December 16-22, 2004

mailbag

Letters to the Editor

by the Readers

Where's the Love?

I agree that many of the "skateproof" techniques currently used are more of an eyesore than the black skate smudges or erosion marks, but there was an answer to all of this that our fine city officials pompously turned down. DC Shoes was set to give the city $100,000 per year for the next 10 years to fix eroded ledges, clean up trash and help with all other overhead costs associated with Love Park. This sum was drastically higher than necessary. There would have easily been an extra $20,000 a year which could have gone to [restore] rundown public parks and recreation centers or help a needy family or two but our city decided against accepting the money. And we wonder why Philadelphia has trouble retaining its youth after college — go figure!
Jason Macias
Owner, Slave Skateshop

The Paper Chase

As a former owner who put his soul into a newspaper that became quite good, Bruce Schimmel might admit one other reason why big dailies like the Inquirer struggle with readership: They suck [Loose Canon, "Stalking the Wild Readers," Dec. 2, 2004].

They are allowed to suck by an ownership that continues to insist that sound business practices produce good newspapers. They do not. Those who work for newspapers should stop trying to pretend they do.

Paying reporters lots of money to produce little or nothing for long periods while they learn their sources and discover the inside stories is no businessperson's notion of efficiency. Adding dozens more reporters of this kind to the staff is no businessperson's notion of sanity. Yet very bad business moves like these produce better newspapers, no question.

And newspaper revenue is now so beholden to advertising dollars, what reader can believe she's getting an honest story where sponsors have such an influence?

Getting a big readership is no magic trick. You need courage to print what will piss some people off. You need the balls to dig deep. And you need ownership — the Grahams and Sulzbergers come to mind — committed to getting a good newspaper first and a big profit second. The good newspaper also has the advantage of being a long-term profit center — as opposed to a shorter-sighted paper that profits big right now and gets sold later, when no one takes it seriously anymore.
Rob Laymon
South Philly

Taken for a Ride

The last thing that SEPTA deserves is more money for attempting to hold the city hostage yet again. It seems that the only changes SEPTA is ever willing to make are hikes in fares and threats to cut service. The buses are still dirty, unreliable, consistently late, crowded due to the buses being late and the bulk of the drivers are rude. They do not seem willing to change any of these things in terms of quality of service but are rather willing to demand more and more money. It is amazing how a city as large as Philadelphia has allowed SEPTA to get away with what they have for as long as they have.

Before any additional money should be pumped into SEPTA, their financial structure, their control of quality and their whole organization should be carefully audited. It seems like someone is skimming off of the top of their funds and everyone else in this state has to pay for it.
Lana Cooper
Northeast Philly