‘Never again’ is replaced by ‘try and stop us’
Los Altos, Calif.: Ignoring the lessons of the Holocaust and the moral teachings of their own faith, Israeli leaders continue their rampage of mass murder and starvation against Palestinians — with full backing from U.S. weapons and taxpayer dollars. More than 200 Palestinians were killed last weekend alone, adding to a death toll in Gaza that now exceeds 58,000 — a figure widely considered a major undercount.
On Sunday, an Israeli missile struck a water distribution point in Nuseirat refugee camp, killing at least 10 people, including six children. A separate airstrike on a Gaza City market killed 17 more. Saturday saw the killing of 38 desperate aid seekers. Paramedic Hassan Omran reported that many injuries were to the head and torso, stating, “The occupation purposely kills and annihilates people… they get killed in cold blood.”
Meanwhile, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and leader of the opposition Yair Lapid condemned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposal to forcibly relocate Palestinians into a so-called “humanitarian city” built atop Rafah’s ruins, likening it to ethnic cleansing and the creation of a concentration camp.
In the West Bank, Israeli settlers murdered 20-year-old Palestinian-American Sayfollah Musallet of Tampa, while he visited family. Settlers blocked ambulances for hours, preventing aid. He is the seventh American killed there since October 2023.
This is not self-defense. This is state-sponsored terror. The U.S. must end its complicity now. Jagjit Singh
Wardrobe over war
East Meadow, L.I.: Here we are, five months after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited President Trump in the White House. Trump talked about how he wanted to make peace, and Zelenskyy said Vladimir Putin has no interest in making peace or abiding by an agreement, if you know who you’re dealing with. Some of the fools who were invited to the White House for this meeting were more concerned about what Zelenskyy was wearing than what’s going on in his country. All of a sudden, Trump is waking up to the reality of what Putin is all about and sending whatever he can to Ukraine. If Trump and his White House visitors were more concerned about Putin than what Zelenskyy was wearing, maybe we wouldn’t have lost five months. Jeff Tuck
Loyalty rewarded
Brooklyn: It is a sad day for America when our Justice Department makes its decisions solely based on whether the accused support or oppose the president. The latest example is blatant. A Utah doctor lied to his patients. They wanted the COVID vaccine. Because he opposes the vaccine, he injected them with a saline solution. As a result, he was convicted of a crime. The attorney general intervened on his behalf (“Feds drop charges against Utah doctor accused of destroying COVID vaccines,” July 14). This is clearly an example of the Trump administration using the DOJ to punish his enemies and reward his friends. This is funny coming from Trump, who accused the Biden administration of the very same thing. I guess it’s OK to pardon the people convicted of participating in Jan. 6 because they did it for Trump. Alan Podhaizer
Authoritarian solidarity
Peters Township, Pa.: Trump is not content to use his sinister influence to mold American courts to his liking, but is now seeking to upend the justice system in Brazil. Although the U.S. currently enjoys a significant trade surplus with Brazil, Trump threatened our trading partner with a staggering 50% tariff for reasons having nothing to do with trade. Trump feels a kinship to former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro because, like Trump, his pal legitimately lost an election and then sought to overturn the result. Bolsonaro is being prosecuted by a country that, unlike the U.S. under Trump, holds the rule of law sacrosanct. Trump is engaging in extortion to demand that Brazil drop the charges. Never mind that a 50% tariff could be expected to significantly boost the price of goods we import, prominently including coffee and beef. When Trump wants something, he doesn’t hesitate to cut off the nose to spite the face. Oren Spiegler
They’re coming for us
Madisonville, Pa.: Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill is now the law of the land. Thousands of Americans will either lose or have severely curtailed Medicaid and Medicare services they depend on. Republicans maintain the fiction that there are a huge number of recipients fraudulently receiving benefits. They assure us that only those people will be affected. Of course, they previously assured us that only the bad guys, gang members and the like, would be swept up in deportations. Then we watched ICE agents chasing farm workers in fields and loitering in the hallways of courthouses waiting to ambush people. I don’t remember any mention of ICE going into urban neighborhoods where known gang members operate to apprehend any bad guys. Once again, we are being lied to by our own government about what the impact of this recent legislation will be and who will be affected. Tom Mielczarek
Brute force
Bronx: I have read about MAGA groups saying President Barack Obama was the deporter in chief to justify what Trump is doing. I don’t remember men with their faces covered and no identification acting like stormtroopers, grabbing people off the streets. Nor do I remember men who had their heads shaved, all dressed in white, being sent to the horrible prison in El Salvador. I don’t remember an Alligator Alcatraz and people being sent to countries they know nothing about, such as war-torn South Sudan, and not their country of birth. Obama deported criminal aliens. Trump is all about cruelty, evil and no compassion. And it is no surprise that it’s mostly Black and Brown people being targeted. Pauline Graham Binder
Stand my ground?
Macungie, Pa.: When heavily armed, masked invaders break down the doors to my house and refuse to identify themselves, am I allowed to take advantage of my Second Amendment rights to protect my family and me? Just asking. Bob Smagula
Remember that?
Flushing: Where would Zohran Mamdani, Mayor Adams and others be if busloads of border-crossers were still being shipped here from Texas every day? They would be at the Roosevelt Hotel (now closed, thanks to Trump policies) handing out peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to hundreds arriving a day. That’s what it would be if Joe Biden and/or Kamala Harris were in Trump’s place. To all those missing the good old days of Biden/Harris and voting for Mamdani, remember the sandwiches were it not for Trump’s border policies, which I’m sure Mamdani opposes. Ben Jordon
Always wanting more
Greenwood Lake, N.Y.: To Voicer Carmelo Bugos: The answer to your question is never. Gov. Hochul, like all governors before her, has never heard of a tax or “fee” they did not like. Rather than cut programs, root out waste or find more efficient ways to spend our tax dollars, they’d rather pick our pockets and tell us we’re gonna like it because it’s for our benefit — and how lucky we are to have them. Democrat or Republican does not matter, one is just as bad as the other. The sad part is we vote these grifters in a second time hoping they will be better. How stupid is that? Joe Fioramonti
Take the A
Delray Beach, Fla.: Growing up on Ozone Park, the only train I knew was the A. Once again, with the storm this week, the A train was, as always, reliable. As Duke Ellington once said in his famous quote for the ages, “Take the ‘A’ Train.” Manny Agostini
Simple pleasures
Bronx: We live in a fast-paced society where many people are rushing around, having very little time to relax and unwind. We all need some enjoyment in our lives, when you can leave your cell phone at home and take a peaceful, short walk. Go to the park and see young children at play. You were once their age. Go out with a friend who makes you smile and laugh. Go out to lunch and eat something you really enjoy. Go to the zoo. There are so many unique animals and other living creatures there. Go to the movies. At home, watch a comedy or any program you enjoy. Go to bed relaxed. Tomorrow is another day. Marsha Kolin
