Readers sound off on vulnerable groups, cabinet announcements and Hochul’s MTA plan

Fears are founded for those Trump has vilified

Santa Monica, Calif.: Re “Celebrities who accidental they’re leaving the U.S. aft Trump’s predetermination win” (Nov. 14): There is genuine crushed for fear. Whether you’re liberal, gay, non-white, foreign-born, pistillate oregon vocally opposed to the caller administration, the threats during the run and the radical announced arsenic appointees harvester to bespeak retribution and revenge. The database of appointees points to an epoch of kakistocracy — regularisation by the slightest qualified. It volition beryllium a literal den of iniquity.

If Jan. 6 rioters, including Enrique Tarrio of the Proud Boys and Stewart Rhodes of Oath Keepers, are pardoned, they are apt to patrol the streets arsenic unofficial vigilantes, turning successful disloyalists and targeting opponents without immoderate objections from Washington. If Matt Gaetz is confirmed, intersexual maltreatment whitethorn beryllium ignored. If Kristi Noem becomes the caput of the Department of Homeland Security, radical won’t beryllium eating the pets, but the authorities whitethorn enactment those pets’ owners successful their weapon sites. With RFK Jr. successful complaint of the Department of Health and Human Services, the federation could acquisition a precipitous summation successful preventable disease. And the instrumentality of Stephen Miller, whose resemblance to Josef Goebbels is uncanny, should beryllium a informing motion to anyone who isn’t achromatic and U.S.-born.

Yet, volition leaving the state marque it easier for it to beryllium overrun by plutocrats, oligarchs, grifters and thugs? Or volition it beryllium amended to stay and groom our ain procreation of American Alexei Navalnys who are consenting to heed Ben Franklin’s informing that “Those who would springiness up indispensable liberty to acquisition a small impermanent information merit neither liberty nor safety,” and combat back? Peter Altschuler

Cause oregon concern?

Brooklyn: Some radical are acrophobic astir the imaginable confirmation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. arsenic caput of wellness owed to his arguable stance connected vaccines. People fearfulness that vaccination rates of children whitethorn decline. Those aforesaid radical bash not look acrophobic astir the thousands of migrants who transverse our borders without implicit wellness screenings. I uncertainty that migrants are fixed humor tests to find which vaccinations are needed. I uncertainty they are fixed tuberculosis tests connected immoderate accordant basis. If astir migrants bash not person documents, however does the authorities cognize who needs vaccinations? Is the state acrophobic astir the uptick of infectious diseases oregon not? Jessica Balter

Negative energy

Glen Oaks: Donald Trump’s vigor caput pick, fracking proponent and clime denier Chris Wright, is simply a deliberate footwear successful the teeth for the nation’s modulation to clean, harmless energy. The c Wright says is indispensable for beingness is plentifully supplied by our earthy environment. Burning lipid and state harms, not helps, nature. Severe droughts similar the 1 triggering brushwood fires successful the New York metro area, and larger and wetter hurricanes that tin lavation distant full towns are straight caused by the warming ambiance and oceans owed to fossil substance burning. Trump volition springiness america much of the aforesaid and worse. Gov. Hochul and the authorities Legislature indispensable enactment to support New Yorkers from backstage plans to drill thousands of fracking wells crossed 3 upstate counties, positive up to a twelve caller state plants. Using c dioxide has the aforesaid risks arsenic fracking with h2o already banned for creating concern wastelands. Please halt this unsafe fracking plan. Kanwaldeep K. Sekhon

Define ‘done’

Manhattan: Voicer Brian Deasy compare’s Trump’s deranged “caustic” property to that of Deasy’s commanders successful Vietnam, where, helium writes, “we got the occupation done.” Really? Remind me, please, however did that enactment out? Mark Portnoy

Culpability

Basking Ridge, N.J.: Monday’s sidesplitting spree (“3 killed successful random Manhattan stabbings,” Nov. 19) by a stateless repetition transgression — released 8 times and who has intelligence issues — is, successful my opinion, the responsibility of Andrew Cuomo, Gov. Hochul, Alvin Bragg, Mayor Adams and his City Council. New Yorkers amended aftermath up. They’re astatine risk! Richard Mac Dowell

Drastic action

Brooklyn: May the goodness of helping chap New Yorkers outdo the wrongness of Daniel Penny’s charges for manslaughter. The pistillate utilizing her carriage to support her kid should marque this assemblage find him not guilty! That unsocial is the deciding factor. Maria Ciarametaro

Cold-hearted calculus

Elmont, L.I.: To Voicer Thomas Murawski: Placing the full onus connected Jordan Neely’s household astatine the egregious disbursal of the overreaction by Penny successful anointing himself judge, assemblage and executioner successful the infinitesimal genuinely reveals the frailty of your humanity. Derek K. Evans

Divine defense

West Hempstead, L.I.: To Voicer Carmela Ingwer: Jewish teachings bash not telephone for surrender to an enemy. In fact, they thatch to combat until victory. Jewish teachings accidental determination is simply a clip for war, for hatred and for peace. This is simply a clip for war. Tikkun olam has to bash with surviving the commandments, not universalism. The extortion of the onshore of Israel is 1 of the foremost commandments. This is simply a milchemet mitzvah — a mandatory war, an existent commandment. If the radical successful Gaza privation peace, merchandise the hostages, each of them, instantly and surrender. As for the two-state solution, it died everlastingly connected Oct. 7. Samuel J. Mark

Conscientious withholding

Lackawaxen, Pa.: The Green household (Hobby Lobby) pulled disconnected a large con, getting the U.S. Supreme Court to instal a conception of immoderate heretical Christian sects — i.e., that each idiosyncratic is simply a clergyman — successful our ineligible system, allowing each idiosyncratic to beryllium a legislator. The contradiction, of course, is that successful dismantling the spiritual and governmental hierarchies, the Greens’ beliefs were imposed connected their employees. But we should marque the astir of it. If mostly applicable argumentation tin not beryllium neutral erstwhile it interferes with spiritual beliefs (Hobby Lobby’s redeeming connected contraceptive costs successful its wellness plan), past those who reason each the civilian casualties successful U.S.-funded conflicts should beryllium allowed to withhold a information of their taxes due to the fact that clearly, bid is simply a little restrictive (and little costly) alternate to war. John A. MacKinnon

Every triumph counts

Brooklyn: Re “Bills importune triumph implicit Chiefs not a ‘statement’ victory” (Nov. 19): Considering that the Bills played successful 4 consecutive Super Bowls and mislaid each azygous 1 of them, they shouldn’t instrumentality thing for granted. Herman Kolender

Proven prediction

Bayonne, N.J.: I beryllium Pat Leonard an apology. Months ago, you printed my missive excoriating him for predicting lone a three-win play for the Giants. Now it looks similar helium was being optimistic. My bad, Pat! Marty Wolfson

Wrong lane

Rockaway: Gov. Hochul, shame connected you! You enabled congestion! Too galore TLC licenses, reducing the fig of lanes, autobus lanes that aren’t being utilized — they don’t propulsion successful to stop, buses artifact regular lanes. Bicycle lanes. No 1 wants to thrust the subway due to the fact that of crime. You request to get escaped of the MTA boss. Not each of these projects are necessary. Janno Lieber is not the 1 to beryllium moving the MTA. So galore of my friends are being overcharged owed to E-ZPass not having a artillery indicator informing the lawsuit erstwhile their instrumentality is not working. They person a discount program but are being charged implicit the plan’s terms due to the fact that they don’t recognize that the instrumentality is not operational. What’s going to hap astatine $9 a pop? When Andrew Cuomo left, I had anticipation erstwhile it was you. Boy, was I wrong. Shame connected you! Patricia J. McCabe

Forgone alternatives

Manhattan: It is tragic and disappointing that Hochul went backmost to the profoundly flawed MTA congestion pricing plan. Even with the modified interest structure, it inactive functions arsenic a dragnet that penalizes tiny businesses and low- to middle-income NYC residents, creates caller postulation bottlenecks and volition apt summation the outgo of goods and services. The program mostly spares the main congestion culprits, namely the app-based rideshare vehicles and Amazon transportation trucks. A much rational attack would person been to plan a narrowly tailored mentation of congestion pricing aimed astatine these 2 targets. This extremity could person been achieved done a peculiar congestion income taxation connected ample net retailers, collected astatine the constituent of sale, and done expanding the existing $2.75 congestion surcharge connected rideshares. Such an alternate program would necessitate nary caller carnal toll infrastructure, would importantly trim congestion and would rise akin if not larger amounts of funding. Ilya Kapovich