Letters to the Editor | Feb. 20, 2024

Sometimes a picture truly is worth a thousand words. The editorial cartoon in the Feb. 18 paper highlighting the hypocrisy of those complaining that the proposed Sixers arena will be empty many nights by showing the failure of the empty Gallery/Fashion District makes a compelling argument in favor of this project.

Mayor Cherelle L. Parker wants to revitalize the city’s economy. There are many approaches she can take, and obviously, there is not any one action that will accomplish this goal. But if she has the opportunity to support a project that would revitalize a struggling area of Center City while being paid for with $1 billion of private funding, wouldn’t that be a good start? Sure, the 76ers arena wouldn’t open for a number of years, but the jobs it would create in short order would kick-start the economy now. Let’s be pragmatic, let’s make sure that the concerns of Chinatown are addressed, and let’s hope Mayor Parker makes a priority of getting this project approved in the early days of her administration

Scott Applebaum, Philadelphia

Kudos to The Inquirer for its excellent, comprehensive article detailing the operations at the Port of Philadelphia, and the machinations of one company, Holt Logistics, to control the movement of cargo from the port to regional warehouses, to the detriment of trucking companies not affiliated with Holt. I was struck by the following: “Since 2010, three Holt brothers who are also company executives — Leo, Thomas Jr., and Michael — have contributed $742,000 to Pennsylvania political committees registered with the Department of State ... [Gov. Josh] Shapiro’s transition team was chaired by William Sasso, chairman emeritus of the law firm Stradley Ronon and a longtime attorney for the Holts.”

This is what it takes to conduct business in Pennsylvania, and especially in Philadelphia. It’s the Philly way of doing business. George Washington Plunkitt of Tammany Hall called it “honest graft.” I call it government-sanctioned corruption.

Angelo Sgro, Philadelphia, agsgro@comcast.net

Do people have such short memories? Yes. Disgraced former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno was fired because he didn’t protect the athletes in his charge. Turning a blind eye to sexual abuse equals committing the heinous act itself. Protecting the perpetrator is as bad as doing it oneself. Thank you for reminding those with wishy-washy memories, morals, and boundaries of what great tragedy occurred at Penn State under his watch. Never again.

Vimukti Aslan, Philadelphia, vvaslan9@gmail.com

Can someone please explain why the laws on the books, from selling drugs to public urination, have not been enforced in Kensington for decades? Why have the working-class taxpayers in Kensington been abandoned for so long? Why does the new police commissioner need to wait until April to begin enforcing the law? There seems to be a lot of hand-wringing over the fate of substance users. Where is the concern for the children and taxpayers forced by the city to live in these horrid conditions? From the mid-1970s through 2020, I conducted business in the Kensington area and was a witness to the slow deterioration from a safe, working-class neighborhood to the public disgrace it is today.

James Conway, Naples, Fla.

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