Readers sound off on small biz insurance, hand-written letters and vandalism hypocrisy

It’s a hot dog cart, not a multinational

Olivebridge, N.Y.: I’m a retired corporate professional from Ulster County and a small business owner who recently experienced what I believe is an overlooked regulatory issue affecting entrepreneurs in New York City’s watershed. I applied for an NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) land use permit to operate a small, one-person hot dog cart on DEP-owned property. I completed every requirement, including Health Department approval, workers’ compensation compliance and consultations with multiple insurance brokers.

The application ultimately came down to one requirement: obtaining $5 million in liability insurance or providing a $5 million letter of credit for self-insurance. Every insurance professional I consulted told me that this is effectively unattainable for a sole proprietor operating a low-risk business. I want to emphasize that the DEP employees I worked with were courteous, professional and transparent throughout the process. My concern is not with the staff, it’s with the regulation.

The broader question is whether a blanket $5 million insurance requirement is appropriate for every applicant, regardless of the size or risk of the operation. A one-person food cart is held to the same insurance threshold as far larger enterprises, effectively preventing many responsible small businesses from even applying. This isn’t about one permit. It’s about whether well-intentioned regulations have created an unintended barrier to entrepreneurship in the communities surrounding NYC’s watershed.

Dave Sportellini

Spread SNAP

Manhattan: Glenn Beck, who I never agree with, makes a good point: How will Mayor Mamdani help bodega owners with city sponsorship of supermarkets opening soon? Maybe instead of opening city-sponsored supermarkets, Mamdani should help cheaper supermarkets like Trader Joe’s and Lidl US open more supermarkets and require them to take SNAP. Too often, only the more expensive supermarkets take SNAP while the cheaper ones don’t.

Edward Drossman

Parent in crime

Stratford, Conn.: Re “From public safety to public menace” (Aug. 5): Who says that parents aren’t involved with their kids’ lives!? Just helping her son do a gang shooting, then being the getaway driver. A little different than driving the kids to soccer practice! Where’s Al Sharpton and BLM?

Peter Sulzicki

Shocking theory

East Islip, L.I.: Re “New questions in carriage crash” (July 30): As a horseman my whole life, including shoeing horses and riding and driving for decades, when I first saw the video of Sampson running off with the carriage, I questioned if something spooked him. He took off as a frightened horse, not one who just walked off. The stray voltage would be very disturbing to a horse. They wear steel shoes applied with steel nails into the dead part of the hoof. If electricity shocks them through the shoe and nails, the nerves and sensitive structures are mere millimeters away, and they can feel the shock. Several years ago, a police horse had a similar incident downtown on a manhole cover, and many dogs have died from stray electricity. A full and unbiased investigation should be done ASAP.

Jerry Trapani

Pen a letter

Bloomfield, N.J.: Years ago, I ran letter-writing workshops for people to compose meaningful notes to loved ones. One person wanted to correspond with a child who was joining the military, another wrote a gratitude letter to a parent that was a decade in the making. I loved those sessions because it created a lasting memory. Time is precious and not promised. If you can, please write a handwritten letter to someone you love. Wouldn’t it be great if everyone received a beautiful letter like that?

Christine Sparta

Reasonable suspicion

Springfield Gardens: Dr. Anthony Fauci was responsible for American taxpayer dollars being used for funding “gain of function” research — the idea that deadly viruses could be created and studied in the lab to help prevent the next pandemic. The experiments were conducted in the Wuhan Institute of Virology, where illnesses of lab workers immediately preceded the pandemic. The Chinese government destroyed the records and samples of the experiments. Fauci ignored the opinions of scientists who stated that COVID-19 may have leaked from the lab, claiming that was a conspiracy theory without scientific basis. He subsequently said the lab origin of the virus was possible. Sen. Rand Paul claims that Fauci’s funded experiments caused the deaths of millions.

Ebere Osu

Honest appraisal

Centereach, L.I.: Voicer Larry Nekola’s non-sequitur comment that President Joe Biden created $5-per-gallon gas due to his stoppage of all oil drilling in the U.S. is as false as when Donald Trump says it. Biden produced the most total volume of crude oil in U.S. history, averaging record highs above 12-13 million barrels per day during his term. During Trump’s first term, before Biden’s, crude oil production was 12 million gallons per day, less than Biden’s historic highs. The $5-per-gallon gas was caused by the surge in the world economy following the COVID-19 pandemic, during which gasoline production was severely down from high supply and no demand. By the end of Biden’s term, gas was down to a national average of $2.89 and $3.10 per gallon. Trump’s average today is $4.10 per gallon.

Richard Dragani

In theory, not practice

Ithaca, N.Y.: Voicer Michael Greaney’s latest letter sent me to Google to learn about micro-turbine generators to power data centers. They can run on renewable energy (i.e., biogas from organic waste), and that would be dandy! But more research reveals that biogas isn’t a magic bullet. It has limited availability, a high set-up cost and a currently unmet need for supply consistency. Data centers wouldn’t have incentive to invest in all that unless (a) the whole supply chain was cost-competitive with fossil fuels, or (b) there were regulations requiring them to use at least some of the stuff. Which brings us back to the original point of contention: New York’s moratorium on data centers. He opposes it. I support it. Both of us need data centers to power our online research, but New York deserves data centers that are run responsibly, not that are allowed to pollute willy-nilly.

Christine Sheppard

Sent to her death

Bronx: The tragedy of Sgt. Angel Rampersad’s death is an outrage while President Trump continues to use our military as props. Perhaps it’s a good time to remind our military and others in civil service of their rights and duty to refuse illegal, unlawful orders. If it weren’t for Trump’s unlawful attack and war in Iran, Rampersad would be alive!

Michael S. Wilbekin

Crown’s justice

Brooklyn: So if you’re accused of touching pieces of paint from the Reflecting Pool, you could get 10 years in prison. However, if you violently storm the Capitol, assault police officers, desecrate the building, etc., you get pardoned and reimbursed for the abbreviated amount of time you spent in prison. Welcome to twisted justice during the age of Trump.

Irwin Cantos

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