Letters to the Editor | May 12, 2023

A jury has found former president and current presidential contender Donald Trump guilty of sexual abuse and defamation. The Republican Party is mostly silent. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has allegedly accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in free vacations, tuition, and gifts benefiting his family. The Republicans won’t bring up discipline for fear of losing a rightwing seat on the Supreme Court. U.S. Rep. George Santos is facing a 13-count federal indictment. He is still voting and governing. If the GOP, which is older and less diverse than the voting public, was a sports franchise, the people in charge would recognize a need to rebuild. In the meantime, the criminality and ethics shortcomings keep coming, and the party’s answer is to ignore the transgressions and act as though it’s OK. It’s not.

Elliott Miller, Bala Cynwyd

Voters in both the city and suburbs should remember that part of the purpose of public schools is to educate students about the world around them. This world includes many cultures, values, and perspectives that are often difficult for parents to grasp. Questions are often difficult to answer. Pretending that differences are evil doesn’t work. Cultural diversity and change are a fact of life that cannot be banned, burned, or denied. Those who fear teaching children about the real world and are pushing an alternative view filled with religious dogma have no place in a public school setting. There are many religious options for homeschooling. Ostracizing the LGBTQ community now is no different than what was done to African American children after schools were integrated.

Mara Obelcz, Hatfield

Both President Joe Biden and the World Health Organization have allowed their COVID-19 public health emergency declarations to expire. But make no mistake, the pesky, and still potentially lethal, pathogen is here to stay. The number of infections, hospitalizations, and deaths is mercifully way down from its pandemic heights, but not gone. In the United States alone, the virus is still claiming the lives of thousands of Americans per year, almost all among those who have chosen not to be vaccinated against the virus. As the WHO has said: “The worst thing any country could do now is to use this news as a reason to let down its guard, to dismantle the systems it has built, or to send the message to its people that COVID-19 is nothing to worry about.” COVID is not the crisis it once was, but neither should we forget it still exists. The time is now to make sure we are better prepared for the next health epidemic.

Ken Derow, Swarthmore

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.