I'm no feminist, nor am I stupid. Hillary Clinton is clearly a victim of sexism. Ruth Ann Dailey's June 2 column ("Hillary Clinton, Victim of Sexism? Hardly") befuddles me for these reasons:
1) She defines sexism to mean that men don't vote for a female candidate!
2) Referring to two-term Sen. Hillary Clinton, the former first lady of Arkansas and the United States, a woman who has been on official visits to more than 80 countries, Ms. Dailey states, "This woman ... [has] leftist ideals and relative inexperience."
Sen. Clinton is relatively moderate compared to many other politicians, and certainly far from leftist, and she is far from inexperienced in public service. She has spent her entire 35-year career fighting for children, women, families, fairness in education and housing and equitable health care for all Americans, including American soldiers, and she has served her constituents in New York nobly.
3) To say that the sexist treatment of Sen. Clinton is anecdotal is simply wrong. How can one not call T-shirts saying, "Bros before Hos" or the Hillary Nutcracker, a tool in which a pantsuit-wearing Hillary doll has stainless steel thighs to crack nuts, sexist? When was a male candidate compared to a nutcracker, gigolo or worse? The media have been sexist. See the many examples listed by Marie Cocco in the May 15 Washington Post.
Ms. Dailey's column is another example of biased reporting and editorial favoritism from the Post-Gazette.
SUSANNE M. GOLLIN
Highland Park
Instead of being considered as a vice president, Hillary Clinton can best serve the country and Sen. Barack Obama as a New York senator and perhaps chairing the committee on health and education, which she is so knowledgeable about. As vice president, she would not be able to use her best expertise.
M. LOU HARRISON
Plum
There seems to be a huge misconception about black residents and the Justin Jackson incident ("Officer Kills Man During Run-In With K-9," May 7). I am black, and I know a lot of blacks who totally agree with the response of the Pittsburgh police. There is no doubt that the police reacted properly. Even though it is truly sad that the parents of Justin lost their son, it is ridiculous that they would charge the Pittsburgh police with prejudice.
It is apparent that they are in serious denial as is anyone else who thinks the police acted improperly. Their son chose the path he was walking. And he paid for it.
As for the guy who wrote to say there are a "group of people" who think they can defy the law and get away with it, his statement is ludicrous. It does not take a genius to know who he meant by "a group of people."
Just as in the tragedy in Waco, Texas, and the situation at Ruby Ridge, the law is the same for us all. When the police (no matter what capacity) give an order, we are to obey and deal with the circumstances later.
SKIPPY MUNSEY
East Liberty
I was somewhere between angry and simply amazed at the letter sent by Morgan Hunt ("Inherent Racism," May 18) regarding the unfortunate shooting of Justin Jackson. Her letter is packed with mind-numbing attempts to make our police force and society in general, appear blatantly racist.
First, the letter calls Mr. Jackson's death a "killing," as if police were the same as the thugs who Mr. Jackson evidently ran with, instead of a justified reaction to Mr. Jackson's defiance, which it really was.
Next she claims that the use of police dogs is racist? Why, because the police train dogs to do things that can keep officers out of the line of fire? I'm sure if one of the officers had been the first to approach Mr. Jackson, he would have been shot first instead of the dog. And the claim that "our nation" was responsible for using dogs to "subdue" escaping slaves ... Wouldn't that have been the slave owners' themselves who were using the dogs?
The worst insult of all was the statement that the officers at the funeral for the slain police dog were "a pack of armed, uniformed white men, German shepherds at their sides, all lined up and saluting proudly -- [a photo which] evoked nothing more clearly than Nazi Germany."
As the brother of a police officer, it amazes me that this Al Sharpton wannabe would see this instead of what it really was: a group of proud officers who stood at attention, saddened, in uniform, out of respect for a fallen officer.
KEVIN O'TOOLE
Lawrenceville
Regarding the letter from Dan Warner ("Media Mush," June 3): Way to go, Dan! I thought I was the only one who feels this way.
Talk about our absurd media here in the 'Burgh. It really gripes me that KDKA-TV news is three hours long. There's not enough local news to fill an hour let alone three. The first hour is mostly national headlines and local weather ad nauseam.
Does Jeff Verszyla get paid by the mug-shot time he has on the air? There's so much local weather that I can't remember what the weather is going to be because of all the baloney like dozens of different "WeatherBug" locations. Who really cares about these? Just give us the facts. Then the next two hours is nothing but a rehash of the first. Totally boring and useless information.
Cut the local news to an hour and a half like the other networks and most of the country and let CBS take care of the national news. They do a much better job than the tongue-twisted duo at KDKA's wind bag central.
CINDY KNESS
Regent Square
I had the pleasure of coming to Pittsburgh for my daughter and her team to play volleyball at the convention center.
I grew up in Pittsburgh, and it lived up to all my hype to all the New Yorkers on what a great place Pittsburgh is ... we all had a great time!
I hope the East Coast Volleyball Tournament is again there. Everyone was great! I, of course, already knew this, but it was nice to hear the New Yorkers say it.
Way to go, Pittsburgh!
BETH NERICH
Astoria, N.Y.
The fact that a gunman was able to hold up the Pittsburgh Zoo, taking -- according to some news reports -- at least $30,000, bespeaks extraordinarily poor financial governance ("Zoo Rethinks Money Handling," May 27).
Retail institutions, including banks and even nonprofit retail shops, limit the amount of cash on hand at any time. The zoo should have removed cash at various times during the day with a security guard present at the time the funds are removed, as do other organizations.
This event indicates a lack of good financial controls.
KATHY COCHRAN
Lower Burrell
We welcome your letters. Please include your name, address and phone number, and send to Letters to the Editor, 34 Blvd. of the Allies, Pittsburgh 15222. E-mail letters to letters@post-gazette.com or fax to 412-263-2014. Letters should be 250 words or less, original and exclusive to the Post-Gazette. All letters are subject to editing for length, clarity and accuracy and will be verified before being published.
First Published: June 7, 2008, 4:00 a.m.
