letters & comments
To the Editor,
This week, and really any
week, it is easy to sum up the
right wing columnist’s positions:
Republicans and Conservatives
are good, while Democrats
and Progressives are bad,
very, very bad. Like a one-trick
pony, his repertoire never varies.
His misinformation-laden
columns repeat the same conspiracy
theories, misstatements,
fallacious arguments
and distortions in a tedious
parade of extreme right wing
talking points.
This week he would have
readers believe that Trump
was a wonderful president. I
suppose he was — to the millionaires
who benefi tted from
the tax cut he engineered. Not
so much to those who believe in
the peaceful transfer of power,
that no one is above the law,
and that all people deserve respect,
regardless of their country
of origin, their religion,
their sex, their skin color or the
size of their bank account.
It is important to note the
vitriol and demonization of opposition
fi gures that are regular
features of the column in
question. A good example is the
implausible charge that progressives
“…produced innuendos
that the COVID vaccine
was somehow unsafe…”. No evidence
is offered to sustain this
calumny. Ironically, members
of the far right are busy with
anti-vaccination campaigns,
even disrupting operations at
centers providing free vaccinations.
Christopher B. Kulp,
philosophy professor of Santa
Clara University notes that as
a result of this type of demonization,
“Public discourse becomes
more focused on the acquisition
of power and less on
the pursuit of truth…” He continues,
“Emotionalism usurps
reason…” These observations
seem to apply to the author as
well as his counterparts in Republican
dominated legislatures
and school boards.
So drunk on power are
these Republican extremists
that they are now banning
books and ideas that do
not conform with their political
ideology or their particular
brand of Puritanism. Real
problems remain unaddressed
while these legislators invent
new issues, new fronts on the
“culture war” scene. A school
board member from Virginia,
declared “I think we should
throw these books in a fi re.” He
wanted a public spectacle so all
could “see the books before we
burn them … we are eradicating
this bad stuff.”
Does this sound like America
to you? Or does it remind
you of the Nazi bonfi res?
This is where misinformation
and the demonization
of political opponents leads.
When “true believers” decide
that it is time to take action
the results have been appalling,
as evidenced by the Jan. 6
insurrection, when more than
100 police offi cers were injured
and rioters erected a gallows
they intended to use on politicians
demonized by right-wing
media outlets. This is why exposing
and opposing the hatred
generated by extremists is so
important. Singing kumbaya
will not stop this slide towards
anarchy.
Pasqual Pelosi
Photo courtesy Getty Images
Benedetto sponsors auto insurance
reduction program
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, F BTR FEB. 4-10, 2022 13
Photo | Getty Images
To the Editor,
I understand writer Renato
Zeko asked I not lobby a letter
trying to prove my position
correct. I will not try to prove
any of my positions correct,
but I will point this out to Mr.
Zeko.
First, it would be a very
dull world if we all agreed.
Second, while I virulently disagree
with some of the things
Mr. Pelosi has said, I have
nonetheless learned from
him. I also virulently agree
with some of what he has said.
Third, vigorous debate is a
healthy part of a free society
and a free press, as long as it
does not become character assassination.
Having said all that, I hear
what Mr. Zeko is saying and
will do my very best to refrain
from this practice.
Nat Weiner
To the Editor,
The following is an open letter
run at the author’s request.
The 161st Street Business
Improvement District needs
help. It is asking Mayor Adams
to convene a “Soccer
Stadium Summit” to end the
deadlock that has prevented
a stadium from being built in
the South Bronx.
The BID’s ask will take the
form of an open letter to Mayor
Adams in the Bronx Times.
“We have been promised a
stadium for eight years. We’ve
held town hall meetings, conducted
surveys and urged the
local pro team to meet with us
and develop a plan. But our efforts
to work with NYCFC towards
a stadium have been
ignored. So, we are calling on
His Honor to convene a summit
where the city, the team
and the community can develop
a plan that would benefi
t everyone,” said Dr. Cary
Goodman, the BID’s executive
director.
Goodman noted that soccer
is the No. 1 sport globally, and
that New York City, a global
capital, does not have a stadium
dedicated to the sport.
“We have tennis stadia,
basketball and hockey arenas
as well as Citifi eld and Yankee
Stadium,” said Goodman. “We
need a soccer stadium that
would appeal to the international
community that is New
York City.”
The BID’s three surveys
over eight years show signifi -
cant local support for a stadium
that pays taxes, includes
a female team, has a dome and
which is partially owned by
the people who live in, work
in, own businesses in, own
property in and serve the
neighborhood.
Dr. Cary Goodman
LET US HEAR FROM YOU
Letters to the editor are welcome from all readers. They should be addressed
care of this newspaper to Laura Guerriero, Publisher, the Bronx Times Reporter,
3604 E. Tremont Ave., Bronx, NY 10465, or e-mail to bronxtimes@cnglocal.com.
All letters, including those submitted via e-mail, MUST be signed and with a
verifi able address and telephone number included.
Note that the address and telephone number will NOT be published and the
name will be published or withheld upon request.
No unsigned letters can be accepted for publication. The editor reserves the
right to edit all submissions.
MLS’ NYFC plays its home games at Yankee Stadium. The team has been
in search of a new home for years. Photo | Edwin Soto
Mayor Adams,
we need a soccer
stadium in the
South Bronx
Republicans making
a public spectacle
of democracy
There’s nothing
wrong with a ‘vigorous
debate’
More letters & comments on p52
As a service to his constituents, state Assemblyman Michael
Benedetto will be sponsoring a state DMV-approved Insurance
Reduction Program on Saturday, Feb. 26, from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. The
course is held at Fort Schuyler House, 3077 Cross Bronx Expressway.
Registration for this class begins on Monday, Feb. 21. P lease
call Benedetto’s offi ce at (718) 892-2235. The cost for the class is
$30.
This 6-hour course will refresh your driving knowledge with
a review of time-tested safe driving tips. Those who complete the
course will receive a reduction of approximately 10% from the
base rate of automobile and motorcycle liability premiums each
year for three years.
VISIT US AT BXTIMES.COM
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