Readers sound off on Harry Belafonte, pedestrian safety and Biden’s record – New York Daily News

Bellerose: Our nation and the world just lost Harry Belafonte, who has died at age 96. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, was a famous singer, an actor and, above all, was a civil rights activist. He believed in the rights of all men and women, no matter the color of their skin.

Belafonte put his life on the line for his activism. He believed all men and women deserved respect. He was loved by many and deserves our praise as we mourn the loss of a good man.

In 1963, I attended Grace Lutheran Day School in Queens Village. In my eighth-grade class, we had a Black student named Glen Tablet, who one day brought in a picture of his uncle, Harry Belafonte, which had been signed and said, “To my nephew.” Glen was very proud of this picture and showed everyone in our class.

For whatever reason, I never forgot Glen and the picture of his uncle, and that was more than 60 years ago. At Grace Lutheran Day School, we had students of many races and nationalities, and we all treated one another with respect.

Harry Belafonte, you will be greatly missed, for your long life has truly made a difference to so many people. God bless you. Frederick R. Bedell Jr.

Manhattan: To Voicer Myra Goodman: If you look it up, you’ll find that in 1896, the Cracker Jack company came up with the name after a sampler said their product was “a crackerjack,” meaning the quality was excellent. “Cracker” was first used by whites way back in the 18th century to describe/insult poor whites living in certain areas of the U.S. Also, don’t Georgians refer to their state as the “Cracker State”? Vanessa Enger

Port Jefferson Station, L.I.: I read with interest Blondel A. Pinnock’s op-ed re Black flight from Brooklyn (“Reversing America’s widening racial wealth gap,” April 25), trying to get an accurate understanding. I found a mostly slanted story about the wealth gap. If the Black community was more interested in getting better education, not having 35-year-old grandmothers and stopping the excessive amount of crime being perpetrated by people of color, maybe the 22,000 Black residents wouldn’t feel afraid of staying instead of going to red states, where things are usually safer. I’m tired of hearing about the past, it’s an easy crutch to depend on. Increase two-parent families, work at improving yourself, get control of the streets you live on and then you will see Black people staying in NYC. Bob Cavaliere

Bronx: Hello, Voicer Ralph D’Esposito: Woke means “wrong for our children and employees.” Is it bad? Ask the politicians who spread the semantic language to invoke a desired effect, which remains a mystery to regular folks. Priscilla Bonilla

Newark: To Voicer Ellen Settanni: Applause! David Figueroa

Brooklyn: In response to the editorial “Our only home” (April 22): We should also add that many cars idle unnecessarily. It is illegal in NYC for a non-emergency vehicle to idle for more than three minutes (one minute in a school zone). Law enforcement should know this law and give out tickets accordingly. One big problem is cars with electric starters. We all need to do our part — if not for us, at least care about our children, who do not have a say. Josie Oliveri

Manhattan: Re “See New York City on two wheels” (op-ed, April 25): NYC’s bike ridership is growing, and it’s great that the mayor plans to improve the city’s cycling infrastructure. But another large part of New York’s sustainable transportation ecosystem, as well as the bread and butter for most people in every borough, is walking. Pedestrian access and safety are vital to a livable city that supports equity, creates vibrant communities and promotes public safety. Walkable cities lead to greater use of public transit, which uses the fewest resources per capita and is more productive economically. Increasing pedestrian use of sidewalks leads to more foot traffic for local businesses and is a crime deterrent. While biking should be encouraged, we need to encourage cyclists to follow traffic laws, go in the correct direction when using bike lanes and refrain from cycling on sidewalks. Ensuring that pedestrians feel safe is vital to creating vibrant neighborhoods. Betsy Gotbaum

Brooklyn: Once again, we hear of a tragic, violent death over a parking space, this time in Jamaica, Queens (“Her parking-spot slay pain,” April 24). It seems it has become a regular occurrence to hear about incidents where people have been beaten or even murdered over a parking space. It has become extremely difficult to find parking in the city with all the Citi Bike racks and the restaurant sheds. An easy solution is to reduce the space required around a fire hydrant from 15 feet to 6 feet. This would produce tens of thousands of additional parking spaces all around the city and at no cost. This rule is already in effect in Boston and working quite well. Let’s stop the mayhem with this simple solution and let’s do it now! Robert Mascali

The Daily News Flash

Weekdays

Catch up on the day’s top five stories every weekday afternoon.

Manhattan: I love your new look. The paper gets smaller as your home subscription price goes ridiculously higher. Very apropos. Louie Russo

Armonk, N.Y.: I’m absolutely certain that arguably the worst president this country has ever endured will, in fact, “finish the job” of taking the United States of America down the drain should he be reelected. He has already done a good job toward that end. God help us! Gary Miller

Manhattan: Re President Biden’s “finish the job”: Hasn’t he done enough? Damian Begley

Ormond Beach, Fla.: All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing to stop it. This is on you, America. By either not voting or by voting for these godless Communists, you embraced a government that is for killing unborn children, sexualizing the children they allow to live, redistributing our wealth through high taxes and inflation caused by massive printing of money that is not supported by economic growth. Also, the destruction of our national security, our military, the Constitution and all that is decent and good in our culture with a racist and polarizing woke counterculture movement. Worst of all is the denial of our First Amendment right of free speech through unlawful censorship and control of what Americans are allowed to see and hear and think. You may get one last chance to fix this in 2024, if we get any chance at all. Charles Michael Sitero

Brooklyn: Regarding Voicer John Deichmeister’s reference to Donald Trump’s “inciteful rhetoric,” I believe he misspelled “insightful.” Robert Perlberg

Brooklyn: I enjoy the back and forth with Voicer Daniel Correa because he deals with issues, not personal attacks. However, he still does not grasp what I was saying. I never commented on whether Donald Trump was going to win or lose the lawsuit, especially since I have not read the actual testimony. However, I have served on several juries and they have always made their decisions based on the evidence and the law. I am sure this time will not be any different, even though former President Trump is making the worst mistake anybody facing the legal system can make with personal attacks against the judge and district attorney. This is like a basketball player attacking a referee. Alan Podhaizer

Forest Hills: I am not usually a big fan of psychoanalytic theory, but with the mostly white males in the GOP, I just have to wonder. They are all afraid of strong women like Hillary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi (mommy figures?) and they are obsessed with these long, militaristic guns that are all longer than they are wide — phallic symbols — that shoot off more than they can ever imagine. Talk about insecure little boys with their toys! Stew Frimer