Beware the degradation that gambling can bring
Camden, N.J.: Oh, how I hate (loathe) to see this summer’s end. But as one who was conceived on Christmas Day, 1961, I have always been one to embrace autumn. Likewise, all the world identifies Times Square as the major entertainment hub of the Big Apple’s Theater District. Whenever I visit New York City, I am almost certain to enjoy the nostalgia of Times Square. It is amazing. Such energy of the crowd strolling along, enduring the fabulousness of its majestic stage show business scenery.
Visitors from all around the world add to the ambiance of its global formulation. It is a sensation I can only experience in NYC. And yet, I can’t fathom the idea or visualize the national plague of gaming in the Theater District, a place of such historic value.
For me, growing up in South Jersey in the mid- to late 1960s and ’70s, summers in Atlantic City were filled with fabulous leisure activities and entertainment. It was an atmosphere that replicated itself summer after summer. By the late ’70s, Caesars Hotel and Casino was among one of the first gaming establishments in that area. It changed Atlantic City’s family vibe. Its lackluster nature interfered with my adolescent summer social development.
The traditions of summer boardwalk life just didn’t seem the same anymore. I wouldn’t wish that quality of life nor lifestyle on any established area of prominent entertainment. Wayne E. Williams
Back to school
Bayside: Beware of all the traffic, the bikes and the cars. Always look both ways. Bullying is out and books are in. Falling leaves and children’s laughter. The new pumpkin spice time. Fall is my favorite season. Gayle Dorsky
Misplaced sympathy
Astoria: An inmate incarcerated on Rikers Island for shooting his super to death and injuring his two neighbors dies by suicide, and Department of Corrections Commissioner Lynelle Maginley-Liddie reads a statement of “Our hearts are heavy with the loss of an individual in our care. We mourn the passing and extend our sympathies to his loved ones.” Where were the consoling words for the victims? How silly of me, I forgot that victims don’t matter! Aris Sakellaridis
Too extreme
Bronx: I find it appalling that some who voice their opinions on this page suggest that prominent Democrats in this country and in N.Y., like Gov. Hochul, Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, should throw their support to Zohran Mamdani, a known extreme progressive socialist who borders on communism. I can’t disagree more. The Democratic Party has represented hard-working, socially liberal citizens for years who want to keep this city and country safe, with the dream of homeownership and prosperity, and offer those who are not that well off opportunities through funding the abilities to reach those goals. NYC has always been the heart of this country, where business can thrive and jobs are plentiful. I am a lifelong gay Democrat who never voted for a Republican, but I don’t mind voting for an independent who represents traditional Democratic values. I am afraid of these extreme progressives. Maurice DePalo
Why him?
West Caldwell, N.J.: Why did you print an op-ed by Bill de Blasio (“Why I am endorsing Zohran Mamdani,” Sept. 2)? Seriously, why?! Pat Johnson
Sounds crazy
White Plains, N.Y.: It looks like Mamdani might become the next mayor of New York City, but in my opinion, this would be a major disaster. He claims he is a Democrat but his ideas border on communist. If Mamdani becomes the mayor, the city would be in immense trouble. It would be in huge financial trouble and many of its citizens will leave. He has said many times that he wanted to do away with the police and put in social workers. In my opinion, no sane person would ever think of such a crazy and dangerous idea. Joan Cocurullo
On the hook
Brooklyn: President Trump now has Mayor Adams dangling from a string in the New York primary by promising him a job in his administration if he drops out of the November election. Charlie Pisano
Dangerous drift
Hicksville, L.I.: In one of the most mind-boggling decisions of the Trump era, the great state of Florida (in its infinite wisdom) has decided to eliminate all vaccine mandates. Why? No doubt to further the twisted politics of Gov. Ron DeSantis, which are being influenced by the junk-science rantings of Health and Human Services Secretary RFK Jr. Perhaps it’s time for the major tourism businesses in that state to exert a little political pressure of their own. Steven Malinofsky
Build inside
Davidson, N.C.: Florida Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna put forth legislation to have a sculpture of Trump on Mount Rushmore. The bill requires the secretary of the interior to do so if the Congress agrees. Several Congress members noted that there’s not enough space for another figure on the mountain. The only space available is between Roosevelt and Lincoln. Trump’s head may not fit. In that space, an expanded cave could be constructed. It would be difficult, but the inside could be large enough to have it serve as the president’s office in the western part of the nation. He would be able to arrive and depart whenever he wanted by helicopter. There could also be an image of him in the front. An alternative could be renaming one of our national parks and having a gigantic statue of him in the front entrance, comparable to Stalin’s statue in Russia. Sorrell Chesin
Economic wreckage
Chicago: It should come as a surprise to no one that overseas jobs are not coming back to our shores and new manufacturing facilities will not be built anytime soon. Trump’s campaign pledges are being undermined by his own incompetence and inconsistencies. While Wall Street and Main Street demand assurances of success, the current administration has only offered moveable timelines, senseless tariffs and empty threats. Is it any wonder that the current economy is even less stable than Trump’s ankles? Bob Ory
A house divided
Kearny, N.J.: Re “It’s states’ fights all across the U.S.A.” (Sept. 2): In redrawing congressional boundaries mid-decade to advantage their side, Republicans are fully embracing their authoritarian nature. That this naked partisanship and disempowering of the significant number of Democrats and independents in their states was legitimized by the Supreme Court is a testimony to how irredeemably broken our system is. As Democrats gerrymander states they control to try and keep it a fair fight, we’re heading toward the kind of national breakup we faced in the years leading up to the Civil War. We might give thought to a peaceful divorce, with blue states flourishing, freed of the burden of carrying red states whose residents mock and revile them but who’ll descend into the violent, repressive Third World morasses they were destined to be if not for slave labor and the generosity of the federal government in trying to uplift them. John Woodmaska
Shining no more
Brewster, N.Y.: Like many others, my great-grandparents came to the U.S.A. from Eastern Europe in search of freedom, democracy and a better life. The United States was a shining beacon of hope to many immigrants. Today, there is less freedom, less democracy and less welcome in the U.S. than there is in the countries my ancestors immigrated from. I doubt that my great-grandparents would immigrate here now. Larry Maslak
Double-booked
Richmond Hill: Your schedules of Giants and Jets games show that on week 12, Nov. 23, the Giants are playing the Baltimore Ravens at Baltimore and on the same day, the Jets are playing the Baltimore Ravens at Baltimore! Don’t you think it would be a little crowded in the visiting clubhouse? And I think it would be quite exhausting for the Ravens! Good luck trying to find hotel rooms! The always (un)dependable Daily News! Joe Napoleone
Quoted
Stratford, Conn.: To Voicer Rudy Rosenberg: Mike Lupica did not say the statement, “How many homers did Babe Ruth hit without a bat?” Mike reported in print that his buddy Pete Hamill made that statement. Typical New Yorker — only reads what he wants to hear. Peter Sulzicki
