Readers React: Fine, let’s host the Olympics -- but not until we house our homeless

To the editor: The Olympics are a magnificent event. But a $4.6-billion effort, while thousands of homeless citizens inhabit our streets, seems like bread and circuses in the old Roman Coliseum to distract the masses from the failure of the crumbling empire. (“L.A.’s revived ’24 Olympic dream now heads to tough international contest,” Sept. 1)

Will our games in the L.A. Memorial Coliseum distract us from this glaring failure of our system? Will cameras broadcast the plight of the homeless alongside the dazzling performances of the world’s best athletes? Let’s make a sacred and legally binding pledge to solve homelessness in L.A. before we all indulge in such a distraction.

If this seems harsh, I urge you to drive through skid row and see the anguish. Visit our parks and beaches and see the people sleeping there. We have the means to house, treat and feed our homeless in addition to thousands of healthy visiting athletes.

John Binder, Los Angeles

..

To the editor: Does Mayor Eric Garcetti not know about the legacy of the Olympic movement? It stinks, from Atlanta all the way to Sydney, including Athens, Beijing, London, Rio de Janeiro and even Tokyo. The Games always come in over budget. It’s as sure as a morning after a long night of beer and lobster in Boston, where Mayor Marty Walsh got them out of this mess.

Garcetti pledges that Los Angeles would cover all cost overruns. That could put us into bankruptcy. What then? Garcetti will be long gone, and L.A. will do what it does: nothing. No pothole fixes or sewage repairs. What a legacy.

We have a lot of other stuff we have to pay for already. We have to build all these brand-new things to help save water. We need a big plant to suck the water from the gigantic pool by the setting sun — or at the very least an altar for El Niño off the 110 Freeway.

Besides, there are plenty of other things to do in Los Angeles in the summer — better things.

Marcel Gibson, Los Angeles

..

To the editor: A City Council vote of 15 to 0 authorizing Garcetti to sign the 2024 Olympics bid is not only discouraging, it’s also a sign of disregard for warnings by city budget watchers.

Taxpayers need to count on The Times to keep making known what’s being done; city leaders prefer closed doors and no windows.

Damiana Chavez, Los Angeles

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook