Readers sound off on deaths in Rikers, New Year’s resolutions and Pelé

Olcott, N.Y.: The repugnant administration/union blame game in “Plan to hire civilian outsiders riles jails” (Dec. 26) is so typical of the evil affecting the lives of many jail and prison inmates across America. These leaders bicker over politics while offering not one shred of care or concern for the 19 detainees who perished under their reprehensible, absentee watch. 19! Dead. The Rikers 19!

Who was managing the jail, and who was in charge of the doomed Rikers 19 — some likely innocent — who lost their lives at the hands of these zoo custodians? Who lied, who murdered, who turned away and who filed the false reports? These are the critical questions that must be answered to convict those responsible for the Rikers 19!

Seeing incarceration in person, and knowing how some of these wardens, deputies and officers behave (blaming the inmates — please!), I know that not every one of those 19 deaths was suicide, nor were they inmate-caused. It happens elsewhere too often, but Rikers is so corrupt that those managing it have earned their coveted places in Hell, which they recreate daily for others here on Earth.

Answer: Wipe the slate clean and clear the facility of current staff. Happy New Year — you’re fired! The truly good and honest officers and staff (there are many, certainly) will easily find better work, union or no union.

And God Himself will sort the real Rikers 19 mess out in due time. Brandon M. Stickney

Yonkers: As this rather burdensome year comes to an end, I find myself questioning the future. Will life get back to normal? No, because normal is merely a setting on a washing machine. Will life get worse? I don’t know. Will things get better? Yes, when we get down on our knees and pray. And then, don’t forget the chocolate and pizza. Oops, I meant to say to be kinder. Mari Castrovilla

Brooklyn: Making New Year’s resolutions is a wonderful idea and can help you and society in general. Might I suggest a few: Stop hating and persecuting people due to their gender, race, religion, ethnicity or sexual orientation; be more careful and alert when driving your car and riding your bicycle; find one or two ways to help improve our environment and implement them; and proofread what you write on social media. Here’s to a better year in 2023! Ellen Levitt

Bayville, N.J.: I have several friends who are vegan, and as much as I like what they serve when I eat with them, I was never interested in changing either my eating habits or my cooking style. I like hamburgers, bacon, steak, chicken and lamb. You name it, I would eat it. I had the idea that meat was the only way I could efficiently get protein into my diet. Then I watched the “Forks Over Knives” documentary that was brought up during a talk I listened to presented by the Farm Animal Rights Movement. I was blown away. When the doctors presented the science behind why meat is less healthy than a plant-based diet, I realized that if I want to improve my long-term health prospects and how I feel, I need to change my diet. My new New Year’s resolution is to move to a plant-based diet. Joan L. Velardi

Chicago: Not that you asked, but my primary wish for 2023 is to totally ignore anything that Donald Trump or his staunchest allies have to say. He is old news anyway and his best days are surely behind him. He is, after all, the reincarnation of Herbert Hoover trying to get re-elected in the midst of the Great Depression. Or worse yet, he is the ghost of Richard M. Nixon trying desperately to preserve his legacy while dodging federal indictments. It must never be forgotten that the disgraced ex-president is at his worst when he’s being taken seriously and we’re at our very best when we simply ignore his lies, deceptions and conspiracy theories. Bob Ory

Easton, Pa.: My hat’s off to the five reporters who somehow managed to work Donald Trump’s name into their article about the ghastly murder of Carlo Secondino (” ‘Saturated’ in blood,” Dec. 30). Barbara Cusano

Ridgewood, N.J.: I hear and read many complaints in the paper — lying politicians, questionable judicial picks, NYCHA buildings rotting without heat or water. Soon we will start a new year filled with hope. Then I read about the situation in Ukraine — invaded, constant attacks on infrastructure, war, famine and enduring wetness and cold. People need to realize that we Americans do not have it so bad. The migrants in our border states who Republicans whine about are fleeing war, terror, famine and starvation. We have a lot to be thankful for. There are no bombs bursting in our skies. We have heat, water, electricity, shelter and peace. Sharing this bounty with the less fortunate in our own hemisphere will slow or stop migration into our Southwest. We already know that Customs and Border Protection, with its detention camps, can’t. Peter J. Peirano

Trenton, Mo.: What shall be done with New York’s federal politicians who repeatedly used Goebbels’ and Hitler’s big lie propaganda technique? The old Roman Empire used hard labor in the mines. That labor might last decades and is reversible if claims about education, employment, finances, migration, religion and taxes are ever proven true! Every politician who uses big lies to steal any federal election commits high crimes against all 330-plus million citizens of the U.S.A. Decisions by Congress and the executive branch impact all of us via tax cuts and increases, and all appropriations and restrictions! Ron Renkoski

Hallandale Beach, Fla.: Rest in peace, Pelé, one of the greatest ever. What a role model on and off the pitch. Winner of three World Cups, unbelievable. Paul Bacon

Bellerose: A man named Edson Arantes do Nascimento who was known to the world as Pelé, the greatest soccer player in the world, has died at age 82 from colon cancer. He played for the Brazilian club Santos, won three World Cups and later played for the New York Cosmos. As reported, he truly was a soccer icon and an ambassador of a beautiful game. By playing for the Cosmos, he brought the game to America and made it popular. He truly was a role model for our youth and the world’s youth. Pelé was a global icon and the personification of these four words: hope, humility, love and unity. In the words of Pelé, ”Love is more important than what we can take in life. Please say with me, love, love, love.” He will truly be missed and as such, let me offer my heartfelt prayers to his family, friends and fellow soccer players worldwide. Frederick R. Bedell Jr.

Bayside: Hunting must become illegal. To deliberately shoot an innocent animal who poses no threat is unspeakable. Don’t they have the same right as we do to live their lives and not be shot dead for no reason? The same applies to fishing for sport. These innocent little creatures are tricked into believing there is food at the tip of a line and they go for it, only to be killed! Sarah Alboher

Brooklyn: All the reasons for making sure all students are capable of going to college noted in the op-ed by Garland Thomas-David (”Applying to college is the first, crucial step,” Dec. 29) are valid and important. The circumstances that prevent more students from accessing college should and must be addressed. However, it is still true, despite what you say, that college isn’t for everybody. You neglect the students who may have intellectual disabilities or those who actually would prefer other alternatives. Vocational training and opportunities for employment without a college degree must exist and be increased for those for whom college is not the best option. College is not and cannot be for everyone. Phyllis Schweiger