Still Reason To Rejoice To The Editor:

The letter that began “Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus” earned the right to hallmark the holidays. The strife, heartaches, blood spilling and hopelessness of current world events seemingly eviscerate reasons for cheer.

Daily we witness trauma and awful mayhem, reducing logically hope or belief in miracles. We seek protection by acknowledging that it could always be worse. Yet flowers bloom, love is born, binding individuals to shared journeys. Life is hard and harsh, yet people remain hopeful. Without hope, life itself would be overwhelming.

In the cry of a newborn there is renewal and prayers for a life that we wish better for. In the simple act of saying, “I love you”, holding hands, by offering a caress, we are creators of hope. In a breeze that fills us with freshness there is an awakening of the beauty that is the world. In a photo of our little planet taken from the blackness of space there is a light and vibrancy that shines on each one of us.

We enrich ourselves and benefit others whenever we express dreams that defy our pitfalls. Optimism is infectious and a cure for depression. When we refuse to give up or give in, we are staking out a path to a better life. Being down while refusing to stay down means moving up. Up is our goal, our tomorrow and the gift of life to share with love, affection, caring and compassion. We are a community of emotional beings.

Santa may be a euphemism but he is one with us. It is one of renewal, of a sunrise that brings hope. It is one that rejects the failures and tears of yesterday for the promise of a new dawning.

Refusing the chains of prior failures or the boot of an oppressor, those who endeavor to try again will always find Santa. The human soul was created to overcome adversity and sorrow. We are creatures of the sun, rebirth, born of love, married to the promise of better days yet to come. Edward Horn Baldwin, NY

Hails Holiday Spirit To The Editor:

How delighted I was to read the special holiday issue of the Gazette of December 20, 2006 with its many pages of cheerful greetings, advertisements from cheerful places of entertainment and articles of optimistic issues.

I know that a great deal of work goes into gathering all of the ads, articles, etc. and I applaud the Gazette and all concerned for dilligent work. This devotion is a gift to us that lasts throughout the entire year.

I was especially happy to read about Assemblymember Gianaris’ presenting Barbara Rushforth of the Dellamonica Center with a citation from the New York States Assembly for her devoted and dedicated work as a cook for 25 years for the seniors of the Astoria area. As a full-time volunteer at Dellamonica for almost 16 years, I have known Barbara from the very beginning and appreciated her dilligence and dedication, showing up in blizzards to make sure that the homebound have their meals and her caring, sharing smiles and cheerful voice to all. She has been the mother of our center and I wish her the best in her retirement. She has done so much for so many and we love her deeply and dearly. Thanks for sharing this wonderful piece of news.

In addition, I am glad that seedy clubs in the Woodside area were closed as blights to the community. In addition, I appreciate Borough President Helen Marshall’s advocacy towards keeping our hospitals in our Queens area open and vital so that all can enjoy the gift of health.

Speaking about gifts, the best gifts of all would be to become a donor of organs and to give blood. In addition, a prayer, phone call, visit, cheerful note and smile to a neighbor, homebound person or to people who serve us daily are the best gifts of all that last throughout the year. Let the Chanukah and Christmas spirit last all year round. Greetings for a wonderful year ahead to all. Cynthia Groopman Long Island City

Remember Kuwait To The Editor:

“Peace on Earth and good health to all.” Who would not want this condition at any time of the year? Well, with violence showing its ugly head around the world, a semblance of peace is more urgent now than ever.

I particularly want to focus on those critics who have been very hard on our government. Before there’s an outcry of censorship, this in no way is as attempt at it. I just don’t believe this is the right time because it may inadvertently give aid to the enemy. Heavens, he’s had enough help thus far. I’ll cite just one glaring example to support my case.

When that tiny nation, Kuwait, was invaded by that ruthless tyrant of Iraq, what country came to her aid without being asked? While her neighboring Arab nations sat idly by, a non-Arab nation came to her aid. Once again, America displayed her compassion for the underdog.

It would be prudent and thoughtful to refrain from throwing poisonous daggers and focus for the time being at what we did in Kuwait.

America is far from perfect. But if you had to choose, what other nation would you like to be living in? John Favicchio

Flushing

Think Of Poor In 2030 To The Editor:

I would like to applaud Mayor Mike Bloomberg for his ambitious goals based on his vision of what the city will be like in 2030. At the Queens Museum of Art in Flushing, the mayor painted a portrait of what New York City and its boroughs could look like in 2030 and outlined goals to sustain life as we know it. He broke it down to the fact that the city faces challenges in three major areas. By 2030, nearly one million more people will live in the city of New York, the infrastructure will be about a century old and the water supply and air and land will be pushed to extremes. He believes the city needs to act now and to put those plans in place that will better prepare the city to handle a larger population.

He also mentioned we need now to start improving transportation or else by 2030 there could be a rush hour commute of 12 hours.He also warned that global warming and greenhouse gases could result in higher temperatures and that could lead to a rising sea level that could spell danger for New York. He further went on to say that the city will aim to slash global warming by 30 percent by 2030 and make this the cleanest air of any large city in the country.

The mayor has many worthwhile goals, yet I think he may have forgotten a segment of the population, those who are hungry and homeless. You see, with a population increase, the poor will increase as well. I truly can understand their needs for back in the ‘70s I too was homeless for a time and can truly feel their pain. We need to address this problem and need to come up with solutions now or else this will be a sad city for the poor.

Furthermore, I think we need to start creating more affordable housing not just homes for the upper middle class and the rich. This I believe should be one of Mayor Bloomberg’s goals for the future. I think no one ought to be left behind and the poor should be in the city’s plans for the future. Mr. Mayor, please consider the poor as one of your goals for the city. Frederick R. Bedell, Jr. Bellerose

Tasers Are Lethal, Too To The Editor:

We are all aware of the shooting death of Sean Bell in Jamaica. The protests are continuing. It is very important that this tragedy be investigated impartially, and independently. At the same time, good news about law enforcement is welcome, of course. Police officers should get recognition for good work, as well as negative publicity for bad work.

Nevertheless, in “Cop Averts Tragedy” (Richard Gentilviso, Dec. 6, 2006) your reporter links good police work to the use of Tasers. The article was uncritical. However, Tasers have been linked to a number of deaths, a fact that should have been noted.

In the United States, Tasers are not considered firearms and are even legal for civilian use in most states. However, while obviously Tasers are less lethal than guns, studies have shown that people with heart conditions are at risk of death after similar level electric shocks. Tasers have a 50,000-volt charge.

Amnesty International reports that as many as 200 deaths have been linked to stun guns over the past two decades. Others point to more than 50 Taser-related deaths since 2001. For example, in July 2005, a Chicago medical examiner ruled that the death of a man in February 2005 was the result of being shot with a Taser by Chicago police. A December 18 article in the Hartford Courant also listed a large number of recent incidents of possible misuse, with police using Tasers to subdue people in holding cells as well as on students at the city’s high school.

Obviously, this tool is not a toy. The sole manufacturer in the USA, Taser International, gives police basic training in how and when to use its stun guns. Nevertheless, Taser finds itself the target of lawsuits. This year, the U.S. Justice Department launched an investigation into 30 deaths involving use of the devices by law enforcement officials.

While it is understandable why police departments should want a “less lethal” tool, would the use of a Taser really have saved Sean Bell? Perhaps not; misjudgments with a Taser may still result in death. This issue needs to be studied carefully. Police officers have conflict management skills that are should not be eroded by reliance on force. It is important for newspapers to report on all sides of any issue; especially when it may impact life and death decisions. P. Adem Carroll Astoria

NAFTA Highways Roll On To The Editor:

Should the United States be merged into oblivion with Canada and Mexico to form the North American Union? Well, President George W. Bush thinks this is a really wonderful idea. In fact, back on March 23, 2005, he met with then Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin and Mexican President Vicente Fox to sign a formal agreement that will end the United States as we know it. No less, he did this without approval from Congress or we the people! At last, Congress has been shaken from its underserved trust of the man who vociferously avowed that Saddam had Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs) and brought upon U.S. the current and ever-deepening morass in Iraq. Thankfully, Rep. Virgil Goode (R-VA) has sponsored House Concurrent Resolution 487, co-sponsored by Reps. Walter Jones (R-NC), Tom Tancredo (R-C0) and Ron Paul (R-TX). These men refuse to kowtow to party cronyism, especially when it is suicidal.

This resolution is the nascent but growing congressional opposition to the creation of this North American Union and the NAFTA Super Highway. The Super Highway is just another part of President Bush’s great ideas that will destroy thousands of more jobs for Americans. How so? Well, these mad architects plan to build several super highways from Mexico that will traverse clear across the U.S.A. from coast to coast and extend into Canada, plus another two to Alaska. Now, here’s the kicker: they’ve already “arranged” to have this vast network built exclusively by Mexican firms. So Mexican road builders must have greater skill and experience at constructing highways than Americans. Just check your latest edition of Hagstrom’s on the colossal Mexican highway system. Maybe Americans will be allowed to “shape up” as day laborers for a few pesos. Thus if we think our economy has already lost too many jobs to President Bush’s various Free Trade Agreements-you ain’t seen nothing yet!

Current plans call for six super highways that will be at least a quarter mile in width. Each will have six lanes for cars and four for trucks, plus rail lines. Also included will be gas, oil and water pipelines plus hi-tech electronic transmission cabling. Can you guess who will police and control this enormous network? Mexicans, of course. Have our “leaders”completely lost their minds? This is asking the fox to guard the chicken coop. It is a known fact that the Mexican government unabashedly encourages and abets illegal immigration and its notoriously corrupt police regularly assist those violating our borders. Our illegal immigration and its notoriously corrupt police regularly assist those violating our borders. Lastly, we haven’t considered the millions of Americans who will lose their homes to make way for these super highways. Now if this all sounds unbelievable, please log onto http://www.aaroads.com/high-priority/ table.html and see for yourself. Bear in mind that all this is just a small part of what the North American Union will entail.

Let’s close with an update on the behindthe scenes push for the North American Union (NAU). Just this past Sept. 12-14, the Bush Administration sent George Shultz, former secretary of state under Reagan, Carla Hills, former U.S. trade representative, Dr. Robert Pastor, American University professor and godfather of the NAU, and good old Donald Rumsfeld to attend a secret meeting in Banff, Alberta, Canada to hammer out further details regarding our futureboy are they concerned for us! Now the only reason we know about this is because one of the attendees, Mel Hurtig, a noted Canadian author and politician, felt compelled to make the following statement to Canada’s CBC News, “We’re talking about the integration of Canada into the United States. For them to hold this meeting in secret and make every effort to avoid anybody learning about it, right away you’ve got to be hugely concerned.”

Friends, we should be quite concerned and it’s high time to take action. Please log onto the Web site previously given so that you’ll be informed that you won’t fall for the evasive excuses and half truths tailored to disarm you. Plus, www.thenewamerican.com lists additional info, maps, charts and pictures you can download. Then visit and/or write your local Congressional Representatives and request they co-sponsor House Concurrent Resolution 487. State officials should also be informed. Let’s keep the United States free and independent. A Concerned American, Frank S. Ferrari Bayside