Letters to the editor from July 20, 2024

According to analysts, retirees can expect a whopping 2.6% increase in their Social Security benefits in 2025. For most of us, that’s just a net increase of $45-$50 per month, or about $12 more per week. At the same time, prices for everything continue to rise, including food, energy, healthcare, insurance, taxes, etc. Don’t believe the government. Inflation is still in full swing. No matter what industry or product it is, everyone is stealing money from us. For many of us retirees who are constantly juggling our finances to stay afloat, the tide keeps rising and our ship is in danger of sinking.

Our elected officials are certainly no help. They are either out of touch with reality or they just don’t care. The Social Security Trust Fund is expected to be empty in 10 years. Retirees will get 20% fewer checks, which will make matters worse. So far there has been a lot of talk but no action on how to prevent this economic disaster. It seems like they keep putting off the problem for someone else to deal with.

U.S. Rep. Angie Craig recently introduced legislation that would eliminate federal taxes on Social Security income: “You earned it, you keep it.” If passed, it would take effect in 2025 and would be a huge help. But no one is pushing for it, and for some inexplicable reason, it seems to have been put on the back burner. In other words, don’t count on it. It’s not a priority.

First, the federal government has no business taxing income that has already been taxed. I believe that’s called double taxation, or in layman’s terms, rip-offs. Second, in countries like Ukraine, money is on the table overnight. Billions and billions are confiscated in a short period of time and with no accountability. This war must continue. It’s like we have money to spend. But when it comes to providing financial relief to our retirees, we have to go through a legislative process with lots of bureaucracy that takes forever. So much for those of us who supported a system that no longer supports us.

Little Egg Harbor Township

Thank you, US Representative Jeff Van Drew, for articulating your criticism of “renewable wind energy”. I would like to respond to the supporters of these projects.

While Congressman Van Drew saw fit to use Block Island Wind as an example, recent events off Nantucket are, in my opinion, even more concerning.

Just this week, the Vineyard Wind project experienced a failure in one of its turbines, resulting in broken turbine blades, including foam and fiberglass, that polluted the ocean off Nantucket. In fact, on Wednesday morning, the beaches of Nantucket’s south shore from Madaket to Nobadeer were closed due to the debris on the beach.

Just last month, the largest mass dolphin stranding in U.S. history occurred on Cape Cod, affecting over 140 dolphins. 42 of them died, while the others were coaxed back to deeper waters after 12 hours of intensive work by mammal experts. I have lived in New Jersey for over 50 years and I cannot remember how many whales and dolphins have washed up on our shores in the last two years, coinciding with offshore wind farm exploration and investigation.

New Jersey’s commercial fishing industry has been engaged in “renewable wind energy” since the Christie administration’s Blue Ribbon Panel. We have participated, provided comments, funded studies, and been as cooperative as possible.

The main concerns raised by commercial industry about the projects stem from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s failure to consider the negative environmental impacts on the area before selecting the lease sites and the true cumulative impacts of the project. It also failed to adequately assess and explain the negative impacts on shipping and the fishing industry. It also failed to provide transit routes and maintain a minimum distance of two nautical miles between turbines. It also failed to provide transparent information on power generation, prices and economic impacts.

However, one thing remains: these projects are not being developed in a way that allows for safe and efficient operations.

Garden State Seafood Association