Town hall a ‘distraction’
To The Editor:
Re “Saving small stores; Hoylman panel tries to find some answers” (news article, Nov. 16):
The issue is one thing — greed — and the control of our city by the Real Estate Board of New York.
The Small Business Jobs Survival Act is the only solution, to date. And it is fully vetted and 100 percent constitutional. The comments otherwise by Borough President Brewer and any councilmembers, like Daniel Garodnick, saying otherwise are REBNY-driven fake news! They have never provided documented evidence to prove their false claim.
The loss of 1,100 to 1,200 small businesses each month citywide is on all of their hands right up through the City Council, the public advocate and the mayor — more than 120,000 lost jobs on every local main street in New York City every year.
The real story is the distraction game, such as this town hall and others like it, with Brewer and others, and the phony bills produced from the City Council’s Small Business Committee that all ignore the crisis and offer no solution to saving merchants from the unfair lease renewal crisis, and lack of fair rents and long-term leases of at least 10. years. Truth and facts matter: See SmallBusinessCongress.org .
Steve Barrison
Barrison is executive vice president, Small Business Congress of New York
Shop small on Saturday
To The Editor:
You can support small retailers by joining me and your neighbors on the seventh annual national Small Business Saturday, this coming Nov. 25.
Skip the national chain stores’ annual Black Friday madness, which now starts early Thursday night. Some stores are open all day.
Thanksgiving Day should be a time to be with loved ones and family. More and more stores remind me of the Grinch in staying open, resulting in too many employees having to choose between family and work. The dishonor roll for 2017 of stores open on Thanksgiving includes Best Buy, J.C. Penny, Kmart, Kohl’s, Lord & Taylor, Macy’s, Michaels, Modell’s, Old Navy, Target, Toys “R” Us and Walmart.
Small Business Saturday began on Nov. 27, 2010. It was in response to both Black Friday (large stores) and Cyber Monday (e-commerce stores). Small Business Saturday is designed for those starting holiday shopping to patronize small and local community-based business.
Give P.C. Richard & Son credit for being the first major store to close on Thanksgiving. This year, the honor role includes Barnes & Noble, BJ’s, Costco, DSW, Home Depot, IKEA, Jo-Ann Stores, Marshalls, Nordstrom, Petco, Pier 1 Imports, Saks Fifth Avenue, Sam’s Club and Staples, along with P.C. Richard & Son. They are putting aside financial greed to let their employees stay home with family and are closed.
Enjoy your Thanksgiving meal with friends and family. Get a good night’s sleep and instead come out and support small business by shopping local.
Larry Penner
Why pardon a turkey?
To The Editor:
President Trump is getting his pardon pen ready, as the Mueller investigation starts indicting his associates. This Wednesday, he plans to practice on two very innocent Minnesota turkeys.
The other 244 million turkeys killed in the U.S. this year have not been so lucky. They were raised in crowded sheds filled with toxic fumes. Their beaks and toes were clipped to prevent stress-induced aggression. When these fowl were 16 weeks old, slaughterhouse workers cut their throats and dumped them in boiling water to remove their feathers.
Consumers pay a heavy price, too. Turkey flesh is laced with cholesterol and saturated fats that elevate risk of chronic killer diseases.
This Thanksgiving, as we give thanks for life and good fortune, let’s also skip the gratuitous violence and grant our own pardon to an innocent animal.
Nico Young
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