Letters to the Editor | Sept. 18, 2022

Philadelphia recently commemorated Labor Day and in the midst of parades, cookouts, and trips to the Shore, the weekend was marked with violence that continues week after week.

Parades and community gatherings that once posed little risk are now potential targets of the dramatic increase in violent crime we have witnessed in recent years. The problem has reached crisis levels. Something must be done to combat violent crime in our city.

We have an opportunity right now to address the plague of violent crime through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that President Biden signed into law. Data show that cities with lower crime rates, typically have lower poverty rates. We cannot bring people out of poverty without job creation.

The key is to ensure that the new jobs go to local residents. Community benefit agreements require that construction contractors working on these new infrastructure projects hire from local communities, as well as provide a living wage and benefits.

It is time to work with labor unions that are experienced in these labor agreements and can train local workers to have the construction skills needed to build new infrastructure.

Ryan N. Boyer, business manager, Laborers’ District Council of Philadelphia and Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council

Did you know that you cannot just walk up to a ticket counter at the Philadelphia Zoo and buy a ticket? All tickets must now be reserved online in advance.

When I took my grandson recently, he wanted to feed the giraffes, which cost $4. Given the zoo’s tremendous overhead, the price did not seem exorbitant. But, to obtain the privilege, I had to scan a smartphone over an icon. So what’s with the requirement for computers and smartphones?

The very people that desperately need a day at the zoo are the ones who don’t have the technological resources and/or the expertise to obtain a ticket.

I get that these are scary times, in Philadelphia particularly.

But guess what? At the Barnes Foundation — you know, where they have all those Renoirs and Cezannes instead of snakes and polar bears — Peco sponsors a Family Fun Day every month. And those Renoirs and Cezannes are open to the public for nothing. Just walk right in. And the Art Museum has a free family program several times a week. So what’s with the place with the lions and tigers?

A ticket and parking at the zoo cost $52 for one adult nonmember. If you already own a computer and a smartphone, I guess you can afford that, no problem. But, gosh, that winds up being an awful lot for a family of four. People, it’s a zoo. It’s not the Union League. It’s our zoo. It’s for all our families.

Marshall Portnoy, Penn Valley

Again? Sadly, this is barely news. The causes are not obscure, and the solution is not political. The solution does not require more laws. We have enough laws. Murder is against the law. Full stop. Society is being ravaged by moral decay. The Ten Commandments are a gift from the Jewish people to humanity — a near-universal moral consensus. Must we banish them from society? They do not promote religion, they promote human flourishing. And the Golden Rule: “Do to others as you would have others do to you.”

Where should moral education come from? Ideally, from the family and the churches. Isn’t it time to start promoting the good instead of glorifying the bad? Could we at least ask the question of how a well-meaning government enables bad behavior?

Peter Dodson, Woodstown

The Bicentennial Bell was given to the U.S. by the people of from Great Britain in 1976 in honor of the 200th anniversary of American Indepen- dence. The bell, which was dedicated on July 6, 1976, by her majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, was given to show the joint heritage of the British and American peoples. On that day, Queen Elizabeth II shared her gratitude to America’s founders for teaching the British “to respect the right of others to govern themselves in their own way.”

The Independence Historical Trust, on behalf of the National Park Service, is working toward the reinstallation of the Bicentennial Bell in an open-air pub- lic park at Third and Walnut in time for the nation’s 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 2026.

We thank the Landenberger Foundation for the lead gift to ensure the addition of this educational opportunity within the remarkable Independence National Historical Park.

Jonathan Burton, Wynnewood

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