Letters to the Editor | Jan. 12, 2024

From the introduction of Philadelphia’s soda tax in 2017 to this very day, I and the proud, hardworking members of Teamsters Local 830 argued vociferously that the passage of this unfair and onerous tax would have a devastating effect on the sale of soda and other sugar-sweetened beverages in the city. Former Mayor Jim Kenney and many other officials simply refused to believe it. Until now, that is. As The Inquirer reported, of the five major U.S. cities that enacted soda taxes, none saw a greater decline in overall sales of sugar-sweetened beverages than Philadelphia.

Yet, just as Teamsters Local 830 predicted from the outset, Philadelphians didn’t stop buying sugar-sweetened drinks. They simply drove to New Jersey or the nearby suburbs to buy their favorite beverages. The soda tax did not lead to health gains for children. Philadelphians didn’t lose weight. The only losses were to my members’ livelihoods. Many were forced to leave the union altogether for other jobs because beverage sales bottomed out once the tax was enacted. We still have not regained our lost market share. Most Philadelphians hate the soda tax. Although she originally stated her support for keeping it on the books, we’re hopeful that Mayor Cherelle Parker will see the damage done to my members and dump this regressive tax before more harm is done.

Daniel H. Grace, secretary-treasurer, Teamsters Local 830

Many years ago, a friend gave birth to a blind and deaf son. Unlike Helen Keller, he was not mentally gifted. In fact, his intelligence was below normal, and as he developed, he became prone to violent outbursts. His education became almost impossible, and many places devoted to caring for people with similar disabilities refused to accept him. His whole life was difficult for him and his family until he died in his 30s. The reason for this story is that my friend had been exposed to someone with German measles during her pregnancy, thus infecting her fetus. The recent editorial on vaccines is especially important, because not only do vaccines protect the born, but the unborn as well. The diseases that have been disappearing due to the miracle of vaccines really affect us all.

Arlene Jarett, Bryn Mawr

Over the past year, the Clean Air Council, and to a lesser degree Amtrak, has touted the recent decision to operate district steam as a heat source for the William H. Gray III 30th Street Station retrofit. A glaring omission from these commentaries is that the district steam application used is energy inefficient and wasteful compared to on-site steam production with gas boilers. The facts are important. Some special interest groups don’t want the public to know that whether the steam is produced inefficiently by the district steam loop or more resourcefully on-site, it is produced using natural gas. In truth, the city’s district steam loop is Philadelphia Gas Works’ biggest customer by volume, accounting for over 18% of PGW’s annual natural gas send-out.

When steam is produced by burning gas off-site for the district steam loop, you lose efficiency transporting the steam through the city, and the loop does not return any condensate, so the remaining heat is wasted, and the water is dumped into the watershed. When produced on-site, you dramatically increase efficiency (and reduce emissions) because the steam doesn’t have to travel as far, and you capture the waste heat and condensate to return to the process or use on-site. By continuing to rely on district steam, the station will use significantly more natural gas, much less efficiently for the foreseeable future. Which, unfortunately, is expected to cost taxpayers more money, and produce even more emissions — both counter to the best interests of the city.

PGW views every energy provider in our region as a vital partner in the complex effort to achieve a net-zero greenhouse gas emissions future. We most recently banded together as energy providers to deliver to the region a huge win in the form of $750 million in Hydrogen Hub funding; we must maintain that spirit of collaboration. PGW will continue to do its part to work with the coalition of labor and government, the private sector, and most importantly, the public to make Philadelphia and the region a leader in the energy transition.

John Zuk, senior vice president of gas management, Philadelphia Gas Works

Thank God for Jonathan Zimmerman’s columns. His words offer necessary and welcome reprieves from the gruesome cruelty and stupidity of the right and the knee-jerk groupthink of the left.

Peter Rose, Philadelphia

It was unfortunate that Naveen Khan was forced to resign from her post on the Voorhees Township school board because her husband shared social media posts that called Israel a “terrorist nation.” This was not directed at the Jewish people of Israel but at Israel’s extreme right government and the way in which it is conducting the war in Gaza. You may agree with her husband or not, but it should not be viewed as antisemitism. An American citizen should be free to publicly criticize the actions of a foreign government without fear of being threatened.

The indiscriminate bombing of Palestinians in Gaza by the current Israeli government has resulted in the deaths of thousands and thousands of innocent women and children. Even when those Palestinians do go to areas the Israeli military has designated as “safe areas,” they are still killed by Israeli bombs. And because the government is preventing anywhere near enough food, water, fuel, and medicine from reaching the Palestinian refugees in southern Gaza, many of these civilians are in danger of starvation. And the risk for disease and death among these Palestinians has risen exponentially because of the squalid, unsanitary conditions in which they have been forced to live.

What I find most frightening in The Inquirer’s report on this incident is that Khan said her family had been threatened and windows in their house were broken. Such actions are despicable in our democratic society.

William Cooney, Philadelphia

Reading Greg Alvarez’s recent op-ed, I entirely agree with him on the problems posed by vehicles using fossil fuels, as well as the excessive nature of the proposed $290 electric vehicle tax that the Pennsylvania legislature is considering. Speaking as one whose family car is an electric vehicle, I have put a lot of thought into this complex issue. Fossil fuel-powered cars and trucks pay considerable taxes at the pump on a per-gallon basis. A great deal of those tax dollars is used to maintain our roads and highways. EVs are not contributing to that, and they are heavy cars, which help wear down roads. A possible solution might be to assess a fee at registration time. When we register our vehicles, we have to include the current mileage on the odometer. An appropriate and comparable fee could be charged at that time on a per-mile basis that would have us EV drivers paying a fair share for the roads we drive on, instead of a large blanket fee.

Peter Handler, Philadelphia

While Quakers cherish and hold fast to our testimonies, there is, otherwise, a great diversity of thought within our community. Ask 10 different Quakers to give an opinion on one question, and there might be 10 different answers. I say this because, while I am speaking as a Quaker, and my beliefs stem from my Quaker consciousness, I can’t speak for all. Regarding the William Penn statue at Welcome Park, this country can never undo, nor possibly make amends, for what has been inflicted upon the Native American population. It is incredibly shameful. Therefore, when the opportunity arises, it would be heartening to see our country and the city of Philadelphia embrace that opportunity. I think Penn would be shocked and possibly uncomfortable to know that his likeness sits atop a government building in the center of the city. Furthermore, I think if Penn had the opportunity to decide for himself whether his statue should remain or should be replaced at the park with something honoring Native Americans, it’s almost laughable to think that he would choose his own statue.

Patricia Conroy, Phoenixville, birds3711@gmail.com

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