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Letters to the editor

Letters to the editor

Our region is a tangle of traffic nightmares

I've lived here for 67 years. There seems to be no road without a closure, lane restriction or emergency repair. As of now, Route 28 is closed northbound, not to mention the 31st Street Bridge fiasco of 30 years -- it should have been torn down instead of repaired. Do the math on the traffic count!

Route 65 is still super-dangerous and will never be otherwise. The parkways -- our bane of existence -- have been under construction since they opened in the 1950s. Recently, PennDOT announced another "improvement" at Robinson -- another too-late impediment. Why wasn't that done when those malls were built? By the way, when the Parkway West first opened, there was a cloverleaf at Route 60. Go figure.

On top of that, "we" are building a new West End Circle -- about 40 years overdue -- and it only took 15 years to connect the original Fort Duquesne Bridge to Route 65 North. Duh! Can't wait to have immediate and speedier access to the West End Bridge -- another dinosaur. Wonder when "they" will decide to upgrade that? Can't wait.

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I could go on and on. But I guess my plight is actually the charm of living in the orange-barrel capital of the USA.

It's called planning, like drilling the hole bigger at the Squirrel Hill and Fort Pitt Tunnels, for example. If the idiots in charge back in the day had adopted Skybus, I wouldn't be writing this.

GARY FORCEY
Brighton Heights


Road to confusion

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I'd like to commend Jon Schmitz on a well-written and funny article in Thursday's paper regarding the extension of I-376 ("79 + 279 + 22 + 30 + 60 = 376," June 11). Recalling the days when I was in elementary school learning maps and geography, this new road designation is sure to confuse the heck out of elementary school children once they learn the U.S. routing system ... if they still teach such things. (Perhaps it's more likely the adults will have more trouble than their children.)

Incidentally, what would be wrong with calling part of both routes Parkway West? After all, once the route extension is entirely complete, I-279 would still go only as far as the Carnegie on-ramp to I-79. I-376 would continue farther.

One does realize that the same phenomenon happens to the south where I-79 and I-70 share some of the same road. Not to mention I-70 also shares road with the Pennsylvania Turnpike (I-76) out to Breezewood. And, of course, the Parkways East and West also share U.S. Routes 22 and 30.

Maybe I'm thinking too logically or perhaps those are now "grandfathered" exceptions to the rules. Unless one might think that a visitor to the city would be confused by the signage, I see nothing wrong with this. Routes often share roads. I probably waited too long to point thatc out.

Hopefully, once it's entirely completed, the new I-376 will bring in the business and industry our local leaders are looking for.

ERIC O'BRIEN
Ross


About AJL's position

Rabbi Danny Schiff's June 8 commentary, "Unclear in Cairo," raised many important issues relating to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians and President Barack Obama's recent speech in Cairo.

The Agency for Jewish Learning and Pittsburgh's Jewish community have a strong shared commitment to security for Israel and all its citizens, and to achieving peace in the region. We also acknowledge that there are differing opinions about how to best achieve these goals.

Rabbi Schiff's article represented legitimate positions articulated in our Jewish community. The AJL applauds active discourse about issues facing our Jewish and general community and offers many educational programs exploring the background and context of issues of concern. The AJL seeks to maintain an open atmosphere that does not endorse or choose among legitimate and respectful points of view.

While Rabbi Schiff was identified in the Post-Gazette as the AJL's community scholar, his viewpoints do not represent official positions adopted by the AJL.

EDWARD FRIM
Squirrel Hill
Executive Director, Agency for Jewish Learning


A peace necessity

Regarding "Unclear in Cairo" (June 8): I was saddened by Rabbi Danny Schiff's criticism of President Barack Obama's speech in Cairo. Instead of hearing a new note in the seemingly endless debate regarding Palestinian/Israeli relations, once again it devolved to the "good guys, bad guys" argument.

In Rabbi Schiff's view Israelis are the good guys. That, apparently, is all we need to know. For the president to hint that blame falls on both camps is evidently unacceptable. It recalls Tevye's warning in "Fiddler on the Roof": Follow the principle of "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth," and we all end up blind and toothless.

Thirty years ago my wife and I were in Jerusalem as delegates to a conference of Jews, Arabs and Christians. We were fortunate to be chosen to spend an evening with Professor Yehoshafat Harkabi at his flat. Dr. Harkabi was the chief of Israeli military intelligence from 1955 to 1959. He taught political science for years at Hebrew University. Dr. Harkabi had come to believe, as he said that night: "There will never be peace for Israel unless there is a two-state agreement." That is a prophetic comment! Three decades have passed since then and all we hear is the tired language of deadlock.

President Obama has spoken strongly of the necessity for a Palestinian homeland. I too believe that is needed, as do numerous Israelis. We hunger to hear a note of support for this essential agreement.

REV. PAUL D. WIERMAN
Beaver


Costly mailings

I felt compelled to respond to your reporting on state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe's tax protest ("Protesters Rally Against Tax Hikes at State Capitol," June 10) because, as a libertarian, I believe tax relief is paramount.

The main reason governments have taxes is to pay for services they provide to their citizens. If the government were smaller and more efficient it would not need to tax. That is why I am calling out Mr. Metcalfe on his hypocrisy because on one hand he calls for tax protests and on the other he wastes tens of thousands of taxpayers' hard-earned and hard-to-come-by money. He does so with expensive mailers he sends to promote himself at the taxpayers' expense throughout the year, which he has done for almost a decade.

I have asked many times through letters to the editor for Mr. Metcalfe to have transparency by putting the cost of these mailers on his government Web site. What was his response? There was none! Moreover, he supports maintaining a Legislature that is one of the largest and most costly in the nation.

Who do you think you are fooling, Mr. Metcalfe? You cannot have it both ways!

KEVIN CARIDAD
Seven Fields


Mentoring works

Regarding "Call Issued for Mentors for All City Sixth-Graders" (June 2): It isn't often that we take the time to learn from our experiences. However, in some happy instances we do. The plan proposed by the Pittsburgh Public Schools and local officials is one fine example.

The use of volunteer mentors for all sixth-grade students who demonstrate a possible need for one is an idea that has been realized by a number of programs. In fact, in 2002, the Mount Ararat Baptist Church Community Activity Center (MACAC) was awarded a U.S. Department of Education grant to do just that for boys at the now-defunct Reizenstein Middle School.

That program continues to this day. It now serves both boys and girls successfully from schools in the East End of Pittsburgh. In fact, boys who were with the program in its first year are scheduled to graduate from high school this month. The model described by the Pittsburgh school superintendent is closely modeled after the MACAC Project, "Exploring the World of Pittsburgh and Beyond." My hat is off to our local officials for learning lessons from this East Liberty faith-based community project and sharing the benefits of those lessons with children in all of its schools.

SHIRLEY A. BIGGS
Highland Park
The writer, associate professor emerita of the University of Pittsburgh School of Education, is core committee chair of the MACAC mentoring program.


Keep in mind the entire 2nd Amendment

Many comments and arguments about the Second Amendment seem to like to leave out the full text: "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."

The well-regulated militia is now the military and the National Guard. It would be reasonable to restrict assault weapon ownership by private citizens since they are neither. Gun ownership for self-defense and hunting would be reasonable for private citizens. I would think most people would agree with this.

RUSS STOEBE
West Mifflin


First Published: June 15, 2009, 4:00 a.m.

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