Well, first, I think the reason why ACORN, run by mostly unaccountable white folks by the way last time I checked, is that the Republican Party is thought to be, quite correctly, kind of a racist party. Why did white supremacist David Duke choose the GOP? Because that's where he felt comfortable and I agree with him. I know that there's a tactical reason not to lay your eggs in one party but why help the other people that's clearly a racist party and against any significant widestream effort that would actually improve the lot of the black underclass for example: direct federal funding of education as opposed to property taxes or amending these top down trade deals to protect the bulk of african american blue collar workers or investing more in education than prisons or not waging imperialistic war against mostly brown skinned people and the list goes on. What benefit would there be to hearing Fred Thompson speak? I mean, even white americans are soured on the GOP...why should African Americans embrace them? Wouldn't building the Green Party into a viable second party make more sense. Your opinion please. -- Philip Shropshire, Wilkinsburg

I ran across your article when I went on line to catch up on some Pittsburgh News in the Post Gazette. I lived at 1411 North Murtland Avenue from the age of 2 until I was 8. Homewood was a wonderful place to live and raise a family. I attended Holy Rosary School and Church. There was an Italian Store on the corner of my street called Arrigo's and the men would sit out at night and talk and play cards, listen to the radio. We children played stick ball and caught fireflies and played hide-and-go-seek. The movie theater was called the Belmar and on Sat., My mother gave my brother and I $.50, each. Admission was $.35 and for $.15 more you got popcorn and a drink. Down the street from my house was Westinghouse High School and behind their field and over the hill was the Blue Dell Drive In. On hot summer nights the older children would take us little kids over the hill and we would sit on ground with a car speaker and watch a movie.

They where great times. I don't know why neighborhoods come apart, I can't really speak for the economics of things. But I do know about fear and mistrust. And I admit as the black population moved into the Brushton Area, the white population grew uneasy and moved out. My family moved to Point Breeze. That was the 50's, and it seemed everyone feared each other. I am sorry that Homewood has become another war zone of drugs and violence. I truly hope something can be done to save it. Because I know that for many generations, good, hardworking people (Black and White) walked those streets and lived in those homes. And people need to take back there streets, and evil shouldn't be able to abide where good people live.

We buried my father in 2004 and we all came home for the funeral. My brother and his family, my husband and my family took a ride after his funeral. We came back to 1411 N. Murtland Ave. I wish we had knocked and introduced ourselves. Because when we looked around we said "gee the old place looks pretty good" and the neighborhhood held so many special memories it would have been nice to share them with another neighbor on the block.

My brother, who lives in California, and I talk endlessly about Pittsburgh, both of us would like to come home when we retire. There is just something about that city, that gets into you blood. Something about it being Home.... -- Mary McKenna