Readers sound off on John Sterling’s retirement, the Columbia protests and crime classifications

A career of love for the Yankees and their fans

Whiting, N.J.: To my knowledge, there are no books written yet about the great Yankees announcer John Sterling. We can only hope he’ll have the time, health and inclination to write his autobiography now, but here’s an outline of a book someone else might write about him if he doesn’t.

The first section might be called “Sterling’s Legacy of Longevity.” We all know the incredible stats: 36 years of calling Yankees games; 5,060 consecutive games called; announcing all regular season and postseason games that Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera appeared in, and so on. But the second section would show what drove him to these achievements, what made him tick, and what made him so consistently cheerful calling Yankees games in good years and bad since 1989.

John’s love for the team can best be interpreted by his actions. He never missed a game despite becoming a father of triplets in 2000, displaced by a fire in 2015, and being hospitalized for a blood infection at 81 in 2020. He could have drowned in his car during Hurricane Ida when fellow Yankees announcer Rickie Ricardo saved his stranded colleague after a broadcast (2021), but, unshaken, John got behind the mic the very next day!

Last year, a foul ball smashed him on the forehead in the broadcast booth a few weeks before his 85th birthday. He enthusiastically finished calling the game, never missing a beat. Only a passionate love for his job and the team he worked for (and loved since childhood) could keep him going through all of these events at that age! John definitely belongs in Monument Park and Cooperstown. Chet Jelinski

Historic role

Kearny, N.J.: Best wishes to Yankees announcer John Sterling on his retirement! He comes from a long lineage of relatives who have done similar work. In fact, after the Civil War, John’s great-great-great-grandfather rode on horseback throughout New York City yelling, “The Yankees win! The Yankees win!” Kevin Dale

Restive youth

Whitestone: All of these anti-Israel protesters who have not even contributed anything to this great country of America should be picked up, brought to the airport, placed on a plane and flown out of this country. They should be prohibited from returning. How dare they go and protest against Israel every day? These are not protests, these are assaults. They are committing crimes. Where are our elected officials ensuring the safety of all citizens? We need to stop this immediately. Gene O’Brien

Institutional challenge

Cincinnati: Informed by her presidential colleagues’ disastrous congressional testimony a few months ago, Columbia University President Minouche Shafik said all the right things about antisemitism on campus the other day. But the timeline of her actions since the Hamas butchery against Israel in October discloses a slack performance against student and faculty bullies who intimidate Jewish students. The Jew-hatred across these fruited plains on many campuses and public squares puts the lie to the idea that anti-Israel arguments are legitimate and not the focus of generalized antisemitism. How will Shafik deal with contracted faculty who express hatred for Jews, especially those with tenure? Paul Bloustein

Peace path not traveled

Kings Park, L.I.: If the protesters at Columbia and elsewhere are really protesting for peace, why aren’t they also demanding that Hamas release the hostages, the easy solution to end this war? Andrew Ross

Sanctity of life

Manhattan: Continuing coverage of the Columbia affair (“Rabbi to Jewish students: Stay home & be safe,” April 22) seems to have omitted the good Rav’s concern for the safety of Palestinian civilians. If the Zionist state would cease the killings, the Gazanistas might pack up their campus tents and return to their nomadic ways. Since collateral casualties are part of the IDF engagement rationale, Jewish students should be glad to sacrifice for Israel. Michele P. Brown

Ominous advice

Brooklyn: Advising the Jewish students of Columbia University to stay home is horrifying and disgusting. This advice only encourages those who are participating in acts of antisemitism to become even bolder. The city police and campus security should have a larger presence to prevent further acts of hate. Remember Germany in the 1930s? Melissa Lieberman

Blood libel

Calgary, Alberta: To Voicer Eugene Elander: Permit me to quote from My Jewish Learning’s Passover 2024: “Jews in the medieval European ghettos loved Passover, finding inspiration in the events of the past and eternal hope for the future. Unfortunately, the joyous anticipation generated by the approach of the holiday gave way to abject terror, beginning in the latter part of the Middle Ages with the spread of malicious blood libels at Passover time, around the date of Easter. In 1144, the first accusation, in Norwich, England, maintained that the Jews had killed a Christian child, repeating the crucifixion of Jesus.” Today, 880 years after the Norwich blood libel, Jews are condemned for deliberately starving Gazans, indiscriminately murdering children, attacking hospitals and murdering journalists and doctors. The only thing missing are accusations that Israelis are using the blood of Gaza’s children for their Passover baking, although accusations that Israelis are stealing organs from Palestinians are about the same. Larry Shapiro

Naming names

East Meadow, L.I.: Voicer Wallington Simpson said that if Voicer Lester Simon knows of Republicans who are neo-Nazi sewer rats, he should call them out by name. Well, Wallington, I’ll do the honors. Nick Fuentes, an avowed admirer of Adolf Hitler who has called for a “holy war” against Jews; former New York gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino, who said America needs a leader like Hitler; Nate Hochman, a Republican speechwriter who created and shared a video that featured Ron DeSantis at the center of a Sonnenrad, an ancient symbol appropriated by the Nazis; Joseph A. Gibson III, North Carolina House candidate who posts white supremacist material online and simulcasts his podcast on the neo-Nazi National Socialist Movement Network; and Sebastian Gorka, who has ties to Vitezi Rend, a Hungarian nationalist organization with deep ties to Hitler and the Nazi party. And Reps. Paul Gosar and Marjorie Taylor “Jewish space lasers” Greene proudly attended a white nationalist neo-Nazi gathering in Florida in February 2022. Richard Skibins

Red scare

Mahwah, N.J.: Where is Joe McCarthy when we need him? The U.S. House of Representatives has been infiltrated by Communists led by Marjorie Taylor Greene. Richard Gilbert

Singular divider

Staten Island: One thing is indisputable that all of us can agree upon. Never before in my 72 years have I ever thought that family, friends and colleagues would be torn apart because of their differing beliefs about one person — in this case, Donald Trump. He has caused more division, angst and disrespect between these people that anyone could have ever imagined. Damn him for this. And for that alone, if there was ever anyone who deserves to go to hell and enjoy the trip in the process, it’s Donald Trump. Dennis Pascale

Wisdom of the press

Plainview, L.I.: Re “Real crimes and misdemeanors” (editorial, April 21): I dare say that even though the Daily News editorial writers’ modesty compels you to say, “We don’t understand [the obtuseness of numerous New York State laws regarding misdemeanors and felonies], but we never got a law degree,” you still seem wiser to me than the 213 current (and past) state legislators (many of them lawyers!) who have written all of our loophole-laden, ineffective or unfair laws, as well as the current bail reform rules. I would much rather live under well-thought-out, intelligently enforced laws crafted by you guys (and gals) than by our elected government lawmakers. As Thomas Jefferson once wrote: “Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.” Richard Siegelman