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S.J. workforce issues
driving folks from city
Re. “To build a better San Jose, start by filling 800-plus jobs,” Page A6, June 8:
I am quite sure that most of the citizens of San Jose agree that the salaries of city employees need to be competitive, but the guest editorial by Jean Cohen and Derrick Seaver only addresses half of the problem.
Our leaders also need to take a long, hard look, department by department, about what other kinds of things are necessary to do. Our police department has barely half the number of police officers as similar-sized cities and is overburdened by employees in other departments who keep adding more and more workers to do more and more things that have done little to solve our basic problems.
People who are leaving the area have figured this out. Perhaps it is time the rest of us do as well.
Thomas Scott
Morgan Hill
$800M Newsom pledge
only a start for climate
In his most recent budget request, Gov. Gavin Newsom pledged nearly $800 million to preserve California’s lands and waters and to take on climate change. This is much-needed, as climate change is the greatest threat facing the planet’s health. But it’s just a first step.
The science is clear: We must protect 30% of all lands and waters by 2030 to stop the worst effects of climate change. Newsom has made important strides toward this goal, but if we’re serious about achieving it, we need to dedicate more funding to these efforts, including funding for coastline protection, for biodiversity conservation, and for making our communities more resilient.
None of us are immune to the effects of climate change, and if we’re going to take it on, we need to work together and protect our lands and waters so generations to come can live in strong communities on a thriving planet.
Mary Buxton
30 x 30 Task Force, Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter
Monte Sereno
Our priorities on guns
are out of whack
According to the most recent news reports, Sens. John Thune and Bill Cassidy believe that it’s more important to protect the rights of hunters going after prairie dogs and raccoons with AR-15s than it is to protect the lives of our children.
Between the two of them, these senators have accepted contributions in excess of $3.5 million from the NRA. This pales in comparison to the $13.6 million that Sen. Mitt Romney receives, however, it doesn’t explain why it’s more important to protect the rights of people to shoot prairie dogs and raccoons than it is to protect our children.
Dona Nichols
San Jose
Despite U.S. support,
Ukraine falters in war
I could have said, I told you so, but it’s too late now. It looked like the Ukrainians were winning the war against Russia, whose troops were beginning to retreat. Now, President Biden signed a bill to give Ukraine more expensive weapons including advanced missiles. Are they winning now? No, Russia is pummeling them with even more weapons.
Peace negotiations could have saved thousands of lives and tons of taxpayer dollars. It was foolish to think a small country like Ukraine could defeat a nation the size of Russia. If Russia did lose, they would only regroup for another war later.
Bill Graham
Salinas
New laws won’t stop
mass shootings
The Letters to the Editor section has recently been filled with concerns for more gun laws, but unfortunately, more new laws will never solve the problem or end the frustration.
Walk into parts of San Jose on any night and walk out with the gun of your choice; handgun, rifle or shotgun along with all the ammunition you can carry. No background check, no waiting period, no form of I.D. required; the only thing needed is cash. People with evil in their hearts will readily sell their wares to other people with evil in their hearts. Criminals don’t care about gun laws. Criminals don’t care about human life.
The way to end the violence is to stop the criminals. It’s more effective than the Band-Aid of “feel good” gun legislation.
Alberto Contrera
San Jose
Enforce existing laws
to slow gun violence
Janet Darrow (“To change the law vote out GOP first,” Letters to the Editor, Page A6, June 7) believes that Republicans bear all blame for gun violence in the United States and should all be voted out in order to pass laws to solve the problem.
Yet Republicans were long ago voted out of Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and other dark blue cities. The body counts in these places don’t seem to support her theory. Maybe showing a proven track record of success rather than decades of failure would be a better starting point for the argument to insert a national one-party rule.
Enforcing existing laws is a better idea than pretending to solve problems with new laws that nobody will enforce.
Dave Atala
San Jose
Source: www.mercurynews.com