, and often chilling. These teens killed it. And if you don't know the story or the true history by the way, it is a real witch hunt in the true sense of the word. The place was Salem, but this also happened right here in our own East Hampton, accusing women of witchcraft in the 1600s, and the hysteria that ensued. We may not have had hangings here but we had a trial and the same McCarthyism madness and scare tactics led by men, as Salem did, long before Eugene McCarthy was born.
"The Crucible" is nothing short of a horror story because it actually happened. Hundreds were hanged. Women mostly, but also some men. Suspicion ruled the day. Friends turned on friends, and families were torn apart. Frightening, hmm?
The talent on the stage last night got a well-earned standing ovation. They should be very proud of their hard work. Memorizing dialogue is not easy, and properly delivering it and drawing in your audience is the necessary magic. They did this magnificently. By the way, the actors also move the black boxes onstage and help with props. It's a team effort and quite impressive to watch.
I know this play; I've seen it performed by adults. This was as good or even better. So take a bow, local actors of "The Crucible" at LTV. Every part was well played. The leads were outstanding. Leo Guildi as John Proctor was dead-on and he commanded the stage in every scene. You can't help but feel his angst. He played the part Daniel Day-Lewis played in the movie version, to refresh your memory. His tortured wife, Elizabeth Proctor, (Joan Allen in the movie) was skillfully played by Xanthi Lazarakis. Her conversations onstage with her husband were so chilling and heartfelt.
The "other woman," Abigail Williams, accused of bewitching not only John Proctor but others, was played to the hilt by Zianya Quiroz Kane. She did not disappoint.
Rylie Field as Mary Warren, accused of witchcraft and sticking pins in poppets, was charmingly serious and so well played.
Piper Borsack as Tituba was not only entertaining, but she had this part down to a T. Watching Reverend Hale played by Kai Ryan, you forget for a minute you weren't watching a practiced, adult actor. Rebecca Nurse was properly sad and moving, played by Sadie Chaleff.
The chilling screams of the accused maids, including my talented granddaughter Hailey LaGarenne playing Mercy Lewis, were as shockingly disturbing as they needed to be. The lineup of maids in their aprons and bonnets and braids doing their echolalia bit pretending to be possessed by the devil was brilliant.
The judges were scary good, and the whole courtroom scene so maddening, especially since it actually happened, somebody had to scream at the insane accusations and thirst for blood.
Thank you to all who brought "The Crucible" to local theater this weekend. The actors were just fabulous. The acting company is terrific.
I hope you all pursue your dreams. I for one will be rooting for all of you.
NANCI LAGARENNE
Dead Wood
East Hampton
June 2, 2025
Dear Mr. Rattray,
From time to time, I feel compelled to voice concern over things in our community I believe deserve examination and/or improvement. Never before, however, have I wanted to shout more loudly about what seems like a major case of playing ostrich!
As an avid reader of The East Hampton Star, I have been struck by what seems to be a significant failure to lobby vigorously from your bully pulpit to prevent what I believe is a conflagration waiting to happen.
Anyone driving on Sunrise Highway, Route 27 (especially in the Napeague area) and Route 114 ( between Stephen Hand's Path and Sag Harbor) cannot help but notice how much dead wood now lines these roads. As we head into the summer, when the temperature rises and the ground dries up, it will take only a carelessly tossed cigarette to spark a conflagration like what we saw last month in New Jersey.
Why are you and your fellow editors not crusading to alleviate this tinderbox condition? This should be the lead story every week where you challenge the town and village councils throughout the East End to clear this dead wood instead of waiting for the cooked bird to fly into their mouths. New York State is broke. As it stands now, Albany is laser-focused on underwriting the undocumented they have allowed to take up residence in the state. The trouble with tomorrow is that it usually arrives before you are ready for it!
Sincerely,
JAMES R. WELDON
Already Have One
Amagansett
May 30, 2025
To the Editor:
Christopher Walsh's article last week "New Emergency Room in Business" included one of those sentences which send me off to do internet research. "One midday call, for an example, required the patient to be delivered to Stony Brook Southampton." If we have an emergency room here, why would anyone still have to go to the E.R. in Southampton? I was an emergency medical technician on New York City ambulances for five years when I was younger and still take an interest in everything about the way emergency medical services are handled.
The answer wasn't that the individual was shot, in a car accident, or fell off a rooftop onto pavement; those patients must go to a trauma center, and neither the new local E.R. nor Southampton is one. The nearest trauma center is Stony Brook, more than an hour's drive in the winter. That's why for some years now, some local trauma victims have been flown by helicopter to Stony Brook. More likely, the person had a serious heart attack or a epileptic seizure or some other episode demanding attention which can't be given in an E.R. not attached to a hospital.
When an ambulance takes you to the E.R. in Southampton with a serious medical condition, they put you in a room as soon as one becomes available, and many of the services you receive, including scans, tests and of course surgery, are provided by the hospital, not the emergency room. If you went to the new E.R. in East Hampton but needed a room, they would have to load you right back in an ambulance and send you off to Southampton.
In fact, who ever heard of an emergency room not attached to a hospital? Well, actually they call that an emergency care or walk-in clinic and we already have a very competent one on Pantigo Road, not far away from the new facility. If the new E.R., about which we've heard so much for so many years, is just a supersized walk-in clinic, it may be just another boondoggle, like the senior center -- large, expensive, glittery, and empty.
For democracy in East Hampton,
JONATHAN WALLACE
Should Investigate
Wainscott
May 28, 2025
To the Editor,
A resident of Wainscott for over 15 years, I am troubled that The East Hampton Star has not pursued a vigorous campaign in its editorials, as it once did, to hound the board into shutting down the airport. It is the only solution against the 1 percent, who are the sole users of the airport. No local person could, or would even if she could, expend over $750 to indulge their high privilege to save a little time at the expense of the vast unwashed who roam beneath them.
We wonder if Kathee Burke-Gonzalez and the rest of the board are a little too cozy with the 1 percent. How often do they go to dinner or attend the parties of the 1 percent? Perhaps The Star should investigate.
This Monday, Memorial Day, we counted 115 helicopters flying over our home from noon to 7 p.m., many of them quite low, and all obnoxiously loud. Where is our board in protecting the 99 percent?
JULIUS PASTERNAK
Concern for Safety
East Hampton village
May 28, 2025
Dear David,
I write today about my concern for our safety now that the summer season has started. For those of us who live here, traffic is always a concern, and the addition of traffic lights along Route 27 over the years has only slowed some areas to a crawl. But with the hordes returning to enjoy our towns, our traffic issues only worsen. I wish to share some observations from the holiday weekend.
On Sunday, I watched a man in an antique convertible Mercedes parked on Main Street facing west in front of Bonne Nuit make a left-hand turn across all the lanes of traffic into The Circle only to make a U-turn and immediately proceed into the street heading east. He never once stopped for the traffic in either direction. A few minutes later, a woman in a red Jeep heading north on Newtown Lane made a U-turn even though the lanes were full of cars by the entrance to the Reutershan Parking Lot. There was not a police officer or a traffic control officer to be seen.
On Tuesday, a car tailgated me on Cove Hollow Road even though I was going the speed limit. I turned onto Buckskill Road and the car followed. Again, though I was going the speed limit, the car passed me, into oncoming traffic.
As for stop signs, forget it. Most people think these signs are a mnemonic for Slightly Tap on Pedal. Anyone crossing the village streets in the designated crossing areas instead of at the lights are taking their lives in their hands. Unfortunately, that does not stop anyone from attempting to cross Main Street and Newtown Lane wherever they please.
Lastly, while walking my dog and in the middle of the entrance to Stop & Shop, a car driving too fast out of the parking lot came within a foot of hitting us.
We desperately need more visible police presence in the village. If not, a tragedy is inevitable. Fellow villagers and townsfolk, please slow down while driving and take a moment to look out for each other. No one else seems to be interested.
Respectfully,
MICHAEL GOLDSMITH
Fall Flat
Amagansett
June 1, 2025
To the Editor,
Actions prove who someone is, words just prove who they pretend to be.
If individuals state they are of such qualities as "integrity," "accountability," "following policy and procedure," and "trust" but, alas, they don't follow through with the corresponding actions, they all fall flat on who they purport to be.
In my opinion any individual, groups, boards, even trustees on any level who cannot operate in the fashion of integrity, accountability, following policy, and procedure are delinquent and derelict of duty. No trust can ever be given.
Still here,
JOE KARPINSKI
Provide the Details
North Haven
June 1, 2025
To the Editor:
The shomer, Jonathan Wallace (Hebrew for watchman) for the pro-Palestinian, pro-Hamas, and anti-Israel group that regularly demonstrates on Sunday afternoon in Sag Harbor is at it again. Mr. Wallace, a pre-eminent, self-appointed guardian of First Amendment prerogatives, sniffs at the boisterous and spirited voices of the pro-Israel contingent across the street. To that we say, "Too bad. That level of vitality will continue unabated, even more so."
As to Wallace's allegations against Mitchell Agoos, they are a canard. Mitchell is and has always been an unabashed admirer and supporter of Israel and will continue as such. Self-hating Jews could learn much from Agoos. To Wallace we say, provide the details concerning your accusations before you go ahead and smear him. Were you aware that a pro-Israel demonstrator was spat upon last Sunday and the police responded? Did the incident emanate from your group? We are increasingly concerned that you and your group are so insular and biased that you seem to have no need to hear the truth about events in the Middle East.
Just last Sunday, a young female Israeli soldier who treats injured soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, tried to politely and peacefully engage you (Wallace) in a conversation about such issues. You refused, as you have always done in the past.
What we continue to be curious about is how a Jewish man, at least by birth, who reminds the world of his bar mitzvah eons ago in Brooklyn, can write letters in which the evils of Hamas and their execution and burning alive of Jewish babies and the rape of Jewish woman on Oct. 7 go unmentioned or could fail to even give a moment's notice to the execution of the two young diplomats-to-be outside the Israel Embassy in Washington, D.C., by a pro-Hamas, pro-Palestinian sympathizer.
Mr. Wallace: We know what you stand for. But rather than the silly shibboleth you always end your letters with, may we suggest that you use our words of resolve, "Never again. East Hampton Jews for Israel."
DAVID B. SAXE
MITCHELL AGOOS
Choice of King
Montauk
June 1, 2025
Dear David,
The Trump fascist revolution has enveloped America with a huge cloud of fear, hate, and extra-legal criminality. This cloud will rapidly devolve into hundreds of tornadoes that will completely destroy civil liberties, the Bill of Rights, and the oldest written constitution in the world.
ICE agents have already arrested or kidnapped 66,000 individuals who are currently held in special camps or have been deported without court hearings or legal representation. Trump's chief national adviser, Stephen Miller, is calling for 3,000 daily warrantless arrests.
After the undocumented and documented immigrant problem has been "solved," there will be new targets. They will include all universities, military academies, public and private schools, libraries, state and local governments, political clubs, prominent Democrats, local and national newspapers, national mass media outlets, including TV and radio, films, and internet apps. No doubt, Trump will create a Department of Cultural Enlightenment to oversee the national censorship. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Rudy Giuliani are rumored to be leading candidates to head the department.
In 2028, Trump will run for president in 2028 -- with the blessing of the Supreme Court. He will win even if he actually loses. He is already mulling the choice of a new title: king, his royal excellency, his lordship, mein fuhrer (a nod to his German heritage) but not TACO man!
Happy summer,
BRIAN POPE
Great Big Lie
Montauk
June 1, 2025
To the Editor,
While I was getting ready to type a letter, I stopped to read The Star from two weeks ago, specifically the editorials.
I was in shock that you used your paper and your freedom of both speech and press to write such a racist editorial. Did you in any way look into Stacey Abrams, who has been denied any kind of election from her own state of Georgia twice (not-wanted-in-Georgia Stacey).
Next, Representative LaMonica McIver, who was probably warned not to use her hands, elbow them, which she managed to push, shove, and elbow federal agents to work her way into the facility. A phone call or email to the facility requesting a proper invite could have been the proper way. However, no, she barged in demanding the right to enter the premises.
Putting any part of your body on a federal agent deserves an arrest. She's not special, and this was planned.
Have you read or listened to Jasmine Crockett? What a mouth on this one. Please take the time to listen to her remarks. She is a wannabe.
Letitia James ran her campaign swearing to get Donald Trump. She managed it. Now she's in trouble for fraud, and she is what? Above the law.
Your editorial was badly written, a great big lie, racist at its best.
In God and country,
BEA DERRICO
Examples of Corruption
East Hampton
May 30, 2025
Dear David,
The dictionary defines corruption as the abuse of entrusted power for private gain, so I found it ludicrous and sad when one of the most energetic Republicans writing to this paper used the word "corruption" in discussing the Biden administration.
In the crucible of public life for 50 years, Joe Biden kept his hands clean. His son's poor judgment, alas, gave his political enemies an excuse to smear him for years with the "Biden crime family" epithet, but on Joe's part, they never found anything -- just a smear of an honorable man, that ripples on in the letters to the editor here.
The recent book chronicling efforts to cover up his failing faculties in his final years in office is an important lesson, but is it "corruption"? Nancy Reagan did the same for her failing husband. Neither Reagan nor Biden was seeking private gain, which is the essential ingredient of corruption. I'd compare what he did to Pheidippides, the runner at Marathon, who expired after running 26 miles to deliver the message of victory. Joe wasn't so lucky. He ran out of gas about mile 23 but tried to keep going to finish the job about which he cared so much: to deliver victory for his country over the most-corrupt politician the country has ever seen.
To clarify for the writer, here are some examples of corruption:
If a president were to make promises to a foreign country of favorable treatment in exchange for business investments profiting him, that would be corruption. Trump's private business has suddenly been awarded contracts worth billions in about 20 countries, including Saudi Arabia, Oman, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Vietnam, Serbia, Uruguay, Indonesia, India, and Qatar.
Trump has developed a lucrative sideline in pardons for rich supporters. Trevor Milton gave $1.8 million to Trump's campaign, got a pardon after being convicted of defrauding investors of $680 million. Cryptocurrency firm, HAD Global, was convicted in bank secrecy matters and assessed a $100 million fine. Both of these fraudsters were relieved, in Trump pardons, of paying restitution to those they defrauded and the fines assessed by the court.
There are many of these big deals, but one small one seems particularly venal to me. Paul Walczak defrauded his own employees in a lucrative nursing home business. The court ordered him to repay $4.5 million stolen from his employees. Trump's pardon relieved him of having to pay back those employees. Does anybody think it is unrelated that Walczak's mother had raised millions for Trump and recently attended one of Trump's million-dollar-a-plate dinners at Mar-a-Lago? I've never done it, but my guess is that working in a nursing home pays little, is not always pleasant (bedpans and bedsores), trying to be patient and kind to confused folks who are wandering to their graves. Trump got his million. The employees got zilch of what was stolen from them. That is corruption, along with an ugly measure of arbitrary meanness, when the guy has billions coming in from sheikhs and dictators worldwide, and supplicants paying him a million each for a cheap steak dinner.
Before being abruptly fired for refusing to reinstate gun rights to a Trump supporter convicted of domestic violence, Liz Oyer was head of the pardons department of the Department of Justice. None of the pardons above came through her department. They went straight through Trump, and, prior to him, it was extremely unusual that pardons would include relief from fines and restitution. In addition to keeping these convicts out of jail, he has forfeited roughly $1 billion in restitution to victims, fines, and taxes due to the American people. Elon Musk would have done the country a favor if his first move had been to cut the Resolute Desk in half and take his Sharpies.
As for the pardons of the insurrectionists from January 6, remember Trump's words to the Proud Boys, "Stand down and stand by." It's good to have a loyal band of lawless Brown Shirts to call on when you need them, if you're screwing the country blind. Above are just a few samples of his corruption -- and he isn't done yet.
DON MATHESON