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SJ council map doesn’t
meet intent of state code
San Jose’s recently adopted City Council district map (“San Jose City Council adopts new political boundaries,” Page B1, Dec. 18th) doesn’t meet the intent of the California State Election Code, section 21621 (c) (1): “To the extent practicable, council districts shall be geographically contiguous. Areas that meet only at the points of adjoining corners are not contiguous.”
The approximately 600-yard stretch of Metcalf Road between Monterey Road and Highway 101 that serves as the boundary between the new northern and southern parts of District 2 is essentially one point. The expressed intent of the City Council in shifting District 10’s northeastern population to District 2 may be good: it “better aligns some of the respective communities of interest.” But according to California’s election code, this may not be accomplished by combining noncontiguous geographies.
David Baldwin
Santa Clara
Sheriff can no longer
lead the department
The time for Sheriff Laurie Smith to resign has come and gone. The citizens of Santa Clara County deserve better than what she can provide now or in the future.
It’s obvious that she has been corrupted and can no longer be trusted to run the county jails or the sheriff’s department. If she is unethical enough to use CCW permits as a way to get campaign funds, as alleged by the grand jury (“Sheriff accused by civil grand jury,” Page A1, Dec. 15), what else is she willing to be bribed to do or not do?
There is not enough time for a recall so the courts must act swiftly to protect us from her malfeasance.
Jim Wissick
San Jose
SJ abandoning general
plan by pushing SB 9
The San Jose City Council’s adoption of an urgency ordinance to implement SB 9 to build affordable housing in existing residential neighborhoods (“San Jose police will encourage SB 9 projects,” Page A1, Dec. 16) is as misguided as it is nonsensical.
Perhaps the Council and the mayor can’t read financials, but the foremost obstacle to building San Jose into a great city is that we don’t generate enough revenues per capita — The Mercury News has made it clear San Jose serves as the bedroom community for our better-heeled, neighboring cities. San Jose’s General Plan, Envision 2040, lays out 10 development priorities of which economic development and fiscal stability are topmost, followed by environmental leadership, transit ridership and urban villages. Among the lowest, the eighth of 10 priorities: housing availability, which seems to be the unhealthy obsession of this Council.
High-density urban villages make a lot more sense for affordable housing than willy-nilly construction of multi-unit housing in established neighborhoods. My advice: get with the plan.
Larry Kubo
San Jose
San Jose needs more
shelter for unhoused
Our unhoused live in terrible conditions. They don’t have access to clean drinking water, sanitation, electricity, or trash disposal. How is this possible in Silicon Valley?
When the unhoused are swept most must move on foot or bike. Upon multiple returns, their stuff has been rifled through, stolen, or trashed. The last item to move is the tent.
Generous people often donate a four-person size tent at $80. What they need and want are 10-person size tents at $200. They are not camping. They are surviving. Even in our mild weather, it can take up to four tents a year because seams rip and zippers break.
Last week five unhoused neighbors died in one night and it’s not even winter yet. For the love of humanity we would give them small cabins with locking doors.
Francesca Paist
San Jose
Hanson turns blind eye
to threat to democracy
Psychology defines defensive projection as attributing one’s own unacceptable urges to another, which Victor Davis Hanson is guilty of in the extreme. (“Why is left now worried about end of democracy?” Page A6, Dec. 17)
The violent attack on the capitol on Jan. 6 was a well-planned coup to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election by President Trump, Republican lawmakers and Trump supporters. It was meant to throw out all 50 states’ slate of electors who voted to confirm Joe Biden’s win in the Electoral College. He goes on to write, “When a party is hijacked by radicals and uses almost any means necessary to gain and use power for agendas that few Americans support,” which perfectly defines the Republican Party, with its degenerate and vile racist language and depictions of killing the president and Democratic members of Congress from the likes of Paul Gosar.
Yes indeed, we must worry about the end of democracy.
Warren Seifert
Gilroy
Program can keep
senior drivers safe
Re.“CHP announces ‘Age Well, Drive Smart’ class for senior drivers,” Dec 19:
This news was really exciting to read. My family only has one trustworthy driver, my mother, as I’m still too young for a student permit and my grandmother is nearing 80, so we’re nervous about her skills and safety at the wheel. As a result, my mother can get tired from driving us everywhere. Conflicting schedules have also been difficult to navigate and often result in someone being late.
This program could help refresh my grandmother’s driving skills and assuage our concerns, potentially solving our current problem. I hope this news gets spread further to help others out as well.
Sophia Zhang
San Jose
Source: www.mercurynews.com