Letters to the Editor | Dec. 12, 2022

I am thrilled that Brittney Griner has been freed from Russia, in exchange for a notorious criminal arms dealer. Her release was in great doubt, given that our relations with that country are abysmal and due to Greiner’s homosexuality, which is anathema to Vladimir Putin. Our pleasure over her freedom may be short-lived, since the ruthless leader now has the green light to take more hostages, knowing that he is likely to receive something valuable for freeing them.

Griner committed a minor, victimless crime by bringing a prohibited substance into Russia. May no other American make that mistake, lest they be put through the living hell that she suffered.

Oren Spiegler, Peters Township

How can we sit idly by as millions of children live in poverty? Their families cannot afford to provide the basic necessities of life, including food, housing, and clothing. The Editorial Board’s call to revive the expanded child tax credit was a breath of fresh air in this stagnant impasse in Congress over the legislation. Why does Congress continue to push more families into poverty when it has the power to lift them up? In Pennsylvania alone, 121,000 children would benefit. If we truly love and value our children, we need to convince lawmakers to pass a fully refundable child tax credit before the new year. Without our collective moral push, this may not happen. Contact your legislator today. Give a loud, clear message. Invest our money where our love and hopes are: in our children.

Gerri DiLisi, Lansdale

The House on Thursday passed a bill codifying federal recognition of same-sex and interracial marriage. Having already passed the Senate, the bill now goes to President Joe Biden for his signature. The bill gives legal protection to a freedom that the public has come to accept and embrace over the past few years. Rarely does public opinion on a matter as personal and fundamental as marriage change so rapidly. Less than 20 years ago, the public opposed same-sex marriage by a 2-1 margin. Today, more than 70% of Americans approve. This is a victory for personal freedom and for the unfettered expression of love. As it says on yard signs and placards across the country, “Love is love,” and now that freedom is federally recognized and protected. Most of us can agree that this is progress and that it is indeed a good thing.

Ken Derow, Swarthmore

The pandemic pulled back the curtain on health inequities that existed for Pennsylvania’s disability community long before COVID-19 emerged, and which still exist today. The Arc of Pennsylvania, the state’s leading advocacy organization promoting the rights of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, led a yearlong pandemic research project that included interviews, surveys, and regional meetings with hundreds of stakeholders, including those with lived experiences of a disability. Participants said inequitable access to testing and vaccinations, as well as accommodations for those services such as braille or multicultural materials, compounded physical and mental health issues. They also worsened chronic health conditions and led to a disintegration in quality of life for entire families. Even as most people try to move on, the pandemic lingers for our disability community. Their unique needs should not be forgotten.

Sherri Landis, executive director, The Arc of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg

West Philadelphians should join the residents of Roxborough in questioning SEPTA’s planned bus reorganization. Combining the west end of the 42 bus line with the east end of the 40 bus would detrimentally eliminate a viable destination in Center City, as the combined route no longer goes to the central business district. This would end direct service for employees and patients to hospitals, including Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and would reduce bus traffic on Chestnut and Walnut Streets in Center City, which senior citizens and others use for short-distance rides within the central business district. It would also stop serving the commercial South Street district east of Broad Street, with its supermarkets and nightlife, and place service on Pine Street in Center City east of Broad Street, a one-lane street in a residential neighborhood. Many might prefer that SEPTA figure out a way to install elevators at the 19th, 22nd, and 37th Street stops on the West Philly trolley lines, rather than fiddle with long-established surface routes.

Scott Wilds, Philadelphia

The 22nd Amendment to the Constitution clearly states that “No person shall be elected to the office of president more than twice.” If our previous president insists he was elected in 2020, then he is ineligible to run in 2024. No wonder he wants to “terminate” the Constitution.

Maxine Schwartz, Willow Grove

In the race for speaker of the U.S. House, current Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy has shown he’ll make Faustian bargains with Donald Trump, Ohio’s Jim Jordan, or anyone else who will help him attain leadership of an increasingly fractured and intolerant Republican Party. If House Democrats think outside the box, all hope might not be lost. As there is no constitutional requirement that the speaker be a current member of the House, Democrats — with the support of a few Republicans who want to end their party’s Trump nightmare — could nominate and elect a moderate Republican who has demonstrated an allegiance to our Constitution and to preserving our fragile democracy. While such members of the Democrats’ loyal opposition may be few and far between in Congress, perhaps they might consider John Kasich, Larry Hogan, or even outgoing representative Liz Cheney. Such a Hobson’s choice might be hard to swallow for progressives, but the alternative would be far more distasteful.

Dick Newbert, Langhorne

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