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William Stieglitz

METRO photo

By William Stieglitz

With the end of President Donald Trump’s (R) 30-day pause for tariffs on Canada and Mexico fast approaching, TBR News Media spoke with local business owners regarding their thoughts on the tariffs. Explained simply, the tariffs would increase the cost of goods imported from each country by 25% (with energy imported from Canada taxed at 10%), a concern relevant to local businesses that rely on such goods to operate. These come in addition to other recent tariffs placed by the newest presidential administration, such as 10% levy on Chinese goods. When asked for their thoughts, both interviewees spoke first on the impact of past tariffs.

Claudia Dowling, owner of Claudia Dowling Interiors in Huntington, describes how the 2019 tariffs cost her “well over 30%” of her profit for that year. “Having written an order for a client, I felt it necessary to keep to the original pricing we agreed on. However, after the product arrived and [was] delivered, my final invoice … had one to sometimes three tariffs added.” 

She elaborated how in the years since COVID19 hit, freight costs became especially high, making it hard to turn a profit, and how this could be further inflated by new tariffs. And while larger companies can reduce these costs by relying on Amazon, she said this was not an option for smaller businesses like hers. 

“I have to eliminate many vendors making it impossible to fill my store. It goes on and on. The small business community is in more trouble than ever.” While she has been in her business for 50 years, she is now concerned about staying afloat.

Howard Stern, owner of East Bay Mechanical Corp. in Yaphank, has already seen his business impacted by the separate proposed 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum set to start on March 12. He described how even though he relies on domestic steel, he has seen those prices already go up in response, resulting in an approximate 20% increase in his metal costs. 

“It affects washing machines, it affects AC units, it doesn’t just affect the sheet metal … but everything that goes along with it, because everything requires metal and, unfortunately, it goes up but it never comes back down … even when the tariffs are lifted,” he said.

Stern also describes how tariffs affect costs at each step of the way “so by the time the end consumer gets on it, that 20% in raw material has been stepped on three to four times by four different people, so the end consumer is paying that tariff four times.” 

According to both the January Navigator Research Poll and the February Harvard Caps/Harris poll, approximately three in five Americans expect new tariffs will increase costs for consumers. The Navigator polls indicate a slim majority believes tariffs will be worthwhile if they can protect American manufacturing and jobs, but also that a majority believes the tariffs will hurt American consumers more than foreign countries. Further costs to Americans could come from retaliatory tariffs too, as Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau previously promised to implement.

By William Stieglitz

On Monday, Feb. 17, Long Islanders took to the sidewalks outside Congressman Nick LaLota’s (R-NY01) Hauppauge office to demand he hold an in-person town hall during the current congressional break. American and rainbow flags flew among rows of signs demanding communication with constituents as well as resistance against the administration, all while people called out “Where’s Nick LaLota?” and “Nick LaLota, Do your job!” The turnout was larger than expected, with over 300 registered and, according to what several attendees said they heard from police, many more protesters spanning from Route 347 to Town Line Road, totaling an estimated thousand overall.

The calls for a public town hall stemmed from LaLota not having held one through his entire time in office. This was a particularly sore spot for protesters, as none of the Republican congressmen of Long Island’s Congressional Districts 1 and 2 have held one since 2017—opting instead for “telephone town halls” where only questions chosen by the Congressman’s team can be heard. “LaLota has decided for whatever reason that it’s better for him politically to support vocally what [Trump and Musk] are doing to attack our institutions rather than actually fighting for the people of this district,” said attendee Nancy Goroff, co-founder of Long Island Strong Schools Alliance. “And he dares to dismiss all his constituents calling his office and contacting him by email as unimportant, rather than actually paying attention to what he owes to his district.”

The “Unscripted: LaLota, Listen to the People!” rally—organized by Indivisible in conjunction with eight local grassroots—was named in reference to LaLota’s comments in the Washington Post earlier this month. He described constituent calls to his office as “people reading off scripts… demonizing Musk, demonizing DOGE, which I think is unfortunate.” The response did not sit well with protesters. “Constituents don’t appreciate being mocked,” said Emily Kaufman, a co-organizer for the rally. “Our concerns are real and that’s why we’re here: to demand that he listen to us.”

Chief among the concerns were federal cuts to Long Island healthcare and education. Hundreds signed onto a petition demanding LaLota work to unfreeze funds to the Northport VA, Brookhaven and Cold Spring Harbor labs and other Long Island institutions.

“He is very proud of announcing grants that, for example, faculty at Stony Brook have earned,” Goroff said, “and yet now that those grants are in jeopardy, he is saying nothing against it at all.”

Organizers spoke heavily on the topic of cuts, with Kaufman emphasizing, “715 thousand people in this district are on Medicaid, and if we cut that we have pregnant women who are going to face a loss of care.” 

Co-organizer Deborah Roberts also spoke on cuts to the Department of Education. “Education is the engine of economy, the engine of our democracy. What we would be losing would be funding for disadvantaged children, disabled children … People don’t realize this, but the Department of Education is a center for data collection, comprehensive data collection, about all of the programs throughout the United States. So we have programs impacted, disability rights, civil rights and policies in schools, equity in education, all these things would no longer exist, would no longer be funded.”

The protest lasted for over an hour, with frequent honks of support from drivers and most attendees staying past the scheduled end time. “It shows that we, at the end of the day, all want the same things,” said Suffolk Progressives founder Shoshana Hershkowitz, who emceed the event. “We want safe communities, we want to make sure our schools are funded, our hospitals are funded, and we care about this being a place everyone can live and thrive.” 

Speaking to the energy driving the attendees, Kaufman said “We don’t want to be in the streets; it’s freezing out right now, but we are here because we have to be. If Nick LaLota’s not gonna show up for us, then we’re gonna come bring our message to him.”

When reached for comment on the protest, LaLota’s office was unavailable.

The rally was cosponsored by the 50501 Movement, a group designed for resistance against current administration with the motto “50 protests, 50 states, 1 movement,” and coincided with the organization’s Presidents Day protests across the nation. Local cosponsors for the Hauppauge rally included Assemble Long Island, East End Action Network, Long Island Advocates, Long Island Network for Change, Long Island Progressive Coalition, Progressive East End Reformers, Show Up Long Island, and Suffolk Progressives.

Ward Melville High School. File photo

By William Stieglitz

Ever since the October incident when a loaded gun found its way into Ward Melville High School — a student’s father having left it in a backpack identical to the student’s, which the student accidentally brought to school — parents have been vocal about a need for increased security. In response, at the Oct. 23 board of education meeting, Security Coordinator Jack Blaum said that the district would be considering AI security technology, and at the Jan. 22 meeting, the plan to use ZeroEyes was expounded upon.

ZeroEyes software works by connecting to a school’s pre-existing security cameras. The AI analyzes thousands of images per second, and if it detects what it thinks is a firearm, the image is sent to a ZeroEyes technician to review. If the technician verifies that the image is accurate, he or she notifies the school administrators and local law enforcement, all in a process expected to take 3-5 seconds. Three Village will be the first Long Island school district to implement this system, where it will operate in all school buildings as well as the North Country Administration Building, and will cost the district $112,000.

At the October meeting, Blaum touted the AI system as a more efficient solution than metal detectors, which he said by contrast would take more time to install, need to be located at every door as well as at outside and require armed staff day and night. At the January meeting, Superintendent Kevin Scanlon said the ZeroEyes system will provide “24/7/365 coverage” and won’t require the district to purchase more cameras than normal, as additional cameras are already added each year.

 “If even part of a weapon is spotted with this system,” Scanlon said, “the notification goes in. And we’re talking a matter of seconds, from when it’s viewed and when we’re notified.” He also said the ZeroEyes system fits with all present software and hardware in the district — a concern which was relevant in Philadelphia last year, when Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority learned the cameras used for their ZeroEyes pilot program weren’t fully compatible. According to Scanlon, it is expected that other Suffolk districts will follow suit and use ZeroEyes, with BOCES being involved.

The ZeroEyes system does have limits, as it can only detect guns that are within a camera’s view. ZeroEyes Chairman and CEO Mike Lahiff said, “Good security comes in layers. Do I think we can really help in certain situations? Absolutely. But are we the end all be all? No.” 

Three Village’s other layers currently include security guards, sign-in procedures, license readers, background checks on all employees and additional measures that are kept confidential to avoid counteraction. The school district is also considering arming their security guards, though it is hotly debated among parents and community members whether this would help or hinder school safety, with hundreds having taken up each side of the argument via online petitions.

Board member David McKinnon, sharing a study from the American Medical Association sent to the BOE by a parent, said the study found the rate of death was 2.83 times greater in schools with an armed guard than without. The study attributes this to school shooters actively being suicidal, resulting in armed guards acting as a potential incentive rather than a deterrent.

 “The evidence,” McKinnon said, “is it’s not clear that having armed guards is going to help very much. But I’m not completely convinced it would hurt either.” He suggested polling school employees, parents and students on their views. “However this plays out, it would be better if everyone felt they had some say in this decision.”