If you are going to have personal bodyguard protection, it should be someone whom you have trust and confidence in. Mayor Lori Lightfoot should be given that consideration and the Fraternal Order of Police should back off the negative comments. Just because of the long-standing tradition of having the mayor's detail headed up and run by Chicago's cops doesn't mean that there is something wrong with the mayor's new selection. In fact, it's most likely why most Chicagoans voted for her. Change from the old traditional ways sometimes is hard to swallow, but boy does Chicago need changes. No doubt this will be one of many, and I think not only the FOP, but the rest of Chicago should hang on for the ride. Chicago's cops, in fact, took an oath to serve and protect the city and its people. Let the mayor choose whom she wants to protect her. Three days in office and the FOP chose to decide to dictate who protects the city's mayor. Stick to representing Chicago's cops, not dictating policy.
— Bob Angone, retired lieutenant, Chicago Police Department, Miramar Beach, Fla.
Fix Loop’s logjam
Driving in the Loop can be exasperating and time-consuming. Drivers have always had to contend with street closures, road repairs, throngs of people at crosswalks, and bicycles and buses.
And now, the addition of bicycle lanes, barriers and bus-loading ramps have created a nightmare for drivers. Streets that once accommodated thousands of cars in four lanes have now been reduced to two, while bicycle and bus lanes see an occasional bus or bicycle.
Whoever came up with the hare-brained idea of eliminating lanes by installing bus-loading ramps should be run out of town. To make the streets safe for cars and bicycles and to expedite the flow of traffic, bicycle riders should be required to ride their bikes in traffic lanes like the automobile. They should follow the line of traffic and stop behind the auto in front of them, using their hands to signal turns.
As for the bus-loading ramps, they compare favorably with the fiasco of the median that was built in the middle of sections of the Magnificent Mile. The idea was to beautify the avenue with greenery. The planters were built too high. There is no visibility from one side to the other. We need better planning.
— Ned L. McCray, Tinley Park
Casting light on FOID troubles
The investigative journalists you have on staff deserve a Pulitzer for their front page piece in the May 23 edition of the Tribune on the FOID (Firearm Owner's Identification card) follow-through issue. It was informative. The fact that attempts by FOID revokees to purchase additional weapons was commonplace and documented was news to me. Closing with an account of an actual call by law enforcement officers at the home of a non-compliant FOID card revokee made the challenges real to this reader.
— Margaret Sents, Glenview
Fee hike for electric vehicles
I am a moderate. However, Gov. J.B. Pritzker's widely reported proposal for a $250 annual registration fee for electric vehicles is asinine and should be blocked. If anything, higher fees should be imposed on automobiles with engines of five liters (305 cubic inches). Higher fees should also be imposed on large sport utility vehicles, unless they are hybrid, electric, or use alternative fuels such as natural gas. Yes, taxes will have to go up to support the plan, but why not collect higher DUI fines for drug- or alcohol-impaired driving? ? Electric vehicles are non-polluting, though the added strain on power plants to produce the electricity offsets that somewhat. Pritzker’s proposal means that anyone owning an electric car could pay more in registration fees than for a gas guzzler.
— Jon Evans, South Chicago
America needs more immigrants
With drops in the U.S. birth rate, what is the best way to make sure our American elderly are taken care of financially by Social Security, and ensure labor shortages in elder care do not occur? Allow more immigration. Immigrants not only bring in a new perspective, culture and vitality, but they also bring in money. Legal immigrants are taxable, and they want to raise their families in America. Immigration is the foundation of our country, and the solution to U.S. birth shortages.
— Susan Landwer, Wilmette