Letters to the Editor | April 4, 2023

Like the many whose lives have been made brighter by the incomparable jazz DJ “BP with the GM” (Bob Perkins with the Good Music), I am already feeling the void created by his retirement. Every Sunday on WRTI we could count on BP’s soothing, authoritative voice, playing impeccably chosen jazz tunes, providing a refuge from the noise and nonsense of the day. He served up classic cool with quiet class, a true tonic to the soul. Another jazz lover, Joni Mitchell, said it best: “You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.” Here’s hoping in these troubled times we may yet find a way to pause and really listen to each other and the “good music.” Thank you, Bob, for showing us the way.

Lisa Guth, Glenside

The indictment of Donald Trump by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on a bogus charge already dismissed by the U.S. Department of Justice, the Federal Election Commission, and Bragg’s predecessor, Cy Vance, illustrates once more the need to get rid of grand juries. The U.S. is one of the very few to retain this archaic procedure that originated in medieval England but was abolished there 90 years ago. Reviewing evidence of criminal wrongdoing, a grand jury is supposed to be a shield against malicious prosecutions. Instead, they typically rubber-stamp the indictment of anyone the prosecutor brings before them. As Judge Sol Wachtler famously said, a grand jury will indict a ham sandwich. Defense attorneys are not allowed into a grand jury room. The prosecution’s witnesses cannot be cross-examined, so Bragg’s “star” witness, disbarred felon Michael Cohen, was free to contradict his own 2018 statement that money paid to Stephanie Clifford (a.k.a. Stormy Daniels) was from his own personal funds “and not a campaign contribution or expenditure.” And Bragg’s grand jury comes from a city where 80% voted against Trump in 2020.

Nick O’Dell, Phoenixville, nickodell16@yahoo.com

Kyle Sammin’s column about the Trump indictment is just MAGA nonsense not worthy of The Inquirer. He states that “Trump’s lawyer, Michael Cohen, who facilitated the payments [to Stormy Daniels], pleaded guilty to campaign violations (and lying to Congress), but the feds never charged him. Why? Because the case — already tenuous to begin with — would have been difficult to prove against Trump.” Sammin fails to note that in the Cohen indictment, Donald Trump was referenced as “individual 1,” the person who directed the payments Cohen went to jail for. There was nothing tenuous about that. Sammin also fails to acknowledge that the feds did not file charges against Trump back then because of the ridiculous U.S. Department of Justice policy forbidding indictment of a sitting president. Most importantly, Sammin conveniently fails to mention that Trump’s attorney general, Bill Barr, intervened in the case and ordered Geoffrey Berman, the Trump-appointed U.S. attorney, to kill the investigation, and even suggested that Cohen’s conviction should be reversed. Talk about weaponization of the DOJ for political purposes. The contention that the case would have been “difficult to prove” against Trump was simply never a factor.

Rich Hluchan, Cherry Hill

The former president is scheduled to turn himself in on Tuesday and face arrest. It may be his first of several, but we can’t know for sure. When and if he is arrested for his alleged incitement of the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, it would seem very appropriate to me if the officers used handcuffs from the Capitol Police.

John Walsh, Drexel Hill

We feel for the Kensington neighborhood, with people using drugs and littering parks with syringes. However, we differ with Sonja Bingham, president of Friends of Harrowgate Park. Outreach groups helping those in addiction do not “attract dealers and drug use.” They live there already. A supervised injection site would not “cater to illicit activity,” but would bring drug use indoors, out of the view of children, eliminate litter, prevent disease, bring some to treatment programs, and save lives. Her ironic quote, “I just live here. I should not have to have skin in the game of whether someone recovers. I should not have to be concerned with someone else’s problems,” ignores the obvious facts that someone else’s problems are leading to her problems, and someone else’s recovery would help solve her problems. We will continue to volunteer with the Savage Sisters’ outreach and campaign for supervised injection sites.

Larry Arata, chairperson, Opioid Crisis Action Network

Allow me to address a few electric vehicle myths presented in a recent op-ed. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, 20% of the country’s electricity is generated from renewables. That percentage continues to increase every year, and EVs will take advantage of that. It’s also a myth that EVs are worse for the climate due to battery manufacturing. Which system emits fewer greenhouse gasses in aggregate? Is it a large-scale regulated power plant, or thousands of vehicles with individual internal combustion engines? True, EVs are more expensive to acquire. However, they are offered in a wide price range to fit most budgets, and the federal government offers a tax credit of up to $7,500. And let’s not forget, EVs are cheaper to operate. Gas-powered vehicles cost $0.101 per mile to maintain, while EVs average just $0.061 per mile. Why? EVs have fewer moving parts. There are no belts to check, no oil to change, etc., and electric power is cheaper than gasoline per mile. EVs have a limited range, but on average, how many trips do you take over 200 miles? Some argue EVs will cost jobs, but they are an emerging industry spurring growth. Where the EV industry has challenges, ask yourself, where will future economies of scale and advances in technology hold more promise? In the nascent EV space, or the aging fossil fuel industry? Electric vehicles present a great opportunity for each of us to help address the climate crisis.

Todd Whitlow, Coatesville

Over a long career in the automotive industry, I have already read every fact and opinion presented by Derrick Morgan in his op-ed arguing against electric vehicles. I’ve also read enough facts and opinions to successfully refute his arguments point by point. However, it might be more informative to present just two more overarching facts. 1) We must stop burning fuel to make power. Period. The consequences of failing to do this are well documented, and even the petroleum and automotive industries have recognized and admitted this. 2) Governments in other countries are providing huge incentives to develop their national electric energy infrastructure, including electric vehicles. The electric future is inevitable, and America will surely lose jobs and opportunity by choosing to protect a dying hydrocarbon economy rather than investing in a more sustainable future. If Morgan is truly interested in protecting “consumers, farmers, workers, and our national security,” he would do well to approach the problem from a wider perspective.

Jacques Gordon, Devon, jgordon3663@gmail.com

Guns make the weak feel powerful. Guns make it so you don’t have to try to work something out or try to see someone else’s point of view. Guns make it so you don’t have to think at all. Guns make it so you don’t even have to be right. I see these mass shootings as suicides of men who felt they had no power in their lives. Blaming whatever chosen perceived enemy took that power from them. Unhappy men and boys who want to throw their unhappiness onto others, looking to create overwhelming grief and emotional chaos. This is how they deal with their anger. By making it someone else’s pain. If you can’t resolve something using your mind, using logic, wisdom, and truth, you are still working from a past set of beliefs. Of course, criminality and mental health issues do have to be considered. But imagine if those people couldn’t get guns, either, how much more level the playing field would be for all of us. America needs men who are strong in themselves. Men who can see the bigger picture. Men who can see the world that came before them, and the world they won’t be a part of. Men who realize that guns are actually for the weak.

Don Mueller, Lambertville, N.J.

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