Readers sound off on practicing kindness, e-bike dangers and Wimbledon

Staten Island: I read of the three men who separately took their own lives by jumping in front of trains in a 12-hour span, then saw a story of an 11-year-old kid who went door to door looking for friends, and I had to write. Kindness is easy and feels good. It took me time to know that.

When I was about 20, some friends and I ran into this guy John. He was new to Bay Ridge, had recently finished a stint in the Navy and was looking for friends. He had hung out with us a few times and was a nice guy, just a little off (as if the rest of my group weren’t). John wanted to come with us. I invented an excuse to exclude him, stupidly, and the guys went along with me. Two days later, I found out John had gone home to his basement apartment and hanged himself after leaving us. All that was needed to keep him from doing that — maybe — on that particular day was kindness and acceptance. And he got neither.

If you see someone hurting, or just looking for friends, maybe think twice and let them in. A little kindness can change someone’s day, and sometimes their life. I’ve never forgiven myself and try hard to be kinder and more accepting, as so many have been with me. Please, reach out to those you know having a hard time. Say hi to that person in your building who is always alone. Strike up conversations. If you see someone screaming about being hungry and alone, feed them if you can. The things you gain are amazing. And please, if you’re struggling and can’t take it, remember, the national suicide hotline number is 988. You’ll find people who understand and want to help. Tom McGuire

Brooklyn: So, Mayor Adams, you did what you really wanted to do. A male police commissioner is in charge. Now what? Remember the Annie Oakley song. June Lowe

Medford, L.I.: Shame on Mayor Adams! He felt it appropriate to say “goddamn” on live television. What a disgrace! Betty Miserendino

Manhattan: After being defecated on all last weekend by the MTA and their improvements on the No. 6 line, on Monday morning during the height of the rush hour I waited 18 minutes for an uptown train at Union Square. Some improvement. Same old MTA. Thomas Bower

Brooklyn: Thanks for a long overdue mention of e-bikes and the dangers they pose to pedestrians (“Peds push back vs. e-bike menace,” July 17). Unfortunately, it is not just e-bikes and delivery people but also regular bikes rapidly pushing their way through on city sidewalks with no regard for pedestrians. If you have laws that the city chooses to ignore, such as no bikes, e-bikes or scooters on the sidewalk, it doesn’t stop there. Lack of enforcement of these and other common-sense laws contribute to the deterioration of our society and an increase in overall crime. Unfortunately, we don’t have a leader in City Hall we can count on to take on these issues. We have a media-chasing buffoon. As a lifelong New Yorker and Democrat, it pains me to say I will be looking elsewhere next election. John Bartram

Manhattan: Your piece on bikes and e-bikes on July 17 (“A growing threat to life on city’s streets”) could have done with more data digging and reporting (i.e. it raises more questions than it answers). The data presented is useless without reporting the breakout of who’s dying — how many cyclists and pedestrians — and the breakout of who was responsible — the cyclist or the pedestrian/vehicle involved. Only with that more granular data can your readers take away a feel for who is at risk and who needs to be educated. Ken Blomster

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Manhattan: Too-small fonts. Too-large margins. Unreadable black print atop a dark background. Ugh. And yet there is the news brought to us in words and photos by intrepid Daily News journalists. They probe, prod and listen. They do not merely recite facts, they consider all the implications of what they report. They inspire and/or enforce needed change. Surely, these journalists are as irked as us readers at poor production quality. Yet they keep at it. I looked up how many U.S. journalists have been killed in the past three years. Too many. And all because they want to delve and report the skinny so that our lives, our world, will be better off. My hat is off to them. I’ve hauled out my reading spectacles. I’m sticking with the Daily News. Susan A. Stark

Malverne, L.I.: To Voicer Joan Cocurullo: You are so right! After more than 28 years as an NYC police officer, I can tell you firsthand that you are correct in your assessment in regard to the White House cocaine fiasco. I find it disingenuous that our so-called experts in law enforcement give us explanations that defy logic. You used the Gilgo Beach investigation as an example of investigating DNA. We are supposed to believe the Secret Service and the FBI, who were able to identify 95% or more of the individuals who committed crimes at our nation’s Capitol. Yet, the White House, the most secure location in the United States — with cameras so sophisticated they can count every hair on a gnat, a well-devised visitor control system and the best forensic lab in the country — could not identify who left this dime bag of cocaine or obtain any DNA evidence or fingerprints from it? Dave Kalin

Manhattan: Voicer Joan Cocurullo’s letter is absurd. How can she possibly equate investigating a bag of cocaine left in the White House with the finding of DNA in the case of the alleged Gilgo Beach killer? How many people died as a result of the abandoned cocaine? How many families will wonder for more than 10 years about who left the cocaine? This letter is an insult to the families of the murder victims. It is a veiled accusation of a coverup regarding Hunter Biden. Jeffrey Nelson

Yonkers: Tommy Tuberville? When I first heard that name, my immediate thought was that it sounded like an evil, scary clown on a cartoon show. The question was which one. When I learned he is a member of the Senate, my question was answered. Mark Bloom

Brooklyn: To Voicer Spencer Rumsey: Very tasty word salad, deliciously written. Is Hollyweird in your future? Re Republicans: ”They’ve turned American women’s rights into nothing but a bad punchline.” No argument there, but now do Democrats — transitioned wo(men) in women’s sports, nursing moms being called chest-feeders, the actual definition of a woman up for discussion, to name a few. Women are being attacked from all political sides. Seems like that word salad of yours is missing some ingredients after all. Kris Tapper

Oakland, N.J.: Mike Lupica might not be the most popular sportswriter around, but anyone who doubts his writing ability should read his article on the Wimbledon men’s final (“The kid delivers,” column, July 17). Lupica’s take on 20-year-old Carlos Alcaraz’s incredible victory over tennis legend Novak Djokovic was nothing short of masterclass writing. Bob Shwalb

Flushing: I have been following tennis since 1968. I coached high school girls and boys tennis for 27 years. At this year’s Wimbledon, the women’s final (best of three sets) lasted an hour and 41 minutes, while the men’s final took four hours and 43 minutes. On average, a best-of-five requires 1.6 times that of a best-of-three match. In 2007, women were granted the same prize money as their male counterparts. This year’s winners (Marketa Vondrousova and Carlos Alcaraz) received $2.35 million. If we truly believe in the concept of equal pay for equal play, then Alcaraz should have received $3.76 million. Either that, or the men’s tennis association should have demanded they play best of three like the women players. Simply put: What’s right is right! I welcome any responses. Al Musaffi