To influence Congress,
tell them what you want
My representative in the House of Representatives is Mark DeSaulnier. On Friday, I was able to attend his last virtual town hall for the year. During the meeting, I thanked him for his past support of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and asked whether he would again support full funding for the Global Fund ($4.6 billion over three years) and support language to prevent the administration from rescinding past or future money Congress appropriates for the fund. I was pleased to hear his emphatic yes to my question.
There are many ways constituents can influence politicians to better represent them in Congress. Some of the best are meeting with, calling and writing them to clearly express what programs and policies we want them to support. Politicians aren’t mind readers. We have to tell them what we want.
Jim Driggers
Concord
Community can refuse
to support coal terminal
Re: “Oakland surrenders in ‘coal war’ battle” (Page A1, Dec. 11).
If administrative and legal efforts to stop the construction of a coal terminal in Oakland fail, another remedy remains.
Typically, enthusiasm, hope, denial and amnesia combine with the rationale that building and running something like this terminal will boost employment. The project gets built however the owners want to build it. The “best case” never or only briefly materializes. Oakland gets what it didn’t want.
There is an alternative if, as a community, we are united against having this terminal and refuse to build it or to staff it. Don’t apply for the contracts to build it. Don’t apply to work there.
It takes discipline and self-control to leave money sitting on the table. If one’s values demand it be left there, it can be done.
Chris Brown
Oakland
At clinic level, ‘fraud
and waste’ matter little
Re: “Root fraud and waste out of ACA program” (Page A6, Dec. 16).
Sadly, this letter from Danville illustrates an individual who likely lives in a bubble, in a community that doesn’t understand the distribution of health care in America. It’s a myopic opinion that blames the recipients of government-sponsored health care.
The current administration and its representatives in Congress take millions from Big Pharma and private health insurance. This is truly fraud and waste. It has done nothing to offer a plan, only a “concept.” The health of 20 million people means nothing to them except as political leverage, even for those they purport to represent.
As a family physician for 35 years, I have seen the benefits for individuals and their communities when they have access to health care. There is no fraud or waste at this level, just hard-working professionals in clinics and hospitals working selflessly to care for our neighbors — care we all deserve, regardless of status.
Scott Loeliger
Benicia
Replacing addiction
with activity a good plan
Re: “Outrunning my addiction with ‘sober activity’” (Page A8, Dec. 21).
The article covers the author’s journey from alcoholism to a healthy lifestyle via running.
Judge Craig Mitchell, a Superior Court judge in Southern California, started the Skid Row Running Club after dispensing justice to many gang members and addicted homeless people. He has created an entire community of people who meet in the early mornings to run, introducing them to a healthy addiction in lieu of an unhealthy, destructive addiction.
One only needs to read the stories of members whose lives have changed for the better. The science of exercise is simple: It increases endorphins, the feel-good hormone. Beyond that, activity requires a commitment to a routine and discipline.
Millions have been spent trying to provide services for homelessness and addiction to little avail. To me, the lesson is: “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.”
Zoe Simons
Concord
Public safety is lost
in bureaucratic speech
Re: “How did gas leak go badly?” (Page A1, Dec. 21).
Bureaucratic spokespeople need a new script.
PG&E and Alameda County Fire officials say more investigation is needed to determine if residents should have been told to leave. The fact that a house blew up and people were injured means they absolutely should have been told. These spokespeople mean “did we follow our flawed process that said no need to notify despite the risk, or did we not follow our good enough process that should have notified people?”
As such, they completely lose track of their real responsibility, our safety.
Dan Winter
San Jose
Ranked choice could
save county money
Re: “A fix for Santa Clara county’s expensive special elections” (Page A6, Dec. 19).
I completely agree with David Newswanger’s excellent, informative article.
As I filled in the circle next to Neysa Fligor on the ballot for Santa Clara County assessor, I thought of what a waste of money this is. If we had ranked-choice voting, the millions of dollars spent on this special election could have gone to education, food banks, medical care, housing, etc. And to add insult to injury, the other person on the ballot had been advertising that if he is elected, people over a certain age will not have to pay property taxes. The county assessor does not determine who has to pay property tax and who does not. Apparently, quite a few people believed him.
I encourage voters to choose Neysa Fligor. Endorsed by the Mercury News, she is experienced and honest.
Lois Smallwood
Sunnyvale
Richmond mayor’s post
creates mistrust
Re: “Internal affairs” (Page B1, Dec. 21).
I was deeply disheartened to read of Richmond Mayor Eduardo Martinez’s LinkedIn post characterizing the attacks at Bondi Beach as a “false flag” operation.
As a political leader representing a region that is culturally and religiously diverse, publicly suggesting that a targeted antisemitic attack may have been fabricated is deeply troubling. Such statements risk minimizing real acts of hatred and violence, and they can contribute to mistrust, fear and further polarization — particularly for Jewish communities who already face rising antisemitism worldwide.
I read the mayor’s apology, and I suggest that he find his nearest synagogue, request a meeting with the rabbi, and attend a Shabbat service soon.
Jim Pollock
Los Gatos
Is Weiss creating
state media at CBS?
CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss shelved a “60 Minutes” story scheduled to run Sunday on Venezuelan detainees being sent to a notorious Salvadoran prison. Author and “60 Minutes” correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi responded with a memo stating that Weiss canceled the piece in response to political pressure from the Trump administration, despite the fact that it had been vetted and cleared by CBS attorneys and editors.
CBS is now owned by Paramount Skydance, which is headed by David Ellison, who appointed Weiss to her position. His father is billionaire and Trump supporter Larry Ellison. Paramount is hoping to seek approval from the Trump administration to acquire Warner Brothers which owns CBS.
The First Amendment prohibits Congress from abridging freedom of the press. It appears that the real threat is from the president, who uses regulatory authority and alliance with corporate power to influence editorial news policy. Free press or state press?
Brian Carr
San Jose
Trump is shaking
down Venezuela
Re: “U.S. stops another oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela” (Page A3, Dec. 21).
The U.S. pursuit of oil tankers near Venezuela is not diplomacy — it is state-sponsored plunder. Under Donald Trump, federal power and taxpayer resources are being abused to wage economic warfare, stripping Venezuela of its resources while driving its people into deeper poverty.
This has nothing to do with democracy or human rights. It is about oil, coercion and regime change by starvation. Sanctions and naval intimidation have exacerbated problems of access to food, medicine and fuel. Collective punishment of civilians is a crime, not a policy tool.
Congress’ silence is indefensible. The Constitution vests Congress with authority over war, foreign commerce and public funds. Lawmakers must break their long abdication, assert their vigorous legislative authority, and demand an immediate halt to Trump’s reckless actions.
Jag Singh
Los Altos
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Mayor deserves praise
for calling out brutality
Re: “Jewish group urges mayor to quit” (Page B1, Dec. 20).
Unfortunately, antisemitism has been around for a long time, but its flames have been fanned recently by the wanton slaughter of thousands of innocent women and children in Gaza.
As for accountability, look to Benjamin Netanyahu, who has equated Zionism with Judaism, and to our Congress, which has unanimously and repeatedly appropriated our tax dollars to fund this massacre.
Mayor Martinez is calling attention to a genocide. He should be applauded, not censored.
Forrest Cioppa
Benicia
Richmond mayor
champions underdogs
Re: “Jewish group urges mayor to quit” (Page B1, Dec. 20).
I fully support Richmond Mayor Eduardo Martinez and hope he is reelected next year. He had the fortitude to publicly admit he made a mistake with his LinkedIn posts about the Bondi Beach shootings and has apologized.
Martinez denounces violence in all forms, whether killing people at a Jewish celebration in Australia or the slaughter by Israeli Defense Forces of more than 70,000 Palestinians in Gaza.
Martinez empathizes with the underdog. Growing up in Texas as a poor Mexican-American kid with a stutter, he was likely bullied at school, and thus recognizes the urge to retaliate that stems from such humiliation. But rather than acting on that urge, he has devoted his life to fairness, nonviolence and uplifting the oppressed.
Martinez supports people of all faiths and recognizes the distinction between Judaism and the Zionist ideology that has placed Palestinians under brutal occupation for the last 77 years.
Marilyn Langlois
Richmond
Law stifles ability to
teach about antisemitism
Re: “Gesture of hate unites allies” (Page A1, Dec. 22).
There is no place anywhere for antisemitism, just as there is no place for islamophobia, racism, sexism or any other form of hatred.
Author Caelyn Pender is correct that education is critical to eradicating antisemitism. But sadly, recently passed AB 715, the main educational vehicle for addressing antisemitism, is not a panacea. With its emphasis on antisemitism and not the other “isms,” it falls short. By embracing the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition, AB715, which conflates criticism of Israel with antisemitism, it silences voices, like mine, critical of Israel that abhor antisemitism.
We can and must do better.
Eleanor Levine
Oakland
For safety, deport those
who lack documentation
Re: “San Jose: Man charged in Bambi Larson killing that spurred sanctuary fight headed for conservatorship after trial clock runs out” (Dec. 19).
Am I the only one outraged that a man accused of stabbing a woman to death six years ago, who had been the subject of repeated federal detainer requests, was allowed to stay in this country due to the sanctuary policy of Santa Clara County?
Now, at age 31, he will be locked up in a psychiatric facility at the expense of the taxpayers for the foreseeable future. This is a case that demonstrates the need to deport people who are here illegally, despite the protest of do-gooders who are fortunate to have avoided the consequences of a horrendous crime like this.
Charles Margiotta
Roseville
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Evil of antisemitism
must be taught
Re: “Antisemitic display brings calls for more understanding” (Page A1, Dec. 12).
The recent events at Branham High School are remarkable. The students who participated in this antisemitic act need to understand the magnitude of their actions. Hopefully, they understood that the symbol they portrayed was offensive to many.
No one should be surprised by this event or similar events, though. This is what happens when our governmental school system fails to teach history.
Thomas Baker
San Jose
Reaction to Australia
attack affirms faith
Re: “Grief, resolve follow attack” (Page A1, Dec. 15).
As a Muslim, I unequivocally condemn the Bondi Beach Hanukkah terror attack in Sydney, Australia.
In the wake of the tragedy, my faith leader, the worldwide head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, declared that nothing justifies violence and that Islam upholds the sanctity of human life. He further emphasized that opposition to the policies of the Israeli government regarding the Palestinians does not justify or excuse violence against innocent civilians.
I offer my prayers and heartfelt sympathy to the victims and their families.
I also commend the heroic actions of a Muslim bystander who, at great personal risk, intervened by tackling one of the perpetrators. The words of the leader of my faith and the actions of a Muslim Good Samaritan embody the essence of faith and affirm our shared humanity.
Sohail Husain
Mountain View
Future generations will
question fallen state
“Welcome to the White House archaeological dig,” a sign might proclaim at the entrance of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. in Washington, D.C. Perhaps a modest fee will be suggested upon entrance, as it seems the president’s “destruction/construction” site may still stand as is.
Maybe subsequent administrations will simply leave a plaque, “What happens when you allow a less-than-adequate president to run our nation’s affairs.” It could be instructive to anyone who looks at the state of our nation when the legislative branch takes a prolonged holiday, and the judiciary is ignored. Evidently, what could go wrong obviously did.
Will folks generations after ours look in wonder at how the country went from a model for much of the world, to become a very troubled and declining state of lost opportunities?Mike Caggiano
San Mateo
Let’s learn to live with
wolves, not kill them
Re: “Bid to find 3 young wolves curbed” (Page B4, Dec. 18).
“Euthanized” is a pleasant-sounding word, like something being gently put to sleep. Instead, it really means mercilessly shooting wolves and cruelly leaving their pups to starve. Wolves were here first and have every right to be here. We drive them from their land, and when they are merely trying to survive, we hunt them down and kill them.Wolves are noble creatures who care for one another and bond with their pups. Since they are sentient beings, they also feel overwhelming terror when they are being chased and slaughtered. We need to learn to live with nature, not merely destroy it when it becomes inconvenient.
I don’t know what “nonlethal efforts to stop them from preying on local cattle” were tried, but I suspect it was simply less expensive to kill them than attempt other measures. Unlike humans, wolves don’t kill for fun and have every right to exist here.
Jerry Gudeman
Santa Clara
Hamas, neighbors hold
key to waste removal
Re: “Mountains of garbage threaten health of Gaza” (Page A6, Dec. 19).
In her letter, Rosemary Everett calls for relief for the people trapped in Gaza. That humanitarian concern should not lose sight of who is responsible for the entrapment.
The most concrete proposal for addressing Gaza’s waste crisis links garbage removal to large-scale reconstruction. President Trump’s plan to remake Gaza into an economic development zone, while requiring the temporary relocation of refugees, acknowledges the scale of the problem and the need for outside resources. Neither Gazans nor the Palestinian Authority possess the financial, logistical or institutional capacity to manage massive debris and waste removal on their own. Pretending otherwise delays a real solution.
Responsibility for lifting the restrictions on Gaza does not rest with Israel. Hamas, along with Egypt and Jordan, also bear responsibility to relieve the restrictions that keep Gaza sealed and unlivable.
Fred Gutmann
Cupertino
Trump’s dismantling of
US institutions is sad
Re: “Our petty, hollow, grotesque ogre in chief” (Page A7, Dec. 18).
Is there no end to Donald Trump’s disgusting ego, putting his name on the Kennedy Center and of course, above JFK’s? He is petty, hollow and grotesque, as Bret Stephens says.
Starting with Dwight Eisenhower, every president has expressed the value of immigrants to our country; has maintained the dignity and decor of the White House and Oval Office; has given medical and food aid to any country in need; has honored our commitments and support of our allies and NATO; has spoken out on dictators like Vladimir Putin. That is, every president but one, Donald Trump.
In 11 months, he has managed to destroy our leadership and reputation in science, medicine and education. He is an embarrassment. So sad.
Sandy Foehr
San Jose
Rash of shootings reflect
a lack of standards
Re: “Gunfire wounds troops in DC” (Page A1, Nov. 27) and “Legendary coach shot at Laney College” (Page A1, Nov. 14).
The last 30 years have seen heinous mass shootings of innocents become “ho-hum” events of everyday life — from Columbine (1999) to Sandy Hook (2012) schools; to just-engaged 20-year-old-Israelis walking (2025) in Washington, D.C.; to Laney college football coach John Beam (November 2025).
Mental health issues do occur; 100 years ago, such shootings didn’t.
Grievances exist, but why think cold-blooded murder solves anything? What happened to morals and ethics — originating from family teachings, logic or biblical dicta — required for every society’s survival? We cannot forever blame “others.” Resume teaching personal responsibility.
There is no longer any “right” or “wrong.” Anything goes. You don’t like somebody’s hat, politics or religion? Shoot them.Are you, Mr. and Ms. America, proud of the lack of behavioral standards we now have? Is anarchy — where “anything goes” — something we seek for our children?
Fred Korr
Oakland
Kennedy Center change
is a marketing stunt
Re: “Trump’s handpicked board votes to rename Washington performing arts center the Trump-Kennedy Center” (Dec. 18).
The board of trustees of the Kennedy Center, stacked with Trump appointees, recently voted to rename the institution the “Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.” The White House has embraced the change, but legally, it means nothing.
The Kennedy Center was established by Congress in 1964 as a living memorial to President John F. Kennedy. Its name is codified in federal law, and no board — no matter how politically loyal — has the authority to rename it. What Trump’s board has done is a marketing stunt, a symbolic attempt to attach his legacy to one of America’s most respected cultural institutions.
Paul Osborn
Morgan Hill
Rivian shareholders
should get over cold feet
Re: “Rivian tumbles after AI unveiling” (Page C7, Dec. 12).
It seems that some Rivian shareholders aren’t happy about management incorporating LIDAR into their internally designed AI chip, going into the second generation of the company’s vehicle.
As a current Rivian lessee, I had access to the livestreamed rollout of the new chip. The addition of the laser technology to the chip makes an already impressive sensor system into what is certainly one of the standard setters, if not the standard setter, in the industry.
Rivian’s vertical integration model for integrating hardware and software is designed to cut costs and facilitate innovation.
When the second-generation Rivian comes out in 2026, our only decision will be whether to stick with the larger R1 or go to the smaller R2.
Rivan shareholders need to be forward-thinking. Rivian will leave Tesla in the rear-view mirror with its innovation and engineering excellence.
Bruce Halen
San Jose
Homelessness takes
toll on whole society
Homelessness is not solely because of individuals, but a systemic failure.
As a student, my eyes remain open to the issues our country faces. Saddened and heartbroken, I cannot escape the reality that many people lack access to safe shelter, a basic human need for survival. People live on the streets, in their cars, in temporary shelters or in places where they face eviction, yet they keep living.
With ongoing economic uncertainty and fast-paced changes in living conditions, while structural and systemic support remains slow, the country’s economic balance is at risk. If the number of homeless individuals continues to grow, it shows that the government is failing to address a basic need.
This problem affects the overall social, psychological and economic well-being of the country.
Charmaigne Abad
Los Gatos
Dystopian dreams reflect
our dystopian times
I’ve had some very dark and scary dreams over the past month. In one, it’s a cold, overcast day when a young blonde boy loses his head in a guillotine, while in another, young women are in a cistern that is draining rapidly and begin to circle the drain before going under. The boy may be my own innocence decapitated, as well as the morality and values of the country that are being disposed of as the people vote against their best interest for people who promise them something they’ll probably never get.
The women circling the drain represent compassion, caring and inclusiveness dying all around me in a world gone mad with populism.
Politically, it is the “winter of our discontent.” In Steinbeck’s eponymous novel, a man willingly gives up his morality for success through unethical means. Frighteningly, our world is doing the same. I pray for better dreams.
Bob Cole
San Jose
Trump takes another
shot at people of color
Re: “National Park Service adds Trump’s birthday to free admission, drops MLK Day and Juneteenth” (Page A3, Dec. 7).
Donald Trump has decided his birthday is more important to our country than MLK Day and Juneteenth. Is it “America First” or “Trump First”? Next, he will have his birthday recognized right up there with Washington’s and Lincoln’s, along with his likeness on Mt. Rushmore.
Trump’s bashing of people of color is absolutely shameful and as un-American as anything can be. We have all made our contributions, and we all deserve respect.
Thomas Rudolph
Brisbane
On trail, Newsom will
have to defend record
Re: “Newsom critics make up stuff, but there is room for criticism” (Page A6, Dec. 16).
In this piece, the writer says that Gov. Newsom isn’t perfect, but has received some unfair criticism. Both things are probably true, but we shouldn’t lose sight of the forest while counting its trees.
While California has been under Newsom’s stewardship, the state has developed a remarkably poor record in almost every category. For instance, the cost of living and homelessness have skyrocketed; K-12 public education is in ruins. The list goes on and on.
Newsom certainly is a gifted speaker, but if and when he runs for president, he will have to defend an abysmal record as the governor of a state in which his party had complete control of the Legislature.
Daniel Mauthe
Livermore
Menopause care
is long overdue
Re: “Is RFK better on women’s health than Newsom?” (Page A9, Dec. 14).
As founder of a digital health and wellness content provider, I have a window into total health and well-being that I am able to access for my personal health. One of those areas is menopause care.
Given what I know about menopause, for the last nine years I paid out-of-pocket for care that the “unwatered-down version” of the Menopause Care Equity Act would cover. Menopause care is not only treatment for current symptoms, but it’s also preventive care for osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease (CVD), cognitive decline and other health conditions. Perhaps health insurance companies want to pass the cost along for CVD and bone fractures to Medicare when women will experience these health outcomes, thus saving them money by not paying for menopause care.
It is prime time for women to receive the health care needed to prevent the continuation of “population-level missed opportunities for life improvements.”
Andrea Bloom
Pleasanton
US likely to repeat
regime change errors
“Those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” as well as, “It has been said that history repeats itself. This is perhaps not quite correct; it merely rhymes,” are quotes often used to describe events in human history that mirror past mistakes.
In 1953, after a multiyear effort, the CIA successfully orchestrated the overthrow of a Western-friendly democratic government in Iran, which led to the installation of the shah and decades of turmoil, in order to maintain control over Iranian oil. Fast forward to the war in Iraq in 2003, when Iraq’s oil industry was fully nationalized, to a decade later in 2013, when it was largely privatized and under the control of foreign interests.
Which leads the U.S. to the current imminent conflict with Venezuela, where the fallacy of fighting drug production in a country that doesn’t produce cocaine or fentanyl, but has the world’s third-largest proven oil reserve, is being used to justify regime change. The rhyme continues.
Barry Gardin
Hayward
Trump again shows
his innate hypocrisy
Donald Trump, the president who claims he wants to eliminate drug trafficking to America, recently pardoned Juan O. Hernandez, a Honduran politician who was convicted of drug trafficking by an American jury in 2024 and sentenced to 45 years in prison. Trump’s reason: Hernandez “has been, according to many people that I greatly respect, treated very harshly and unfairly.”
So, according to Trump, anyone who is found guilty by a jury is treated unfairly? And just who are those “respected people”? Contributors to one of Trump’s enterprises, maybe even his ballroom or crypto scam? From letting off Jan. 6 rioters to freeing crypto scammers and possibly commuting the sentence of a sex trafficker in the future, Trump has shown just what an immoral hypocrite and liar he is to the American people.
I urge people to vote wisely at midterms and replace the current Trump sycophants with Democrats who will rein in the corrupt dictator.
Robert Thomas
Castro Valley
VA must expand
access to lung care
Over the past years, lung cancer has continued to impact veterans across the East Bay. A 2022 analysis estimated over 8,000 former service members experiencing a disproportionate burden because of prolonged contact with asbestos on naval vessels and other military facilities. Locally, this occupational hazard has left a lasting mark — contributing to nearly 2,250 fatalities in Alameda and Contra Costa counties, most of which were attributed to lung cancer.
Amid this, the Lung Precision Oncology Program (LPOP) was established to provide no-cost annual screenings, advanced diagnostics and personalized treatment plans. Yet while this initiative is a significant step, sustaining and expanding it is critical to ensure that more East Bay veterans can access these life-saving services close to home — particularly since only three VA medical centers in California currently offer them.
Cristina Johnson
San Marcos
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Congress must solve
health care affordability
Congress should make up its mind about continuing Obamacare or similar medical coverage plans. This will give real hope to the public, whose premiums will more than double very soon. Lack of medical coverage puts a strain on emergency rooms and staff, not to mention the patients’ own dire health situations.
It’s only a matter of decency for Congress to take care of this “affordability” crisis.
Celeste McGettigan
San Jose
Shorter-term loan keeps
money in your pocket
Re: “50-year loans won’t solve housing crisis” (Page A6, Nov. 28).
For many, one goal is to enter retirement debt-free.
If you can, when you can, look at a 15-year home loan, not a 50-year loan. After just a few short years, you will see a major impact on the principal. A 50-year home loan is a trap. It may have its place, but it fills the pockets of others, not yours.
The initial pain of a slightly higher mortgage, if you can make it happen, is worth the gain.
Barden Asquith
Campbell
Reiner post is evidence
of Trump’s decline
There is something very wrong with Donald Trump.
Following his social media post on the death of Rob Reiner and his wife, no one with any humanity or empathy can doubt that Trump is sick in more ways than one. His mental deterioration in the first year of his second term is increasingly obvious, yet most news sources are still giving him a pass, unlike what occurred with President Biden.
Without his cadre of sycophants and enablers, Trump would rapidly be revealed for what he is, and his followers would abandon this cult that is dragging America into abysmal depths.
Kent Littlehale
Saratoga
Mountains of garbage
threaten health of Gaza
Nine hundred thousand tons of waste have accumulated in Gaza; 380,000 tons in Gaza City alone, where people have been forced to flee.
Israel has suspended the entry of waste removal trucks. Children try to scavenge in the heaps. Rats run through the tents. Flies and insects are everywhere. The stench is unbearable and prevents sleep. Burning the waste sends toxic fumes everywhere. Rain moves the sewage and garbage into the streets and tents. The health crisis is monumental.
These people are human beings, made in the image and likeness of God. This horrific situation must be addressed. Relief must come to these trapped people.
Rosemary Everett
Campbell
Book exposes depravity
of Epstein, Maxwell
I have just read Virginia Giuffre’s book, “Nobody’s Girl,” in which she describes her abuse by Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
If anyone out there still thinks Epstein is a nice guy and that Maxwell should be pardoned, please read this book. Not only will it break your heart, it will make you understand the damage that was done by Epstein and Maxwell to Giuffre and to countless other young girls and young women.
Epstein is dead, but no punishment is too harsh for Maxwell.
Katie Dent
Sunnyvale
Red Cross pays off for
community, volunteers
As an American Red Cross volunteer I help people in and around my community of San Jose.
I met a man at a Red Cross blood drive who got choked up recounting how his baby’s life was saved by blood transfusions.
I set up a Red Cross shelter to house families who lost their apartments in a fire, and I knew they would have a safe place to sleep.
I installed free Red Cross smoke alarms, where I met a man who was having nightmares after living through a wildfire that claimed the life of his dog. He was grateful the Red Cross was helping to keep people safe.
I know the Red Cross does good work because I have been a part of making it happen.
Alex Keilty
San Jose
State’s vital efforts
lead climate fight
Re: “Cap and trade has turned into a backdoor tax on Californians” (Page A6, Dec. 12).
Dan Walters again attacks Gov. Newsom, this time targeting our cap and trade program, now called Cap and Invest. Walters argues it’s a “backdoor tax,” but in so doing, he makes two errors. First, he implies that the “Cap” doesn’t cap emissions, that “It’s an alternative to actually reducing emissions.” But it does cap them, lowering them by about 5% a year.
Then, in slamming our high gasoline prices, Walters neglects to mention that climate change poses an existential threat. We’re not taxing emissions just for revenue. We’re trying to lead in preventing the ever-worsening catastrophes that essentially all climate scientists say we’re causing. Every gallon of gas burned releases almost 20 pounds of CO2 into the air.
As our country foolishly strives to thwart clean energy, California’s efforts, even if imperfect, are vital.
Doug McKenzie
Berkeley
Trump shows disdain
for Native Americans
President Trump continues to show his disdain toward American Indians by taking down a report that focuses on both missing and murdered American Indians. It was produced by the Not Invisible Act Commission and had been displayed on a Department of Justice website. According to it, 84.3% of American Indian women have dealt with violence in their lifetimes, with 49% becoming victims of rape.
The report has information that both organizations and law enforcement need to fight the crisis of American Indian women and children who are missing and murdered.
For President Trump to eliminate this report shows that he does not value the lives of American Indians.
Billy Trice Jr.
Oakland
Trump’s Reiner rant
shows lack of empathy
Re: “Son arrested in Reiner slaying” (Page A1, Dec. 16).
One of the most decent people on this planet, Rob Reiner, was murdered in his home, along with his wife.Then, moments later, the worst person on the planet attacked him on his Truth Social site. We have a president who has to be the most hated person for his unending vitriol. If empathy were a vaccine that could be injected into people, Donald Trump’s body would reject it.
Stuart Shicoff
Martinez
Treat immigrants with
deserved humanity
I am writing this out of fear for those around town. I have lived in this town for many years. I have experienced so much joy living here.
However, as the Trump administration is cracking down on and deporting immigrants, I am in fear for those around us. Immigrants are what make America. They have helped grow and blossom our country to the fullest. Seeing the horror of people being deported (whether they are documented or not) has filled my heart with such sorrow coming from an immigrant family. I want to know, how can we best support our immigrants at this time?
The misconceptions of how we are painting immigrants are utterly inhumane and have disgusted me fully. They are not as they are being painted. We are all human beings, no matter what race we are.
Sage Trapp
Brentwood
Second strike was war
crime, plain and simple
Re: “Lawmakers suggest follow-up boat strike could be war crime” (Page A3, Dec. 1).
What is wrong with people? Regarding the headline, “Lawmakers suggest follow-up boat strike could be war crime”: Could?
Even if their boat was stuffed to the gills with narcotics headed for the United States (which has not been verified), the surviving sailors being deliberately killed is a war crime (not that the U.S. has even declared war).
It harkens back to World War II and German U-boat commanders ordering the machine gunning of survivors from sunken American ships. It really is that simple.
Mark Gabin
Concord
Immigrants treated like
props by Trump officials
Re: “L.A. man detained in an immigration raid is lost” (Page B3, Nov. 24).
I read with anguish the report of the Mexican immigrant detained in Los Angeles last month who is now apparently lost.
It seems our government has no concern for immigrants as individual human beings and sees them only as anonymous bodies to be removed. They can’t even keep track of them.
I am left thinking about the line from the Woody Guthrie song: “You won’t have a name when you fly the big airplane. All they will call you will be deportee.”
Peggy Moyers
Oakland
Schools must show that
mental health is critical
Re: “California schools can’t afford cuts to lifesaving counselors” (Page A6, Dec. 11).
I have been banging my head against the wall for 20 years. I am doing it again after reading Ayo Banjo’s column. When the budget is being done every year, mental health is the first on the chopping block: the counselors, who are our first defense against suicide by young boys. Of course, we cannot afford to do this, but who cares?
Mental health is the flogging horse. No one is willing to bell the cat. People die by suicide and in shootings. Nearly 47,000 people die a year, and no one cares. Guns are available freely to the mentally ill to accomplish this. Things were better before the 1980s, with psychiatric centers where the mentally ill were safe, when Ronald Reagan started defunding them.
I feel angry, but I hope that a day will come when society realizes that mental health is as important as physical health.
Kohli Singh
San Jose
Kids need role models
as well as counselors
Re: “California schools can’t afford cuts to lifesaving counselors” (Page A6, Dec. 11).
It’s a shame that so many young people have mental health issues. It’s difficult to excel in school if their attention is focused on the problems in their home, in school, in their community or in their heads.
If men and boys make up nearly 80% of the suicides in the United States, then something is broken in our country. Violence, substance abuse, unemployment and homelessness are the results of untreated mental health issues in our male population. Women and girls also struggle with mental health issues, but are more likely to seek help. Positive male role models are what’s needed in homes, schools and communities and on television.
What’s also needed is for someone to care when a boy shows he needs help. School counselors are in a good position to help. Mothers who have a healthy relationship with their sons are a huge benefit to them and our communities.
Patricia Marquez Rutt
Redwood City
Invest in teachers
and better education
As a current high school student, I’ve experienced the repercussions of weak educational funding — an issue that reshapes students’ academic experiences and futures.
In my school, underfunding causes issues for both teachers and students. We can’t keep enough qualified teachers in every department, making curriculum and schedule changes nearly impossible to figure out. These issues affect students’ abilities to balance classwork.
Median starting salaries for teachers are barely over $50,000. These individuals shape our future, yet many struggle financially despite their numerous responsibilities. When districts underpay their staff, it tells teachers that education isn’t a priority.
The solution is clear: increase educational budgets and raise salaries. States that have invested in teacher pay show improvements; this development needs to be nationwide, for our futures.
Cecilia Nguyen
San Jose
Well-known cap and
trade collects too little
Re: “Cap and trade has turned into a backdoor tax on Californians” (Page A6, Dec. 12).
In his Dec. 12 column, Dan Walters takes aim at California’s climate policy as a “backdoor tax,” but in fact, the cap and trade policy has been in plain sight since its inception in the Schwarzenegger administration.
Most developed countries around the world now have carbon tax policies and are threatening to retaliate with tariffs against countries like ours that don’t. Why so? Because a carbon tax has been shown to be the most economically efficient way to tackle climate change. British Economist Arthur Pigou proved this in the early 20th century.
California’s effective carbon tax is now about $30 per ton of carbon pollution, with plans to gradually raise it so as not to shock our economy. What should the actual carbon tax be now, considering the damage our carbon pollution is causing (think about your rapidly escalating insurance rates from wildfire catastrophes)? About $200 per ton.
David Cain
Los Altos
Nuclear power needed
for ‘always on’ energy
Experts say our country and the world need to significantly increase “always on” electrical power for our future energy needs. Our electric bills are projected to go up by as much as 40% in urban areas by 2030, due to AI, electric cars and green building codes. Batteries are too costly and can’t yet store power on a large scale.
The only sure way to meet our electrical needs is to include nuclear power in the mix. Today’s designs are safe with automatic shut-downs without human intervention, and smaller modular reactors are now being factory-built. The U.S. Navy has used nuclear power on its ships since 1954 without a radioactive incident. Today’s nuclear power plants are far more advanced, safer and less expensive.
Ed Kahl
Woodside
Noem’s ICE defense
is built on lies
Re: “Secretary Noem defends Trump hard-line immigration policies” (Page A3, Dec. 12).
Secretary Kristi Noem’s appearance before Congress was another spouting of MAGA misinformation.
The immigrant workforce is the backbone of the U.S. economy, with lower criminality than the average American.
We would all appreciate fair and balanced reporting perspectives with accurate headlines. Project 2025 immigration policies are nothing short of ethnic cleansing.
David Clark
San Mateo