The following was written in response to a recent Long Island Business News Op-Ed authored by Destination LI’s Chief Economist Martin Cantor.
To the Editor:
In the October 3rd edition of LIBN, I was stunned to read fellow policy writer Martin Cantor pen the following words: “Naysayers get caught in the weeds of survey methodology as justification for ignoring them but the trending message that two recent surveys send shouldn’t be overlooked by public policy makers.”
I, and other professionals like me, are proud to be labeled “naysayers”.
Mr. Cantor is blatantly and unequivocally, wrong. To justify Long Island’s multi-million dollar economic development efforts in survey efforts that play fast and easy with standardized rules and proven techniques to ensure accuracy is not only irresponsible, but an insult to the region’s residents.
Once, we lived on an Island where careful thought was given to what and the where we need to build, preserve and reclaim. Now, all we get are the scraps of a once nationally acclaimed process, driven by agenda-driven stakeholder groups that ignore the urban planning process that is driven by scientific data in favor of what works for their convenient narrative.
The residents of Nassau and Suffolk Counties deserve better.
Richard Murdocco,
Founder of the FoggiestIdea.org
