Letters To The Editor

Letters from readers are invited and should be sent by regular mail to Times Newsweekly, P.O. Box 860299, Ridgewood, N.Y. 11386- 0299 or by e-mail to info@timesnewsweekly. com. All letters must be accompanied by the writer's full name and address, which will be withheld upon request. Anonymous letters will not be considered for publication. All letters are subject to editing. The opinions expressed in each letter are not necessarily those of the Times Newsweekly.

Principal dismissed Dear Editor:

In February 2009, the school community of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal was informed that it would be an academy as of September 2009.

At a meeting on February 26, Bishop (Frank) Caggiano stated that "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

I was confident that this was a positive decision for the school and was very supportive of this decision.

Unfortunately, time has proved me incorrect.

Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal School was a school where everyone—parents, students and faculty— worked together to achieve very positive outcomes for all our students.

Everything was very positive.

I apologize to all who may have been influenced by my positive acceptance of the academy.

All has been changed.

Margaret Baxter

Outgoing Principal Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal

School, Ridgewood

Senators want to get back to work Dear Editor:

It is difficult to describe the frustration coupled with the outrage at the Senate minority's coup attempt. It had nothing to do with reform as claimed. As a June 10 editorial in the Syracuse Post-Standard stated, "It is clear that 'reform' was merely a cover for Monday's coup. The Republicans wanted to get their power back, plain and simple, and they found two Democrats desperate enough to help them do it."

The Senate remains deadlocked at 31-31. The state constitution states that in order to conduct business, there must be 32 Senators to have a quorum. Important legislation such as New York City School Governance, economic development and the city's tax request cannot be enacted. Because of the opportunism and greed of one person, government has come to a standstill.

Compromise at this point is the only course of action.

The Senate Democrats proposed a bipartisan agreement which has been used in other states in similar situations. To circumvent the legislature gridlock, we proposed a fair, bipartisan, 50-50 share of Senate resources and power, a proposal which was immediately rejected by the Senate Minority.

I continue to do my work as Chairwoman of the Higher Education Committee. I attend meetings in the district. I am committed to making our government more accountable and transparent and I hope that by the time you see this letter, common sense can prevail.

State Sen. Toby Stavisky

Editor's note: The following letter was sent to residents in the 10th State Senatorial District, which includes parts of Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, Richmond Hill, South Ozone Park, Jamaica, Lindenwood, City Line, Broad Channel and parts of southeastern Queens. Dear Constituents:

The events that have transpired in Albany since June 8 have caused confusion, anger and frustration for everyone involved. The grab for power has caused critical legislation— measures that would help our community as well as New York State—to come to a standstill. Yet, I want to assure you that I am working in earnest to resolve this issue with my Senate colleagues.

Due to the minority conference insurrection in Albany, two key bills that I sponsored which would benefit our district are being held up. One of the bills, S.5562, would help financially distressed hospitals such as Jamaica Hospital refinance their debt so they can avoid closing. The closing of St. John's and Mary Immaculate hospitals was a critical blow to the well-being of citizens within our district. This bill would prevent other hospitals in our community from closing due to debt.

The second bill that I introduced, S.5802, details that if a hospital still does not have sufficient resources to operate, and the hospital plans to close, there must be a public hearing by the state health commissioner. Within 30 days of the hearing, the state health commissioner must report to the governor and legislature, detailing measures which would reduce the impact of the hospital's closing on the local community.

These two bills would ensure that our community could voice their opinion and prevent the reduction of access to quality healthcare for our residents. Yet the minority conference's lust for power at all costs has negatively impacted our district.

A bipartisan power-sharing agreement was forwarded to the minority conference to help facilitate cooperation, compromise and fairness. However, our proposal was soundly rejected by them. We will continue to negotiate with Minority Leader Dean G. Skelos and Senator Pedro Espada to bring the Senate back to full operation.

State Sen. Shirley Huntley

Reader vents over Albany chaos Dear Editor:

Enough is enough already regarding the political stalemate in Albany between Democrats and Republicans. Now that an agreement has been reached to get both sides back to the table, let's hope that they will act like mature adults, quit all of the childish sniping and pouting and get down to business and finish the important legal issues that affect everyone in New York State.

Senators Pedro Espada and Hiram Monserrate should grow up and act responsibly. You guys and everybody in Albany were elected to represent the people, not your political interests. Grow up and act like responsible officials, not clowns and idiots.

John Amato Fresh Meadows