Letters 4/7/2026

• The S-Word
• Defunct Whale Festival
• Fear And Paranoia
• No Solar Shortage
• When Will Smart Pay?
• Trump Facts
• Trump Needs To Check His Dictionary
• Lies Break Ties
• Where Are The Philanthropists?
• Fight Offshore Drilling
• Save Lake Pillsbury
• Remembering Jim Andersen
• President Bully Boy
• Blame Thompson
• Tipping Points
• Who To Blame
• Elevate Huerta
• It’s About Voter Suppression
• Five Takeaways No Kings Day
• Chemo-Torture
• Too Many Dems
• Ready Willing And Able
• Makes No Sense

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THE S-WORD

Editor,

I just got around to reading Mark Scaramella‘s recent supervisors articles. What a saga. One word I was never allowed to say when growing up was: Stupid. Certainly I never used it when teaching unless I was trying to convince a student they were not stupid.

However! This group of supervisors has gone from dumb to stupid to really stupid. It’s hard to believe their decisions, or more accurately non-decisions. Certainly there’s rarely any follow-through. It’s also hard to believe that they honestly believe they deserve a salary!

It’s a true statement of where we are as a people, as a supposed citizenry, that any of this is tolerated.

Thanks for your accurate recordings and insightful observations.

It’s hard to be 88 these days.

Beverly Dutra,

Philo

Mar 26

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DEFUNCT WHALE FESTIVAL

Editor,

In an absolutely dismal display of ineptitude and incompetence, the City of Fort Bragg held the annual "Whale Festival" last Saturday. Instead of what should have been the gala 50th anniversary of the heroic 'Whale Wars," and the valiant effort to save these gigantic and gentle creatures with the first Whale Festival in 1976, our bizarre city government instead closed off a full city block on Franklin Street for a half-dozen food trucks, and not one single mention of the whales. The only mention of whales was one single solitary booth, selling the artwork of J.D. Mayhew.

Shame on Fort Bragg. What a disgraceful Whale Festival.

Jenny Jones

Fort Bragg

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FEAR AND PARANOIA

Editor:

Does anyone actually feel safer today? I certainly don’t. Between military strikes in Iran and Venezuela, the sinking of theoretical drug boats and the deployment of masked, over-armored, ill-trained ICE agents in our suburbs, this administration has created a culture of fear. Our society is now defined by paranoia. We see it in the impatient, self-centered way people navigate daily life. Why would any rational citizen want this state of leadership to continue?

The personal economy for anyone not mega-wealthy is cratering. Many products, including gas and groceries, have soared, yet our hard-earned taxes are funneled into a bloated Defense Department, aggressive ICE operations and corporate refunds necessitated by illegal tariffs. While the majority of Americans suffer, the elite are protected.

I have a feeling in my bones that this will worsen before it improves. When voters rely solely on Truth Social, Fox News, Joe Rogan and Tucker Carlson, they remain blind to reality. History shows that intelligent people learn from mistakes, yet this president refuses to improve. He continues to insult, blame and lie his way through this second term. This fall’s midterm elections are our opportunity to start a journey back toward morals and truth.

Jeff Stucker

Sebastopol

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NO SOLAR SHORTAGE

Editor:

Iran, via Donald Trump’s blunder, has created a 20% constriction in the flow of oil globally. As a result, gasoline and natural gas prices have skyrocketed. What a great time to switch over to electric vehicles, heat pumps and induction stoves.

Randy Jones

Santa Rosa

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WHEN WILL SMART PAY?

Editor:

There has been much written about SMART, including a commentary by Chris Coursey and Eddy Cumins. We’re told that this diesel-powered train requires a sales tax to remain solvent. When will the public train break even, i.e., become self-sufficient? When will the subsidies end? Will the free rides be terminated when SMART management deems a broad swath of the target market has been reached? What would an all-access monthly pass on SMART cost once these subsidies are removed?

It’s interesting to note that policing and libraries (e.g., the BiblioBus) are accessible to everyone in the county, but not SMART. It turns out that with SMART running alongside Highway 101, residents have a heavily subsidized, polluting transit system that targets a small segment of the population, with a management team that seeks more tax dollars to support its inefficiency and its inability to make operations break even. Why are we paying for that?

Rob Koslowsky

Cloverdale

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TRUMP FACTS

Editor:

Two issues came at once. First, the Federal Communications Commission chair, Brendan Carr, threatened broadcasters’ licenses over their coverage of the war in Iran. Second, the decimation of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, with reductions in staff and data sets available to communities for monitoring climate. The upside, reported in Eco-Watch, is that environmental and science groups are suing the Trump administration for deleting environmental justice and climate information from federal agency websites. What these two actions have in common — erase it and it won’t exist. A government dedicated to erasure of facts. Thank you for being a local newspaper devoted to providing the public with facts.

Cynthia Dickinson

Sebastopol

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TRUMP NEEDS TO CHECK HIS DICTIONARY

Editor:

Most people know the meaning of words in the English language. But there is one person who is in the news every day who uses his own version of our language. Not only does Donald Trump fail at speaking in complete and coherent sentences, his use of the word “excursion” when he refers to our war against Iran is an ignorant use of the word. Excursion means a short journey or trip, especially engaged as a leisure activity, or a deviation from a regular pattern or angle. It also has an archaic definition as a military sortie. Describing the killing and staggering cost of this war with Iran as an excursion isn’t close to accurate.

Karl Reynolds

Santa Rosa

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LIES BREAK TIES

Editor,

If you were wondering how Trump bankrupted four businesses, stay tuned; he is currently working on the United States. Some failures are due to market changes, but Trump's failures stem from a character flaw. Most successful business leaders admit responsibility for their company's failures and change their behavior to prevent future debacles. Trump avoids blame and demonstrates a lack of personal integrity. In other words, when he is the culprit, he points a finger and projects unsubstantiated blame onto others.

Case in point, Trump proposed a trade deal that put Canada in a subservient role. In response, Premier Mark Carney took steps to protect Canada's sovereignty, prompting Trump to escalate his insults and triggering an international crisis. As Trump is saving face with fabricated accusations, the American economy will lose approximately 10,000 jobs a month until the end of the year, according to Goldman Sachs.

And as the rest of the world transitions away from fossil fuels, Trump wants to base our nation's economy on it. Question? How are we going to increase sales when the rest of the world is reducing its consumption?

Tom Fantulin

Fort Bragg

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WHERE ARE THE PHILANTHROPISTS?

Editor,

Regarding “S.F. has a stunning shuttered museum for sale. Turning it into something new won’t be simple,” (San Francisco, SFChronicle.com, March 25):

With the immense amount of new money now concentrated in San Francisco, you would think that it would be a new Renaissance Florence, but as Laura Waxman and J.K. Dineen explain in their article on the closure and sale of the Contemporary Jewish Museum, much of its cultural sector is floundering and even dying.

I would suggest it is doing so not so much because of a post-COVID hangover but because its very mobile billionaire class does not share the same philanthropic commitment to place that old money families once did, since to do so would cut into their members’ net worth and Forbes 400 ranking.

Gray Brechin

Inverness

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FIGHT OFFSHORE DRILLING

Editor,

Regarding “Trump orders restart of oil drilling off California coast as Iran war pushes gas prices up,” (California, SFChronicle.com, March 14): President Donald Trump’s illegal order has put the Central Coast in danger of another horrendous spill now that oil is flowing off Santa Barbara again, but it also sets an alarming precedent for the rest of our state.

This administration has proposed expanding offshore drilling off our coast, including to parts of Northern California. Despite a robust state history of rejecting offshore drilling and strong opposition from those of us who live here, it’s now glaringly obvious that neither Trump nor the oil industry care what we want, or what state law says.

Thankfully, Gov. Gavin Newsom sees this outrageous move for the power grab that it is, and is fighting back. The state has already filed a lawsuit over the order and the administration’s misuse of the Defense Production Act.

I’ll be cheering them on loudly, and I hope you’ll join me. It’s an important moment to stand up for the ocean and our iconic California coastline, before it’s changed forever.

Miyoko Sakashita

Oakland

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SAVE LAKE PILLSBURY

Dear Editor,

Last week I responded to Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's request for comments on PG&E's request to reduce flows through their powerhouse in Potter Valley. The Potter Valley Irrigation District, of which I've been a Board member and am now Vice President of, approved PG&E's request…. I dissented and posted a letter to FERC giving my reasons. This request to change flow rates is a big deal and I feel that citizens of Mendocino, Lake, Sonoma and Marin Counties should know what's going on.

FERC/Lake Pillsbury Update: Potter Valley Irrigation District (PVID) submitted a letter supporting the reduction in flows due to seismic concerns. State Water Board Dam Safety Inspections for the last 3 years show that the dams are safe,

PVID Board Member McFadden explained why he voted NO on the reduction. Note: Public comments on the planned reduction closed Friday at 2pm.

My name is Eugene J McGuinness McFadden. I’ve lived and farmed in Potter Valley, California for fifty five years. I have been a member of the Potter Valley irrigation district board of directors for more than thirty years, and am at present vice president of that board.

Recently the board of directors approved a submission to FERC regarding the Potter Valley project. It approved of Pacific Gas And Electric’s request for a temporary variance in flow rates to the east branch of the Russian river. I voted no.

The predicate for wanting such a variance stems from so called study alleging seismic concerns for Scott Dam on the Eel River. To date, no one has seen the complete version of that study, and yet it is used as the reason for disrupting the flows through the project. I feel that before a variance can be considered, a thorough and objective study should be made and if there truly are seismic concerns, what measures can be taken to correct any issues found. Scott Dam is too important to 750,000 people in the Russian river watershed to undertake such a disastrous move without incontrovertible proof of a good reason.

In the meantime Scott Dam gates should be closed to capture Spring runoff and releases to EBRR should be made in accordance with the RPA.

Tampering with the manner of determining water year classification to make it easier to cut flow rates is illegal.

Cutting PVP flows to the EBRR is complicit in illegally cancelling or curtailing the hundreds of appropriative water rites downstream of the PVP. It causes harm.

I agree with the comments made in a December 19 letter by Congressman Mike Thompson that the present ERPA plan fails to address serious and well documented concerns raised by Federal, State, Local and Tribal community stakeholders throughout northern California.

Very respectfully,

Eugene J M Mcfadden

Potter Valley

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REMEMBERING JIM ANDERSEN

To the Editor:

Jim was a townie. Born and raised in Ukiah.

And townies take care of townies.

Early on, Jim got the memo that the only real job security in Mendocino County was working for city or county government -- townies hire townies, and when the shit hits the fan, as it often does, townies cover for townies.

Jim's career thrived in this work environment. After college, Jim started in middle management and rose to the top. His first retirement came after serving as Mendocino County's Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), back when we had a CAO form of government instead of the CEO form of government, as we have now. Jim's second retirement came after serving as the executive director of the Mendocino County Employee Retirement Association (MCERA), a largely titular position because Callan LLC, an institutional investor advisor, calls the shots on MCERA's investment decisions.

When all was said and done, two things can be said of Jim's career.

One, Jim was an enthusiastic fan of Carmel Angelo, the former County CEO whose obsession with power, SEIU union busting tactics, and ruthless management style earned her the moniker, "The Tony Soprano of Mendocino County".

Two, Jim allowed MCERA and its Retirement Board to be duped by former County Treasurer Tim Knudsen and former County Auditor Dennis Huey into accepting an accounting fiction known as "excess earning" -- money created out of thin air -- and spending this money, resulting in sanctions by the IRS, a near loss of MCERA's tax-exempt status, and millions of dollars of new debt for Mendocino County.

Let's be clear: Jim was part of a club. A club of townies. A club of insiders. A club of higher-level managers and executive bureaucrats. They ruled the county then, as they do now. The club stills run the county, which is why nothing ever really changes here in Mendocino County. Annual budget deficits and county debt continue to grow. Services continue to be cut. Taxes and fees continue to rise.

Meanwhile, retired county executives, like Carmel Angelo, move away to sunnier climes, and they collect their big, fat pensions. Carmel Angelo collects $250,000 every year while getting a nice suntan with her daughter, Gina, at the beach in San Diego.

Meanwhile, the county's rank and file workers -- the ones who do the real work -- are at their breaking point. Overworked. Underpaid. Hard to recruit. Even harder to retain.

Meanwhile, state auditors are now watching our every move.

Meanwhile, the Board of Supervisors are forced into using one-time accounting tricks and other smoke and mirrors to balance our budget, while getting no meaningful reporting on our various county departments from the County Executive Office. No monthly financial reports. No performance metrics.

My suggestion? Abolish the Executive Office and give those cost savings to Sheriff Kendall who needs it. Remember: The only county function mandated by state statute is law enforcement, the jail, district attorney and courthouse. A lot of other things? No so important.

John Sakowicz

Ukiah

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PRESIDENT BULLY BOY

Editor:

So, the schoolyard bully started a fight, and now he’s mad at the kids he called names all year because they won’t help protect him from his victim.

The president constantly criticizes and belittles friends, allies, enemies and other Americans, and he has shown the world he can’t be trusted to respect trade deals, tariffs, international agreements, boundaries or laws. Now he’s surprised few allies are immediately willing to help him out of the mess he started, for all of us, in the Middle East.

Chapter 5 of NATO’s charter calls for members to help defend any member that is attacked by another nation. It does not call for all members to join in when one member attacks another nation.

The president and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth seem surprised that Iran didn’t immediately capitulate, that the more America bombs their country the less the population trusts America, that war is expensive, so they’re asking for more money from taxpayers, and that the draft may be needed to have enough bodies to send to war.

Not surprising is that Vladimir Putin is benefitting from Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz, which allowed Trump to ease sanctions against Russian oil.

Don Galloway

Sebastopol

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BLAME THOMPSON

Editor:

As our nation is pushed into a catastrophic war with Iran, we must ask: whose interests does Rep. Mike Thompson truly serve? While local families are still in shock that our leaders would subject us to another Middle East conflict, our 28-year incumbent remains tethered to the power structures that fueled this march to war.

Thompson and his “centrist” colleagues have spent decades collecting checks from defense contractors, corporate political action committees and foreign lobbies like AIPAC. Under his watch, we have seen the largest wealth transfer to the top 10% in history. If Thompson can vote for $31 billion in foreign military aid and bombs, why is there never money for health care, education or housing?

By prioritizing these Israel-first agendas and the whims of a corrupt billionaire class over American stability, they have left us looking down the barrel of financial ruin and instability. For this election cycle, Thompson has already raised $1 million from these special interests. He cannot say no to his donors, but we can.

It is time to break the cycle. Eric Jones refuses pharma and defense money, answering only to the people of the 4th District. Stop the doom train and reclaim our future. Vote for Eric Jones for Congress.

Scott Steward

Davis

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TIPPING POINTS

Editor:

Columnist Abby McCloskey is “deeply concerned about the rise of chronic unhealthy conditions in kids.” Citing 69% of parents who think their children’s physical health is deteriorating, McCloskey focuses on science calling for elimination of artificial stuff in our food to make America healthy again. Yet she cherry-picks science to ignore what climate scientists have been emphasizing for decades: we have very little time to decarbonize the economy in order to keep catastrophic warming from becoming irreversible as earth reaches major tipping points.

In short, unless we give priority to Make the Earth Healthy Again, children eating Make America Healthy Again food ( even if also vaccinated) may not survive “eco-cide” as the earth becomes increasingly uninhabitable. Nonetheless, the Trump administration dismisses all this as fake science and climate alarmism.

Next month, youth from across the country will stand before the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Lighthiser v. Trump. Led by Our Children’s Trust, they are challenging President Donald Trump’s executive orders that “unleash” fossil fuels, block renewable energy development, suppress critical climate science and worsen the climate crisis. See YouthvGov.org regarding this lawsuit against the federal government for denying our children their constitutional rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

John Donnelly

Sonoma

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WHO TO BLAME

To the Editor:

Wanna blame someone for King Trump? Blame the Power Elites. Blame Corporate Democrats.

Blame the Clintons, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Jim Clyburn, Hakeem Jefferies, and the other Power Elites and Corporate Democrats re-elected in 2020 who received a lot of their campaign contributions from Silicon Valley and Wall Street billionaires, and corporate PACs, like Google, Meta, Amazon, Apple, Citibank, JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs and other big businesses.

Power Elites and Corporate Democrats never represented the middle class…”the little guy”…the working man and woman…retirees and the rest of us just scrapping by.

America is now all about class warfare. The war in Iran is just a distraction. The real war is here at home. The real catastrophe is not $5.00 a gallon gasoline. It’s $39.1 trillion in national debt. It’s a collapsing U.S. dollar. It’s gold at $5,100 an ounce. It’s AI taking our jobs. It’s ChatGPT doing our thinking for us. It’s our addiction to our iPhones. It’s our kids’ addiction to TikTok. It’s us surrendering our every right to privacy.

In 2024, a vote for Trump was a vote against Power Elites and Corporate Democrats. Remember that fact this November. Time to elect a new kind of Democrat. It’s time for change. Real change.

John Sakowicz

Ukiah

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ELEVATE HUERTA

Editor:

It seems it was common knowledge within the United Farm Workers’ ranks that César Chávez had dalliances with multiple women. I heard of it in the 1990s from people who had worked in the movement.

The revelation that they were not all consensual meetings and that his appetite extended to underage girls is what is new. This is again bringing attention to the sexist and misogynistic leadership that existed in all protest movements in the 1960s and ’70s, save for Women’s liberation.

Now that we know his behavior was not much different from many men in power, there is a rush to rename the many public spaces named after him.

I suggest an obvious, practical and appropriate solution: Replace César Chávez with Dolores Huerta wherever it appears. She cofounded the organization, coined their slogan, no doubt matched his work and sacrifice, and suffered his direct and angry harms. And it’s Women’s History Month. Give her the recognition she is due.

Jane Pearce

Santa Rosa

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IT’S ABOUT VOTER SUPPRESSION

Editor:

The Save America Act, which is supposedly about making elections fair, is clearly a voter-suppression bill. Here is how voting works now: Everyone who registers to vote has to show photo ID. Then people who are involved with the election check to make sure the person who presented the ID is a citizen. This system has worked for many years. Our elections are fair, and fraud is almost nonexistent. There are no hordes of immigrants voting illegally. Why would anyone take the chance of being deported by voting illegally? Donald Trump knows he and his Republican lackeys are going to lose in the midterm elections, and he is doing everything he can to make sure people don’t vote. Don’t buy it. Your vote is your voice. Use it.

Connie Kellogg

Sebastopol

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FIVE TAKEAWAYS NO KINGS DAY

To the Editor:

1. The messaging was outrage, but the mood was calm yet determined. The fact that these No Kings rallies seem to be getting progressively larger is an indication of how serious this disaffection is for everything the Trump administration is doing.
2. People care enough to put in the time and creativity to create a blizzard of unique signs. This reflects a high degree of engagement. These are people who are not just showing up. These are truly civic-minded people actively protecting democracy.
3. As a physician, I was glad to see plenty of signs highlighting health concerns because of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s ignorant and deadly policies. I am sure that all protesters have their personal grievances that mean the most to them. There is no way this administration is going to change course to allay these fears.
4. The obvious antiwar part of the rallies showed that there is no rallying around the flag for this misguided, destructive violence and unnecessary death. The incompetence is startling, and it is sadly evident that Iran’s asymmetric war plans have President Trump flailing in his ignorance.
5. The momentum of this pushback against looming fascism is not going away, and will only build further all the way to November. These folks are leaving these rallies energized to canvass, donate, text, register, influence elected officials and do everything that needs to be done to lock down the midterms and flip Congress.

Gary M. Stewart

Laguna Beach

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CHEMO-TORTURE

Editor:

The death penalty is “unavoidably flawed and unworthy of a decent society,” but the reality is even worse than most people can imagine.

In 2021 I testified as an expert witness in a death penalty case, Glossip v. Chandler, in the District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma. I maintained that the use of novel methods of execution, prompted by shortages of drugs typically used to kill sentenced prisoners, constituted unregulated experimentation and was a violation of federal law that protects prisoners when they are subjects of research. The court rejected my arguments, but they still deserve a hearing.

Instead of using sodium thiopental for anesthesia, which was unavailable, the state was using midazolam, a benzodiazepine; vecuronium bromide, a paralytic agent; and potassium chloride, which causes the heart to stop beating. None of these agents provide pain relief, and the combination has not been demonstrated to be effective.

As such, the executioners were in clinical equipoise, a state of genuine uncertainty about their methods and thus engaging in human experimentation. The result has been botched executions leading to inhumane deaths, ultimately violating the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.

Human subject protections might seem like a bizarre concern when considering the final moments of a condemned inmate’s life, but the administration of justice must be humane if it ever hopes to be proportionate.

Joseph J. Fins

New York

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TOO MANY DEMS

Editor,

Regarding “Here’s why Democrats are in such a mess in the California governor’s race” Democrats have become their own worst enemy. The race for California governor is a perfect example.

The field of nine Democratic candidates is ridiculous. The lowest polling candidates are staying in the race strictly for ego. They don’t have a chance, but all will claim racial bias as the reason they are being told to drop out.

I am a woman of color, and what matters in this race is not being the first California governor of color. What matters is fighting those who are now, but should not be, viable Republican candidates with the top-two primary.

If we end up with a Republican governor, those low-polling Democrats will be our Ralph Naders and will be responsible for splitting the Democratic vote. Put your egos aside and do what is right for this state you claim to love. Drop out.

Mabel Bialik

San Rafael

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READY WILLING AND ABLE

Editor,

Regarding “Bay Area economy is deeply reliant on immigrant labor, report shows” (Bay Area, SFChronicle.com, March 25): There is a group of Americans who are rarely asked if they want to do jobs that many others don’t want: people with disabilities.

Many people with disabilities would love to work, but are not given the opportunity to or are simply ignored when hiring for the jobs that undocumented immigrants typically do.

So, let us not be so quick when talking about jobs that no Americans want to do.

Marianne Haas

Berkeley

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MAKES NO SENSE

Editor:

With $200 billion being requested from Congress to fund this “excursion” into Iran, what will happen to those who go off to fight? We already know that the huge cost of war is spent in the decades and generations that come later. How will we take care of veterans when the federal government continues to dismantle the Veterans Affairs health care system?

By early 2026, the systematic destruction of the VA workforce has resulted in a loss of over 40,000 medical staff, with more losses coming. Many more are planning their resignations due to the unsustainable workload. The VA had been named among the top 10 fastest rising research institutions in North America in 2024. It is responsible for many medical breakthroughs — development of the CAT scan and the pacemaker, and the first-ever liver transplant. All this is at risk of being lost due to the diversion of funding to the private health care system.

For those who care about our veterans, we invite you to attend a town hall meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Santa Rosa Veterans Building to discuss these egregious cuts to the VA health care system and what we can do to ensure our veterans are taken care of.

Kym Valadez

Santa Rosa