Wishing you and your family a happy and safe Fourth of July from all of us at TBR News Media!
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Editorial: Renew the spirit of ’76
On this page, we do the work of democracy.
The first editorial ever published in our newspaper [“The spirit of ’76,” April 8, 1976] declared our opinion pages as “a forum where everybody has an opportunity to be heard.” Through the many changes over the last 47 years, we affirm this creed unconditionally, subject to concerns of libel and good taste.
For nearly half a century, our staff, columnists and letter writers have broadcast ideas to the North Shore public each week. This page is our weekly community dialogue keeping vital communication channels alive.
Debate ennobles citizens. Through spirited exchanges, we empower our peers to interpret and digest local current events, enabling rational, informed decisions at the ballot box.
But how our times have changed.
With innovation, many of our discussions have moved from the printed page to the digital screen. Citizens today take their disagreements to social media, where opinions are not subjected to rigorous editorial standards and vetting procedures.
Social media often discourages thoughtful dissent. Unfiltered, shielded by screens, we inject venom and misinformation into our public forum. The natural consequence of this toxic social media culture is the decay of civility and decorum.
We live in a hypercharged, decidedly polarized political context. We expect media outlets and tech companies to squelch meaningful exchanges. We seek only information affirming our existing — often incomplete — worldviews.
Instead of debating, we dehumanize and delegitimize our political opponents. Through our collective softness and fear of dissent, we paint a warped picture of reality.
While our staff may object to some of the sentiments advanced on this page, we remind our readers that we are moderators, not censors. We hold up the words attributed to Voltaire, the great French philosophical champion of free speech, who once wrote, “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”
We disagree with outlets and tech companies that censor divergent speech, stymie political discourse or needlessly encroach upon our deliberative process. However, we disallow hatred or what appears as personal attacks.
As journalists, we cannot bend our editorial code to meet the censorial standards of our age.
For this republic to endure, we must return to honest disagreement. So in this spirit, let us continue this noble work, allowing the conversations to flourish.
Between You and Me: I don’t remember ever being bored
By Leah S. Dunaief
“I’m bored!” exclaimed my cousin, when we were about 10 and sitting in the backyard of my grandfather’s former dairy farm in the Catskills one summer afternoon.
I thought about that for a few seconds. “What does bored mean?” I asked, genuinely puzzled.
“It means I have nothing to do,” she railed.
“Oh. I’ve never been bored,” I replied unhelpfully.
“What do you do when you have nothing to do?” she demanded.
Again it took a few seconds. “I think,” I offered lamely.
My aunt, her mother, who was sitting nearby, burst out laughing.
Looking disgusted, my cousin got up and walked away.
I thought of that exchange, so many years ago, when I saw the headline in last Tuesday’s New York Times: “Let Children Get Bored. It’s Good for Them.” The article went on to advise that “in moderate doses, boredom can offer a valuable learning opportunity, spurring creativity and problem solving and motivating children to seek out activities that feel meaningful to them.”
How, exactly, did I spend my summertime hours when a visit from my cousin was a rarity and there was nothing structured amid the grassy cow pastures?
By the beginning of July, during my elementary school years, I had my books already signed out from the neighborhood library. There was a rule limiting the number that could be withdrawn at one time, but the librarians knew me, knew that I would be taking them away for the summer, that I would take good care of them and return them in September, so they let me exceed the number. Often they would make recommendations that added to my pile. So reading made up a large part of my waking hours.
I also remember picking blueberries from the bushes that grew in the pasture behind the house. They were wild berries. I don’t think anyone planted them there. They were sweet and delicious, and when I had my fill, I would bring back a small amount for my mother and sister, who were with me during the week. My dad would come up by Shoreline Bus on the weekends, and then I would roam with him across many pastures, marked by low stone walls, collecting blueberries in greater quantities.
I would invent games, like selecting a large rock as a target, then throwing small rocks at it from increasing distances, keeping score from one day to the next. If it rained, I would empty the glass jar in which my mother kept loose coins, place a pot against the far wall of the kitchen, then try to pitch the coins into the pot. To this day, I have pretty good aim when I toss something.
As an offshoot from reading, I guess, I would write sometimes. One of my favorite stories was about the antics of the Bobbsey Twins, by Laura Lee Hope, and I would try to dream up adventures for them when I had finished their books. I also loved horses, read the whole series about the Black Stallion by Walter Farley, then tried to extend it with my own amateurish episodes.
Sitting in the shade of a tree, I know I did a lot of daydreaming. I don’t remember any of those thoughts, but I do recall that I loved the smell of the nearby evergreens when the breeze blew and the warmth of the sun on my skin as it dipped down below the level of the tree limbs. In the evening, we could hear the frogs croaking and see fireflies momentarily lighting up the night sky. There were stars, millions of stars that were not visible in the city. And there was The Lone Ranger on the radio at 7:30.
My sister was two years younger, and I would make up scenarios in which I would be Miss Brown, and she would be my secretary. I would send her on all kinds of made-up errands, like mailing a letter at a pretend postal box a block away, and she would gladly run to oblige.
There was an innocence and a peacefulness in those loosey-goosey days that I think today’s youth, with their cell phones and video games, never know.
Find your happy place in goat (and alpaca) yoga at the Smithtown Historical Society
By Melissa Arnold
Picture this: It’s a balmy summer evening, and you’ve gotten the chance to take a yoga class on the sprawling grounds of the Smithtown Historical Society. The lush grass springs back under your bare feet as you roll out your mat. The wind blows gently through the trees. As you move from pose to pose, surrounded by nature and gorgeous historic buildings, serenity wraps around you like a blanket.
And then, a baby goat nuzzles against your backside, attempting to climb you like a mountain during Downward Dog.
Scenes like this one play out all summer long at the historical society, which has hosted wildly popular goat yoga classes for the past several years. It’s one of many ways executive director Priya Kapoor is inviting the community to come and explore.
“When I first got here, I fell in love with the community and the property. I’m always thinking about what else we can do and create to make this place as welcoming as it can be,” said Kapoor. “We have a beautiful 22-acre property and we want to be able to showcase this gem that’s in their own backyard.”
Goat yoga originated on a farm in Oregon less than a decade ago and the trend caught on quickly nationwide, largely thanks to social media. When the Smithtown program launched in 2017, the first class had a wait list of more than 700 people.
It’s a joy for Karen Haleiko, owner of Steppin’ Out Ponies and Petting Zoo, to watch her animals interact with people of all ages. The traveling pony ride and petting zoo company focuses on both education and entertainment, as well as animal rescue efforts — they’ve done more than 500 animal rescues in the last eight years.
About 15 goats come to each yoga class. Haleiko said the goats decide for themselves each time if they want to go for a ride.
“My goats are very social, they crave people and genuinely enjoy being a part of this experience,” Haleiko said. “Goats have a calming aura … It’s common to include goats as companions with race horses in between races. They’re also very comical, and being with them makes you laugh, helps you relax and forget about the worries of the world for a while.”
Each 45-minute yoga class is led by Haleiko’s aunt, Doreen Buckman, who’s taught yoga for the last 20 years. Buckman said she admired the strength, flexibility and overall vitality of female yogis in India, where the ancient practice began.
“The environment at the [goat yoga] classes is warm and welcoming. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never done yoga before or if you can’t do the poses exactly,” she said. “No one is judging anyone else. We want people to have fun and do what feels most comfortable for them, whether that’s an advanced headstand or spending the time sitting quietly and taking deep breaths.”
The goats are allowed to roam freely and interact with students throughout the session. Bigger goats might cuddle up next to you and let you lean on them for balance, while more spunky goats might bounce around you, climb on you or frolic together.
This summer’s classes include some animal newcomers, including five baby goats — triplets Punky Brewster, Finn, and Evie; twins Captain America and Loki — as well as an alpaca named Mazie. Once yoga is finished, there’s time to mingle and pet the animals, take pictures and explore the grounds. Keep an eye out for the sheep and chickens that live on the property, too.
Buckman said that many goat yoga attendees are repeat visitors, and she’s not surprised. “One of the things I hear most often is, ‘I really needed this,’” she said. “I call goat yoga a laugh fest — it’s a hilarious time, and laughter really is the best medicine.”
Outdoor yoga will be held throughout the summer at 5:30 p.m. and 6:45 p.m. in the field behind the Frank Brush Barn at the Smithtown Historical Society, 211 Middle Country Road. Upcoming sessions include July 7, July 21, Aug. 7, Aug. 21 and Sept. 7. Tickets are $30 per person and pre-registration is required at www.eventbrite.com. Children ages 7 through 17 are welcome accompanied by an adult. Please bring a mat, towel and water bottle. Yoga mats will not be provided. For more information, call 631-265-6768.
Hauppauge Eagles take off to the future
Hauppauge High School seniors filed onto the field one last time as students on June 23.
The skies may have been cloudy but the Hauppauge Eagles were ready to soar and celebrate their graduation day.
Among the speakers at the ceremony were this year’s valedictorian, Connor Leddy, and salutatorian, Kaitlin Stephens.
Suffolk CCE works to remove more ghost-fishing gear from LI Sound
By Aidan Johnson
Potentially over a million abandoned lobster pots and fishing gear lay on the Long Island Sound floor.
This gear has been left in the Sound for multiple decades, but its impact on marine life is still felt today. [See story, “Ghost fishing,” TBR News Media website, June 4].
While the pots may be old, some still function and can trap lobsters and other aquatic animals, often killing them due to no way to escape.
Some of the lobster pots, partially made of plastic, are beginning to break down, polluting the water and compounding the environmental and ecological risks posed to marine life.
To stop this maritime mess, the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County is getting to work. CCE first got involved with ghost fishing after the issue was raised with them by their commercial fishing partners in 2010.
“They had let us know that after the lobster industry crashed in about 1999, they were encountering a lot of derelict lobster pots during their normal operations and that they knew where some of these were,” said Scott Curatolo-Wagemann, senior educator at CCE Suffolk in Riverhead.
“We were able to put together a grant proposal, working with the commercial fishing industry — they had knowledge of where these traps were — to work with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to work out a letter that would allow us to do this work,” he added.
Since New York State law prohibits anybody except the owner of a lobster trap from removing it, CCE Suffolk pays fishermen a charter fee to remove the pots.‘Right now, we’ve been doing this all on the local fishermen’s knowledge.’ — Scott Curatolo-Wagemann
According to a statement updated in March by CCE Suffolk, 19,000 derelict traps have already been removed from the New York waters of the Long Island Sound, equaling an estimated weight of 950,000 pounds.
While there are many more derelict traps, CCE Suffolk is still determining precisely how much longer these efforts will take.
“Right now, we’ve been doing this all on the local fishermen’s knowledge,” Curatolo-Wagemann said. “We are trying to expand it. We’ve applied for some funds to start using side-scan sonar to map out areas that may have high concentrations of traps so that we can kind of [make] a coordinated effort to remove traps,” adding that efforts are underway “to get an estimated amount that may still be out there.”
State Assemblyman Fred Thiele (D-Sag Harbor) is working on drafting legislation allowing the state to remove the ghost gear after a designated period, but declined to comment for this updated story.
Letters to the Editor — June 29
WRITE TO US … AND KEEP IT LOCAL
We welcome your letters, especially those responding to our local coverage, replying to other letter writers’ comments and speaking mainly to local themes. Letters should be no longer than 400 words and may be edited for length, libel, style, good taste and uncivil language. They will also be published on our website. We do not publish anonymous letters. Please include an address and phone number for confirmation.
Email letters to: [email protected] or mail them to TBR News Media, P.O. Box 707, Setauket, NY 11733
Democracy at work
The proudest day of my life was when my parents and I took the oath to become citizens of the United States. I was 8 years old.
As a Russian emigrant, my father applied for and received a Tolstoy grant, which sponsored our family’s journey to America. They arrived on these shores with a baby, a box of books and dreams for a brighter future.
This election season in Port Jefferson brought back the feeling of pride I experienced at becoming a citizen of this great nation.
I went to meet-and-greets for all the candidates and attended the debates. I observed as people of varied and even opposing political leanings coalesced around the candidate they thought best represented their vision for our village. I participated in putting up signs, knocking on doors and engaging in spirited discourse with my neighbors.
This was democracy at work, and it renewed my faith in the American spirit. All of us were motivated by the love we have for this beautiful harborfront village we call home and a desire to help steer it toward a better tomorrow.
I, for one, am honored to help us paddle.
Xena Ugrinsky
Port Jefferson
Personal attacks are not helpful
I’m deeply disappointed with the editor’s decision to print a letter that seeks to contrast me with the wonderful couple who own Kai Li Kitchen in East Setauket [subjects in our “American Dream” series, May 25].
This letter continues a false narrative that aims to distinguish between good and bad immigrants, painting me as a complaining socialist who doesn’t work hard. That is an unfair and unsubstantiated personal attack. I am an immigrant to this country, the first of my family to grow up and attend college here. I have been an educator for almost a quarter of a century in public and higher education. I am an advocate for a range of issues as both a volunteer and in my paid professional work.
As a citizen of this country, I have my First Amendment rights, and I use them eloquently and fully with no apology. I love this country deeply, so deeply that I am willing to do the work of improving it. It is why I have advocated for economic, environmental, social and racial justice at all levels of government. What [letter writer] Mr. Graziano calls “complaining,” I call the work of citizenship. The progress that happens in this nation has occurred because of people who would not accept the status quo as the final product.
As someone who has written in this paper for years, I’m disappointed to see the decline in quality in recent months. It seems that the editors of TBR News Media have turned the letters-to-the-editor page into a venue where personal attacks on residents are fair game. Residents and subscribers deserve better from local journalism than this.
Shoshana Hershkowitz
South Setauket
My heart is breaking for Port Jeff
It’s a sad day in the Village of Port Jefferson today. The election is over and to the surprise of many, Kathianne Snaden did not get enough of her supporters out to vote for her. This paper called the results an “upset.”
The reason I feel compelled to write is many residents don’t realize that as a result of the vote, Kathianne is now off the Board of Trustees completely, as her term expires in a short few days. What a huge loss for this village. Four years of village government knowledge and proven results are literally out the window now. You may not fully know all Kathianne did and was responsible for, which we have now lost. And after you read this you should be “upset” as well.
As our commissioner of public safety and liaison to code, Kathianne worked with the Suffolk County Police Department and brought increased enforcement and specialized SCPD units here to Port Jeff that other villages don’t get and in doing so lowered crime numbers in the village drastically. That relationship is gone now.
As liaison to parking, Kathianne worked to build the first new parking lot in 40 years in Port Jeff to address our chronic parking problems.
Kathianne worked tirelessly to beautify this village, creating parks, cleaning up dilapidated overgrown areas and instead creating small pocket parks and green spaces. The flowers you see in this village are a direct result of Kathianne’s efforts, saving you money instead of paying a gardener to do this. That eye for keeping the village sharp looking is now gone.
As commissioner of building and planning, Kathianne worked to streamline that department and helped create housing solutions that could bring more families into the village — benefiting our schools and businesses alike. Gone.
Speaking of families, we have lost the only Board of Trustees member that has kids in the school district. Kathianne worked with the district to create a positive relationship where both the schools and the village benefited as well as every one of your kids. Parents: Kathianne was your pro-schools voice in village government. That voice is gone now, leaving louder voices intent on trying to close the schools.
The loss to this village is immense. My heart breaks for this village and for my wife. She’s being prevented from doing what she loves to do and what she excels at: Making a difference in the daily lives of all Port Jeff residents.
William Snaden
Port Jefferson
DWI crackdown: Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office announces Operation H.E.A.T.
Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon (D) recently joined roadway safety advocates to announce a summer campaign targeting drunk driving.
Beginning during the July 4 holiday weekend, Toulon’s Office will increase DWI patrols and checkpoints from Huntington to the East End, continuing these measures throughout the summer in an effort to keep Suffolk’s roadways safe. According to the Sheriff’s Office, its DWI team has already had record-high impaired driving arrests this year, with a nearly 40% increase in DWI/DUI arrests from 2022.
Coined “Operation H.E.A.T.,” the initiative aims to ramp up already heightened efforts to mitigate these increases.
“The ‘heat’ is on this summer for drunk and drugged drivers in Suffolk County,” Toulon said during a press event Thursday, June 29. “Our deputy sheriffs will be out in full force patrolling the roadways with an eye out for impaired drivers. If you don’t drive sober, you will be pulled over.”
Joining Toulon was the family of Andrew McMorris, a 12-year-old Boy Scout who was fatally hit by a drunk driver in 2018 while hiking with his Scout troop. The driver in that crash was found guilty of aggravated vehicular homicide and sentenced to 8 1/3 to 25 years in prison.
“The Andrew McMorris Foundation asks everyone this summer and always to please make a promise to never drink and drive,” said Alisa and John McMorris of the Andrew McMorris Foundation. “Call a cab, call a friend, save a life, start a trend. You don’t have to be a superhero to save someone’s life. Just take the keys.”
Paige Carbone, regional executive director of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, also attended the meeting. She offered her support for the department initiative, emphasizing the need for stricter enforcement.
“Summer is one of the deadliest times of the year on our highways,” she said. “MADD supports Operation H.E.A.T. and will join the efforts by providing staff and volunteers to participate in checkpoints across the county this summer.”
The regional director added, “Our mission is to end drunk driving, and MADD encourages alternatives, such as designating a non-drinking driver, rideshares and using public transportation. That can prevent these crimes from happening.”
Toulon also offered these tips:
- If you are hosting a party, designate a sober driver or arrange alternate transportation to ensure guests get home safely.
- If you’ve been drinking and don’t have a designated driver, ask a sober friend for a ride home, call a taxi or rideshare service or stay for the night.
- Take the keys from a friend if you think they are about to drive while impaired.
For more information on the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office, please visit www.suffolksheriff.com.
D. None of the Above: Reflecting on Donald Triplett, ‘Case 1’ in the autism community
By Daniel Dunaief
At a recent national meeting of experts in his field, Matthew Lerner said the gathering paused to toast the remarkable life of Donald Triplett.
Born and raised in Forest, Mississippi, Triplett died on Thursday, June 15 at the age of 89, after a full life in which his family, his community and a medical and research field around him learned about a condition he helped various communities understand.
Triplett was different from other children growing up, and in 1943, after his parents brought him to psychiatrist Dr. Leo Kanner, he became “Case 1” for a new diagnosis called autism.
“Everything we know about autism started with what was learned from Donald,” said Lerner, associate professor in Clinical Psychology at the Stony Brook Neurosciences Institute. “I’m still confident the field would have found its way to autism,” but the interaction between Triplett and Kanner helped establish some of the parameters that define a condition that researchers estimate affects about one in 36 children today.
As with people who have other diagnoses, the reaction people have to those with autism varies.
“There are two broad threads in the history of how we’ve understood, studied and treated autism since the 1940s,” said Lerner.
In one, people consider it a lifetime disability, in which the diagnosis is limiting and stigmatizing.
In the second, people see autism as a different way of being, in which individuals have an opportunity to develop a meaningful and happy life, as was the case with Triplett.
“The idea of autism as being so different and so impairing was the prototype,” Lerner said. Triplett’s life “didn’t follow that trajectory at all. He had a life filled with community in which he felt supported and accepted.”
This second model of autism, Lerner added, is achievable in “far more cases than we may have historically assumed.”
Triplett, who worked at the Bank of Forest for 65 years and traveled the world, had unusual cognitive abilities that set him apart from neurotypical people. He could multiply two three-digit numbers rapidly without a calculator. He also could look at the side of a building and could indicate the number of bricks without counting them one by one. He had perfect pitch.
As he was growing up, he didn’t interact socially in typical ways for children his age. His parents institutionalized him for a year, where he became withdrawn and disinterested. When they brought him back to their home, he became more engaged, earning a high school and bachelor’s degree in French from Millsaps College.
“He may have been the first, but he was far, far, far from the only autistic person who ended up exceeding the horizons set for him when he was young,” Lerner said.
Lerner believed people in the autistic community, like Triplett, have something to teach others about challenging circumstances.
“Kids are going to get where they are going at their own pace,” Lerner said. Being patient and kind and taking time to meet people where they are as individuals can help people grow. Lerner suggested that “we need to be okay with the idea that what that person is going to be is themselves and the best thing we can do is create a space” for that development to occur.
People will develop when they don’t feel like they are failing because people around them are setting expectations that don’t match them or are underestimating what they can do, he added.
“It’s important to feel validated and valued” through life, Lerner said.
Parents of children from a wide range of abilities sometimes hear what their offspring will never do.
People are frequently “proven wrong” by that child in that family, he added.
As for Triplett, Lerner encouraged people to watch the movie ’In a Different Key” about the person later known as Case 1.”
Shelter Pet of the Week: Chevy
MEET CHEVY!
This week’s featured shelter pet is Chevy, a two year-old male Pit Mix who had a very difficult start to his young life. It’s hard to imagine that this happy pup was once found on the side of the road, broken and beaten this past New Year’s Eve. Thanks to the kind hearted nature of law enforcement at the Suffolk County Police Department, a truly devoted team at Animal Surgical Center, one saintly foster family, and the selfless team at the Smithtown Animal Shelter, Chevy is thriving, back to good health, and awaiting his furrever home. Since his recovery, Chevy has become quite a celebrity, making appearances in viral TikToks, and getting profiled by News 12 and Newsday. Chevy loves to listen to music, especially Andrea Bocelli, earning him the nickname Bocelli, or Bo for short.
Chevy is finally getting to experience the happy puppy life that he never had before. He has gained back weight, is strong and mobile despite still having a slight limp, and loves to snuggle and kiss. Even though he was mistreated by humans before, he is still very trusting and friendly to all new people. He gets along with some dogs and has lived in a multi-pet home for the period of his recovery. Chevy is the perfect example of the ultimate comeback story, and he won’t let anything get him down.
Chevy will only be adopted into the best of homes who will provide him with the love and care he was missing in his past life. Due to his limited vision, he should only be with older kids that will respect his sight trouble. He also has a well-managed food allergy. He needs a family that is fully committed to the promise that Chevy will never know another bad day again. Chevy can’t wait to find his perfect furrever home, and we know that home is out there somewhere for him.
If you would like to meet this sweetheart, please call ahead to schedule an hour to properly interact with him in a domestic setting.
The Smithtown Animal & Adoption Shelter is located at 410 Middle Country Road, Smithtown. Visitor hours are currently Monday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Sundays and Wednesday evenings by appointment only). For more information, call 631-360-7575 or visit www.townofsmithtownanimalshelter.com.
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