When my two sisters and I were growing up on the South Side of Chicago in the 1960s, my father would come home after work on Saturday afternoons, and we would hop into his 1963 Chevrolet Impala for a short ride to “The Museum.” Everyone in South Shore knew which museum we were visiting. No other name was needed other than “The Museum.”
In my mind, that will never change, regardless of who may have donated a great sum of money in order to get naming rights to the Museum of Science and Industry.
— Jeffrey E. Fireman, Deerfield
Grateful for Griffin’s gift
I would like to say thank you to Ken Griffin for all his generosity to the citizens and visitors to the state of Illinois and particularly to Chicago, for the projects he has contributed to, such as the Museum of Science and Industry and the widening of the bike path along our lakefront, plus other programs.
I am sorry the politicians drove him from Illinois, another loss for the city and state, along with the thousands of other citizens who have left our state!
— Jerome C. Malon, Chicago
Tax benefits for billionaire
Pardon my refusal to laud the name change of the Museum of Science and Industry to reflect the enormous monetary contributions from Ken Griffin. This billionaire, already a beneficiary of our skewed tax code that favors him and others in rarefied air at the expense of us common folk, reaped even more tax benefits by being able to deduct this “gift” from his income in order to pay even less income tax.
As a result, we are now supposed to refer to it as the “Kenneth C. Griffin Museum of Science and Industry.”
Nope.
— Ronda Schiess, Oak Park
Friday Morning Swim Club
One year into his administration, and it’s not hard to see why Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s favorability is sitting at just 27%, according to an April poll conducted by M3 Strategies — historically low for a new mayor.
Take for instance, the mishandling of the popular Friday Morning Swim Club, which has been effectively canceled by the Chicago Park District overseen by Johnson.
After failed negotiations with the city, swim club organizers announced the city demanded that the free gathering be categorized as the same event style as Lollapalooza and the Chicago Triathlon. The costs of running the event, plus permits, lifeguards, security and portable toilets, would’ve been $268,000.
The city’s response: “Water safety is a serious matter. The Chicago Park District commends the organizers of the Friday Morning Swim Club for their decision to disband and discontinue promotion of the unsafe and unauthorized weekly gathering.”
One of the city’s biggest complaints for public safety was the use of “floaties” in the event. Chicago Park District has a ban on floatation devices, which it claims create a public safety risk — other beaches, including those in Wisconsin, discourage usage but don’t have bans.
The founders told the city and, by extension, Johnson to shove it.
Let’s be real. This was never about public safety; it’s about the city finding ways to cash in on a frivolous social club. One that, borrowing columnist Neil Steinburg’s words, “A hundred city consultants working for a year couldn’t have pulled … off.”
Johnson even tweeted about the event positively in the past, giving a shout-out to the club, but his tweet has since been deleted.
Before intervention, the city should’ve turned to the community for low-cost ways to improve public safety. Surely, attendees could’ve signed waivers to ensure swimmers understood their liability and risks.
But Chicago government did what Chicago government does best — prioritized money over people. This is bad for the city. It’s bad for young people, and it’s bad governing. Now everyone loses.
This unnecessary, avoidable loss is what happens when governments overregulate. Chicagoans, even those in their 20s, are smart enough to make their own choices. We need leadership that understands that.
— Micky Horstman, Chicago
Cicada summer of ’73
The coming cicadas and their accompanying sound will evoke pleasant memories for me. I remember a particular summer of my youth when each new day stretched before me, offering amazing possibilities, such as: “Should my friends and I take a bus to Foster Avenue beach to show off our new two-piece swimsuits? Should we ride our bikes to West Park where we can dance to the latest songs playing on the jukebox? Or should we walk to the corner filling station to get a soda and try to capture the attention of the cute guy who pumps the gas?” Such was the summer of 1973, the summer of the cicadas.
Now, in 2024, I do not anticipate much fun with the day’s possibilities that stretch before me, such as: “Do I have time to throw in a wash before I head to the doctor for my diabetes monitoring? Should I call the dermatologist to see about getting that concerning mole removed from that embarrassing spot? Will my dentist be able to repair my broken denture?”
When the cicadas start buzzing, I will be in a good mood as I remember the lazy, hazy days of that summer of 1973. And I will smile — albeit with a closed-mouth Mona Lisa smile until such time as my new denture arrives.
— Megan Bedard, Round Lake Beach
Chicago, protect our birds
Around 600 million birds die every year from colliding with buildings in the U.S., according to a 2019 report from Cornell University. Chicago is an important area for bird migration because birds fly along the shores of Lake Michigan. This is a problem because Chicago has been ranked by Cornell as the most dangerous city in the U.S. for birds. Last fall, nearly 1,000 birds died on one night at McCormick Place Lakeside Center.
The bird deaths in Chicago matter because more than half of bird species in the U.S. are declining. Birds remove pests from our trees and crops and eat large numbers of mosquitoes, so it’s important to keep them from declining.
We can design buildings that won’t kill birds and aren’t more expensive. Windows are one of the main causes of collisions. Birds often can’t see windows and attempt to fly through. To reduce bird deaths, developers can use fritted glass, a type with patterns that is already used in buildings. Besides saving birds, the glass can reduce the cost of energy in the summer.
Birds also are attracted to city lights at night and fly into buildings’ windows. An option to reduce their deaths is to put lights on timers that will turn them off at night unless they detect motion. That option also would reduce the cost of energy.
Other cities in the U.S., such as New York City and San Francisco, have already made bird-friendly designs a requirement.
More information on designing bird-friendly buildings is available at the American Bird Conservancy’s website.
— Dr. Sarah Richardson, DePaul University, Chicago
Costco’s customer service
Regarding the editorial “Why Costco stores succeed when others retailers flail” (May 10): While Costco offers great customer service and excellent pricing, the reason the customer service is so good is that it pays its people wages way above the minimum wage for a retail job, which many out there denigrate!
I remember when the Niles location opened about 25 years ago, and I have been seeing some of the same employees there for two decades now!
— Joe Jensen, Chicago
Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com.
