- What's Wrong With This Picture?
- Scapegoating Latinos
- You Got It Coming, Lady
- Treatment Is A Good Start
- Profit Over People
- Cruelty Squared
- State’s Proposed Rules For Fire Protection Go Too Far
- Don’t Criminalize Pain
- To Be Or Not To Be
- RFK Jr. Still Saying Dangerous Things About Safe Vaccines
- Hey, Esmeralda, Move Into Cloverdale
- Shouldn't Have Been There
WHAT'S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?
To the Editor:
When there is a mass shooting, it’s only one bad person with a gun, so no action is deemed necessary. But when one migrant acts in a criminal and reprehensible manner, suddenly action must be taken against all immigrants that fit a certain profile.
There is something wrong with this picture.
Dorothy Presser
Lynnfield, Massachusetts
SCAPEGOATING LATINOS
To the Editor,
There is a rising anti-Latino sentiment in the country, much of it stoked by our own government’s rhetoric and policies. To counter the growing hostility, we must confront the false narratives that are feeding it.
Many do not realize that the overwhelming majority of Latinos in the United States were born here and therefore are U.S. citizens. Far from being a burden, the Latino community is an economic powerhouse, contributing more than $4 trillion to the U.S. gross domestic product each year.
Latinos make up the second-largest voting bloc in the country and are gaining influence in shaping local and national elections. Additionally, Latinos are overrepresented in the work force, driving the American economy and providing the essential products and services that keep our nation running.
Being Latino in the U.S. should not be treated as a crime. More than that, American society must recognize and value Latinos as an essential part of the nation’s prosperity and future. Dispelling false narratives about Latinos is not just about fairness; it’s about fully understanding what it means to be a citizen of this country.
Vincent Guilamo-Ramos
Washington DC
YOU GOT IT COMING, LADY
Editor,
Although the letter writer did not intend it, her frustration at being called a cult member, brainwashed, a Nazi and “other vile comments” simply for voting for Donald Trump coincidentally appeared on day as an Open Forum detailing Trump’s threats to sidestep the judicial system and assassinate of his political rivals.
Although we are all entitled to vote for our choice, those who still support Trump at this time should at least be honest with themselves and admit that they support fascism.
Look up the definition. It fits what’s happening.
Stefan Gruenwedel
San Francisco
TREATMENT IS A GOOD START
Editor,
Data from the Opiate Treatment Outpatient Program at San Francisco General Hospital show that for patients admitted in 2024, 46% were still in treatment six months later. In 2017, when heroin was the dominant illicit opioid, 44% stayed that long.
The rates remained stable even as the number of people admitted to treatment doubled during the last few years. As a result, more people stay in treatment for an extended period. The number of patients who’ve been in treatment more than a year (584) is now larger than the historic average number of patients in the whole clinic (575).
Would it be better if everyone who entered treatment stuck around longer? Absolutely. The outpatient program is exploring how to help patients stay in treatment longer and enter recovery.
Until then, just getting more people to start treatment will lead to more people “sticking with it.”
Dr. Scott Steiger, deputy medical director, Opiate Treatment Outpatient Program
San Francisco
PROFIT OVER PEOPLE
Editor,
Regarding “Verizon confirms more than 13,000 job cuts," Verizon’s job cuts illustrate the real reason most companies will be embracing artificial intelligence — to make more money for their investors.
The CEO’s quote, “Our current cost structure limits our ability to invest significantly in our customer value proposition” is classic corporate subterfuge. The main goal is to increase profits by cutting payroll costs.
Just wondering: Who will be buying Verizon’s products and services when everyone has been replaced by AI?
Robert Leeds
Oakland
CRUELTY SQUARED
Editor,
I was in the immigration courtroom as an observer on Monday. Due to the overload of cases, the judge was delayed in hearing the afternoon docket. Given that the court is down to nine judges from 26, these delays are now routine.
For the Department of Justice to claim that it is “restoring integrity to our immigration system” by firing qualified and committed judges is ludicrous. In my time as a court observer, I have witnessed how these judges demonstrate integrity, professionalism, and a commitment to follow the rule of law.
Now, the Trump administration is threatening to deport asylum seekers to Honduras while they await their trials. Many of those who could be deported are not even from Honduras.
There is no end to the cruelty.
Alyson Jacks
San Francisco
STATE’S PROPOSED RULES FOR FIRE PROTECTION GO TOO FAR
Editor,
The California Board of Forestry is finalizing its “Zero Zero” rules intended to help protect homes during wildfires. The rules will be implemented immediately for newly built homes and will be imposed on existing homes and landscaping within three years.
My wife and I have lived in Sleepy Hollow for more than 30 years. We planted, and water extensively, fruit trees and roses, as well as camellias, near to our house. We also have a pre-existing gardener’s shed that we moved to the far end of our property shortly after we moved here. The shed is not fire-resistant to current standards.
I have several problems with the state imposing what I consider to be draconian new rules on existing homes.
I am retired on a fixed income and the cost of removing existing trees, other plants and fences would be extensive. Additionally, we would be required to remove landscaping, particularly fruit trees and roses, which we planted long ago in compliance with all laws in place at the time. They give us pleasure and make our home look good.
If I follow these rules, I am concerned our property will look more appropriate to a desert area like Las Vegas, but not here in Marin County. I do not like the government telling me how to live without what I consider to be representation or fair warning on this issue. I am concerned the new rules will make our property less attractive and, therefore, less valuable if we were to sell it.
In my opinion, this fits the definition of inverse condemnation, which I think should be frowned upon under existing laws. Imposing these rules upon existing, previously compliant properties is unfair.
Peter H. Behr Jr.
San Anselmo
DON’T CRIMINALIZE PAIN
To the Editor:
The most overlooked truth in the national conversation about drug use — including fentanyl — is this: People turn to drugs because they want to feel better. Whether they want to escape pain, numb trauma or quiet anxiety, substance use is often a desperate solution to unmet emotional needs.
Criminalizing that pain doesn’t heal it. While accountability matters, it will never be enough on its own. Sustainable solutions must begin with compassion and continue with access to real tools for emotional resilience, connection and recovery. That includes relationship education, mental health support and community-based models that treat the whole person — not just the addiction.
If we keep approaching the crisis with fear, blame and sound bites, we will continue to lose people who might have been helped if only we’d asked what they were hurting from in the first place.
Seth Eisenberg
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
TO BE OR NOT TO BE
To the Editor:
If A.I. encourages us to narrow our definition of consciousness to the spectrum of intelligence, then the machines will always win and our grand experiment of civilization will fail.
The facts are these: Machines lack the hardware of beingness, for “to be” one must live. Machines will never feel; they will never love; they will only manage to simulate these as affects.
One need look no further than the suicide of 14-year-old Sewell Garcia, who formed a “relationship” with an A.I. chatbot.
David Shuch
Augusta, New Jersey
RFK JR. STILL SAYING DANGEROUS THINGS ABOUT SAFE VACCINES
Editor,
As a retired doctor, I am writing in response to the Nov. 22 article with the headline “RFK Jr. says he personally directed CDC’s new guidance on vaccines and autism.”
I think U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is a single-issue guy. To me, that means he has no business holding authority over our nation’s health leadership. He appears to only care about the perceived tragedy of having a child with autism, and he associates it with vaccines.
Kennedy seemingly doesn’t care about the devastation of a child becoming infected with tetanus, pertussis, measles, rubella, diphtheria or COVID-19, to name a few serious life-threatening infections avoided with vaccines. Research shows that any side-effects from vaccines are minimal, compared to the death and destruction wielded by these terrible preventable diseases.
Vaccine refusal should not be about “personal choice.” I think viewing that way is selfish and puts us all at increased risk of devastating health consequences and early death.
Dr. Debra Bright
San Rafael
HEY, ESMERALDA, MOVE INTO CLOVERDALE
Editor:
Wouldn’t it be simpler, and certainly better for Cloverdale, if the Esmeralda folks move into Cloverdale, rather than build a satellite town? Cloverdale already has houses for rent and sale; and shops, restaurants and other businesses that could really use a boost. Plus, there is a ton of vacant retail space. How could businesses that are already struggling afford to operate satellites in Esmeralda? Why not live in Cloverdale, among its residents, rather than on a hill above them?
CD Grant and Eric Neel
Cloverdale
SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN THERE
To the Editor:
I could not help but feel great sadness and anger over the death of a young female National Guard member in Washington.
The Guard should have never been deployed there — an action that caused unrest and stress to the residents. It had little to do with safety in D.C., but was part of President Trump’s autocratic actions to intimidate and harass blue areas.
These rash, unjustified political actions have real consequences, as reflected in the tragic death of a young woman in the prime of her life.
Richard Goetz
Mission Viejo
Be First to Comment