Treating Penny like an attacker belies the facts
Williston, Vermont: It is unconscionable that charges are being filed against Daniel Penny for the murder of Jordan Neely. This sets a troubling precedent: When faced with a threatening situation, we are expected to wait passively to see what happens. How much threatening behavior is needed to be reasonably sure that violence will ensue and to bring your children closer in case you need to protect them from physical attack? Self-defense and de-escalation of a situation are valid legal options.
Penny’s actions to subdue Neely on the subway last year were intended to protect others and himself from what those passengers saw as imminent danger. He was a spectator with a keen mind and a deep heart. I firmly believe that he imagined the situation would escalate into mass assaults or murders based on the actions and verbal tirades of Neely, who was having difficulties that no person should endure. He didn’t become desperate overnight. He suffered two decades of mental trauma and deterioration. Asking for help shouldn’t be about saying someone is going to die that day. Neely had offenses and behaviors considered red flags to police and the mental health support community. His family knew he needed help. You can point the finger at everyone for years without being able to find resources for such an unstable man.
It is incomprehensible how Penny was catapulted onto this public stage with all the callous motives thrown at her. Any competent subway rider should have thought about what they needed to do to protect themselves and their colleagues that day. Penny had the instincts, morals, and physical ability to place herself between a very real potential threat and innocent lives. Mr. Penny, you did the right thing. Krista Webdale
Lost pilot rights
Manhattan: Jonathan Davalos stabbed MTA conductor Myran Pollack multiple times, nearly killing him. Davalos had previously stabbed a woman in the train station. He is a repeat violent offender who should be banned from the MTA system for life and automatically serve prison time if caught violating this ban. The problem is that there is no law that specifies this. People can be banned from residences, bars, restaurants and stadiums, then arrested and imprisoned if they violate this ban. But New York doesn’t automatically ban and jail repeat violent MTA offenders. For what? Because there is a lack of leadership. Leonard Marshall
Same old story
Brooklyn: So Mayor Adams replaces Sheena Wright with another deputy mayor (“First Deputy Mayor Wright hesitated to leave, but ultimately resigned,” October 9). This speaks volumes about his lack of commitment to changing the perception of corruption. What he needs are new names that have little or no connection to him or his administration, any more. Governor Hochul should pay attention to this. Glenn Brown
Hawking housing
Middle Village: Regarding “Housing Must Go On” (editorial, October 13): I am surprised that the Daily News supports the City of Yes. As you know, the vast majority of Community Boards are opposed to this. These are people chosen to represent their neighborhood based on their dedication and expertise. Additionally, most New York residents do not want the project to be approved. Everyone is painfully aware of our housing crisis, but it’s important to keep in mind that we need affordable housing. And nowhere in the more than 1,000 pages of this third and final part of Mayor Adams’ City of Yes initiative does it mention or require that new homes built will be below market value. Unfortunately, this proposal will only benefit real estate developers (many of whom have contributed heavily to Adams) and wealthy individuals looking to invest in real estate. Lee Rottenberg
Previous atrocities
Brooklyn: To commentator Glenn Hayes: I heard that Erik the Red landed on the shores of the new earth long before Columbus. Viking crewmen marauded, raped the natives, and were driven from the shores. They never told their discovery! John Corbett
Profane
Belle Harbor: Regarding “Jeter is a Jazz Singer” (Oct. 13) about Jazz Chisholm Jr.: Is it now allowed to use the F-word in the family newspaper? Bobby Nelson
Date incorrectly indicated
Suffern, New York: During one of his meetings, Donald Trump mentioned the upcoming elections on January 5. Does this mean he is in favor of late voting? Rick Sinclair
Red flags
Chester, New Jersey: I cringed when I learned that the would-be assassin who attempted to enter a Trump rally at Coachella with illegal weapons and several boxes of ammunition had been released on bail for a few thousand dollars. But it wasn’t the weapons that caught me: he had several fake licenses and passports. It all screamed both an assassin and a flight risk. How could local police, the FBI and Trump’s Secret Service come to an agreement with prosecutors to have this man released? David J. Melvin
Subjective document
Tomkins Cove, NY: Spokesman Gregory W. Chupa’s letter on the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact strains his credibility when he states that if candidate A wins 99% of the popular vote in New York, candidate B wins the national vote by a margin of 51% to 49%, that’s a disenfranchisement of sorts. First, 99% of New Yorkers cannot accept that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. Second, in 2016 I voted for Hillary Clinton, like millions more people than for Trump, and yet my choice was not inaugurated in January 2017. Isn’t that a disenfranchisement for me and millions of others? Whether this compact survives constitutional scrutiny depends entirely on the composition of the Supreme Court. As we have seen since Trump packed the court, they and every other court says what is constitutional, regardless of what the document actually says. Doug Slottolowicz
Intellectual decline
Freehold, NJ: I have recently read many speeches, reflections and reflections by John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy (both Democrats) and Ronald Reagan (Republican) on America, politics, freedom and justice social. Then I catch up on the litany of nonsense, doublespeak, and complete lack of substance spewing out of the two presidential candidates and realize how far we have fallen in a relatively short time. I really pray for our children and their children. Lee Ottman
Careless words
Edinburgh, Scotland: In his falsely macho and steroid-numbing statements to the international business community, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s speech used the infamous language of George W. Bush from the Iraq War . I couldn’t really believe what I was hearing. Whoever wrote the phrase “the shock and awe of investing” clearly understands neither war nor investing. It’s more than embarrassing. Is Starmer (a) catastrophically insensitive, (b) woefully tone-deaf, or (c) tragically vapid (maybe that’s why he needs to get someone else to buy his clothes) ? No one, apart from Bush and Tony Blair, still thinks it was a good idea. Could someone ask Starmer, when he tries to make himself macho, if he actually remembers how that whole concert went? Amandine Boulanger
Bigotry Banner
Cincinnati: I was just in Amelia, Ohio, and saw several Confederate flags flying on porches. If you fly the Confederate flag or own a bumper sticker with the Confederate flag, you are showing your allegiance to the flag. The Confederates were pro-slavery and treacherous. People have the right to display it and black people have the right to confront them. We should all face it. If they wave the flag, they support what it represents. If I wave a flag on my porch that says, “Bring back black slavery,” I might get confrontations. Can the media, for once, highlight this point, please? Marc Jessee
Compact cars
Levittown, LI: To voice actor Al Glass: I couldn’t agree more! They say more and more Americans want a four-door vehicle, so they’ve been phasing out the two-door except for high-end models. Many people don’t want a sedan. Personally, I don’t need four doors. I don’t carry canoes and hockey sticks everywhere I go, I haul myself to work every day. Car makers, please bring back the sleek coupe! Jill Waunsch
