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PHOENIX, Page Nineiiiiiiil! Ilii Letters:A A A A A A AAl b a n y r epo r t Candidate Seeks-4 Report On Activities of Our State Legislators%u2605 %u2605 %u2605 %u2605 %u2605 %u2605 %u2605%u00abINIIIII!iaillllltillilllllNinillll!llll!lllflllfll!IIIINI!llllllltll!llllllillHltl!l!tlltlllil!IHnilllllllBY CAROL BELLAMYSTATE SENATORSpring is definitely in the air inboth Brooklyn and Albany and Itake great delight in spending timeoutside on the streets and inmeetings talking to you and yourneighbors about what is happeningin the State Legislature.This year in Albany there seemsto be more focus than ever on theProblems of Senior Citizens and Iam hopeful that the Legislaturewill enact laws that will help easesome of the growing problems ofthe elderly in New York State. Onemajor problem is that the 1972increase in Social Security benefitshas made many ineligible for rentexemptions and Medicaid becauseof their increased income. I haveintroduced a bill to correct this andam co-sponsoring other bills thatwould extend the rent exemptionsand have the State pick up the costof existing programs for theelderly that the Federal government is cutting back.The other news out of Albany thismonth is the Passage of the 1973-74State Budget and the failure of ourDemocratic attempts to make thekind of changes that would help ushere in New York City %u2014 particularly in the areas of Medicaidand City University funds. But thisis just die first round and we mayhave another chance when theSupplemental Budget comes uplater in the session. We may also bemore fortunate in the area of taxcuts. We Democrats are going towage a tough fight to repeal theincome tax surcharge and theaggravating %u201chot dog%u201d tax and Ithink we have a chance to winthese measures. We feel there isclearly money in the State Budgetnot only for tax cuts, but also forpicking up responsibility for socialservices where they are threatenedby Federal cutbacks.I am glad to report to you thatthe Legislature has defeated a billthat would establish ROTC in thepublic high schools. When this billsuddenly came before the Senateearly this month, I spoke outstrongly against it. It passed in ourhouse, but those of us who opposedit helped to create a statewideturor over the bill that resulted indefeat in the Assembly. When weare not spending enough money forschools in New York City now, thiskind of very dangerous %u201cfrill%u201dprogram is unconscionable.During the month of March, IINTRODUCED A NUMBER OFNEW BILLS THAT WOULDDIRECTLY BENEFIT THECONSUMER IF PASSED INTOLAW. One series of bills wouldrequire savings banks to put atleast one %u201cdepositor-trustee%u201d ontheir boards, giving the ordinarycitizen on the street a voice in thepolicy-making decisions of thesavings bank he patronizes. Asecond bill would forbid merchantsor any credit card company fromgetting interest on charge accountswhile disputes over billing ormerchandise were being settled. Athird consumer bill would put anend to the %u201ctemporary%u201d rate increases for electric and telephoneutilities by requiring full publichearings before any increase ofmore than one per cent. Anotherbill put in the hopper by my officewould provide a review board towhich convicted prisoners couldappeal if they had objections to thelengths of their sentences.In other activity this month, Ihave become increasingly concerned about the effects of highfood prices on the residents of ourdistrict and the state. PresidentNixon%u2019s freeze on meat prices is agood temporary way to halt immediate increases in that area, butstill dots not address the problem.All food prices are shooting up, andthe raises are not going to growers.Now is the time to press demandsfor more sensible packaging,standard product sizes, and otherconsumer-oriented benefits thatwill cut down manufacturing andprocessing costs, and hopefully onprices.The manipulations of the middlemen %u2014 the warehousers, brokersand food retailers %u2014 should beexamined as well for their effect onprices. I urge every constituent toscream loud and long withdissatisfaction over what is happening. The letters I have receivedgive me the basis for action, sokeep them coming.Do We Act Like FolksOn The Gravy Train?Just because the roof leaks, youdon%u2019t tear down the entire building.That seems to be the messagebeing received from Washington.'Die roof is leaking, and thereforethe whole house needs to go.This kind of thinking is whatthreatens termination for all of theCommunity Action agencies, andthis is what we have to fightagainst.So as against the statisticsamassed by Washington, let usgive you the results of a very smallsurvey made right here at theSouth Brooklyn CommunityCorporation. In our offices here,the Training, Information,Education and Adult Advisor%u2019soffice are all located on onecorridor. A total of ten people workin these offices. Of these tenpeople, six are attending someform of college classes. There isnot one of the ten who does not dosome form of volunteer outsidework having to do with teaching orcounseling or some activity pertaining to human needs. Every oneof the ten spends considerablenumber of hours attendingmeetings or becoming involved incommunity programs outside ofthe actual structure of the PovertyProgram, as well.To the Editor:I used to buy lottery tickets butnot any more. I always know' 1wasn%u2019t going to win a bundle but Ihad thought the proceeds would goto education. Governor Rockefellerpromised us this when the lotterywas first begun. Where are thosefunds. Governor Rockefeller?As a teacher at Juhn Jay HighSchool and a candidate for theCommunity School Board inDistrict 15, I am confronted bypeople w'ho want to know how I%u2019mgoing to get money if I am elected.Although my answer, %u201cWrite toyour congressman. Write to yourlegislator,%u201d has been labeled%u201crhetoric%u201d by some, just so much%u201chot air,%u201d it is my feeling that anyother response is eyewash,irresponsible pandering to anaudience%u2019s frustrations.Because there is no answer!There is no %u201cI will go to%u2022Washington.%u201d And that%u2019s where thefunds have been cut. The majorityof the people supposedly wantedeconomy. President Nixon hasgiven us economy. VocationalRehabilitation which would%u2019vetrained the physically and mentally handicapped is only the firstprogram he has gutted.We need monies for languageprograms, for reading programs,for books and magazines, and forparaprofessionals. The localboards don%u2019t have it. But theFederal Government has it. AndGovernor Rockefeller has it if hewants to give the city a largershare of the lottery funds, a pieceof the budget surplus. But I don%u2019thave it. I work for a living.William J. HunterCandidate for SchoolBoard, Dist. 15.ObserverTo the Editor:I have your Mar. 15 issue and Ithought the Manufacturers TrustCo. sign is at Clinton & MontagueSts. (Page 3).I thought the area in questionbetween Atlantic Ave. PacificStreet is the East side of 3 Ave.(Page j2).community approval. This w'as thedanger 1 was trying to alert themeeting to.There are those who believe thatI thought you listed good &sufficient reasons for not building ahigh school on Gowarius Canal(Page 12).Yours truly,John GmelchEditor%u2019s Note: It%u2019s a delight toknow that someone out there caresenough to read us closely. If for noother reason, that knowledge willhelp keep us honest.Just Mis-timedTo the Editor:Your coverage of the March 29,1973 Community Planning Committee of Long Island CollegeHospital was incomplete andmissed the real essentials.My comments were notirrelevant although perhaps theywere mistimed. I was trying toclearly indicate the danger andextent to which the meeting waspacked by L.I.C.H. in order tosecure the destruction of the C.P.C.as an independent communitygroup.It is abundantly clear that ifL.I.C.H. had succeeded in takingcontrol of the C.P.C. there wouldexist no ban to their expanding inany manner they chose. They couldalways call a rump session of theC.P.C. to ratify their actions andwrap themselves in a cloak ofthe physical destruction of CobbleHill is no longer an issue; that thehospital and the C.P.C. alreadysettled that one and any commentsabout the demolition of housing areirrelevant. This is simply not thecase. The agreement to expandL.I.C.H. without the takeover anddestruction of homes will last onlyso long as C.P.C. remains a strong,viable, and independentorganization. Not a puppet councilwhich jumps when L.I.C.H. pullsthe strings.It is important to remember thatthis current L.I.C.H. expansionprogram will not be the last. Fiveor ten years from now L.I.C.H. willseek to add more capacity, newprograms and better equipmentfacilities. What will happen whenwe are faced with the argumentthat the need of so large and important health institution musttake precedence over competinginterest?Just last week the Board ofContinued on Page 15EDITOR%u2019S NOTE.Among our mail this week wefound the following note from BobFurman of Seventh Avenue:%u201cBy the way, you should learn to%u201cname it%u201d right. The restaurantwindow on the front page (of theApril5 issue) is the Iron Horse Pubat Seventh Avenue, not the CoachInn.%u201dRight you are. Bob.apologies to the Iron Horse.Our'Don%u2019t Quote Me, But.BY SCORPIO%u2022 %u00abIn addition, there should bementioned that a former employeeof the Information Department,during the year and a half she washere, finished both High SchoolEquivalency and is now in hersecond semester at New YorkCommunity College.Collectively, we also have out ofour own \as: (1) raise money for a bus ticketso one community resident whohad won a scholarship could get tothe college to claim same. She hadthe scholarship but not the moneyto get there. (2) Helped people fillout tax forms medicaid requestforms%u2014obtained information forthem for any and all sorts of things.(3) Got up a collection for acommunity resident who left herburning apartment in the middle ofthe night with only pajamas on. (4)Done research for a blind siuueni.So we ask you, do we sound likethe kind of people who are justwaiting for the gravy train?This article was the editorial forthe week of March 30 in the%u201cWeekly Gas,%u201d the newsletter ofthe South Brooklyn CommunityAnii-Fovei Cut jmi alion, Rieiiai uLongchamps, editor.Councilman Fred Richmond recently launched a publicity blast at the breweries who are leaving New York City. However, observers at the Kings Pawn Tavern quickly tell anybody who will listen that it is his opponent, Bob Wittich, who is the great supporter of local beer %u2014 Rheingold. Richmond, reportedly is a scotch drinker in private.%u2605 %u2605 %u2605 %u2605Guests at the Sunday Brunch of the Independent Neighborhood Democrats last weekend came away impressed with the political savvy and skill of Mario Cuomo, virtually the only speaker there who wasn%u2019t a candidate for some office or other. %u201c Too bad he isn%u2019t runningI / n k 11 o n / s o l r v fs\\ viv/ i if iujr v i ) v i iv w i i v i w i v iv ianother office told us, \he would keep New York City awake part of the time between now and June.%u201d Biggest dud of the day was Assemblyman Al Blumenthal, who is running for Mayor. Blumenthal%u2019s campaign seems to be dragging slower and slower, it certainly isn't helped by headlines like that in the N.Y.Times on Monday which proclaimed him the %u201c apostle of compromise.\tribute to a modern-day liberal politician.No doubt about it: former Congressman Al Lowenstein is running hard to get into position to take the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate next year. Those who doubt he can put together what it takesneed to be reminded about the outside resources he brought into our own 14th Congressional District last year in what may be the last great attempt to unseat Congressman John Rooney. Lowenstein's big concern no what is going to happen in the 14th after all his work (and money). Seems to be inevitable that either Joe Dowd or Chester Straub is going to stand up in 1974 as the organization candidate for the nomination.CREATIVITY.on every photographic and creative assign merit...weplook for and execute^gr'' \jlth G extraordinary ...with|\\v ,\