Letters to the Editor

A Safe and Successful Walk for Ward

Dear Editor,

The July 17 Walkathon for the Ward Summer Learning Camp was enthusiastically attended and carefully policed. I’d especially like to thank both the Rye and the Westchester County Parks Police; they were great.

Lt. Falk sent out two officers to keep an eye on us, which came in handy when one of our very young walkers got awfully tired (he’d skipped breakfast) near the end of the route; one of the officers gave the boy a lift.

The County Parks Service sent a Ranger to walk us around the circle at Playland. Special thanks to Deputy City Clerk Diane Moore who set the whole permitting process in motion.
Everyone was extremely courteous and helpful.

Sincerely,
Laura Aronstein
Volunteer Coordinator, Ward Walkathon

The Case for Humane Coyote Trapping

Dear Editor,

I read with abject horror that the trapper who is being paid $750 a week to trap the one remaining coyote is using the cruelest device known to man, the steel-jaw leg-hold trap. It’s not a foot trap, as he called it. This device has been controversial for many years and I thought it had been banned in New York State as it has in dozens of other states.

The steel device has sharp teeth that clamp down on the leg, paw or scrotum of an animal; and it is so painful that most animals chew off their own limb in a desperate attempt to stop the pain. Often, pet dogs and cats and other small animals are the ones caught in the leg-hold traps and die from the shock and pain. The use of steel-jaw traps is totally unacceptable in every way by anyone with even the smallest amount of kindness and humanity.

The proper approach, as mentioned by many of your readers, is to use a tranquilizer gun or even a have-a-heart trap.

Causing a great amount of suffering to a coyote is not going to erase the pain of the attacks on the two children, but to bring this cruelty to a community that is known for its good citizenship and community-wide kindness is unheard of. For those citizens who are not aware of the cruel nature of the steel-jaw leg-hold trap, I implore them to educate themselves, so that soon my voice will not be the only one heard!

Sincerely,
Connie Mogull

Honk If You Choose Peace

Dear Editor,

Now that beach traffic season is upon us, I find myself in driving situations that require more patience and, well, generosity of spirit. I’m one who enjoys applying psychology principles to driving and I love to read bumper stickers. Sometimes I’m amazed at the messages people put out there and even the number of stickers on their cars.

In general I don’t think it’s funny when people drive aggressively or cut me off, but I do think it’s funny when one of those people has a peace message on their bumper: Easy Does it; Give Peace a Chance; or Peace Now.

Recently, a friend ordered a bunch of “Peace is Possible” stickers for our cars. The notion of putting a purple peace sticker on my car makes me nervous. I’m afraid that when I drive aggressively or beep, people will think about me what I’ve been thinking about all the other “Peacive-Aggressive” drivers.

I might just wait for a “Honk if you choose peace” sticker, so that when I loose my cool and beep, other drivers will just beep back, smile and give me a thumbs-up for peace.

Sincerely,
Jeanne Rollins

Why Re-fence the Playland Boardwalk?

Dear Editor,

Was the replacement of the cast-iron fence on the Playland Boardwalk part of a FEMA beach/sand replenishment grant? No one has produced an answer.

Doesn’t replacement of several hundred yards of good cast-iron fence with an identical one seem an extravagance?

We understand the need to replenish sand after a big storm, but the fence?
Many of us Rye residents who regularly enjoy the Boardwalk think an explanation is in order from whatever agency funded what looks like another waste of money.

Very truly yours,
John Carolin

Beauty and the Beastly Experiment at RTP

Dear Editor,

In his recent letter to the editor, Andrew Walker rationalized the Rube Goldbergesque complex of tasteless sticks, strings and insensitive placement of signs that block the pond vista. Horticulture does not need to take a back seat to parking. And in the interest of full disclosure and transparency, he should have informed readers that horticulture and the natural beauty of the park was somehow preserved directly in front of his Rye Beach Avenue house.

We were all led to believe that the focus of the Rye Town Park Task Force was safety. Why would anyone focus all of their attention solely on a hypothetical problem and not documented safety issues? Rye Town Park Director Fred Gioffre’s report to the Rye City Council (in the approved April 21 minutes) states: “There have been no pedestrian auto accidents in the three seasons he has been at Rye Town Park.”

Honestly, if reducing access to outsiders and tarnishing the beauty of the park was the intent, then this experiment succeeded. If safety is truly paramount, then this experiment failed.

Sincerely,
Chris Cohan