Letters to the Editor
The Delaware River Port Authority has long been a joke, with a board of directors stuffed with empty suits. The story "DRPA divided on delay in hikes" (Tuesday) quoted vice chairman Jeff Nash stating, "I thinks there's a strong possibility
DRPA in need of financial advice
The Delaware River Port Authority has long been a joke, with a board of directors stuffed with empty suits. The story "DRPA divided on delay in hikes" (Tuesday) quoted vice chairman Jeff Nash stating, "I thinks there's a strong possibility that we can hold tolls and fares through 2011. But it would be premature to set that in stone. We have to hear from our financial advisers." The DRPA has financial advisers? How many millions were they paid to come up with all the wonderful ideas the DRPA wasted our tolls on in the past? One can only wonder if any one of them advised spending money repairing bridges. Future articles should be in the entertainment section.
Anne McAdams
Haddon Heights
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Why tea parties, GOP on the rise
The editorial "Loose lips" (Tuesday) and the column "A retirement deficit that's only deepening" (Tuesday) illustrate why liberals have driven many Americans to Republicans and the tea parties.
Gov. Christie is becoming more popular in spite of his outspoken rhetoric because he is demanding that New Jersey's government live within its means.
And op-ed writer Karen Friedman invents a new crisis that we are supposed to weep over: the retirement-income deficit. She wants taxpayers to guarantee everyone a comfortable retirement, without explaining how a demographically declining younger, working generation is supposed to pay for a growing-older generation.
A 9-year-old boy, noticing me reading The Inquirer on my iPhone, shouted with joy, "I'm getting an iPhone for Christmas!" I said, "Your parents must think you have been a very good boy." He retorted, "No, my parents are paying for only half of it. I had to rake a lot of leaves to pay for the other half."
The commonsense wisdom of this boy's parents is why Christie is right and Friedman is wrong.
Rosamond Kay
Philadelphia
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Pay attention to Gov. Christie
In your idolization of "soft-spoken" former Gov. Jon Corzine ("Loose lips," Tuesday), you could have added that he was an ineffectual, deficit-increasing governor who abdicated leadership to the unions. There isn't one thing in your criticism of Gov. Christie that has any foundation. You suggest he might be "more thoughtful before speaking." Does that imply that some people's feelings have been hurt? Political leaders have too often had the nasty habit of kicking problems down the road. Gov. Christie was elected because of that attitude and is now implementing his program. Other states should pay attention.
Stephen Hanover
Parker Ford
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The struggling middle class
According to David Stockman, who was budget director under President Ronald Reagan, even as America's working class struggles with hard times, the richest among us here in America are doing amazingly well, blessed by favorable income-tax laws. Some will observe that these same folks have used their great wealth to game our political system by using their unlimited political contributions to drown out the voice of We The People. The data clearly support Stockman.
Over the past 30 years, blessed by favorable tax laws, the sheer wealth of America's billionaire class has grown from $4 trillion to an astonishing $40 trillion, according to Stockman. In spite of this data, our politicians (who depend on these same deep-pocket folks for campaign funds) see no reason to increase tax rates on fat cats even as working- and middle-class families struggle.
Given this data, how can anyone oppose taxing America's super-rich, unless they've already sold out to the highest bidder?
Glenn A. McCurdy
Elkins Park
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Safety will take a backseat
Great, not only will my wife and kids get "gate-raped" by Transportation Security Administration personnel when we fly to Disney World; now we will be at the mercy of a disgruntled and unionized workforce ("How to make flying harder," Tuesday).
Union bosses will quickly spread out to more than 450 domestic airports across America to organize and agitate 50,000 TSA employees. Fat union salaries will replace fair market wages. Bad employees will never be fired. The mediocre TSA will only get worse.
Most money will be spent on the pay and benefits of TSA union members, with little remaining for new technologies and better security.
As we languish in long lines at the airport, TSA union bosses will grieve work rules and the stressful working conditions inherent to airport security.
Our safety will take a backseat to the rights of a unionized TSA.
Ray Farrell
West Chester