Mr. Ravenstahl, this is no way to lead a city

It was with great dismay that I read the article about Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's quasi-firing of most of his senior management team ("Ravenstahl Tells 10 Top Officials to Resign," June 16). As pointed out in the June 18 editorial "Mayoral Indecision: Why Hang a Dark Cloud Over 10 City Directors?" it is the mayor's right to appoint whomever he wishes to serve, but the manner in which he has handled this demonstrates a lack of judgment at best or, at worst, an arrogance that does not bode well for one so new to the job.

If individual directors are performing poorly then, absolutely, they should go. But to effectively sack the lot of them, without apparent justification, allowing them to "reapply," is such an obvious ploy to get rid of some without having to face scrutiny for the reasons.

I can't help but consider Public Works Director Guy Costa, who does a consistently exemplary job of managing the many large, complex events that the city hosts each year, while maintaining streets, roads and bridges, and even working alongside his crews on their overnight treks to clear and salt streets in the winter months. To me, Mr. Costa is exactly the kind of hands-on, dedicated director the city needs.

Furthermore, if the mayor is sincere about his desire to conduct a national search, this is going to cost the city a lot of money -- in advertising and recruiting efforts, not to mention the time that will be lost. This is no way to approach a job that requires a deft touch in managing people and inspiring the kind of leadership necessary to address the myriad problems facing Pittsburgh.

ANNE IMMEKUS
Swissvale

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Grandeur amid ruin

If all goes according to plan in Iraq -- that would be a first, wouldn't it? -- the new U.S. Embassy will open in Baghdad in September. Located near the site of one of Saddam's former palaces, it will be the largest U.S. embassy in the world, a self-contained city, employing 1,000 staff members and 3,000 support workers, sprawled over 104 acres.

Coming in at a cost of $592 million, it will be grandiose, with a swimming pool, tennis courts, cinemas, shopping areas, a recreation center, offices and restaurants. All structures will be blast-resistant, and the site will have its own fire station, for when the rockets start coming. The compound will have its own self-contained electricity-generation, water-purification and sewage systems in a city whose infrastructure is in a shambles.

All this information was on the architect's Web site, until June 1, when the government ordered it to be removed.

If George W. Bush were ever truthful and his timing were ever right, it would be at the opening of this embassy, rather than aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, on May 1, 2003, that he would stride forth in his military costume, smirking under the banner "Mission Accomplished." With the new embassy and a number of planned permanent bases in Iraq, it is clear that our mission was not to liberate Iraq, but to expand our empire and to control the flow of oil. We can expect only retribution in return.

BETTE McDEVITT
North Side

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Transit paradox

Am I the only person who finds it ironic that the Port Authority is promoting itself ("Transit Groups Touting Dump the Pump Day," June 19) immediately following a large cut in service with more cuts looming? How many people would love to dump the pump but found their bus routes discontinued this week?

CHERI CUNNINGHAM
Brookline

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Litter? Far from it

I am writing in response to Ruth Ann Dailey's columns on billboards ("Billboards Are Everybody's Business," June 11; "Billboard Stance Ignores People's Will," May 24). While Ms. Dailey is certainly entitled to her opinion, her column leaves a misleading impression. Her "personal favorite" characterization of billboards as "litter on a stick" is not borne out by the facts. I have been conducting research on the impact of outdoor advertising for more than 15 years. The evidence demonstrates that billboards provide value to multiple constituencies, including consumers and local businesses.

Polls conducted nationwide show that a majority of the public has favorable perceptions of billboards. Across major public opinion polls, more than 85 percent believe that billboards are useful to travelers and 80 percent agree that billboards create jobs. There is a minority who find billboards to be aesthetically displeasing, but this view is not representative of the overall population. When asked directly, over 70 percent of the public indicates that the benefits of billboards outweigh the costs.

Billboards are especially important to small businesses. Many locally owned small businesses simply cannot afford other media. In surveys I have conducted, most billboard users report that they would lose sales, on average 13.8 percent, if they could not use billboards. This level of sales loss can threaten the viability of a business. Research also indicates that billboards have a positive impact on communities in terms of economic vitality and job creation.

Outdoor advertising helps consumers, local businesses and local economies. Contrary to Ms. Dailey's assertions, this is hardly a role that can be played by "litter on a stick."

CHARLES R. TAYLOR
John A. Murphy Professor of Marketing
Villanova University
Villanova, Pa.

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In-your-face logo

In response to the issue of UPMC's logo atop the U.S. Steel tower ("City Panel Nixes UPMC Logo Atop Skyscraper," June 13), not only would this be an aesthetic eyesore, but far worse, such a logo would serve as a daily reminder of this vastly wealthy and powerful health-care organization flaunting its profits to a public that has grown increasingly weary of the health-care crisis in this country.

JANET K. BROWN
Mt. Lebanon

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Praiseworthy piece

Kudos to Jake Rubenstein, 16, for the well-written and heartwarming June 18 article "His Generation" and to his grandfather, Joe, who is an inspiration to life.

Jake's writing talents will certainly be an asset in his career and life in general. Jake, as an example of "his generation," deserves respect and a well-deserved pat on the back.

GLORIA CRUM
Greenfield

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Why put boundaries on celebrating accomplishments?

On the very morning that Chad Hermann's First Person article appeared ("Graduation Saturation," June 16), the bodies of five young children were laid to rest. They did not live long enough to celebrate their high school graduation or any of the possible milestones that may have followed: first car, marriage, first born, first home, first of so many things.

If there was a celebration of their promotion from day care to kindergarten, then another from K to the first grade, then what Mr. Hermann calls sad and silly turned out to be tragically their last.

I will agree that such ceremonies should be called promotions and not graduations, which don't occur until the successful completion of the 12th grade, but a celebration is a must. Each step made should be set off with all the pomp necessary to recognize accomplishments and to encourage further steps. So I urge parents to make a big deal of it, record those memories and celebrate their young lives as they grow and step forward more confidently.

Death is impervious to approaching milestones. We can plan and hope for the future, but life is only lived today, at this moment, so cherish it and feel blessed, for as the lyrics say: "Tomorrow is meant for some, tomorrow may never come!"

ROBERT G. HOLT
Hill District

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Insulting, insensitive

I was surprised and disappointed that the Post-Gazette published Chad Hermann's snarky and utterly unenlightening piece on kindergarten graduation ceremonies ("Graduation Saturation," June 16).

This is the time of year when we should thank teachers for yet another year of extremely difficult and usually underappreciated work. If Mr. Hermann was so disdainful, why wasn't he honest enough to tell his own child that the ceremony was jive and just stay home? I suspect he wanted to bolster Junior's ego as much as the next parent but could stroke his own by observing from his professorial high horse.

The real question is why he thought it necessary to publicly insult a teacher who probably wanted to be there less than he did but participated out of dedication to the students she nurtured for an entire school year. Surely the man with the self-bestowed moniker "wordsmith" understood that merely omitting the teacher's name was no guarantee of anonymity. It was clear from his tone that he knew that every parent, every teacher and countless other parents and students in the district would know who was the object of his belittling comments.

If this is the kind of sensitivity to the feelings of fellow educators and respect for the power of words a Tepper School of Business "management communications" professor displays in print, the source of the avalanche of mendacious tripe the public has to swallow from "communications" experts is increasingly clear.

SCOTT SMITH
Park Place

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