Letters to the Editor | May 20, 2025

So, Republican leaders are balking at billionaire Michael Rubin’s in-kind gift of helicopter rides to Gov. Josh Shapiro? Judging by their reaction to Qatar’s gift of a $400 million jet to Donald Trump, I imagine they’d feel better if Rubin simply gave the governor a helicopter.

Louis Greenstein, Pleasantville

Unless you own property in a place like Stone Harbor or Avalon, there’s no reason to visit there. These towns lack public facilities, the beaches are prohibited, and you’re meant to feel unwelcome. At least Wildwood offered travelers a fun boardwalk and free beach. When all the motels are converted to condos, which people buy and never come out of, who will support the tourist businesses? The Wildwoods will become another snobbish and unwelcoming stop in Cape May County.

Gerard Iannelli, Haddon Heights

Regarding Jesse Topper’s op-ed proposal to privatize SEPTA, I think people need to realize that privatizing public entities causes taxpayers to pay more and get less. For instance, take note of your electric bill now, as handled by private companies. Or for a more in-your-face story, look at the privatization of water and how that has impacted rates. The first thing politicians do is starve a public resource of funds. It’s then a simple matter of screaming at people that said public entities don’t work, and then telling the lie that a private company can do so much better. Beware, people! You always pay more and get less with privatization.

Joseph Obelcz, Hatfield, jjobelcz@gmail.com

. . .

State Rep. Jesse Topper decries “tired ideas” for funding SEPTA and presents us with another tired idea. Recent experience with the privatization of Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Delaware County is a stark reminder that privatizing some public services is not in the public interest. Some services should never be done by the private sector. Privatizing bus service in Philadelphia may sound like a great idea if you live far away and will never have to take the bus to work, shopping, or to doctor’s appointments. It makes as much sense as privatizing PennDot.

SEPTA has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in infrastructure for maintaining and servicing buses in the Southeastern Pennsylvania region. These are modern facilities that cost the public dearly and should not be given or leased to a private equity group for them to sell off or neglect. SEPTA has also invested a lot of money analyzing the current bus system and is ready to implement a better, more efficient bus service that will energize our economy. This effort should not be thrown away. Funding for public transportation needs to be on an equal footing with the highway system. It is in the best interest of the state to figure out a fair way to allocate those transportation dollars so that the metro centers that drive Pennsylvania’s economy can thrive.

Thomas Benson, Philadelphia

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