I received a copy of The Roslyn News today and read with interest a front page article entitled "After the Largest Blackout in History LIPA Calls for Continued Conservation." I was interested to see that the appeal for conservation made by Richard Kessel, chairman of LIPA, was directed at commercial establishments as well as homeowners. Unfortunately, these appeals for prudent use of electricity are in some cases falling on deaf ears.

Yesterday, Aug. 20, on a day when the temperature was in the 80s and perhaps higher, no less than four stores in a well-known, open-air mall in Greenvale had their front doors wide open with their air conditioning going full blast. Apparently, this generous cooling of the sidewalk is "store policy," and meant to be more inviting to customers. While I understand that prospective customers are much more likely to wander into a store with its door open, it seems to me that when four stores in a relatively small area are blasting their air conditioning onto the sidewalk less than one week after the biggest blackout in American history, this is not only a brazen insult to the same potential customers, but an embarrassment to the business owners and store managers.

It makes me wonder when I turn up my thermostat upon leaving my house whether I am conserving electricity or just passing it on to others to waste.

Rita Jones