Letters to the Editor

What You Say

Fearless Philly

Well it's no secret that Philly has been home to some of the best talent on the East Coast — the U.S. for that matter [Cover Story, Drew Lazor, "Fearless Factor," Feb. 5, 2009]. Jaz has that soulful "wow" factor that so many Philly artists have. I'm not shocked at all that she's been nominated this soon. Philly puts out some of the greatest talents in the business, period.

Jay
Via citypaper.net

VoteAubrey
Via citypaper.net

Mixed feelings here [The Clog, Isaiah Thompson, "Rendell offers brilliant, unique solution to Pennsylvania education woes: more gambling!?" Feb. 6, 2009]. I would hope at least some of the revenue would go to educating the public on gambling addiction and making rehabilitation readily available. Still, even if the percentage of gambling addicts does increase with availability, which really only makes sense, it's still a small enough percentage that, in light of budget and economic woes, the benefits to the community could outweigh the costs if it's handled right. Most bars already have those little arcade machines, with zero payout and elements of skill eliminated based on how much booze I need to drink before I play them. And in the U.K. and parts of Canada these video betting machines are already widespread; those places are hardly wastelands and PA could do far worse than end up like that.

Still, why not just let bars buy licenses to have poker/blackjack tournaments and tax those? Not as much revenue, but it's a start.

HALF OFF DEPOT

Why live life at full price?

Tyler
Via citypaper.net

Why does the argument against gambling always show concern for the punks who might abuse it? I could care less if some nitwit blows his paycheck on a bet. Grow up, Clyde. If they are gonna act like assholes they should be sacrificed for the benefit of our schools. Wanna make money? Open some state sanctioned Bingo parlors with a generous "Last-Game" payout (maybe some "scantily clads" to serve refreshments). By the way, Tyler's idea of card tourneys is brilliant. To those who believe gambling is evil ... wanna bet?

Ron Stokes
Via Citypaper.net

We are all going to miss Ed Goppelt [News, Isaiah Thompson, "The End of Hallwatch," Jan. 29, 2009]. Although I am a supporter of casinos and gambling in general. I appreciate Ed for his hard work and honesty and I wish him well. City Council, the mayor and the clerk of quarter sessions all need a swift kick in the ass!

Philadelphia seems like it's always in financial trouble. It's time for the mayor to be a L-E-A-D-E-R. It's the mayor and Council's fiduciary duty to provide a balanced budget, and they can start by firing all patronage employees, cut work hours to 24 hours for municipal employees, require new bidding on all city contracts where they are currently union only and open the process up to non-union contractors.

Philadelphia is afraid of innovation and casino gaming, WHY?

Joe Simiriglio Jr.
Via citypaper.net

The illustration accompanying last week's story on islands in the Delaware [News, Andrew Thompson, "Isle be Damned," Feb. 5, 2009] should have credited the artist. He is Perry Benson, R.A. City Paper regrets the error.