Making monsters of animals is more exploitation
Wappingers Falls, N.Y.: Re “This Shark Week, some ideas on ‘Jaws’ at 50” (op-ed, July 19): I was curious to know why anyone would write an op-ed pointlessly encouraging the public to freely “enjoy” the film “Jaws” — until I noticed the author was himself an animal exploiter/profiteer at the New York Aquarium, part of the captive animal cycle, and curator of the Wildlife Conservation Society, where “conservation” is a euphemism for hunting.
Author Hans Walters says, “We cannot blame Peter Benchley or Steven Spielberg for demonizing sharks.” But the fact is that “Jaws” author Benchley himself expressed regret for his hyper-fear-mongering tome that cheered shark killings and wrongly victimized them as the enemy of humanity. Yet, at the time, he and Spielberg simply saw a way to get richer — no conscience, no moral decency.
No media outlet in 2025 would laud films or novels that encourage misrepresentation, hatred and derision toward other innocent beings. Even the classic “Gone with the Wind” is now only shown with an advisory caution note tacked on due to its slavery-is-great message. Indeed, if the film were made today depicting happy, submissive slaves — well, it wouldn’t be made today. There would be riots outside the theater.
There is nothing heroic or exciting about slaughtering sharks and demonizing beings that are in their own home, just looking for food. “The fear lingers” due to profiteers like Walters and a media that thrives on demonizing non-human animals that can’t defend themselves.
“Jaws” should be considered a sad curiosity that’s best relegated to obscurity. Yliana Franco
Stifling heat
Glendale: In my opinion, the reason Zohran Mamdani won the Democratic mayoral primary was because June 24 was one of the hottest days of the year and a lot of people, especially the elderly, didn’t vote. I didn’t go out to vote that day because I’m on oxygen and it was too hot. I have a bad lung and heart trouble. But if Andrew Cuomo is running, I will vote for him for sure. Laurel Turnbull
People first
Bloomfield, N.J.: I spoke with a grocery store cashier recently who was concerned that automated checkout lanes ultimately hurt business. It’s not a new topic, but still important. Numerous people, especially seniors, object to this impersonal system. There is a huge condo complex near the store filled with older residents. For many, grocery shopping is their social event for the day. It’s hard to have personal service, maybe share a laugh and a bit of conversation, when required to man a half-dozen self-checkout lanes. It’s also difficult to help a customer if she can’t leave her post. Automation is used in many stores, and some people prefer it. However, job losses and a less interactive experience are the casualties. I’ve left a store when automated was my only option, a quiet protest in favor of the world I want. This technology likely isn’t going away, but give people a choice. Christine Sparta
Wasted space
Lake Grove, L.I.: Please examine page 47 of Saturday’s paper. That crossword puzzle is printed so small that it can barely be read. The box numbers are impossible to decipher without a magnifying glass, and equally impossible to fill in. You charge $3 for the paper, which contains three full-page ads (pages 14, 16 and 18) that tout your book publications, your “deal” for new subscribers and your app (in that order). Good idea to fish for new subscribers because you are about to lose at least this one. I cannot continue to pay $3 for a paper printed in a manner that is not readable. Apparently, you have space aplenty to run your own ads! Use some of that for content. Victor Fusco
Subjective stats
Staten Island: Data is a funny thing. It can tell different stories depending on the statistic you choose. You need to objectively view the entire dataset to come to common-sense conclusions. Marc Molinaro (“Crime in the subway is real by any name,” op-ed, July 25) claims Jerry Nadler “cherry-picked” crime stats. Molinaro offers many stats as well, but what he neglects to say is the number of rides taking place each year — approximately 1.2 billion in 2024 — when he says there were 1,177 violent index crimes in the subway. That’s .000001%. Yes, one is too many, and we should work to make it safer, but please don’t paint a picture of dire straits. We have many people living in poverty. Molinaro doesn’t offer any consideration of how to make that better, as his stated goal is to give the city what we deserve — more police and surveillance. Gina Ottrando
Not right in the head
Staten Island: In Saturday’s Daily News, Justine Randall-Pizarro, 18, takes an N train for a joyride. It’s the 13th time she has been arrested in 2025. Robert Strother kills his girlfriend and his mom cleans the apartment to cover up the crime. Ernesto Cruz, 54, kills his wife and 2-year-old baby. Aaron Henderson tossed a 15-month-old child into an incinerator chute (luckily, the baby is alive). Jamel Williams, 21, killed Marco Reyes, 30, a stranger. After five years, Stephanie Castillo is charged with murder and manslaughter for killing her twin baby boys after giving birth at home. I wonder when our politicians will get serious about people with mental disabilities. The above-mentioned items are not done by a normal person. Prison is not the answer. They need to be put in a hospital for people with mental problems. Sadly, some may never be allowed out. Thomas Bell
Can’t deliver
Hamilton Square, N.J.: Donald Trump promised to end the Russia-Ukraine war on day one. Did we miss the part where he just walks away? Sounds just like every time he can’t salvage a business and declares bankruptcy, leaving everyone else to hold the bag. He didn’t lower prices (tariffs, anyone?), didn’t end a war and lets his buddy Benjamin Netanyahu continue bombing innocent people. Maybe he wants to be sure Gaza is totally flattened. It’ll be easier to build his dream resort. From going bankrupt after daddy bankrolled him, he has become a total flop. He’s a con man, plain and simple, and his acolytes continue to slurp it up. Eileen Johnson
Dangerous group-think
Howard Beach: While I’ve been critical of the Democrats for their mishandling of the border situation and for the way they conducted the election, I’m equally troubled by the current Republican leadership. Frankly, Trump and his administration strike me as profoundly immoral — deeply corrupt and, at times, shockingly cruel in their rhetoric and actions. The words and behaviors coming from that camp are beyond what I would have thought possible in American political life. As for the term “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” I see that as a political label used to dismiss criticism. In contrast, I believe a far greater concern is what I’d call “Trump Cult Psychosis” — a mindset that condones or even encourages threatening, intimidating and sometimes violent behavior toward anyone who dares to dissent. That, in my opinion, poses a far more serious and real danger to our democracy and civil society. Ernest Kienzle
Opportunistic
Bronx: You recently reported on the administration’s lawsuit taking aim at “an NYPD operations order that prevents officers from engaging in or assisting in civil immigration enforcement” (“Don sues city on sanctuary laws,” July 25). The justification for the lawsuit is the fact that the Department of Homeland Security is blaming Mayor Adams and New York’s sanctuary city policies for the shooting of an off-duty Customs and Border Patrol agent by an undocumented immigrant in a robbery gone wrong. Who is the state of Wisconsin suing as a result of the murders of state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark Hortman by Vance Boelter? His church? Individual actions are on the individuals who committed them. The White House should stop trying to weaponize crimes to suit its agenda. Maria Bonsanti
Small-town gripe
Bronx: To Voicer Robert Brennan: You refer to New York City as “this great city of ours.” You live in Pearl River, N.Y. How is the city yours? W. Twirley
Silently starving
Brooklyn: There has been ongoing reporting about malnutrition and food distribution problems in Gaza, but the media is ignoring the more serious problem in Sudan. The Persecution Project Foundation states that more than 100 children in Sudan are dying every day from starvation. Wendy Jackson
