Letters to the Editor | Nov. 30, 2025
Inquirer readers on earned income tax credits and the defiance of illegal orders by service members.
No plausible deniability
The American military has always been required not to comply with illegal orders; however, Donald Trump and his lackeys have claimed that the Democrats’ effort to remind our service members of that fact is, to quote Trump, “seditious behavior punishable by death.” Trump, either by ignorance or intent, misstated the Democrats’ statement by leaving out the word “illegal.”
The Nazi murderers, during their trials at the end of World War II, justified their actions by saying “they were following the orders given to them by their superiors.” The tribunals judging these men found them guilty of the most heinous war crimes, and they were either imprisoned or executed.
Our troops have a duty to disregard any illegal orders — no matter who gives them.
Paul S. Bunkin, Turnersville
. . .
Six Democratic members of Congress with military and/or intelligence backgrounds recently advised current members of the military that they did not have to obey illegal orders. For this, these six have been roundly criticized by many and might face federal investigations.
About 80 years ago, at the end of World War II, some members of the German military and other Germans were tried in Nuremberg for war crimes. Their defense? “I was only following orders.” The Nuremberg judges rightly declared that this was not a valid defense. Illegal orders are illegal and should not be followed.
What was true for Germans then is true for Americans now: Illegal orders are illegal and should not be followed.
Joan Chinitz, Philadelphia
Welcomed tax credit
In a rare moment of bipartisan state legislative reform, Pennsylvania now has its first earned income tax credit for lower-income workers. The measure complements the 50-year-old (and highly successful) federal Earned Income Tax Credit. It has the progressive hallmark of being refundable, allowing refunds where the credit exceeds state income tax liability. And although it is set at a refund level of 10% of the federal EITC benefit — which is far too low — it has the potential for future increases.
The state’s new credit should shine a light on the city of Philadelphia’s wage tax refund law, which is beset by an embarrassingly low 4½% take-up rate for those eligible; that figure is the result of a number of arbitrary eligibility and processing barriers that demand councilmanic reforms. An excellent start toward this end was made through a bill introduced this year by Councilmembers Kendra Brooks and Nicolas O’Rourke. These reforms — which will ensure continued upward mobility for lower-income workers and help keep our local tax system from undermining the financial security of its working-class residents — now await the full support of Mayor Cherelle L. Parker, Council President Kenyatta Johnson, and fellow members of City Council.
Jonathan Stein, Philadelphia
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