Calling Doctor Shapiro
First, Fetterman’s family doctor told the public he was capable to run for office. He then babbled his way through a debate. Since then he had a “lightheaded spell” and now he is hospitalized for depression. A “depression” that he was treated for previously the was conveniently withheld from the voting public. Now Dr. Shapiro steps to the plate and assures the public that Fetterman will come back stronger than ever. This makes me feel so much more confident in Fetterman’s health situation. It’s more like a Democrat protecting a Democrat. I feel like the situation has become “taxation without representation.”
Richard Donofry
East Torresdale
Nowhere is safe
The year 2023 has just started, and not a day has passed that another shooting hasn’t taken place. It is hard to realize that to drive a car takes passing a driving test and yearly inspections. Yet, it takes next to nothing to have a gun.
Again and again, our legislators give the impression they couldn’t care less. Certainly, something needs to be done. It has set fear in people, wondering if they are safe in going to a store, attending a college or going out the door. The whole of this problem is a disgrace.
Marie Patton
Fox Chase
Random thoughts
Register of Wills hires Vanessa Brown who resigned as a state representative after being convicted on all seven counts including bribery and a conflict of interest charge.
Mayor Kenney held a news conference when he said in his last year in office they would address gun violence. Must be campaigning for another higher position. He and his posse did nothing for 7 years except make things worse.
Kenney was going to use the sugar tax to make some upgrades in certain areas. Gee the sugar tax.
The gentleman was right Fetterman won. The sad part is Oz and him were the only candidates out of 13 million people.
They are going to assign more officers to troubled areas. Brilliant strategy. When Rizzo did this it was racism. Assign my best defender to their best player.
They are having trouble recruiting police candidates. Shocking.
Anthony Dello Russo
Fox Chase
Pushing back
I would like to respond to Walter Blowitski’s recent opinion piece. First, I thank him for his service to our country by defending against the fascist ambitions of Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany. My grandfather and great uncle of Polish and Ukrainian descent also fought in the same war, and I am ever grateful they did, because they made it possible for all of us to inherit the America we have today. Lastly, congratulations in advance of Mr. Blowitski’s becoming a centenarian!
However, with all due respect, I need to push back on some of what Mr. Blowitski has written. There was certainly a distinct difference in policy responses to The Great Depression by Hoover and FDR, so it would be a mischaracterization to write that FDR implemented many of Hoover’s ideas. Yes, NAFTA was signed by Clinton, and also ratified at the time by more Republicans in Congress than Democrats. Neoliberalism, the philosophy behind NAFTA, has its supporters on both sides of the aisle. The U.S. did not become “energy independent” under Trump. Although energy independence has been a stated goal of Obama, Trump and Biden, and although all three have enacted policies to move toward that goal, we are still largely dependent on crude oil from foreign sources. President Putin was not restrained from attacking Ukraine; the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine started in 2014, when Russia forcibly annexed parts of Ukraine. And our borders under Trump were not suddenly secure by virtue of his presidency. If they had been, the problem would have been resolved, and we would not have heard about it continuously for the 4 years he was in office.
Under Trump, the U.S. acquired 25% of the total debt that had been acquired in the previous 200+ years. When the Republicans had the Senate, the House and the presidency in 2016, they had their chance to balance the budget in ’17 and ’18. Instead, they blew a gaping hole in it, yet now they lecture people on a balanced budget and are ready to hold the entire nation hostage in order to meet their radical demands. DeSantis’ “war on wokeism” – whatever that means – seems to be about banning books, banning teachings and even banning words. His approach is so extreme that he has attempted to punish businesses that buck his fascist agenda. In the case of Disney, he’s attempted to remove its special tax status, yet doing so will actually incur an additional $1 billion in debt for taxpayers in Florida. DeSantis’ “election police” arrested 20 people who were allowed by the state of Florida to register to vote. They were legally allowed to do so, and the state did nothing to prevent them, and actually registered them to vote, yet somehow it became illegal after the fact such that two years later, people found themselves arrested in their front yards.
The veterans of World War II fought against these kinds of fascist behaviors that once threatened the U.S. from abroad. Both Trump and DeSantis represent a similar threat to American democracy, yet from within. Their politics of grievance and policies of destructive punishment against perceived political enemies do nothing to constructively move this nation forward. Once more, in 2024, Americans will vote to ensure that autocratic-styled “leaders” do not gain control of the presidency. I hope Mr. Blowitski will be one of them.
Michael A. Podgorski
Fox Chase
Hang ‘em high
An 18-year-old, who just turned 18, celebrated his birthday by going out carjacking, not only shoots a Temple cop, but stands over him and shoots him three more times point blank, execution style.
And you’re telling me that Kim Kardashian applauds Gov. Shapiro’s decision to eliminate the death penalty in Pennsylvania?
No doubt about it, this deserves an eye for an eye.
Swift justice is what’s needed to teach these thugs, these punks, these losers that there are consequences for your actions, especially when someone takes a life as horrific as what happened to the police officer, or for that matter a human being.
People are mocking President Trump for bringing back public hanging and executions, and this is one incident that does not deserve a smirk.
We now have half of the 50 states that have eliminated the death penalty, and that’s the problem. There are no consequences to show to these criminals the fear of being executed for such crimes.
President Trump is right. When public viewings of hangings were displayed to men, women and children back in the day, this was the punishment for murder, a stark reminder that society will not tolerate savage behavior.
It’s time to advocate for the death penalty, not applaud it to disappear.
Al Ulus
Somerton
