Treasure the father-son bond while you both can
Bloomington, Ind.: I had a son who passed away five years ago. His name was Ben. He was born in 1970 and died at the age of 50. He was the outcome of a brief marriage. My ex-wife moved out to Colorado from Indiana with him when he was 8.
Ben stayed with me for a few summers in Bloomington. He was the age when most kids become quite entertaining. Over those years, we grew close. I didn’t have a car then, so we walked everywhere. There was plenty of time to talk and joke. We shared many clever inside jokes and enjoyed pulling harmless pranks. Sometime in the late ’70s, the satellite Skylab would end its useful life and fall to Earth. Ben and I got a garbage can, added a TV antenna and included other mysterious objects. We painted “Skylab” on the can and placed it in an empty lot the night the satellite was set to fall. The local newspaper published a picture of our prank on the front page.
Unfortunately, we had limited contact during the last 30 years of his life. He passed away in a small mountain town in Colorado after a brief illness. His ashes were ski-lifted to the top of a mountain while many loving friends gathered to share their memories of Ben. I knew my son as a young boy, but I never saw the man he became. This fills me with deep regret. Who would have thought 50 years could pass in the blink of an eye? Those who knew Ben tell me he was smart, funny and the best friend one could have. Scott T. Thompson
Have a good one
Manhattan: Happy Father’s Day! Eat a hamburger for me! With tomato and mayo! Add some cheese, will ya? Gotta have some fun! Eva Julietta Tortora
Device dangers
Cincinnati: I am the son of Dr. Henry Heimlich, inventor of the Heimlich maneuver. My sister, Jan Heimlich, and I sent a letter to members of the New York City Council expressing our concerns about bill # Int 1002-2024, which will require NYC schools to acquire so-called anti-choking devices. As outlined in my letter, my father, as well as the FDA, the Red Cross and other prominent medical organizations, oppose use of such devices and have warned that they are ineffective and can cause injury to the choking victim. This bill will be considered before the Committee on Education on June 18, where we will testify about the dangers of these devices. We believe this issue is worthy of news coverage because the lives of New York City children are at risk. Phil Heimlich
Compromise bill
Bay Shore, L.I.: The NY HEAT Act may be dead, but long live its successor, the Customer Savings and Reliability Act. This compromise bill, answering the concerns of mostly Western New York Assembly members, provides regional plans that allow utilities to opt out of the original NY HEAT provisos. Western New York is served by one that isn’t capable of meeting them. The new bill still eliminates the rules that stem the runaway pipeline building that is raising our gas rates and contributing significantly to harmful heat waves and prolonged droughts. However, the compromise also eliminates the cap on utility bills for struggling families. However, it’s a bill that Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie must get over the finish line and Gov. Hochul must sign. Compromise is a start, and this step toward cleaner air, lower gas bills and less climate damage is a crucial one. David Bissoon
Traps are terrible
Brooklyn: To Voicer James Scott: I wholeheartedly agree regarding funding for new trash containers and the cruelty of glue traps. Funding should absolutely be directed toward providing more trash containers because more effective waste management means less garbage on the streets, which leads to fewer rats — a far more humane and effective solution than glue traps, which cause suffering not just to rats but to many animals. Can anyone disagree? We all want fewer rats, but there are better, more compassionate ways to achieve that goal. Glue traps are inhumane. Animals caught in them die slow, agonizing deaths. They experience extreme fear and may even attempt to self-mutilate in desperate efforts to escape. Birds that become stuck can lose feathers, rendering them unable to fly. Even household pets can fall victim to these traps. Ultimately, they are not only cruel but ineffective at addressing the root of the problem: excess garbage. Lauren Tartaglia
Coincidence?
White Plains, N.Y.: I always read the Daily News first, then turn on the morning news. After viewing the horrific plane crash, I went back to re-read “Mother Goose & Grimm.” How uncanny that that cartoon was published, of all days, on June 12. Randi Bernstein Feigenbaum
Fact-check
Staten Island: To Voicer Joe Schulok: What a selective memory you have! President Trump never ordered the National Guard to quell the riot on Jan. 6. Why would he, after all, the protesters were trying to keep him in the presidency. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser is the one who asked for help, and acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller called up the Guard. And yes, Joe Biden was in declining mental health toward the end of his presidency, but he did not cause a constitutional crisis. The crisis is occurring now, as Trump is putting himself above the Constitution and is doing his utmost to become our first dictator. And in four years, when the Constitution prohibits him from running for president again, he will find a way to try to stay in office. Eileen Zanelli
Poorly feigned ignorance
Manhattan: One of the few advantages of living in Trumpworld is that anything coming out of the Oval Office is not to be taken at face value. As Israeli jets were pounding Iranian nuclear sites, Marco Rubio released a statement declaring that it was a unilateral action and the U.S. was not involved. Once again, Trump sells the world the Brooklyn Bridge. In October 2024, the Israelis asked the Biden administration for real-time spy satellite information before they bombed Iran. They also asked for and were granted permission to fly over Iraqi airspace and American installations (while Biden denied the request for American aid in mid-air refueling, the U.S. was ready to do search-and-rescue for downed Israeli pilots). You do not have 250 Israeli bombers fly over the desert without the knowledge and approval of our president. Since June 1967, no major Israeli military operation has been carried out without American pre-approval. Louie Russo
Diverted defenses
Matawan, N.J.: It seems that Trump was fully aware of Israel’s attacks on Iran, and that’s why the thousands of drones that Biden had scheduled to be sent to Ukraine for its defense against Russian attacks were sent to the Middle East for Israel’s defense. Once again, Trump has crawled before his idol Vladimir Putin to show how little he would do to stop Russian aggression against Ukraine. Robert Wyshynski
Heartless
Yonkers: It’s almost unimaginable that a father could commit such a heinous crime. To throw a lovable and totally inoffensive child into the river like a piece of trash is beyond comprehension — more so when it’s your own flesh and blood. This is the lowest depth of depravity. Frank Brady
Destructive distraction
Oceanside, L.I.: To Voicer John De Angelo: You are so correct. James Dolan is clearly the problem. Daddy couldn’t trust him with a real job, so he gave him the Knicks and Rangers to ruin. I have been rooting for both teams since the Knicks actually won their two championships. Yes, this makes me old. As I am more of a hockey fan, when I saw that Dolan fired Tom Thibodeau, I felt it would benefit the Rangers. My reasoning is he ruined the Knicks when he forced Donnie Walsh to trade for Carmelo Anthony instead of waiting to sign him for nothing in free agency in the off-season, causing Walsh to quit, then ruined the Rangers by firing John Davidson and Jeff Gorton. Now he turns his attention back to the Knicks, so maybe he’ll leave the Rangers alone for awhile. We can only hope. Warren Meyer
