Letters to the Editor | Jan. 18, 2023

It’s easy for our middle-of-the-road leaders to sanctify Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. after he was dead. They so easily talk about his “I Have a Dream” speech. But the immediate reaction of the head of the FBI’s domestic intelligence was, “We must mark him now … as the most dangerous Negro in the future of this nation.” Even when King’s stated goals were moderate, he was hated by the establishment and wire-tapped by thenU.S. Attorney General Robert Kennedy. Later, MLK’s vision went far beyond the goal of racial equality. Of capitalism, he said it “continues to thrive on the exploitation of the poor, both black and white.” He also said that “a nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.” If he were alive today, King would be marching with the continuation of his Poor People’s Campaign against poverty, racism, militarism, climate change — and capitalism.

John W. Braxton, Philadelphia

When will our congressional representatives figure out there is a systemic problem with the retention of classified documents by former public servants? First it was at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, now it’s at President Joe Biden’s office and home. If they looked, I suspect the FBI could even find some classified material in the possession of other former presidents or their associates. Instead of pointing fingers and questioning the motives of their political adversaries, I would like to think that voters of all parties want their elected officials to work across the aisle to address these potential risks to our national security. Rather than endless, clearly partisan investigative committees, why not constitute a bipartisan group of legislators to develop an improved set of institutional procedures and protocols for safeguarding all confidential documents when elected officials leave office? It seems like the professional and patriotic thing to do, and it would be a much better use of legislators’ time and taxpayer dollars.

Lee Cassanelli, Havertown

The heightened news coverage of the classified documents found in President Joe Biden’s office and home is taking away from so much else. Until the full truth is revealed by the two special counsel probes, it’s all political fodder to be ignored. An educated guess is that Biden had no knowledge of the few classified documents mixed-up with dated vice presidential papers. In Donald Trump’s case, he most likely knew some were taken, given his ego, his lies, and the number (roughly 300) of documents found. The investigations should focus on the staff responsible for moving these documents and the role of the National Archives and Records Administration. It seems NARA knew about Trump’s cache, but not Biden’s missing papers. If its tracking system is sometimes broken, then there are other missed episodes. If my online wine and coffee companies know what, when, and how much I order, then NARA had better know the same for top secret documents.

L. David Wise, Philadelphia

It is gratifying that the College of Physicians of Philadelphia has finally extended an apology to the victims of Albert Kligman’s experimentation on inmates at Holmesburg Prison. It brings to mind the hepatitis virus studies performed by pediatrician Saul Krugman on children with developmental disabilities at Staten Island’s Willowbrook State School from 1955 to 1970. Due to overcrowding at Willowbrook, hepatitis was rampant, and it was believed that studying the natural history of the disease and developing a vaccine would save lives. Children were recruited to his studies by offering housing in clean, well-staffed wards (unlike the abysmal conditions available to the general population at Willowbrook), and were intentionally infected with hepatitis. Krugman has been lauded for his discovery of the hepatitis viruses and his creation of the hepatitis B vaccine. Like those of Kligman, these achievements were due to the exploitation of the desperate and disadvantaged. While apparently acceptable at the time, human experimentation must never again be tolerated.

Debra Weissbach, MD, Philadelphia

The sheer number of murders highlighted in the Jan. 11 front-page article and chart, detailing annual homicides from 1960 to the present day, is horrific. The rapid increase over the past few years makes it clear that things are getting worse. Even more disturbing is the rate of murders over the entire time period, as Philadelphia’s current population of 1.5 million is less than the more than two million Philadelphians in 1960.

Fred Walker, Wyndmoor

If around 400 people are dying of COVID-19 each day, and nine out of 10 are people 65 years or older, then what about people who are disabled and/or immunocompromised? And what about folks on fixed incomes, or lower income people who have no access to good and affordable health care? So basically, if you are younger and healthy, plus earning a decent income, those people can begin to have a little optimism about the pandemic. The rest of us can … what? Just die off? Are we truly existing in a “survival of the fittest” society now? “The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members,” a quote believed to be by Mahatma Gandhi, or possibly by Pearl S. Buck. A great number of very wise people have spoken these words. Why don’t we listen, or care?

Beth Greenspan, Ardmore

There is a simple solution to the problem featured in The Inquirer regarding a class-action lawsuit over “courtesy tows.” Private towing firms that are contracted by the city should be required to drop off towed vehicles in a legal parking lot or space, and to quickly report the location — perhaps with a photo — to the Philadelphia Parking Authority. The PPA could post the locations on its website, and hire a small number of employees to drive around to verify a random sample of locations, thus freeing up police to focus on crime instead of searching for “stolen” vehicles. Any tow truck operator who regularly fails to comply with these rules would lose their city contract. Contracts funded by taxpayers should be awarded based on performance, not clout.

Jim Lundberg, Quakertown

The city of Evanston, Ill., is in the news again. Why? Because once again the Chicago suburb of 78,000 has decided to tackle the matter of “reparations,” a payment to African Americans over slavery and demeaning government policies. The process is detailed in a Washington Post piece, citing names of the most ardent advocates for reparations. Some live in California and other states as well. One thing left out, as I’ve discovered from my research, is the process of restitution and compensation used by post-World War II Germany to repair relations with their Jewish population, which has also been successful.

Gordon Bennett, Coatesville

Since 2016, the Republican Party has tried to brand itself as the party that opposes election fraud, whether it exists or not. I expect Republicans to be all over George Santos, the man who claimed to be Jewish, a graduate of Baruch College, and a successful financier to win the MAGA vote in New York. Every part of his story appears to have been fraudulent. The New York GOP has repudiated him. Where is the rest of the antifraud crowd?

Kenneth Gorelick, Wayne

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