Letters to the Editor | May 31, 2023

In the first six months of the year, The Inquirer has reported on multiple acts of antisemitic violence and vandalism. The Jewish community is painfully aware that the deadly 2019 antisemitic attack in Pittsburgh was followed by other deadly attacks in California, New Jersey, and New York. As we reflect this week on the brave Americans who died fighting fascism in Europe, all Pennsylvanians should be deeply disturbed by recent incidents, including the defacing of the Philadelphia Holocaust Memorial Plaza and a Delaware County middle school student yelling, “Sieg Heil” before a Jewish classmate. Manifestations of antisemitism are often the first indicators of a societal sickness. According to FBI crime statistics, increases in racially motivated attacks against Asian and Black Americans have also spiked in recent years.

Fortunately, last week second gentleman Doug Emhoff released the first-ever “U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism.” This is an acknowledgment by the federal government that hatred against Jews is a fundamental challenge to the principles of American democracy. Confronting hate and building bridges is also what State Reps. Jordan Harris and Jared Solomon did last month in launching the first of its kind Black-Jewish Caucus. Representing incredibly diverse Philadelphia neighborhoods, they know that no Pennsylvanian should have to live in fear because of who they are. Reflecting on our original national motto hatched in Philadelphia, “E pluribus unum,” there is no better way to celebrate our diverse democracy than this type of commitment to building coalitions. The Shapiro-Davis administration should embrace this caucus and mirror this innovative and bold new national strategy.

Ari Mittleman, Pikesville, Md.

Our current and recurring struggle over the national debt seems to imply that we do not have the money to provide for the general welfare of all the American people. And that the only way to reduce and eliminate the debt is to shortchange the poor and low-income Americans. How can this be in the supposed richest country in the world? Sociologist Matthew Desmond states that if the rich, who profit most from our capitalistic system, paid their fair share, the U.S. Treasury would have an additional $174 billion. Warren Buffet has stated that his secretary pays more taxes than he does, relative to income.

Instead of fine-tuning our economic policies to help all Americans to live with dignity and freedom, the current debt ceiling negotiations are limiting the IRS’s ability to collect from the rich. And in a nation that uses every possible robot and AI device to eliminate human work, demanding that the poor work for their share is ludicrous. Hopefully, someone may finally challenge the constitutional legitimacy of the debt ceiling considering the 14th Amendment and put an end to this wasteful charade.

Sylvester Bretschneider, Philadelphia

It is laudable that FDR Park is getting such grand improvements, and that the airport is donating “guilt” money to fund a tidal wetland in the park because it’s building on top of existing ones. It was also a needed improvement when Ed Rendell pushed his Center City-centric plans to rejuvenate that area, yet, as a lifelong resident of the Northeast, I can’t help but think that $250 million could go a long way to assisting many neighborhood concerns way up here in the “hinterlands.” Being an area that would be Pennsylvania’s second-largest city if we were a separate entity, the half a million people here sure could use more assistance, especially with the exponential growth of rental properties multiplying like rabbits. I applaud any improvement being done anywhere in the city, but for too long, the Northeast always seems to draw the short stick.

Tim Lynch, Philadelphia

Kyle Sammin’s recent column is amusing. He condemns the FBI for investigating Donald Trump’s presidential campaign’s ties to Russia. He even reports that the Mueller investigation could not establish a conspiracy between the Russians and Trump’s campaign. He does not reveal, however, that Mueller indicted Trump’s campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, and his associate, Konstantin Kilimnik, who is regarded as an agent for Russian intelligence — as well as more than two dozen Russians for interfering in the 2016 election.

Sammin implies that the FBI treated Hillary Clinton’s campaign favorably. As if we don’t all remember that James Comey, the FBI chief, publicly announced that the FBI was investigating the Clinton campaign. And, incredibly, 11 days before the election, Comey once again publicly proclaimed that the FBI was reopening its investigation into Clinton. What Sammin and all the other critics of the FBI’s examination of Trump’s campaign ignore is the fact that, unlike the scrutiny of Clinton, no one knew of the Trump investigation until after the election. While it is very clear that the FBI investigation of Trump’s campaign had no effect on the 2016 election, the same cannot be said of its investigation into the Clinton campaign.

Michael Walsh, Elkins Park

In a recent article on relaxed COVID-19 vaccine mandates, Inquirer reporter Jason Laughlin wrote that a spokesperson for AFSCME District Council 33 “was blasé about the mandate’s end, saying most workers complied and those who sought exemptions were largely able to receive them. ‘It wasn’t really an issue with us at all,’ he said.” As much as they wouldn’t admit it, the vaccine mandate was a big issue for the city of Philadelphia, whose department heads and Council members repeatedly complained about recruitment and retention problems for city jobs. Even now, it is hard to trust a city government that enthusiastically coerced the public and city employees to get shots with known side effects.

Lynn Landes, Philadelphia, lynnlandes@gmail.com

I read with great interest and fond memories about the history and evolution of Bitar’s Middle Eastern restaurant and the two brothers who ran it. We moved to Philadelphia in 1993. Having searched for a Middle Eastern restaurant to our liking, to no avail, we were happy when Bitar’s opened. We frequented the restaurant at least once a week and were delighted by its deliciously prepared and tasty food. Its baba ganoush and hummus were the best. Platters with rice and chicken or beef, homemade vegetable soup, and its delicious falafel were all high quality and satisfying to the palate. And we shall not forget the two brothers. They always greeted us like family and were interested in what we thought about everything they served. I am happy that their food will continue to be enjoyed by them turning the business into a ghost kitchen for delivery.

Judy Rubin, Philadelphia

Although the recent article “Climate report: Philly will heat up” emphasizes the impact of climate change in the city, the impact will also affect forests and woodlands in the region. I reside in New Jersey at the northern end of the Pinelands, only a 40-minute drive to the city, and climate change can already be observed in the forest, which is a combination of coniferous and deciduous growth. Having lived in the area for 20 years, we have seen a decline in the health of the forest in the past few years as summertime temperatures have soared. The noticeable number of dead and dying trees has multiplied in the last two years when compared with the prior 18 years. The impact of climate change is already manifested in the forest in which we live.

Ken Lefkowitz, Medford

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