Letters: Watching, waiting for fairness; State College casino doesn’t make sense

Watching, waiting for fairness

Legislators:

Every move you make

Every vow you break

Every smile you fake

We’ll be watching you.

A young Best Buy employee. A retired Bucks County engineer waiting at Nittany Eye. What’s in common?

Both saw my green FDPA button on my red purse. Both said, “I like your sign.” Was it the color combo, or the message? It was the message!

Both know redistricting was in process.

Both know the stakes are high.

Both hope.

And they are not alone. Their age span reflects the hopes of over 2/3 of PA’s population. Hopes for fairness, transparency and rescue of our democracy.

Shenanigans! Ronald Reagan’s word for gerrymandering!

They continue, bills, amendments, fake citizen commissions, judicial gerrymandering, attempts to dismantle the LRC, attempts to keep legislators drawing their own maps rather than the voters. Ronnie would be rolling in his grave.

Let’s skip euphemisms. Gerrymandering is cheating. FDPA and similar groups are not going to stop. I’ve had a button for five years. Voters have been held hostage long enough.

It’s time for fairness and transparency!

Youth are listening, watching and looking ahead, seniors have historical perspective.

Every move you make. ... We’ll be watching you!

Casino doesn’t make sense

In my experience, State College is defined by its welcoming and giving nature. Community members value neighbor to neighbor connections. There are large events like Thon and Centre Gives, which exemplify the giving spirit, and there are countless moments of less visible generosity that help keep our community resilient. Further evidence of this is the way we continually welcome thousands of new students and make room for new ideas and traditions.

Housing a casino is antithetical to my understanding of what makes our community strong and vibrant. By knowingly sponsoring a business that cultivates an atmosphere of addiction and one which exploits weakness, we are treading in dangerous waters. We are flirting with the possibility of eroding the efforts made by individuals, institutions, local governments, and neighborhoods to cultivate what defines us. A casino in State College is a non sequitur. It makes no logical sense and does not belong here.

The license for the proposed casino at the Nittany Mall has not yet been approved, and there is still time for our community to make our opposition to the casino known. Public comments about the casino should be sent to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board at boardclerk@pa.gov and should include “Nittany Mall Casino” in their title. Please let the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board know that although State College gladly welcomes new neighbors, we do not want a new casino that would exploit our neighbors and erode the best characteristics of our community to come to our town.

Much to like about Biden

The question has been raised, “What’s to like about Biden?” Well, I like President Biden, and here are my reasons why: He’s a good father, a good husband, a dedicated and experienced public servant, and a vigorous fighter for solving what he sees as America’s problems. He’s the kind of man I respect and the kind I prefer to lead my country. He takes on problems with zeal, sometimes making progress, as with the pandemic and infrastructure, sometimes being blocked, as with voter’s rights. There are many other huge problems out there: climate change, immigration, international tensions, inflation, high drug costs, college costs, supply chain failures, poverty ... will President Biden solve all these? Probably not, but I think he’ll try as he keeps doing his best for us, for our children, and for our country’s future.

Thank you to law enforcement

I’d like to extend a thank you to our local law enforcement for the arrest of the two individuals that allegedly committed several armed robberies in the area and a big thank you to Judge Gillette-Walker for denying bail and remanding them to prison where they belong, not back out on our streets! With the high rise in crime across our nation and leniency toward criminals in our major cities by incompetent district attorneys, I feel much safer in our community knowing our law enforcement personnel are on the side of justice and its citizens and not criminals.