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Ranked-choice voting
is bad for Oakland
Re. “Ranked choice voting under threat for our local elections,” Page A6, April 8:
Outgoing Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf bemoans the fact that ranked-choice voting may be on its way out. I for one think that a majority of Oakland voters wish it had never been adopted.
Just look at what they got. Probably the worst mayor that Oakland has ever had, Jean Quan was the first one put in by ranked-choice voting. Nobody wanted her as mayor as she only received minimal first-place votes. And because nobody really knew how the system worked she got in anyway. Oakland’s second round turned out not much better with Schaaf getting elected.
Bruce Onken
Fremont
Support workers
no matter their status
The pandemic has made the need for benefits for and support of workers more evident now than ever. The article “California has new benefits for undocumented immigrants. They’re not enough, workers say” (April 3) highlights this need.
Although California has recently extended public health care to undocumented residents 50 years and older, this is truly not enough. Health care should be made available to residents of all ages. My perspective has been shaped by my role as the parent of a child with medical needs. I couldn’t support my family without the support that I’ve received from our doctors, therapists and other specialists.
Our communities will not be strong if our families and children are not supported. We need to do what we can to support the ability of the caretakers in our communities to care for their families and children including access to health care benefits regardless of legal or immigration status.
Lali Lorenz
Fremont
Diverse opinion different
than pure propaganda
Re. “Conservatives don’t call for silencing others,” Letters to the Editor, Page A6, April 6:
How do we know if something is true? It’s true if it’s in accordance with measurable reality. Mr. Mahler is confusing diverse opinions with outright propaganda from well-funded media conglomerates.
Fox News excels in creating a different reality. Using buzzwords like gay marriage, abortion, critical race theory and stolen elections; they can trigger a visceral reaction to persuade supporters to vote against their own self-interest.
This is Gaslighting 101: a psychological technique that undermines a person’s perception of reality. Free speech allows them to undermine their supporters’ reality. We have laws that make it illegal to shout fire in a theater. It should be illegal to lie to Americans in order to destroy our democracy.
Bringing back the Fairness Doctrine would stop news polarization, providing balanced viewpoints. Meanwhile, try balanced sources for your news. Then vote in November to save our democracy.
Andrew Wise
Fremont
Don’t ban opposing
views; learn from them
Given the constant and pervasive banning of books across the country, the recent reader letter espousing that liberals are the only participants in the cancel culture (“Conservatives don’t call for silencing others,” Page A6, April 6) is, charitably, short-sighted. That doesn’t detract from the author’s point: It’s counterproductive to call for the silencing of voices such as Marc A. Thiessen or Victor Davis Hanson. An example: the January op-ed purporting the ludicrous idea that Russia wouldn’t have invaded Ukraine if Trump’s U.S. oil policy was still in effect. It contained a hidden gem.
An ardent proponent of renewable energy, I had forgotten about fighter jets and navy destroyers. Renewables will never suffice alone; hydrocarbon will always be needed.
This is just one example. My point: opposing scholars bring relevant moral, civil and practical perspectives that better us all. We don’t have to agree, but rather than ban (cancel) we need to mine opposing views for understanding and knowledge. However serendipitous.
Antonio Inserni
Alamo
Column for once offers
clear-eyed view of world
Well, I apologize. Turns out Victor Davis Hanson can actually think.
After many years I have finally read a column of his that did not attack Democrats for whatever is wrong on planet Earth (“Ukraine might soon be reaching a tipping point,” Page A7, April 8). I should have realized he had that capacity; he is, after all, a distinguished scholar of the ancient world. It’s the modern world where he usually gets lost in blind, repetitive, right-wing political ideology. Davis’s column on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s needless and vicious war in Ukraine was clear-eyed and on the mark.
I apologize, Mr. Hanson, for not realizing that you still have a scholar’s eye behind the political mask.
Michael Steinberg
Berkeley
Source: www.mercurynews.com