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Letters to the Editor | Oct. 8, 2026

Inquirer readers on rising measles cases in Pennsylvania and President Trump’s promise of $5,000 payments to voters.

Dale Weiser, of the Chester County Health Department, holds a vial of the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine at the department’s office in West Chester, Pa. last month.
Dale Weiser, of the Chester County Health Department, holds a vial of the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine at the department’s office in West Chester, Pa. last month.Read moreKriston Jae Bethel / For the Inquirer
    by Letters to the Editor, For The Inquirer
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Life imitating art?

I would recommend people read the Sinclair Lewis novel, It Can’t Happen Here. While set in the 1930s — and while depicting more egregious government overreach than today — the similarities are striking. A militia similar to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to detain those opposed to the fictional president, and a promise of a $5,000 payment to all citizens if the fictional president was elected (which he was), are among the parallels to Trumpism today. Of course, in the novel, the public never saw the $5,000 payments, and we can be almost certain that if Republicans manage to maintain control of the House and Senate in November, it will be a cold day in hell before anyone receives a $5,000 check.

Joe Riches, Coatesville

Prevention saves lives

Pennsylvania’s rise in measles cases, including hospitalizations and deaths, should be more than a statistic. It must be a wake-up call.

Measles is highly contagious yet preventable. When vaccination rates drop, the consequences extend far beyond individual choice. Infants too young for immunization and individuals with compromised health are left at severe risk.

We must be able to discuss public health without devolving into political arguments. Parents deserve accurate information, communities deserve transparent guidance, and our most vulnerable neighbors deserve our protection.

Faith and civic responsibility both teach us that caring for our community is a shared duty. We may hold different beliefs, but protecting those who cannot protect themselves transcends background or ideology.

Pennsylvania should not wait for health crises to escalate further before taking prevention seriously. Caring for our neighbors starts with the choices we make today.

Farid Ahmad, Easton

Appeal of socialism

If the Trump administration, considering the extreme corruption, malfeasance, and cruelty of its policies and the cadre of crackpots and greedy billionaires that now seem to run it for their own benefit, represents the best corporate capitalism has to offer, then it’s really no wonder democratic socialism has become more appealing to many Americans. Under Donald Trump, the federal government exists mainly for the purpose of doing favors for whoever is wealthy or powerful enough to pay for them. The idea that corporations, billionaires, and tech bros are suddenly going to start to police themselves is laughable. The people look to the government to address the unregulated excesses of the capitalist system, because in a democratic society, government is the voice of the people.

Patrick J. Ream, Millville

Join the conversation: Send letters to letters@inquirer.com. Limit length to 150 words and include home address and day and evening phone number. Letters run in The Inquirer six days a week on the editorial pages and online.

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    Letters to the Editor, For The Inquirer