Letters to the Editor | Jan. 29, 2023

As reported in The Inquirer, the city suspended an anti-violence grant to a youth boxing program founded by a police captain. One can identify this as an update to Helen Ubiñas’ 2020 column “Long on words, short on action,” describing Philly’s Office of Violence Prevention. It confirms that throwing taxpayer money at a problem when there is no accountability and quantification of results will always have the same outcome. It sure makes the politicians feel good about getting reelected because it “shows they are doing something” to supposedly improve lives. And here we still are, with record-high murders and carjackings. Public safety director Erica Atwood’s quote, “This is not something that we could have predicted” is a laughable statement. It is precisely what is to be expected when no one is monitoring these programs. Professor Kenneth Kriz hit the nail on the head: “We don’t know if it’s fraud or waste. We don’t know whether the program is actually successful.” My biggest frustration is this is likely only the tip of the wasteful iceberg and it will continue unchecked.

Brad Tiffany, Phoenixville

Every few months, SEPTA seems to tout some new improvement to the system, like last week’s story about the addition of countdown clocks to the subways. But any frequent SEPTA rider, as I am, will tell you that one of the biggest problems on the subways and trolleys is smoking. I encounter tobacco and marijuana smokers almost every time I use SEPTA, both on the platforms and inside the train and trolley cars. I occasionally arrive home or to work with my clothing smelling like cigarette or marijuana smoke. I love public transportation, and I want SEPTA to get better, but when the smoking in the system seems to be increasing, these new “improvements” just totally miss the point of what SEPTA’s real problems are.

Dustin Webster, Philadelphia

At this point, after finding classified documents in the homes of Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and Mike Pence, I think it’s time to investigate the entire system. They’re running a pretty loose operation with what are our nation’s secrets. All my life I’ve heard how strict protocols are to view classified documents. No cell phones, no pen and paper, no copying or recording information of any kind. You read the document and memorize the information you’re interested in. How were these officials not only allowed to view the documents but bring them to their homes by the box-full? This is a sloppy, roughshod operation that needs investigation and overhaul. The residences of all living high-ranking former officials — presidents, vice presidents, secretaries of state — should be searched immediately for any more of our nation’s secrets just kicking around their homes. Anyone other than a top politician would be frog-marched straight to a federal prison for handling our most sensitive information the way these guys did.

Fran Steffler, Philadelphia, fsteffler@aol.com

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