How Trump can crackdown on fentanyl and more: Letters to the Editor — Sept. 1, 2024

Fentanyl foes

I agree with the points mentioned in former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s article (“Border Battle,” Aug. 28).

But I would also advocate that the White House go after the “root cause” of the fentanyl problem. Manufacturing plants in China are the main producers of fentanyl. The Chinese government knows the names of these producers and their location. The country of Mexico, which also produces the drug, is a primary distribution channel of fentanyl into the United States, which has killed thousand of young people.
If former President Donald Trump returns to the White House in 2025, he should work with the leaders of China and Mexico to end this crisis.

David J. Smith, Stamford, Conn.

Rotten apples

I read the article “Officer kills dog as boys watch” (Aug. 29) with dismay.

I normally back the blue. My dad spent 20 years working as police, and I have friends on other forces. But this has me bothered.

First, why did the officer use deadly force, why not pepper spray or a baton? Second, discharging a weapon in close proximity to innocents is dangerous. Third: Killing a dog in front of the kids, really?

What’s more, the guy apparently ran down a dog weeks earlier. Officers like this give the rest a bad name.

Chris Plate, Waterloo

Smith’s mission

Special Counsel Jack Smith’s latest filing of charges against Donald Trump amplifies the Justice Department’s quest to interfere with the 2024 presidential election, while ironically charging another with the same crime from 2020 (“New 1/6 Trump indict,” Aug. 28).

Confirmation of the electoral vote is not a rubber-stamp, but a debated discourse and weighed decision, as required by the Constitution of the United States of America. Smith looks like he is on a personal vendetta rather than an officer of the court. This is a sad day for America, yet the people are getting savvy and can take judicial targeting into account when it is time to vote.

Deirdre Harvey, Valley Stream

Dickensian kiddos

For decades, I’ve been reading about kids winding up dead after being kept in, or returned to, abusive homes by the Administration for Children Services, so Naomi Schaefer Riley’s depressing column doesn’t surprise me in the least (“The ACS Recipe for More Dead Kids,” Post­Opinion, Aug. 23).

The agency is an utter failure. Who speaks up for these children? Why hasn’t the ACS been sued by competent parents for wrongful death? How much carnage must there be before the city starts doing its job?

Leftists who run New York claim to be so compassionate, yet they don’t seem to give a damn about its youngest and most vulnerable members.

Stuart Ellison, Brooklyn

Power corrupts

Daniel Huff and Clark S. Judge’s article is extremely important (“Kam ‘Bro’ crooked reign,” Aug. 24).

We have become accustomed and numb to claims of political corruption in our country, but this was a revelation of how deep and wide it has become. Corruption is not just aggressive fundraising, which people have learned to live with.

This is a perfect example of systematic theft from the public, arranged slickly to be non-criminal, and to ultimately line the pockets of the enablers.

It brings to mind the old adage that “power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

Brian Burke, Branford, Conn.

Want to weigh in on today’s stories? Send your thoughts (along with your full name and city of residence) to [email protected]. Letters are subject to editing for clarity, length, accuracy, and style.