Lesson learned during traffic stop
On Jan. 15, I was pulled over during a traffic stop by New York State Trooper Jacob Lakomski for excessive speed and a defective taillight. The roads were poor due to a recent snow, I was driving aggressively. I was frustrated because the driver I had just passed was driving extremely slowly. I had my 16-year-old son, Tyler, as a passenger and not only did I potentially endanger him, I was setting a bad example for a newly licensed driver as well. I was wrong.
I express my sincere appreciation to Officer Lakomski for his professionalism, conduct and judgment. His appearance was impeccable, his demeanor courteous, his manner confident; not unlike many of the soldiers I worked with during my career in the U.S. Army. He could have chastised me in the presence of my son and would have been justified for writing more-severe citations. Instead, he verified my information, ensured I would repair the taillight and expressed his concern for our safety.
Officer Lakomski was more than fair and as a result, I have reflected positively on my driving habits. More importantly, he left a positive impression on my son.
Following the stop, I discussed the incident with Tyler, admitting my poor judgment and the officer's response. In addition to teaching him to turn on the interior lights and keeping our hands where the officer could see them, he also learned not to reach for anything without first asking the officer's permission. Equally important, Tyler gained respect for the officer and state troopers in general for the reasonable manner in which Officer Lakomski treated us.
It is reassuring to know the public has such exemplary troopers as Officer Lakomski. I am grateful for his concern for our safety, his fairness and his professionalism. He has my respect.
Gavin A. Ralston IV
East Meredith
Health care reform bills must be killed
The federal government has no constitutional authority to force people to buy a certain product as a condition of being alive. It also does not have the constitutional authority to "provide health care for all," to dictate the terms of private contracts (including insurance contracts), or to dictate the way in which physicians keep their records. The federal government, in addition, does not have the constitutional authority to require reporting patient data to government, or to define what constitutes "preventive service" or "quality of care."
The current "health care reform" bill does not "reform" insurance _ it abolishes true insurance. It would make it impossible for a person ever to pay a market price for insurance while forcing all to participate in a collectivized government-approved prepayment scheme for government-approved benefits.
It is not acceptable for our legislators to go "back to the drawing board" and tweak the current thousand-page "health care reform" bills.
We must urge our congressional legislators to not tweak the current "health care" bills, but to abolish these bills.
Dr. Richard J. Ucci
Stamford
Chestnut Street parking spots unsafe
Driving down Main Street Oneonta can be a daunting and stressful task alone, with cars parked on both sides and pedestrians coming from in between the cars. However, deciding to drive down Chestnut Street can bring you to a whole new level of stress. There are seven parking spots on Chestnut Street diagonal to the Oneonta Theatre. The position of these spots makes it virtually impossible to drive up Chestnut Street without checking both sides of your car to make sure you do not hit another vehicle.
This was made apparent to me by an incident involving my friend whose side view mirror was taken off while she was parked in one of these seven spots. There simply is not adequate room for parking on this street to ensure driver and pedestrian safety. There is enough parking on Main Street and in other municipal parking lots to rid drivers and pedestrians of this dreadful and unsafe area.
The Chestnut Street parking spots should be removed.
Ariel Osterhout
Oneonta
Osterhout is a senior at Franklin Central School. Osterhout and other students have written letters to the editor as part of Stephen DiCarlo's Participation in Government class.
Nation designed for religious people
Neil Monzeglio (letter, Jan. 19) seems to believe that a person can destroy Christianity by claiming to be Christian while doing evil.
Jesus said, "The good man brings forth good things and the evil man brings forth evil things."
Neil also states, "Our nation was founded on freedom of religion (any religion and no religion)."
John Adams, speaking for the Founding Fathers of our nation, famously stated, "Our democracy was designed only for a moral and religious people and is wholly unsuited to any other."
Rita Armstrong
Oneonta
Landlords can prohibit smoking
Landlords have the same freedom to prohibit smoking in their buildings as they do when they prohibit pets. No-smoking rules are legal. They can also protect tenants from the harmful effects of secondhand smoke and residential fires. Secondhand smoke can drift from one unit to another through cracks in the walls, heating and cooling systems, lighting fixtures and under doors. More than a bad smell or a nuisance, secondhand smoke was found to be a class A cancer-causing agent. It can cause or worsen conditions such as asthma, sinus and ear infections, heart disease and lung cancer.
The Common Council in the City of Buffalo recently issued a resolution asking for a law requiring landlords to disclose their smoking policies on all new written lease agreements. The law will not require landlords to make no-smoking rules, it only requires that they inform tenants where smoking is or is not allowed. Some reasons sited in the resolution were: landlords' lack of awareness of their own legal rights to implement no-smoking rules, harmful exposure to secondhand smoke, additional cleaning costs incurred when smokers vacate and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development memo encouraging the public housing authorities to implement no-smoking policies at their discretion.
Landlords and tenants can learn more about making their buildings smoke-free. Get more information and tools from www.smokefreehousingny.org or by contacting the office of Rural Three for Tobacco Free Communities at (866) 378-7253.
Aletha Martinez
Middlefield
Martinez is the project director for Rural Three for Tobacco Free Communities.
