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John Lewis
is no gentleman
Whenever I hear the word gentleman, I think of my father, my husband, those men who obey the law, work all their lives to support their families, do good deeds, treat others kindly, open doors for ladies, give up their seat on the bus, someone who is polite, mannerly — NOT someone who steals a gun, is wanted for murder, runs away from responsibility, causes the Cassidy family, Philadelphia Police Department and the state of Pennsylvania incalculable loss, stress and money.
Definition of gentleman: A man of good family or social position; (used as a polite term) a man; (used as a form of address) Gentlemen, please follow me; a civilized, educated or well-mannered man. The male arrested by police for the murder of Officer Cassidy should not be referred to as a "gentleman" — he is not even a man!
On the radio this week AND in church, I heard the word "gentleman" used to describe John Lewis. How dare we use the word "gentleman" in such a cavalier way and insult those who are true gentlemen!
Margaret Philippi
Parkwood
• • •
I think it’s fair to say that if someone admits blame for something, they should be held accountable and punished in accordance with the severity of the offense.
Following that logic, right about now they ought to be shaving a spot on the back of John Lewis’ head where he’ll be connected to the electric chair.
After all, he admitted in front of God and everybody that he killed Officer Chuck Cassidy in cold blood….or will Officer Cassidy’s family be made to suffer the indignity of hearing how Lewis was somehow a victim?
Gerri DiSalvio Ruppert
Pine Valley
Parking Authority
is no friend of clean air
I feel the pain of letter writers Janice Jakubowitz and Patricia Sicilia. Fox Chase Station is not the only train station that charges for parking. The Torresdale station charges $1 for parking.
I decided to take the train due to the high cost of gas and for environmental reasons. I might be saving the environment by taking the train, but I am not saving money when I get parking tickets for $25! I received a letter in the mail the third week of October stating that I did not pay a parking ticket on Sept. 27 and that I had to pay fines since I didn’t pay the ticket immediately. There was no ticket on my car on Sept. 27, and that is why I did not pay the ticket. Try and explain that to the Parking Authority! My only option was to take a day off from work and contest it. I didn’t think I would win, so I did not contest it. I didn’t want to lose any more money!
I’m sure many people are getting tickets at the train station and are not contesting them. That’s more money for the Parking Authority!
I am now back to polluting the air because of the red tape of dealing with the Parking Authority.
Diane Powers
Academy Gardens
Get a clue,
big dummies!
I just wanted to write in and congratulate all of the acolytes from the Democratic Party who simply pulled the Democrats’ lever on Election Day. Congratulations, dummies!
Willie Singletary was elected to Traffic Court in large part because of you. At least, I believe this is the case. I cannot imagine that his 141,383 votes were all from informed voters who followed the judicial races and still knowingly voted for this esteemed lawman who had amassed over $10,000 in unpaid traffic fines prior to running for the bench.
As a registered Republican who actually voted for Michael Nutter and a handful of other Democrats on Election Day, I urge you all to get a clue.
Matt McGrath
Brookhaven
Stop the freebies,
Comcast!
Being an ex-employee of Comcast, I’m not going to complain about prices, service, etc. I know how it works, so I know the deal. My issue with Comcast is when they have these free preview weeks of HBO, Starz or Showtime. I’m paying to receive these channels every month, and they go and throw in a free preview week here and there for those who don’t subscribe to it? So now I’m the idiot paying for something that everyone else is getting for free. That’s great.
By the way, may John Lewis experience an extremely painful and horrific death.
Steve Pham
Parkwood
An open letter
to Rhawnhurst Civic
As a 50-plus year resident of Rhawnhurst, I am always disappointed when learning of a meeting of this organization after the fact. I have tried unsuccessfully to be listed on a mailing or e-mail list to be informed in advance of a scheduled meeting, as I have growing concerns about quality-of-life issues in Rhawnhurst. One might conclude that this is a restricted membership group.
Several neighbors living on the 2300 block of Ripley St. share this concern. Let’s hope this is not the case. In any event, if one of the officers would contact me, it would be greatly appreciated.
David W. Campbell
Rhawnhurst
Thanks for being
honest, Sonny
I would like to thank the staff at Sonny’s Produce at Welsh Road and Old Bustleton Avenue for returning my wallet that I had accidentally left on their counter on Oct. 27. The manager was nice enough to find my phone number and left me a message notifying me that he had my wallet. My faith has been renewed knowing that there are honest people out there who really do care. I greatly appreciate it and I thank them from the bottom of my heart.
Kristine White
Winchester Park
Councilman’s announcement
is a betrayal
With the announcement of his support for the destruction of Burholme Park, City Councilman Brian O’Neill has ended what I believe to have been nothing more than a charade.
Fox Chase Cancer Center has repeatedly stated that if they could not expand they would not stay at their current location. And yet, while this matter was supposedly under review, FCCC undertook a major expansion at their current location and purchased, I have been told, the old Acme building on Township Line Road for an eventual day care center.
If their sustained presence in Fox Chase was not assured, then why would they have taken these actions?
Might it be that they have known all along that the deal was done? As to the timing of O’Neill’s betrayal, it came not after the elections — that would have been too obvious.
What he did was announce his betrayal just before the election so that most of us going to the polls did not yet know of his betrayal.
I confronted an O’Neill campaign worker at the polls who claimed to know nothing of O’Neill’s position on Burholme Park. Might he have timed the announcement of his betrayal as to take advantage of being overshadowed by the tragic death of Officer Cassidy?
Joseph Breen
Fox Chase
Boulevard red light
program is saving lives . . .
The Philadelphia Parking Authority activated its first red-light camera on Roosevelt Boulevard at Grant Avenue on Feb. 23, 2005. Our goal was to save lives by reducing red-light running on the Boulevard, one of the nation’s most dangerous highways.
Since April 2006, there have been 12 deaths on the Boulevard at non-red light camera locations — five in the last month. Yet there have been no accidents or fatalities at any of the eight red-light camera intersections on the Boulevard. These cameras have dramatically reduced the number of vehicles that run red lights on Roosevelt Boulevard.
During the initial 30 days of camera activation at the Grant Avenue intersection, 2,498 red-light running violations were recorded. Over the next six 30-day periods, the Parking Authority recorded 3,046, 3,609, 4,065, 2,896, 4,362 and 2,035 violations, respectively.
After the initial seven-month period, violations dropped dramatically. An average of 570 violations were recorded each month from Nov. 23, 2005, until May 22, 2007 — an 87 percent reduction from the start of the program. When you compare the high point of 4,362 violations in July/August 2005 to the more recent low of 296 violations in June/July 2006, the result was a 93 percent reduction.
We activated cameras at Red Lion Road and Roosevelt Boulevard on May 25, 2005, and recorded 1,702 violations during the high point of August 2005. From November 2006 through May 2007 there was an average of 479 violations each month. That’s a 72 percent reduction in red-light running at this intersection.
Red-light violations at the Cottman Avenue intersection declined 52 percent from its highest to lowest point. The reduction was less noticeable at this intersection because a large number of violations were issued for vehicles making a right turn on red, which is prohibited.
Philadelphia Police Staff Inspector Thomas J. Nestel analyzed accidents at Cottman Avenue (a red-light camera intersection) and Tyson Avenue (a non-red light camera intersection) for the Parking Authority and concluded "that while crashes resulting in injury decreased at Cottman Avenue, crashes resulting in injury dramatically increased at Tyson Avenue."
Nestel reported, "If the goal of technology-enhanced intersections is to reduce crashes, injuries, property damage, and red-light violations, it would seem that Cottman Avenue and Roosevelt Boulevard serves as a success story."
The Parking Authority embarked on a partnership with the Pennsylvania Legislature and the city of Philadelphia to save lives on Roosevelt Boulevard. We would like to continue running the red-light camera program, which is set to expire on Dec. 31, and also add speed-detection technology in an effort to stop speeding and save lives on Roosevelt Boulevard. Both will need legislative approval.
House Bill 1690, sponsored by Rep. Tony Payton (D-179th dist.), would allow us to continue operating the red-light camera program until 2010. House Bill 1559, sponsored by Rep. George Kenney (R-170th dist.) would allow us to incorporate speed-detection cameras into our coordinated safety plan for Roosevelt Boulevard, as well as give the Parking Authority the option to select the best available technologies to meet our goals.
I urge support for both bills so the Philadelphia Parking Authority can continue saving lives on Roosevelt Boulevard by preventing speeding and running red lights.
Vince Fenerty
Executive director
Philadelphia Parking Authority
. . . Red light program
only adds to the dangers
Red light cameras make intersections more dangerous. Fixing dangerous intersections makes red light cameras unprofitable.
Red light ticket cameras can only be profitable by keeping Roosevelt Boulevard dangerous.
Aside from adding approximately one second of yellow light time to camera-controlled intersections, which is still inadequate, no steps have been taken to make the road safer for drivers and pedestrians.
I have a simple four-point plan to make the Boulevard safer that involves little expense and absolutely no exploitation of drivers through unfair tickets. This will put an end to the $100-gotcha! being played by camera makers, auto insurers, bureaucrats, and politicians.
Point 1: Synchronize the traffic lights on the Boulevard to a speed of 40 mph. This will eliminate the need to speed just to make more than two lights at a time.
If you drive on Roosevelt Boulevard, you know exactly what I am talking about.
Point 2: For roads that cross the Boulevard, use a split sequence for the traffic lights, allowing one side to go while the other side waits.
This will eliminate cars getting stuck in the left turn lane when the light changes, and cut in half the number of cars going through the intersection per sequence.
Point 3: Install pedestrian count-down signals so people know how long they have to safely cross the intersection. These signals have been successfully used for years in Asia.
Point 4: Make the duration of all yellow lights on Roosevelt Boulevard six seconds. The speed of traffic and the width of the intersections require this much time for the driver to decide whether to stop safely or to go safely.
What’s it going to be? Safety or cameras? Ban photo enforcement in Pennsylvania.
Tom McCarey
National Motorists Association
Soldier’s death deserved
coverage by TV news
This is a copy of a letter I have sent to all of the local television news stations. I wanted you at the Northeast Times to see it as well. Thank you.
First, let me start by expressing my most sincere condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of Officer Chuck Cassidy. Any time human life is taken so senselessly, it is a great tragedy. My family and I were so glad to hear of the apprehension of the man accused of killing Officer Cassidy. I understand the fact that he is a police officer who protects and serves the community makes his death a major news story on every level.
This brings me to the point of my letter. I’d like to talk about another major news story for a moment, that of the death of United States Army Cpl. Adam J. Chitjian.
Chitjian died in Balad, Iraq, on Oct. 25. Cpl. Chitjian was laid to rest on Nov. 1. He also died protecting and serving. He was fighting for his country in a land thousands of miles away from his family and friends. He fought because he believed he was helping to protect this country. He felt that he could help continue to provide the freedoms that we so treasure, such as freedom of the press.
Adam voluntarily joined the army just two months shy of the military enlistment cutoff of his 35th birthday. He did so largely in response to his anger over the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. He did not one but two tours of duty in Iraq, and he was due to come home just five short weeks from when he died! Instead, Adam died over in Iraq, fighting for the very same kinds of things that Officer Cassidy and so many others fight for each and every day. Interestingly enough, you may not know all of this about Adam. Neither did any of the other news stations in the area. Neither do many of the viewers who watch your programs every day.
Why, one might ask, did we not hear more or see more of this true American hero? Well, that is easy. We didn’t hear more about this because the local television media chose to largely ignore it. Sure, he got a nice little headline at the top of the hour on the day he was killed. His obituary was printed side by side with all the rest in the Philadelphia Inquirer. The local papers carried a small article mentioning his death. I think any U.S. serviceman killed in combat would have gotten as much. But he was a local boy, born and raised in the Somerton section of Philly. He was a graduate of George Washington High School.
I really feel that the local news media were quite remiss when it came to the story of Cpl. Chitjian. There is an article last week in the Northeast Times, and I’d like to thank them, and the article’s author, Diane Prokop, for giving a little more credence to such an important story. Many people I spoke with did not even know that Adam had died until they saw his obituary, or were called by a loved one who had seen it. I find this so disheartening.
No matter where we all stand on this war, the fact is that young men and women are dying every day in Iraq, Afghanistan, and places around the world where our military is stationed. It just makes it sadder, and all the more real when it hits so close to home like this.
The story of Cpl. Chitjian is a local story, but also a national story, a global story, a human story. I truly wish that the rest of the news media here would have picked up on that. May you never have to experience the loss of a friend or loved one to this terrible war.
Michelle R. Wolfson
Somerdale, N.J.
The Democrats should honor
their anti-war stance
In 2006, the people elected Democrats, thinking they would end the war. Instead, they vote to continue to fund the war.
Congress should stop funding the war in Iraq. Instead, it should fund education, mass transit, health care, libraries, and bridge repair.
The United States should allow other countries to determine their future. It should get out of Cuba and Colombia. It should keep its hands off Venezuela and Iran. Iran never overthrew the U.S. government. The U.S., during the ’50s, overthrew the Iranian government, changing Iran into a monarchy.
Charles Wolfsfeld
Torresdale
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