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In-depth coverage
keeps readers informed
Kudos to reporters and editors for a series of front-page news including the Danville School Board meeting and the Moms for Liberty (unsuccessful) attempt to ban support of LGBTQ/plus support programs (“‘Fear and hate are the issue,’” Page A1, Aug. 17), and then in following days front-page reporting on the Antioch and Pittsburg police officers scandal (“Did lack of reform lead to scandal?” Page A1, Aug. 20).
You provided in-depth reporting and I read every word. Both events (the emergence of Moms for Liberty’s presence in our town and the brutality of police officers) were deeply disturbing, yet I want to know about these local happenings. Your reporting helps me be an informed citizen.
Kim Risedorph
Danville
Safeway’s concern is
safety, not happiness
Re: “Why grocery stores are no longer one of her happy places” (Page A9, Aug. 13).
The column is what we would expect from an assistant professor of sociology at UC San Francisco. Sadly, it is one of many that have appeared recently in Bay Area newspapers that attempt to convince us that criminals are not the ones who are responsible for crime.
The truth is that the Rockridge Safeway bears zero responsibility for the psychological well-being of Ms. Torres. Would she prefer that Safeway endanger the lives of its employees and customers just so she can have a good time shopping there? How nonsensical. I think it would even be difficult to make a case that Safeway has any social responsibility that goes beyond maximizing earnings for its stakeholders.
In fact, taking strong safety precautions at its stores could easily be considered the socially responsible thing for Safeway to do.
Bill McGregor
Berkeley
California Conference
would benefit UC Irvine
Re: “Cal, Stanford should create the California Conference” (Page A9, Aug. 20).
If the California Conference proposed by Joe Mathews is ever created, then that might provide a stimulus for UC Irvine to create a football team and build an Olympics-class stadium on campus.
UC Irvine is already active in many sports, has a huge athletic field used by professional teams for training, has 38,000 students, a growing alumni base, and exists in a county of over 3 million people. A modern Olympics-quality stadium would provide seating for about 60,000 viewers. It would provide for many sporting and entertainment events. In turn, it would strengthen the proposed conference and attract greater television-based revenues for all the conference members.
Brad Milbrae
Antioch
Misstatements mar
meeting on trail
I attended the Walnut Creek Park, Recreation and Open Space Commission meeting held in the City Council chambers Aug. 14 and was happy to see there is positive momentum for the flow trail.
It was sad to experience the unruly behavior of the Rancho Paraiso attendees who wouldn’t let people speak, heckled and caused a time-out and a police officer to be assigned for the remainder of the meeting. They showed complete disregard for the children present and polite public discourse. The group embarrassed themselves.
What wasn’t surprising were the continued misstatements and sky-is-falling hyperbole from this group. The H.O.A. has denigrated mountain bikers for years — insinuating we are thugs, pyromaniacs, carjackers and thieves. And, as to be expected, their board president threatened litigation.
Not surprisingly the city shot down some of the more egregious misstatements during their thoughtful presentation.
Clayton Dewberry
Walnut Creek
CPUC continues to
squeeze solar market
It’s a bad sign when the CPUC is moving to block churches from building solar on their own roofs, during an energy crisis. The California Public Utilities Commission consists of Gov. Newsom’s appointees. They are supposed to supervise companies like PG&E but instead have consistently done all they can to enrich corporations, at the cost of sanity and safety.
The CPUC is threatening to stop churches, apartment buildings, schools and farms from directly using any power produced by their own rooftop solar. This should reduce energy bills by an equivalent amount. But that hurts PG&E’s profits. Instead, the corporation will own your energy as soon as it’s produced and get a cut. It’s so ridiculous.
The result will be another squeeze on the economic feasibility of privately owned solar energy and the small businesses trying to install it.
Alan Marling
Livermore
It’s time to end
slaughter in Ukraine
Re: “U.S. officials: Troop deaths, injuries near 500,000” (Page 3, Aug. 19).
The New York Times article reprinted in this newspaper reported that the combined Ukrainian and Russian casualties are approaching 500,000. The day before the Washington Post reported that a U.S. intelligence assessment predicts Ukraine’s counter-offensive will fail to achieve its main objective: to reach the Sea of Azov. The military situation increasingly resembles the appalling bloody stalemates of WWI battlefields. Yet the Biden administration remains opposed to any talks with the Russians and has proposed another $1.3 billion in military aid to Ukraine.
Tens of thousands of civilians have been killed or injured and much of Ukraine’s infrastructure has been damaged. The export of Ukrainian and Russian grain has been curtailed, threatening famine in some African countries. Meanwhile, international cooperative efforts to slow down the global climate crisis are undermined by this war.
It’s high time to engage in negotiations to end this disastrous war and the appalling slaughter.
Michael Dunlap
Oakland
Source: www.mercurynews.com