Along with revisions to the street paving programs (as reported on June 20), the City of Saint Paul needs to focus on maintaining these investments. These residential streets are not engineered for commercial traffic. Yet, on a daily basis, we have large commercial trucks, including full-sized semi-trailers, taking shortcuts down our street and through our alley, presumably to avoid congestion along Snelling Avenue; a state highway. This heavy traffic beats the asphalt out of our pavement.

For over seven years I have been contacting Council Member Chris Tolbert’s office about this problem, including documentation of the company name, vehicle type, date and time of occurrence, etc., when they are seen. I have sent many photos, including wheel tracks across lawns and curbs, where the trucks simply drive over them making turns.

At most I get a polite, “We will contact the company and speak to them.” But the same trucks return.

There are clear safety concerns with these large trucks driving quickly through our neighborhood, especially with pedestrian travel being encouraged. But there seems to be little stomach for enforcement of existing regulations, or even for replacing a “No Trucks in Alley” sign. Perhaps a renewed awareness in the cost of asphalt will get their attention.

We just had a full-sized Pepsi truck drive down our street; does anyone know how much those weigh? I’ll bet MnDOT does. I’ll bet that Saint Paul Public Works does too.

Philip Jacobs, St. Paul

Put coal on the phase-out list

I was sad to see the U.S. EPA roll back restrictions on coal power plants. While coal is mined in 25 states and creates good-paying jobs, the January 2019 issue of Scientific American says we are approaching an extra trillion tons of manmade carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The current CO2 level has risen to 411 parts per million.

Rising CO2 is reacting with ocean water to form carbonic acid. Healthy sea life needs the water to be alkaline. The oceans are now 30 percent more neutral since 1850 and this trend is expected to accelerate. Dead zones in the oceans today emit poisonous hydrogen sulfide. Coal needs to join asbestos and PCBs on the phase-out list.

Erik Westgard, Shoreview

The dangers of porn

Readers may not have heard of the praiseworthy news regarding the governor of South Carolina, Henry McMaster. In June, Gov. McMaster signed the Children’s Internet Safety Governor’s Pledge, which, among other things, works to enforce existing states laws to prevent the sexual exploitation of children online.

The Centers for Disease Control reports that youth who look at violent X-rated material are six times more likely to report forcing sex online or in-person. This pledge is a step toward protecting our children, especially when coupled with the 13 states that have declared porn a public health crisis.

Readers also should be glad to hear that Minnesota has its own ministry fighting against the dangers of pornography, Christian Action League of Minnesota. You can learn more about our work at calofmn.com

Julie Walling, Intern of Christian Action League of Minnesota

Fake news

An historic and momentous milestone occurred in St. Paul politics on Sunday at the DFL Citywide Convention: Omar Syed sought the DFL endorsement as the first Somali American to run for the Saint Paul Public School Board. However, the Pioneer Press squandered the opportunity to report on this significant development and chose instead to publish unsubstantiated and politically motivated allegations of dirty politics at the convention.

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If trespassing, stealing and shutting down speech is what you stand for … Tainted. In the area designated for Ward 1 delegates, we sat with several East African women. Contrary to the unsupported accusations that were printed and perpetuated in the Pioneer Press article, the East African women we spoke with fully understood the political process and clearly informed us before the first vote that they were choosing not to cast their ballots for any candidates other than Omar Syed.

Going forward, we hope that the Pioneer Press will refrain from printing unsubstantiated allegations of dirty politics and instead shine a light on the many impressive political achievements taking place in St. Paul, such as the public school board candidacy of Omar Syed.

Ann Walters and Elizabeth Langer, St. Paul