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Livermore project
a matter of justice
Re. “Petition to block Livermore affordable housing project rejected by city,” July 22:
The bad news is if the referendum against Eden Housing succeeds, the construction company would sue. And they would win. California law looks unkindly on cities trying to block affordable housing during a housing crisis. Then the company could renegotiate the project and build Eden Housing ten stories tall.
The good news is that’ll never happen because the referendum itself is illegal. The administrative decision made by the City Council cannot be changed. The referendum organizers knew this but still deliberately wasted everyone’s time signing outside supermarkets, as a promotional stunt for Move Eden Housing and as a delay tactic.
Neither can Eden Housing be moved. The city doesn’t own the alternative land, and even if it did, trying to relocate the affordable housing would delay it by at least half a decade. Housing is a matter of social justice, and justice delayed is justice denied.
Alan Marling
Livermore
Contra Costa ignores
voters at their peril
Contra Costa County is evaluating the environmental impact report for a proposal by Spieker to develop the land of the Seven Hills Ranch in unincorporated Walnut Creek as a dense high-rise and restricted area in the midst of neighborhood housing. The development is strongly opposed by the community as evidenced by organized action in the community over a three-year period, numerous public rallies and a petition signed by over 4,000 people.
The latest community outreach to stop the Spieker development was attendance at the Walnut Creek City Council meeting, which was standing room only with community members opposed to the Spieker plan.
The city of Walnut Creek and the county supervisors must consider the opposition of the Walnut Creek community as the Spieker plan is evaluated, and be aware that the 4,000 people who have signed the petition are active voters.
Dianne Yoder
Walnut Creek
Democrats waste their
political capital
Most Americans support most Democratic economic and social policies. Why can’t our party maintain a stable national majority?
A key answer is the party’s failure to focus on realizing values holding our society together but rather championing special demands of segments of its coalition.
We need to look also at non-electoral institutions Democrats have come to dominate, whose missteps are increasingly attributed to the party in the public mind: media, academia, cultural institutions; increasingly, even corporate leadership.
Rather than improving our collective lives, Democrats waste political capital standing behind democratically untenable phenomena like:
• Making people repeatedly re-state if we are ‘he’ or ‘she’ (or ‘they’?);
• Discriminating through preferential hiring and promotion toward achieving proportional group quotas;
• Eroding police authority, effectively increasingly recognizing a ‘right’ to resist arrest;
• Making it national policy to catch people saying ‘wrong’ things.
This isn’t the path to victory and defeating Trumpism.
Steve Koppman
Oakland
‘Stop the Steal’ crew
are the real thieves
How ironic is it that the cry “Stop the Steal” should have been aimed at President Trump all along? Joe Biden won, fair and square, and the groups insisting the election was stolen were in turn trying to steal the election, for Trump.
By Jan. 6, it was clear to all who cared to listen, the election was administered correctly. In November 2020, Christopher Krebs, a Republican who led the federal government’s efforts to secure the 2020 election, was fired by President Trump for saying the election went smoothly and with no signs of cheating or interference.
And to the Republican senators and congressmen who voted, after the Jan. 6 insurrection, to continue to object to certifying the state electoral results, knowing full well the election was fair, they chose to put party before country. They were the people trying to steal the election.
Robert Douglass
Fremont
Changing the world
one person at a time
So what can I do about all of the division in our society? It seems hopeless.
I have found one thing I can do is say “Hi” to everyone I meet. I learn their name if given the chance. I do mean everyone. I may feel intimidated by someone or they may be Girl Scouts who will try to sell me cookies (the horror). But what I have found is that they become people with names. They could be Biden supporters, Trump supporters or something in between. It makes no difference.
I ride a bike through Montclair six days a week. If I see you, I will greet you. Maybe the one person I am changing is me. Give it a try for two weeks. If it does not improve your outlook, I will double your money back.
Jim Forquer
Oakland
Vote for Democrats
for needed changes
How are the Republicans in Congress holding up progress? They are the minority. True, but just barely, and too many things require a super majority to get passed. Plus, they are working for the top 2%.
Though the super-rich are a minority, they have the financial power to make changes … or not. Doing things to stall or reverse global climate change is not in their favor. Nor are social issues like living wages, affordable health care or equal rights.
The Democrats want to force them to be more fiscally, socially and environmentally responsible. That costs money.
The alarm sounded decades ago. We can no longer hit the snooze button. Wake up, America. Our democracy, society, health, financial well-being and the planet all depend upon us voting for Democrats.
Belinda Neuman
Pleasant Hill
Source: www.mercurynews.com