This charade is a stain on our society’s values
Sayville, L.I.: The second dump of the Epstein files shows how far we’ve sunk as a country. These documents are in the possession of the U.S. Department of Justice and Attorney General Pam Bondi. There are redactions all over, obscuring the names of those involved. They haven’t come close to adequate redactions to protect victims — names, phone numbers, email addresses and nude photos in which names and faces of potential victims can be identified. The DOJ says that was a “technical or human error” and removed them, but that genie is out of the bottle. If you believe it was in error, you’re a fool. I don’t see any errors outing any possibly culpable people.
There are an estimated 1,000 victims. How many who may have been considering coming forward will do so after this? It’s the full force of the federal government bludgeoning hundreds of victims of multiple sexual crimes. I don’t want to imagine even 5% of Americans not wanting justice for the victims and prosecution of the perpetrators. However, it seems that 45% of Americans will sit idly by while the party they support is covering things up and doing everything in its immense power to derail justice. Does that 45% not have daughters or wives, or any human decency?
We are officially a police state. Shame isn’t a strong enough word. I don’t think there’s a word strong enough for this. Ignominy? No, it’s far worse than that. Michael Hooker
Aider & abettor
East Meadow, L.I.: After witnessing Pam Bondi’s disgraceful antics during the House Judiciary Committee’s hearing on the Epstein files, one fact became clear: Bondi is President Trump’s Ghislaine Maxwell. Richard Skibins
The facts remain
Bronx: To Voicer Charles T. Compton: The migrants who rape and/or murder make up a minute part of that group. The overwhelming majority of those who commit such crimes were born here. The criminals among them do not justify the deportation of the overwhelming majority of migrants who commit no crimes while working hard for poverty wages. Also, federal agents seized Alex Pretti’s licensed gun that was not drawn, then held him down and shot him dead. That is murder, no matter how you try to spin it. Richard Warren
An era worth shedding
Manhattan: Re “Water-shed moment” (editorial, Feb. 8): Outdoor dining is a good concept but it must be done so that it works and makes sense. Enclosed structures are a bad idea. It was done during COVID as a pandemic necessity. We were social-distancing and trying to stay alive! This is no longer the case, and most people aren’t dining out in NYC in the fall and winter. Let’s get realistic. Restaurants should be able to apply to put tables, chairs and umbrellas on the sidewalk. City Council Speaker Julie Menin says she wants to repair the outdoor dining program. It must be done intelligently. If not, we’re going backwards! Carrie Tassa
Be freer
Manhattan: Mayor Mamdani suggests free bus rides for all during the five-week World Cup soccer tournament this summer in New York. It seems he’s a little cheap. I suggest free room and board for all at Gracie Mansion, the mayor’s home; free first-class airfare to NYC for all on El Al airlines; free cashmere suits for all at Bergdorf Goodman; free concerts conducted by Leonard Bernstein at Carnegie Hall; perfect weather every day; free lectures by Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu on the history of the Middle East in Central Park every night, served with falafel, shawarma and Diet Coke — at no cost, of course — and I suggest that the mayor have his head examined. Priceless! Gil Lederman
Missed one
Bronx: Voicer John Macklin writes that the AP article on the death of Mickey Lolich (“Lolich, Tiger hero of ’68 Series and ex-Met, dies at 85,” Feb. 5) should have included Lew Burdette’s performance, winning three games in the 1957 World Series. But Macklin is wrong. Apparently, he didn’t see that the article clearly states: “Since Lolich, only Arizona’s Randy Johnson in 2001 has won three games in a World Series.” The AP article is also wrong, however. Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto won three games in last year’s World Series. If you look before Lolich, there are nine pitchers who won three games in a World Series since 1903, including Bob Gibson in 1967. Bruce D. Campbell
Extend a hand
Glendale: It’s extremely rare that I agree with a Daily News editorial (“Mamdani snubs Archbishop Hicks,” Feb. 9). However, one of the necessary secrets to becoming a good or great leader is communication. The editorial had virtually nothing to do with religion. It had to do with reaching out to one of the many groups that will be ruled by Mayor Mamdani. If a leader can’t communicate, he’s doomed right off the bat. Outreach is critical. To the critics: Catholics make up a large part of the city — supposedly, about half of the population. Mamdani showed leadership (and guts) when he made it a point to meet with Trump at the White House. Not wanting to meet with those who disagree with you will only divide us further. Thomas Murawski
Momentary glory
Manhattan: Hotels, towers, art centers, demands for train stations and airports to carry his name — just when you think there are no limits to the vanity of this man, Trump never fails to disappoint. Joseph Stalin, having climbed to the top over a pile of bodies the size of which the world had never seen, had portraits, statues and even cities named after him. He wanted his legacy to last forever. But as we all know, “forever” lasted about 20 years. De-Stalinization was quick and brutal, with history having the last say — a lesson guaranteed to go unlearned. Louie Russo
Off his rocker
Penticton, British Columbia: Common American charity demands that the American patient — President Trump — be immediately removed and institutionalized. The Mad Monarch of Mar-a-Lago is ridiculed worldwide as the babbling fool and face of Satan whose venom is deadly and far-reaching. Yet, greatest is fear of his dementia-wrapped power. Joe Schwarz
Drop the T
Plainview, L.I.: The Trump-ordered Pride flag removal at the Stonewall Inn is no surprise given last February’s deletion of the “T” from “LGBTQ.” Therefore, the logical next step would be to also delete that letter from his own last name. And it’s not my doing that the word “rump” is defined in multiple dictionaries as “rear end,” “backside,” “buttocks,” “the last or inferior part,” and even “ass.” Richard Siegelman
Free to fly it
Sunnyside: It was good to read about the Pride flag being put back in place at the Stonewall National Monument. However, it was distressing to read that some protesters “tried to pull down the American flag” and that some of them also “chanted at the pols to yank down the American flag, too.” Don’t these protesters realize that gay and trans people are treated better in America than anywhere else? John Francis Fox
