Protect democracy
Your recent editorial on Donald Trump’s losses in the courts and elsewhere correctly described as historic the mounting damage caused by his corruption, incompetence, and cruelty. You also pointed out that Trump is never more dangerous than when he is losing. That said, I don’t think you went far enough by calling on readers to hold Trump and his GOP enablers accountable by voting in the midterms. What makes you think Trump will accept the November results if he is not completely successful in suppressing the vote? Here’s a more effective action plan: Impeach Trump for treason and remove him from office before he subverts the next election. Treason is specifically defined among the constitutional grounds for impeachment, and treason is what Trump has committed repeatedly. He instigated an attack on Congress on Jan. 6, 2021, and indiscriminately pardoned hundreds of the attackers. More recently he pardoned the former president of Honduras who was convicted by a jury of conspiring to smuggle hundreds of tons of cocaine into our country. These acts — giving aid comfort to the enemies of the United States — meet the definition of treason. Notably, Trump has ordered the summary execution of hundreds of noncombatants suspected of lesser crimes. If we follow the Constitution and hold the wrongdoer-in-chief accountable, we will be able to vote — and have our votes count.
Peter Pinnola, Elkins Park
No-fail consequences
The recent article in which some teachers say that there is essentially a “no fail” policy in Philadelphia public schools should incite a community discussion about the consequences of such a policy. To this reader, the policy of passing students to the next grade even though they have not shown up for class — nor completed basic classroom assignments, nor mastered even minimal requirements — is teaching those young people that they can succeed without any effort on their part. Such a policy teaches children to be irresponsible. Why take any personal responsibility to earn your achievements when your success of being promoted is preordained?
Students need to enter the school year knowing that they are responsible for attending class.
They are responsible for completing assignments.
They are responsible for achieving some mastery of the classroom curriculum.
This is the way the world works. As they grow up, they need to realize that the world does not give them a free pass. They need to learn to be responsible individuals.
William Cooney Jr., Philadelphia
Mr. Trillionaire
Now that Elon Musk has become the world’s first trillionaire, let’s help him figure out what to do with this unfathomable amount of money. Start with paying taxes. Roughly 20% of his worth would certainly help our Social Security fund. Then there is public education, the arts, healthcare, scientific studies — and all the other things that he and DOGE eviscerated. I don’t think he’d even miss a few billion here or there.
Barbara Gold, Philadelphia
…
A year after Elon Musk all but wiped out U.S. aid to the poorest people on the planet, he has become the world’s first trillionaire.
Because the U.S. Agency for International Development, where I served for 14 years, was eliminated, hundreds of thousands of people have died — including more than 500,000 children. The Lancet concluded that by 2030, aid cuts could lead to 9.4 million additional deaths; 2.5 million are projected deaths of young children. Ebola is one of many deadly diseases on the rise in USAID’s absence; others include bird flu, mpox, HIV/AIDS, diphtheria, polio, and measles. The economic fallout from the ruinous war with Iran is having catastrophic effects on the world’s most vulnerable people overseas, as well as on all of us here at home who are facing the highest inflation rates in years.
Meanwhile, Musk’s graduation from unaccountable billionaire to unaccountable trillionaire is a galling example of the unprecedented amounts of wealth and power we’re currently witnessing elites accrue.
We can change this reality only by fixing our broken politics: organizing, demanding more from our elected officials, and electing new leadership willing to actually fight corruption and the tech oligarchs threatening our air, water, privacy, and jobs. Our communities, livelihoods, and values are worth the fight.
Maura O’Brien, Ardmore
Keep fields natural
It’s disheartening to see that Major League Baseball plans to install artificial turf at Richie Ashburn Fields in FDR Park, replacing natural grass that was beautifully maintained by the Phillies.
That’s three more acres of turf that potentially exposes kids to cancer-causing forever chemicals, in addition to the 30 acres that the city and the Fairmount Park Conservancy plan to install in the FDR Meadows.
All artificial turf contains PFAS, the “forever chemicals” linked to cancer, liver damage, thyroid disease, decreased fertility, and more. The city itself has sued PFAS makers over these risks, and The Inquirer has reported on them several time in recent years — including a gut-wrenching article on the Phillies players who died of brain cancer after exposure at the Vet.
Aside from the PFAS, artificial turf has other serious liabilities — it becomes dangerously hot, increases injuries, sheds microplastics, and contributes to climate change, especially when it replaces grass fields, meadows, or woodlands.
There’s no excuse for endangering our kids’ health and future. They deserve safe, healthy fields, and that means grass, not plastic.
Rich Garella, Philadelphia
Sports tix surcharge
Why not try to add a “schoolkids surcharge” of $1 (yes, just $1) to all Philly sporting events tickets. Let the “team spirit” of the Phillies, Eagles, Flyers, Union, and any other willing teams spread to our very needy school kids and their respective classroom and building needs.
That way all the fans can earn an easy A+.
Lynn Taylor Morawski, Abington
Fund solar
Regarding your recent editorial on the budgeting process in City Hall and Harrisburg, while an on-time budget is important, a budget is also a chance to make Pennsylvania a better place to live. In an effort to help clean up our air, I advocated for a state budget that includes more renewable energy at PennEnvironment’s recent clean energy Lobby Day.
Air quality here in Philly, and in many metropolitan areas in Pennsylvania, is so bad that it’s often unhealthy to breathe. Each day, it becomes more clear that we must move toward clean, renewable energy sources that don’t pollute our air and threaten our health. While Harrisburg works to meet this year’s June 30 budget deadline, I urged our legislators to fund the Solar for Schools program to ensure that clean, solar energy is what powers our schools.
I believe that Pennsylvania communities deserve a healthy and livable future, and together we can make that happen.
Kaovya Vel, Pennsylvania
Moderate moniker
The Inquirer’s fine writing and reporting notwithstanding, I do wish your paper and other media outlets would correctly refer to Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick as “so-called moderate” rather than anointing him as such without the qualifier, as in a recent article. Yes, he sometimes works with Democrats to vote against egregious GOP legislation, but that doesn’t make him a moderate. The late Sen. Edward Kennedy sometimes worked with and voted with arch-conservative Sen. Orrin Hatch, but no one called Sen. Kennedy a moderate. Some statistics show that Fitzpatrick is not in lockstep with the MAGA GOP majority, while a drill-down of his voting record shows that on substantive issues he consistently votes with his party.
Therefore, the accurate way for the Fourth Estate to describe Fitzpatrick is “Republican Brian Fitzpatrick” or “U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick.” Leave it to the voters to determine if he’s a moderate or not.
Scott Chelemer, Mount Laurel
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.
