Letters to the Franklin Square/Elmont Herald June 23

Let God be the judge

To the Editor:

Concerning Alan Schaecter’s comments in “Same-sex marriage is wrong” (June 9–15), where is the compassion of Jesus? Where is the love for one another that was instructed in his greatest commandment? As Christians, we are to follow “Love God above all things, and love your neighbor as yourself.”

Schaecter quotes the Old Testament, a convenient choice, yet he ignores all of the teachings of Jesus himself. That is quite a joke.

Schaecter can believe anything he wishes to believe, but he shouldn’t put the words in Jesus’s mouth. After all, God chose to give us free will, and Schaecter has no business denying anyone else from using their free will as they choose. As far as quotes go, how about “let him without sin cast the first stone”? We are all sinners, but we have all been redeemed. So why not let God himself do the judging?

Barbara Affrunti

Franklin Square

We need our POP Unit officers

To the Editor:

We have all come to enjoy the safety and low crime living in Nassau County, and understand the price that we pay for this service. We also understand and appreciate the fact that times are tough and sacrifices must be made. Why are we just consolidating and cutting from the Police Department?

I haven’t seen any consolidation of other taxing districts or, for that matter, government. Garbage will not rob me or break into my home, and yet we do nothing to consolidate sanitation. Do people really understand what the units of our police really do to keep crime low? Problem Oriented Policing, which is one unit that is shrinking, under County Executive Mangano’s new plan, is more than police officers coming to community meetings — POP officers solve problems before they become a crime. The POP Unit helps community leaders work hand in hand with officers to stop crime. 

The Nassau County Police Department did the right thing some years ago, when it created the POP Unit, and opened up the Police Department to community leaders, schools, churches, youth organizations and the community as a whole. These are the officers we call with crime tips or suspicions. These are the officers we know on a first-name bases, not through a 911 call.  

Is the county looking for trouble? If it isn’t broke, don’t redeploy them.

Patrick Nicolosi

Elmont

Ra should support same-sex marriage

I was extremely disappointed to see that Assemblyman Ed Ra vote against marriage equality by voting “no” on the state’s pending same-sex marriage bill. As one of the youngest members of the Assembly, Ra could have better represented the views of his generation.

Millennials overwhelmingly approve of equal rights for all, regardless of race, gender or sexual preference. While it would be naive to expect politicians not to cast votes for political reasons, it would have been heartening to see Ra vote his conscience over his party, at least this one time.

Joe Conte

Franklin Square

Send letters to the editor to jnash@liherald.com