For better neighborhoods, listen to neighbors
Manhattan: The Daily News is a valued member of the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce, and we consider The News a friend. But good friends tell each other when they’re wrong, and The News’ Editorial Board was wrong on Feb. 7 to criticize a recent decision by Manhattan Community Board 10 without giving fuller context (“Say yes to housing“).
Our historic Harlem is undergoing rapid change, and the One45 development proposal, featuring two 34-story towers on 145th St. with 968 apartments, has sparked strong debate, so C.B. 10 carefully reviewed One45’s proposal. Rather than outright rejecting the project, C.B. 10 called for improvements, including: Steps to prevent development-related increases in asthma cases; designated space for community organizations serving local youth and seniors; climate resiliency measures and environmental protections needed because of the One45 project’s immediate proximity to the Harlem River; more affordable housing for Harlem residents; equal distribution of affordable units; and prioritized local hiring focusing on minority-owned businesses. These requests are reasonable, and essential for ensuring that the project meets Harlem’s needs.
Too many people are civically disengaged. C.B. 10 members are engaged and thoughtful, and they did their due diligence. They should be applauded for their care.
The Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce supports C.B. 10’s approach and encourages decision-makers and elected officials, including Rep. Adriano Espaillat, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, Councilmember Yusef Salaam, the NYC Planning Commission and others to embrace its recommendations. Lloyd A. Williams, president and CEO, Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce
Print improvements
Flushing: Please reduce the size of your paper’s pictures by just 25% and increase the size of the printed words by 25%. I have nearly 20/20 vision with glasses but I still need a magnifying glass to read your articles. It is very annoying. I am not alone in this complaint. You are not publishing a picture magazine or comic book. You are publishing a newspaper. Why don’t you take a poll of your readers and see for yourselves. Martin Goldman
Despicable support
Brooklyn: Re “Luigi back in court & supporters cheer” (Feb. 22): Can someone explain to me how a person who kills someone in cold blood can find people to support this act? Not only did he kill him but he did it with a brazen act of cowardice (shot him in the back)! The people who support this are truly sick! Sometimes I wonder about the human race and its ability to sink to unfathomable lows! Glad I’m not one of them, and I hope this person spends the rest of his life in jail and then burns in hell when he’s gone. Jeff Kulikowski
Contested death toll
Brooklyn: To Voicer Steven Davies: The Palestinian Authority states that about 48,000 Gazans have been killed and Israel states that about 20,000 have been Hamas fighters. About 28,000 Palestinian civilians have been killed out of a population of more than 2 million in a war started by Hamas. The problem is the Voicers who are blinded by ignorance or antisemitism and who accuse Israel of committing genocide. Lawrence Freedland
Report solutions
Manhattan: I was recently doing research for an advocacy project on youth homelessness as part of my advanced advocacy and policy class at Yeshiva University. It was surprising that there was not much information related to this increasingly problematic situation in our city and state. The New York Office of the Comptroller reported that the number of unhoused youth or children increased from 20,299 in 2022 to 50,773 in 2024. According to this agency, New York has one of the highest rates of youth homelessness in the country. I found an article (“Homelessness in NYC at record high despite a decrease in migrant population,” Nov. 1, 2023) that described how overpopulated the city’s shelters are and how this is a result of the ongoing migrant crisis. Rather than focusing on the problem and its alleged cause, the Daily News should focus on investigative journalism that proposes solutions to remediate homelessness and the populations it affects. Maria Francisco
Great song
San Francisco: Thank you for Colin Fleming’s Valentine’s Day paean to the classic Beatles song “In My Life” (“ ‘In My Life’ was a Beatles valentine,” op-ed, Feb. 14). The nostalgic John Lennon-penned ballad, inspired in part by the death of his friend and former bandmate Stuart Sutcliffe three years earlier, is my co-favorite Beatles song (along with Paul McCartney’s “Yesterday”). Stephen A. Silver
Black diversity
Manhattan: To Leonard Greene (“Going along with Don,” column, Feb. 23): Tiger Woods is an American Descendant of Slavery. His father’s culture, history and lineage are from this country. Kamala Harris’ parents are both immigrants, and while she is a woman of color, labeling her a Black American is a misnomer. Americans should learn the differences between Black-skinned people. We are not all alike. We have our rich, diverse cultures, histories and lineages, which should be acknowledged and celebrated. That’s the difference between Black Americans (ADOS) and children of immigrants. Skin color is not a tie that binds. Heyward Johnson Jr.
Less for you
Norwalk, Conn.: To Voicer Rob Mele: During Donald Trump’s four years in office, the cost-of-living adjustment total for those years was 12.3%. During Joe Biden’s four years, the COLA total was 20.3%. Look it up before you speak, but you’re a true MAGA, spurting out lies without any proof. I hope you enjoy your COLA in the next four years! F. Russo
Protection racket
Brooklyn: Words matter. And in all the discussion around Trump’s proposed rare earth elements deal with Ukraine, why have we never heard the proper words used to describe it? It’s not a “deal,” it’s not a “negotiation,” it is extortion. The thug holding the Oval Office is demanding that the ravaged nation of Ukraine pay us protection money — “Nice country you used to have. Be a shame if we let the Russians just take it from you.” Not that we should be surprised. This is precisely what he is good at. “Give me what I want and I won’t hurt you. Don’t give it to me and I’ll find your opponents and get it from them.” And why are President Emmanuel Macron of France and Prime Minister Keir Starmer of the U.K. coming to Washington to meet with the president? Because they don’t want to be next. Ian Randal Strock
Trump-crazed
Monmouth Beach, N.J.: Congratulations, Voicer Dave Kalin, on having the Daily News publish your most recent pro-Trump propaganda diatribe at the top of the Voice of the People page with a bonus, a photo of your hero. Since you are a regular contributor of laudatory prose about Trump, I am beginning to suspect that “Dave Kalin” might be another pseudonym Trump uses, since his other aliases — John Barron, John Miller and David Dennison — are too well-known. If “Dave Kalin” is not an alias, perhaps you are the one dealing with a serious case of Pro-Trump Derangement Syndrome (PTDS) that the MAGA faithful suffer from when normal, intelligent, educated people expose all the incredible, incoherent babble interlaced among the daily, nonstop doses of lies and stupidity they are subjected to every time Trump moves his lips or tweets his fingers. David W. Kay
Shamed nation
Rockaway Park: This is the first time in my life that I have been ashamed to be an American. Our local politicians are corrupt, and our federal government is being run by thugs and miscreants, with a leader who pardons traitors, lies to the citizenry and deceives his believers. If by some miracle we survive the next four years and the combined fury of other nations that once trusted the U.S.A., it is I who will stand in shock and awe. With respect to honesty and dignity, and thanking The News for its stance on reporting injustice, I remain. Maureen McNelis
Hazardous tool
Melbourne, Australia: Children are told “don’t run with scissors” because it’s dangerous and they could hurt themselves. Has anyone told surrogate president Elon Musk about the dangers of chainsaws, as they’re dangerous and we could get hurt? Dennis Fitzgerald
Pope opening?
Ridgewood: I wonder if Musk is going to pick the next pope. L. Tuthill