In this week’s letters to the editor, residents talk about NFL players kneeling (again), pardons and gory Halloween decorations.
The following two letters are in response to Melissa Mitman’s editorial, “NFL players are not protesting the American flag,” published on Oct. 18:
Out of touch on protests
The recent editorial by Melissa Mitman on the NFL player protests is a classic example of just how out of touch media talking and writing heads have become. According to the editorial, the players are protesting inequality and injustice while being committed to social justice. This buzz-phrase is short-hand for a socialist-style redistribution of wealth to create “justice,” “fairness” and “democracy.” And we all know what comes next: this is all to be administered by an all-powerful central government.
We have seen that future and it did not work. Here in America and around the world, ever-larger numbers of people are abandoning these naïvely idealistic attempts to create earthly paradises.
The election of Trump is but one indicator of this, as is the reaction against the anthem protesters.
Melissa, you, the anthem kneelers and other erstwhile social justice warriors are merely ideological ghosts left over from the 19th century and the days of Karl Marx. In short, you all belong now to yesteryear. Like it or not, humanity is moving on, away from the days of building heaven on earth. That era is over and done. Do try to keep up.
George Tomezsko
Fox Chase
America needs to wake up
I’ve read your editorial in the Northeast Times and I wanted to applaud you for enlightening those who either outright deny the obvious, or simply are unclear and do not understand.
I am African-American and also a veteran of our military and I understood from the start what Colin Kaepernick was trying to accomplish. For this man not to have a job is absolutely ludicrous. Some of these athletes do much worse i.e. substance abuse, having illegal weapons on them, and all were still allowed to earn a healthy income from the league.
A lot of people are trying to tell this man how to protest, as if there is a “correct” way. But we are chastising him for his right to employ the First Amendment.
I stood by Kaepernick since September of last year and will continue to do so; not only for him but other players who also stand against injustice.
In conclusion, and as much as I love football, personally, I think the players should have boycotted this season. That’s how serious I believe these past (and current) incidences are. America needs to wake up.
Gerald Stokes
Frankford
Learn more about pardons
Many members of our community who have had contact with the criminal justice system have worked hard to change their lives and to pay their debts to society. These individuals may be eligible and could benefit from consideration for a pardon.
On Oct. 26, we will partner with the lieutenant governor’s office and host a Pathway to Pardons Program to explore this process. This program will be held at the Huntingdon Valley Library Community Room, 625 Red Lion Road in Huntingdon Valley. The program will begin at 6 p.m.
If you have any questions about obtaining a pardon, or wish to learn more, please feel free to attend our program.
This program is free and is open to the public and is designed to inform constituents of the pardons process. There will be time designated for questions. Your privacy will be respected at this event.
If you would like to learn more about the pardons process, please refer to: pro-a.org/pennsylvania-pathways-to-pardons-process
Sen. Stewart J. Greenleaf, 12th Senatorial District
Rep. Thomas P. Murt, 152nd Legislative District
Please stop with the gore
As a mother of young children, I have been disturbed by what I have been seeing as I take my children on a walk. I am forced to zigzag back and forth between the sidewalks to keep my 3-year-old from seeing the life-like “decorations” up close. These include human body parts strewn across lawns, as well as heads with meat hooks through them and grotesque bodies dangling from the trees or houses.
Has the media of video games and movies so desensitized us to the point that we have no regard for the human life and body? We ought to be appalled and disgusted at such a display. It is my hope that if you read this you will help me in preserving the innocence of my children and all of the other children who walk past.
Think about how you are impacting them before you determine to make your yard a virtual nightmare.
Mollie McMenamin
Burholme
