A Nov. 2 Sun-Times story, “CTA drivers caught on video urinating, defecating on buses, face little action”, unfairly portrays the thousands of hardworking and responsible men and women who work for the CTA.
By writing about three isolated incidents over the last four years, the Sun-Times suggests, quoting an unnamed source, that these incidents are “fairly common.” Nothing could be further from the truth.
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More than 4,000 bus operators work for the CTA, and CTA buses travel more than 160,000 miles on an average weekday. Each and every day, our operators display professionalism, dedication and courtesy, even when dealing with difficult traffic conditions and occasionally less-than-courteous customers.
Both CTA and the Amalgamated Transit Union Local #241, which represents bus operators, find the behavior demonstrated by the three individuals in the story unacceptable and completely avoidable. That’s why the operators were disciplined appropriately. But those isolated incidents absolutely do not reflect the professionalism and dedication of the overwhelming majority of CTA employees.
Dorval R. Carter, Jr., president, Chicago Transit Authority
Keith Hill, president/business agent, ATU Local #241
Stop Whitaker from being acting attorney general
The appointment of Mark Whitaker to be acting attorney general of the United States is as stunningly poor a choice as Dr. Ronny Jackson was for surgeon general. Whitaker is demonstrably unqualified given his lack of experience. He’s also effectively disqualified by an obvious conflict of interest, having made numerous public statements prejudging Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller’s investigation.
Whitaker was a paid advisory board member of World Patent Marketing. The Federal Trade Commission has argued that the company bilked “thousands of consumers out of millions of dollars.” The company is the subject of a criminal investigation by the FBI, one of the agencies Whittaker would oversee as acting attorney general.
If the lame duck GOP Congress allows this to go forward without action or comment, they will demonstrate, yet again, their spineless capitulation to this reckless, self-serving president.
Michael Hart, West Ridge
Train scientists, not athletes
I read your story “Pullman New ‘Field of Dreams’” about the neighborhood’s mammoth $20 million community center. I can’t help but wonder if the money could have been better spent building a science and technology center, offering training in computers, technology, shops skills and engineering.
The future of America rests not with the athletic superstars or entertainment celebrities idolized by today’s youth, but with scientists, technologists and engineers charting the new information and robotics age.
Bob Johnson, Buffalo Grove
