Nassau County's mask ban, LI hurricane prep

This bill banning face masks was passed at the moment we are having a COVID-19 surge in Nassau County [“Nassau mask ban: Bill details, how county will enforce it,” News, Aug. 12].

Masks have been proven to be an effective tool in reducing the transmission of COVID, and as a physician I intend to continue wearing one whenever I feel it’s appropriate regardless of the law. I’m tempted to encourage others to do the same.

This bill was passed on purely partisan lines by a group of posturing Republican legislators who are more interested in looking tough on crime than they are in thinking about its effects.

Criminals bent on robbing people aren’t going to obey a law that says you can’t wear a mask. This will do nothing to reduce crime and everything to increase infection rates. I am embarrassed to live in a county that allows such foolishness to pass as leadership.

— Dr. Michael Melgar, Glen Head

Nassau County’s mask ban ignores that some of us have real reasons to avoid this virus — and all the others out there. I have asthma that was worsened by COVID-19, and I still mask during surges and trips to places I’m likely to encounter sick people.

It’s outrageous that I could be questioned by the police for doing so, and I’m not sure I trust strangers without medical backgrounds to judge whether my exemption is “good enough.” This bill also ignores that people, while not having health concerns themselves, live with medically vulnerable people.

This ban feels like a partisan attack on our most vulnerable populations. It applies little effort to distinguish what medical and religious exemptions are or how they’ll be enforced. It’s poor legislation, and I think we’ll regret it when a winter COVID wave hits.

In America, we should be able to wear whatever we want. To say otherwise goes against this country’s values.

— Amanda Mullen, Oceanside

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman’s apparent lust for headlines has reached a dangerous and potentially lethal level. The banning of face masks in public places, at a time when highly contagious diseases are rampant, puts every immunocompromised individual at risk. Many would be unable to prove that they are at risk while they are arrested. Will they be put in a car with unmasked police, or in a jail cell with other unmasked people?

This is the type of ban we might expect to see in backward, ignorant jurisdictions, not areas populated by educated and supposedly intelligent people. It shows, however, what can happen when intelligent people elect leaders who aren’t looking forward.

— Randy Volkell, Merrick

Bruce Blakeman and the Nassau County Legislature’s Republican majority appear intent on passing laws that score political points regardless of the laws’ constitutionality or enforceability.

First, it was the transgender ban. Now, it’s the mask ban. Both laws will likely be struck down after the county defends lawsuits using taxpayer dollars.

I thought Republicans claimed that they are the fiscally responsible political party. Moreover, I don’t like having my tax dollars spent on a partisan cause.

— Howard J. Herman, Great Neck

I have a chronic health condition where one of the components of my blood is very low and I am prone to infections, so I must wear a mask.

I guess after the bill is signed, I’ll have to carry a note from my doctor explaining this, otherwise I could face a $1,000 fine, a year in jail, or both.

— Norman Cohen, South Farmingdale

Let’s work together to avoid storm danger

On Long Island, we no longer have the luxury of preparing for only high-profile weather events like hurricanes and blizzards. Now, even “routine” storms are dangerous “Prepare for tomorrow’s perils,” Editorial, Aug. 11].

Climate change has necessitated shifts in communicative and policy approaches to deal with this new normal.

Local elected officials must coordinate with state and federal agencies to secure funding and the policy mechanisms needed to harden key infrastructural systems and educate the public about the risks of these increasingly extreme weather patterns.

The editorial board is correct to praise calls for regional cohesiveness, but as with housing and transportation issues, cooperation across municipal lines has eluded us.

As temperatures rise and winds rage, we must work together to ensure that words translate into action before we are hit with the next unexpected deluge.

— Richard Murdocco, Commack

The writer is an adjunct professor in Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences.