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Bring the troops home,

congresswoman

Dear U.S. Rep. Allyson Schwartz,
We your constituents, members of Northeast Philly for Peace and Justice (NPPJ), ask you to act now to end our illegal and immoral occupation of Iraq, withdraw the authority Congress gave the president to invade Iraq, and cease funding the war.
NPPJ includes educators, students, clergy, social workers, office workers, retirees and others.
Since early 2003 we have been organizing forums, held more than 30 peace vigils and participated in regional protest against the war. Recently petitions with more than 6,500 signatures of your constituents demanding that you end funding for the war were presented to you. However, you have once again voted to fund it!
According to the American Friends Service Committee, the cost of the war to date for the 13th Congressional District is over $1.1 billion! That money could have funded health care for 255,067 people, paid for 18,217 additional teachers, or provided 11,195 affordable housing units.
Furthermore, on May 27, conservative George Will occupied rare common ground with the progressive organization MoveOn.org. "MoveOn happens to be right. As a matter of constitutional fact," he declared on ABC, "the Democrats could stop the war if they chose. They choose not to."
Therefore, Congresswoman Schwartz, we ask you to recognize finally that the time has come for Congress to use the full power accorded to it, the power of the purse. Refuse to write another check to fund the war!
President Bush recently signed an agreement with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, laying the foundations for an indefinite U.S. commitment to maintain a 50,000-strong U.S. force in Iraq. We, your constituents, say "No!" We will not sit by while this war drags on to a more costly and tragic end.
Bring the troops home now! Peace.
Harvey Chanin
Northeast Philly for Peace and Justice
e-mail: nephillyactivist@yahoo.com



Ex-Philly cop has some

questions for the attorney

I would like to thank Raymond Dougherty Esq. for taking the time in the Feb. 28 edition to respond to my previous letter. I do appreciate his time. However, I still don’t understand why he feels an organization representing almost 15,000 active and retired police officers should not be upset because a lawyer who represented an admitted cop killer is appointed deputy mayor for public safety.
Mr. Dougherty, we are talking about 15,000 people who have dedicated their lives (and in many cases given their lives) to protect the citizens of this city, and they should have no say because the FOP uses the same attorneys the criminals use in a handful of matters each year?
Maybe the FOP does contract with Peruto and Peruto, and as far as I know the public defender’s office has never represented a police officer in a criminal matter. So where is the conflict? Did the FOP endorse a Peruto for the position? Do you suggest the FOP use attorneys specializing in slip-and-falls or ambulance chasers in criminal court to avoid a conflict of interest in the future? Is it really so wrong to think there is no other person in the public defender’s office or elsewhere equally qualified for the position?
I have looked at the internal affairs unit’s record when it comes to civilian complaints. Even thought I am not authorized to speak on the unit’s behalf, I apologize for the unit not finding every officer guilty. Maybe overcharging has trickled down to the complaints against police level.
And since you brought up our overburdened legal system, perhaps if defense attorneys put a little more effort in the scheduling of their caseloads, did a little less judge-shopping and would stop requesting continuances in hopes that the victim or witness will stop showing up, then possibly the burden on the system would be lessened even more.
In both of your letters, you bring up the problem of overcharging by the District Attorney’s Office and mention maybe the city could use a little "Duke lacrosse players justice."
Correct me if I’m wrong, Mr. Dougherty, but aren’t the District Attorney’s Office and the Durham, N.C., prosecutor’s office overseen by people trained in law (read attorney)? And you think appointing an attorney to the deputy mayor position will solve all of Philadelphia’s law enforcement problems.
Talk about consulting the fox in the chicken coop.
Sgt. Rich Gudknecht
Retired member of Philadelphia Police Department, Feasterville resident



Shame on those who

allow anti-Semitism

I have just finished reading the letter in last week’s edition entitled No room for Jews at Rockledge fire hall?
I certainly feel that a response from "Carol" is in order. The inference is very clear. NO JEWS ALLOWED. Any free-thinking person would be insulted, not only a Jew.
This is not the action of forward-thinking people. Even if the firehouse was unaware of this policy (which I doubt), they should be more responsible in who represents them.
Anti-Semitism is still alive. Shame on these firemen for allowing such blatant acts.
Brenda Rudolph
Bustleton



Botox vs. babies?

Sorry, baby . . . you lose

I find it highly ironic that another fine article by reporter Diane Prokop on Page 15 of last week’s edition drawing much-needed attention to the maternity care crisis in our community was juxtaposed with an advertisement (Page 57) from Frankford Hospital-Torresdale’s so-called Center for Gynecology and Women’s Health.
This struck me as even more incredulous when I read that Frankford Hospital apparently sees fit to advertise Botox injections as part of its specious claim to looking after the health of women in this community while it fails to care for basic needs of maternal-infant health.
I have been a participant in the Maternity Care Coalition’s efforts to address the untenable situation in which our local hospitals have placed Northeast Philadelphia’s women. I have hope for the problem because this group comprised primarily of community volunteers is taking action.
At the last meeting, one attendee posed, somewhat rhetorically, the question, "What responsibility do these hospitals have to the community?"
I do not have hard statistics to back this up, but I hypothesize that the average Northeast Philly woman is much more likely to get pregnant than get Botox. It is shameful that the hospitals in which we place our trust and our dollars find it more important to address pretty faces than healthy families as part of women’s health care. Clearly the problem is not just with Frankford.
I pass this question on to all of these institutions: Does putting Botox over births really live up to your responsibility to Northeast Philadelphia’s women?
Olivia Hamilton
Pennsylvania State University, Abington College Psychology and Women’s Studies



Every baby deserves

a healthy start

There’s an old joke that if men had babies, we’d have to stay in bed throughout the entire pregnancy, and morning sickness would rank as the nation’s No. 1 health problem. Men get a pass on the pain of childbirth and we also miss out on much of the joy and satisfaction of bringing a new life into the world. But an evolving problem plaguing expectant mothers and their children is making childbirth an even more complex experience, even dangerous.
The problem is this: OB/GYN clinics, delivery wards and neo-natal ICUs are closing down all over the state and, perhaps, no area has seen the worst of it like Northeast Philadelphia. The maternity wards at Jeanes and Frankford hospitals have closed down just in the past two years, and now there is no place in our area to give birth within the city, or to get maternity care.
Experts agree that the main culprit is the pitifully low Medicaid reimbursement rate paid to doctors and hospitals. Pennsylvania ranks right near the bottom in Medicaid reimbursement compared with the rest of the country. Just how low? Medicaid reimburses hospitals in our state only 80 percent of hospital stay costs and 54 percent of outpatient costs.
At first glance, 80 percent might sound like a lot, but when you consider the number of low birth weight infants or those born prematurely in less affluent areas, the numbers add up significantly. The average mother and her child stay in the hospital at most two days, while a troubled infant might have to stay 15 days or more. Hospitals are businesses and some of them simply can’t afford to make up the gap.
Rather than focusing on the Medicaid shortfall, the so-called "tort reformers" are exploiting the issue in an attempt to close courthouse doors to the most vulnerable people in our society, like poor, pregnant mothers. And their proposals would apply to all corporate wrongdoers, not just OB/GYNs, doctors and hospitals — it would mean giving immunity to polluters, corporate corruption and companies that put bad products on the market. Aside from the fact these proposals don’t work, they are a divisive sideshow.
Thoughtful legislators have introduced legislation to fill the gaps caused by the exceptionally low reimbursement rates. The Access to Obstetrical and Neonatal Care Act would provide $33 million in state and federal funds through Medicaid to support obstetrics services. The bill was sponsored by state Rep. Kathy Manderino (D-Phila.) and state Sen. Jane Orie (R-Allegheny). House Speaker Dennis O’Brien (R-169th dist.) has also taken a leadership role.
In this election year, the watchword is change. An aspect of the change message is that our leaders need to change the way they behave with each other. They need to work together. Finger pointing and smoke-and-mirrors-solutions are out. Cooperation and consensus building are in.
It’s that spirit that should bring all of us together, giving hospitals the resources they need to keep OB/GYN departments open and giving every baby, rich or poor, a healthy start.
Andrew E. DiPiero Jr.
Trial attorney in Cheltenham and member of the Pennsylvania Association for Justice



It’s a critical condition

at the hospitals

In my opinion, going to the emergency room at Frankford Hospital-Torresdale is a fate worse than death. In 1997, I almost died sitting in a wheelchair for eight hours shivering with a 108 degree fever and a kidney infection. When I passed out, the trauma team revived me and placed me in intensive care.
On a recent Monday afternoon, I had severe, intense abdominal pain, so I called my primary care physician and was told to go to the emergency room. His office closes at 3 p.m. and doesn’t open until 2 p.m. on Tuesday. I decided not to go to the ER, and the pains subsided. However, the pain recurred about 5 p.m. and my husband took me there, rather than wait until the middle of the night.
We spent six hours in the jammed waiting room and at 11:30 p.m. were told there were four ahead of us. The pain had left and we went home. There were five or six people still waiting in wheelchairs in hospital gowns with I.V.’s or oxygen. I suppose they had been evaluated and were awaiting admission.
Evidently the helipad and ambulances were being attended to. Anyone mobile enough to get there on their own, just had to bear their pain. One lady was bleeding profusely from her nose and was still there holding gauze to her face at 11:30 p.m. This is a critical situation — evidently at all area hospitals.
Rita Guy
Modena Park



Let’s elect President Clinton

AND President Obama

Before the Democratic hopefuls Clinton and Obama blow up their party and their chances for the presidency through self-destructive in-fighting, they should consider the following, and quickly!
Run as an entity — as a co-presidency! Spin it in any number of ways: Obama can be the domestic and interior affairs co-president; Clinton the foreign affairs, diplomacy and national security co-president.
It will be made clear to the nation that at any and all times, each of the co-presidents can confer with each other and make decisions regarding all important matters, this in concert with members of the cabinet and other individuals of expertise. For the good of the United States, the presidency (or co-presidency) ought to work that way as a matter of course, anyway.
When I hear Democrats threaten to vote for John McCain if their gender or race-based preferences aren’t satisfied, it makes me wonder what, if anything, the electorate has learned during the eight years of Bush, Cheney and Rove.
It would be unwise and self-defeating for any voter, as the saying goes, to "cut off his or her nose to spite his face."
Drop your narrow focus, Democrats, and consider what is good for people — regardless of gender, race or religion.
Arthur Gurmankin
Fox Chase



A dirty question

for the new mayor

Dear Mayor Nutter,
On a recent Sunday morning I completed another session of picking up trash in Fox Chase.
About four years ago, I began cleaning Oxford Avenue between Hartel Avenue and Rockwell Avenue. It had been the filthiest, most litter-strewn section of highway I ever saw in Philadelphia. I estimate that I have collected about 50 large cans of trash and recyclables.
The city should be well aware of this situation because I was once called as a witness in a lawsuit brought by a woman against the city who fell and was injured walking this highway. She blamed the litter. Some time ago, I appealed to both former Mayor Street and Councilman Brian O’Neill for help. They both, not surprisingly, have ignored me.
It is becoming increasingly difficult and dangerous for me to continue this effort as the city has apparently discontinued its minimal efforts of, on rare occasions, clearing the brush from along this highway. That brush is creating an impenetrable barrier that forces me farther out onto Oxford Avenue. It is also forcing me to leave much litter behind.
The city erected a beautiful, and no doubt costly, sign just a short distance from this litter problem, which welcomes people to Fox Chase. Were it not for me, people coming into Fox Chase would be greeted by a beautiful sign nearby filth. Perhaps that sign should read, "Welcome to Fox Chase, please ignore our trash."
I believe that if this section of Oxford Avenue were given sidewalks and maintained, it would be a dramatic visual improvement and might draw respect from passing motorists who now litter so terribly. At the least, it would make it much easier and safer for me to pick up litter. And it would make it much safer for people who walk this path.
I believe that Fox Chase Cancer Center has promised to compensate our neighborhood for its planned destruction of Burholme Park. If they are serious, and not merely offering empty promises, then perhaps FCCC would pay for this improvement.
Joseph A. Breen
Fox Chase



We’re clean — well,

most of us, anyway

Although it doesn’t feel like it, spring is just around the corner. As the warm weather approaches, flowers begin to bloom and the grass begins to grow, I would like to thank the majority of folks in Northeast Philadelphia for being responsible good neighbors.
Most of us desire the same for our family, friends and community: to live on a nice, quiet, clean and safe block. We keep our properties free of trash, litter and debris. We mow our lawns, rake the grass clippings and then sweep the sidewalk. We look out for each other as well as our families. We truly care about our community and strive to make it a better place to live.
But, sad to say, a very small portion of the community who are able-bodied people attempt to destroy our quality of life by ignoring laws created to ensure a healthy standard of living for all. Of course, most have the typical excuses of why they can’t be responsible for themselves, their property, children and pets. They point the finger at others and blame city agencies for being malicious and mean-spirited when these agencies are only attempting to improve the quality of life for all.
So here is your warning: place your trash out the night before trash day. Going on vacation? Make arrangements, not excuses. Have it taken care of. It is your responsibility! Have your lawn cut every few weeks; don’t wait until CLIP has to tell you — it is your responsibility! Pick up litter and trash from your property and place in a trash can — it is your responsibility!
Instead of making excuses, change your attitude and work with the community instead of against it!
John Horvay
Tacony

• • •

Regarding Pearl Polto’s letter about CLIP in the Feb. 28 edition: It just goes to show you how many slobs live in Philadelphia who complain about CLIP.
Here is an idea: Grab a broom and clean up! Keep doing a great job, CLIP.
Joe Gilmore Sr.
Mayfair

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