Letters to the Editor | Aug. 18, 2024

I am writing in response to the op-ed by Sage Lincoln that commends local churches for removing special parking permits in bike lanes. For older adults who suffer from a disability, the opportunity to attend church or other places where they can congregate often requires the ability to park close to the building. Many of these older adults have few opportunities to meet, socialize, receive a meal, and gain information about programs and services that can benefit them. Blocking their access to these buildings is also a public health issue of great concern. According to the most recent available census data, 42% of community-dwelling older minority adults report some disability (as compared with 33% of white older adults). Recognizing the critical role houses of worship play in the lives of many disabled older adults is part of that equation.

Allen Glicksman, Haverford

When Donald Trump said Kamala Harris was Indian and now says she is Black, he is completely wrong. Indian is a nationality and not a race, so she can be both. It is equivalent to saying she is American and Black. It’s a shame Trump is too dense to realize this. Why hasn’t the national media pointed this out?

David Friedman, Conshohocken

Regarding the resignation of Mütter Museum curator Anna Dhody, can political history before 1920 be invalidated just because women didn’t have suffrage? Of course not. Then why is it necessary at the Mütter to apply current standards and practice for medical consent to a pathology collection that was formed when consent, as it’s now known, did not exist? This is a problem wholly created by the Mütter’s current leadership in their misguided and ill-informed efforts. It’s why accomplished staff have now left. It’s sad that the College of Physicians of Philadelphia chooses to not exercise the leadership that’s needed to educate all, especially itself, on this dilemma. The centuries-old pursuit of knowledge, as science (and not arts and culture) for the benefit of all, needs to be sustained, particularly so we might understand why and how the context for science does change — particularly when it’s viewed through a lens of arts and not a lens of science.

Dolph Druckman, Baltimore, ddruck@gmail.com

A common refrain regarding the Russo-Ukrainian War contends that Ukraine’s fight is “unwinnable.” That is, efforts to restore prewar territorial boundaries are futile and misguided, necessitating geopolitical concessions. On the one hand, increasing apathy toward the Ukrainian cause is not particularly surprising; it’s a classic symptom of war fatigue. What does shock, however, is the patent shortsightedness underlying this stance.

The above reasoning fails to recognize that Ukraine differs fundamentally from previous American wars. Military aid would be for defensive rather than offensive purposes, and support would not involve boots on the ground — manifesting instead as strategic and weapons-based aid. Admittedly, this poses a sizable financial cost, but short-term costs should not distract from the wide-reaching, long-lasting benefits of a Ukrainian victory (and, conversely, the ruinous consequences of a Kremlin takeover).

The U.S. has the opportunity to subvert a nefarious adversary and forestall Putinism — or sit idle as Russian irredentism disfigures contemporary Europe. Furthermore, even if negotiations with Russia were the path forward, how effective would talks be if Ukraine lacked adequate military muscle? One way or another, U.S. indecision brings about Ukrainian loss — and with Ukrainian loss comes innumerable losses for the ever-fragile free world.

Shania Mundy, West Chester

How disappointing to read that the Phillies have sunk to the bottom of the MLB corporate sponsorship barrel. Team CEO John Middleton wants to foist off the IBX logo patches on the players’ uniforms as some kind of benefit for the fans, but to me, as a longtime season ticket holder, it’s one more reason to rethink how to spend our household’s sports budget next season. Corporate patches on ballplayers’ uniforms are as tacky and irrelevant as the garish, giant advertising wraps on SEPTA buses. The fact that my favorite players have been reduced to product placement vehicles doesn’t do much to strengthen my enthusiasm for the team, and it certainly doesn’t persuade me to become a sponsor’s customer. What the patches will do is persuade me to stop buying 50-50 chances at the ballpark, since, after all, with all those piles of IBX cash now pouring in, the Phillies sure don’t need my puny contributions to their charities fund.

Beth Z. Palubinsky, Philadelphia

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