Letters to the Editor | Feb. 3, 2025

I agree with the op-ed by former Philadelphia mayor and Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell. He supports the development of a new shared sports complex in South Philly. This collaboration between the Sixers and Comcast is great for the city. His endorsement should carry much weight, as he knows Philly and its people. His support for this new project should give the people of Philadelphia more comfort in knowing the city is now on the right track. As Rendell also points out, the Market East area has great potential and should be another project for the city. I believe the large former department store buildings in that area, such as the Wanamaker Building, should be included in the remake and not fall victim to a bulldozer.

Harvey Fountaine, West Chester

Former Philly mayor and Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell’s article extolling Comcast’s virtues, and his contention that it alone could be the savior of Market East, was not surprising. As memory serves, the Rendell mayoral administration played no small part in allowing what was then a fledgling cable company to monopolize cable TV services in Philly. Its takeover was punctuated with high rates, onerous fees, poor service, and limited or restricted content.

Rendell chooses to ignore the role Comcast played in bamboozling the current administration, most of City Council, and (worst of all) Philadelphians with the 76ers’ Center City arena ruse. Now that Comcast is a media behemoth, Rendell refers to their founders as “visionaries,” but robber barons may be more appropriate. City officials entering into an agreement with Comcast to redevelop Market East will once again show our elected officials going to a gunfight armed with a knife. To contradict Rendell, Comcast’s overwhelming interest is not the future of Market East or, for that matter, the city; it remains laser-focused on its bottom line. The Parker administration and City Council would do well to let the collective egg on their faces dry some more before racing willy-nilly to the next big dupe.

J. Savage, Philadelphia

Go ahead, Philadelphia, select a nice comfortable spot for the parade on Broad Street. Select a nice sunny location from where you can best see the floats — an Eagles flag in one hand and a nice brew in the other. You won’t even feel the February frost. Your Eagles — who, in their current incarnation, are the finest squad to ever put on Philadelphia’s winged helmets — are a powerhouse team from top to bottom. A blistering rushing attack, combined with an aerial showcase that is almost impossible to cover, and an offensive line that wears down opponents more and more as the game goes on.

Vic Fangio’s defense is perhaps what has been most impressive this season. As far as I can remember, this is the first time two rookie defensive backs have won an NFL conference championship, let alone the Super Bowl. Both Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell are finalists for the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year award — the first time that has happened in franchise history. If you are fortunate to score early against this defense, you probably won’t do it again.

The only thing standing in their way is the grand architect of the Eagles’ resurgence, Andy Reid, who departed from Philly only to build his own dynasty in Kansas City, Mo. Standing behind him on the sidelines will be Carson Wentz, a former first-round pick for the Eagles, and whose selection reenergized the franchise before the era of Jalen Hurts. Both quarterbacks were chosen with feedback from Reid. Yep. Find that place on Broad Street — you’ll be using it for years to come.

Michael Thomas Leibrandt, Abington Township

The Trump administration wants to instill fear in those people it plans to deport. However, if Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents enter a worksite, a place of worship, or a school, those who witness the event are also badly shaken. Imagine for a moment a raid at a school. Class is suddenly disrupted as classmates are led away. Are the teachers and students expected to go back to solving math problems? The children would be traumatized. Counseling would be needed to heal the fright of that encounter. What emotional, as well as economic, price will society pay for these inhumane raids?

Catherine Poynton, Havertown

At a news conference Thursday, President Donald Trump, without any evidence, blamed former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, Democrats, and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts for the plane crash in Washington. He also got ahead of the investigation, blaming the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and making its job more difficult. When pushed by reporters, Trump made the absurd claim that what he knows about the reasons for the crash is based on “common sense.” Really? How gullible must we be to accept this?

Once again, Trump is using a tragedy for purely selfish political purposes. This is not presidential. This is shameful, unprofessional, inconsiderate, and disgusting. When will people, including Republican leaders, denounce the president’s unhinged behavior? What worries me is that this pattern of blaming is orchestrated and will continue. This narrative is part of a larger rhetorical strategy to create chaos and confusion — something that will make it harder for those who resist and who want to prevent the implementation of dangerous Trump policies.

Richard Cherwitz, Austin, Texas

It is sickening to watch the entirely foreseeable politics of cruelty engulfing our country day by terrifying day. The new oligarchy in Washington prioritizes withholding food from the hungry, healing from the sick, learning from the uneducated, kindness from the stranger, safety from the oppressed, mercy from the poor, and justice from the innocent. Americans fought for generations to ameliorate discrimination against women, people of color, individuals of varying faiths, refugees from other countries, and those with physical differences, only now to see a government dedicated to reviving vicious discrimination as the law of the land.

Nearly a hundred years ago, the world’s worst dictator blamed Jews for everything bad that happened to his country. Today, America’s bigot-in-chief spouts that the death of 67 people, including three of our soldiers, is the “fault” of nonwhite Americans. What are the principles that drive this ugly creature in the White House and his sycophants? Vindictiveness, misogyny, greed, racism, superstition, and hate. It is unspeakable. What are we to do?

Francis W. Hoeber, Philadelphia

The Great Emancipator is credited with saying, “You can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” Donald Trump has succeeded in fooling some of the people — nearly half the country — all of the time and is attempting to fool all of the people all of the time. His continuous lies have succeeded in appearing to be the truth for Fox News and his faithful followers.

His misguided intention to buy Greenland is simply foolish. The shred of value in this idea is to stop Russia’s goal for western expansion. He would be a true leader if he fully supported Ukraine and NATO and stopped Vladimir Putin’s early intentions to restore the old Soviet empire. I have no faith he possesses this ability. He won the election. He declared retribution on his political enemies and proposed hugely incompetent players to run the various departments in government, and he made good on his promise to pardon insurrectionists who attacked the U.S. Capitol. It’s going to be an interesting and frightening four years. I hope and pray our democracy survives this con man’s movement.

John J. Di Benedetto, Jenkintown

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