Letters: Is it possible that our leaders have turned into 'weenies'?

IT HAS TO be said - our leaders are "weenies." They sit in their offices and go to their board or Council meetings, and "run silent, run deep." They put on a smug face, slouch back in their huge chairs, even throw a pencil or a tantrum, but they're still weenies.

Nancy Pelosi is experiencing it - many colleagues now treat her like she has a disease when, months ago, they stood with her on the health-reform bill.

Arlen Specter betrayed his party and didn't care who he weenied on. Joe Sestak wouldn't reveal the deal. (I expect more from a naval officer.)

The DRPA board denied knowing what was happening on their watch, weenies, all of them. On PHA, "it's not our job to know," said City Council members.

There's one thing worse than a "weenie," and that's a weenie who doesn't know he or she is one. Hey, show some character.

Frank Graff, Philadelphia

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Ari Silverberg's harrowing experiences (

"A Bicyclist's Recurring Philadelphia Nightmare," Sept. 14

) are a poignant reminder that motorists and bicyclists need to share not only the road but the responsibility for safety. AAA Mid-Atlantic urges motorists and bicyclists to do their part to help reduce the half-million collisions that occur annually across the country.

For motorists: Keep three feet between you and bicyclists, don't tailgate or honk, watch for cyclists in the "blind spot" and when opening doors after parking, and be patient.

For bicyclists: Obey traffic laws and properly signal turns, use bike lanes when available, and wear helmets and visible clothing.

Rick Remington, Manager

Phila. Public & Government Affairs

AAA Mid-Atlantic

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Every time Mayor Nutter does something, all I hear from relatives, friends and co-workers is "Well, you voted for him." Mr. Mayor, could you please provide me with a comeback?

Mayer Krain, Philadelphia

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Letter-writer Pat Valiquette seems to think that black people - hereafter referred to as "y'all" - voted for Obama only because he's black.

It certainly had nothing to do with John McCain firing a torpedo at his own badly listing campaign with his selection of Sarah Palin as his vice president. In no way did it have anything to do with McCain's bizarre behavior when the economic crisis began ("suspending" his campaign, racing to Washington to "fix" it - then doing absolutely nothing).

Not a thing to do with Obama's amazing popularity. And, of course, trouncing his opponents at the debates didn't factor into his win.

Did the other races vote for him because of his race, or is that particular act exclusive to "y'all"?

Mark F. Walker, Philadelphia

Pat, did you vote for John McCain because he's white? I voted for Obama because he offered a different path from the failed polices of the people "youse" voted for. It doesn't surprise me that all youse can do is sit on your butts and blame the president for the failure of those youse voted for. How can anything he leaves be worse than what was left by the fools youse helped elect?

Gary Gibson, Philadelphia

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Well, another 9/11 anniversary and yet another letter from truther Andrew C. Miller.

This year he talks about WTC 7 as well as the twin towers. He says that the "small fires" in all three buildings weren't enough to cause their collapse, insinuating it was an "inside" job - presumably by George Bush. (Tea Partiers weren't around yet.) Small fires? Didn't he see the fireballs generated by each aircraft?

He also wonders how WTC 7 could collapse when it wasn't hit by any aircraft, totally ignoring the fact that WTC 7 was only 400 feet from Tower 1. With the towers easily more than 1,300 feet tall, WTC 7 was critically hit by their debris, causing fatal damage to the bottom of the building.

Photos of WTC 7 show a gaping hole of more than 10 stories with one corner of the building completely gone. Based on the way WTC 7 was leaning, fire commanders pulled their men out for fear of its collapse.

If this was an inside job, why would those responsible feel the need to detonate WTC 7 and not WTC 4, 5 or 6? Wouldn't the destruction of towers 1 and 2 be enough? See you next year, Andrew (yawn).

Jim Taylor, Bensalem

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Re your Sept. 15 article on DROP:

It seems like articles on the future of the program scare people into jumping into it right away.

But their fears are unfounded as there isn't even a hearing scheduled yet. A sudden rush of retirees will adversely affect the pension. It's an irrevocable decision that may not be in the employee's best interest.

Pensions are frozen at the beginning of DROP, any increases that would be realized in the four years are foregone. This results in savings to the city and the pension fund. But the paper would like to just mention the few councilmembers who took advantage of it in the past instead of the thousands of other employees eligible for the program in the future.

At the end of the article the city questions whether collective bargaining is necessary. It is - just see how well they've been doing at bargaining the past few years.

John Gossard, Philadelphia