August 12, 2004 Issue                                       

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©2006 The Chestnut Hill Local

From our readers

Saddened

Regarding your article, (July 22) about the recent muggings in Pastorius Park, there are several things that I must disagree with.

First, the statement by Sgt. Paraschak that the violence is “Atypical” and only “happened twice.” I am 20 years old and have been close friends of the victims and their family. I have also spent a lot of time dog-walking and enjoying the park. I feel that I must point out that muggings and other less-than-kosher activities have been going on in Pastorius Park for years. These were hardly isolated incidents. I know several teens that have been mugged and more that have participated in illegal activities in the park.

Second, I highly disagree with and am slightly offended by a statement from the anonymous young man interviewed that “Park goers should be more vigilant” and that “Hill people won’t help you.” I happened to be in the park dog-walking on July 13 at 7 p.m. along with several other people and neither saw nor heard anything. Kids hide in the trees around the concert area, and people with dogs are at the opposite end of the park. It’s not that we won’t help; it’s that if we can’t see it, then no one knows its happening.

I also feel that I must explain the incident with the firecracker that was mentioned in the article. The context of this statement seems to support the young man’s statement that Hill people “hate kids.” The teenager who was confronted about the firecracker was confronted because he threw the extremely large explosive directly into the middle of a group of five people (and their dogs) who were engaged in conversation. Someone could have been seriously hurt.

However I must agree that something must be done. There seems to be an increasing amount of graffiti, litter, underage drinking and drug use in the park. I would love to see police presence in the park, just checking in a few times a day so that it is safer for people, children and pets who frequent the park.

As someone who uses the park every day, I am saddened to see the Pastorius Park area becoming an increasingly not nice place to live.

Alix Muenzberg
Chestnut Hill

Why would Kerry be more effective than Bush?

After reading Mr. Mishak’s article in the August 5 edition of the Local, I asked myself exactly what it is about John Kerry that enables any intelligent, well-informed citizen to conclude that he “can fight amore effective war on terror” than President Bush.

Could it be the four months he spent in Vietnam? The three Purple Heart medals, two of which we now learn (from his Swift Boat comrades) were the result of self-inflicted wounds, and NOT, as he has claimed, from enemy fire? Or perhaps it is the third Purple Heart, which he received for a “fanny wound.” On the other hand, there are the eight years he spent on the Senate Intelligence Committee, during which tenure he missed 38 out of 49 important hearings on the subject of terrorism and intelligence — and all of these hearings occurred AFTER the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.

Why does Mr. Mishak not question or comment upon the fact that Mr. Kerry’s 20-year voting record in the Senate was never mentioned during his 55-minute speech at the Democratic National Convention? Could it be because Kerry is the #1 most liberal Senator, based on his 20-year voting record – even more liberal than Ted Kennedy and Hilary Clinton? Or maybe it is because he proposed slashing $7.5 billion from the intelligence budget AFTER the 1993 World Trade Center attack. Then again, it could also be the fact that, as a Senator, he repeatedly opposed weapons vital to winning the War on Terror, including the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, the Patriot Missile, the B-2 Stealth Bomber and the F-18 fighter jet, to name a few.

He and his running mate, John Edwards, are fond of saying that they strongly support the global war on terror, and we heard a lot of “you can run but you cannot hide” rhetoric at the convention (just in case al-Qaeda was watching). But, lest we forget, Kerry voted in favor of sending troops into Iraq, but then voted AGAINST the $87 billion needed to fund the war. I suppose he should get some credit for saying “I actually did vote for the $87 billion before I voted against it.”

Mr. Mishak highlighted the Democratic campaign’s theme of “making America stronger at home and more respected around the world.” How does this square with John Kerry’s declared intent to weaken the Patriot Act, which was designed to apprehend and prosecute terrorists and to protect America? Or, for the that matter, with his brilliant “multi-lateral” strategy of forming discussion groups with the French, Germans, Russians and Chinese, in the hope that they will like us better, and therefore send lots of troops and money to Afghanistan, Iraq and wherever else we must go to eradicate terrorism? This notion is absurd and not based on rational thinking. After all, when is the last time the French, for example, fought and won their own war? Or consider this: an illustration that appears on a “food diary” currently being distributed by Subway Sandwich Shops in Germany, which depicts a giant cheeseburger, including the lettuce and tomato, slamming into two high-rise towers, with cartoon characters seen running from the flaming ruins (CNSNews.com, August 4, 2004).

John Kerry wants us to trust him, yet he has managed to take on inconsistent positions on both sides of most major issues. For example, he voted for the “No Child Left Behind” act, but now, under pressure from education bureaucrats, he attacks it, stating it is “difficult to see how it helps parents or children.” (LA Times, 4/5/04). He and other prominent Democrats have railed against the deficit, without acknowledging the impact that 9/11 had, and without disclosing to the American people that he proposed AT LEAST $1.9 trillion in new government spending.

I, for one, do not consider “flip-flopping” to be a sign of strength or character. This is apparently a sentiment shared by 20 of the 21 men under his Swift Boat command, several of whom have accused him of outright lies in his recounting of the events that ultimately got him the Purple Hearts. One of the testimonials is from a doctor who treated him for his “wounds.” Another accuses Kerry of being “unfit to be Commander in Chief.”

On November 2, we are facing the most important presidential election of my lifetime. I believe the outcome will affect world events far beyond the next four years. I also believe the Muslim extremists who are at the root of global terror in all corners of the world must be eliminated, wherever they hide, and by any means necessary to insure the survival of Western civilization and freedom. These people will stop at nothing short of killing as many Americans as they can. They do not differentiate between Democrats and Republicans, civilians or military personnel. They want to kill us all. Their leaders have said so on multiple occasions. George W. Bush and the current administration clearly understand this. John Kerry and John Edwards clearly do not.

Sharon M. Reiss, Esq.
Mt. Airy