Letters to the Editor | Sunday, Dec. 23, 2018

Undaunted by Mike Dunbar’s insufferable slam

Re “All patience lost with state water board” (Page 1B, Dec. 16): Wow. Opinions Page Editor Mike Dunbar’s really got it in for me. Two years ago he published an op-ed (“Learn from history; fight to hold onto your water,” Oct. 2, by Lance Johnson) accusing me of wanting to destroy Valley agriculture. Now I’m “insufferably arrogant” for urging the State Water Board to increase flows from San Joaquin basin rivers instead of accepting a last-minute voluntary settlement agreement that won’t restore salmon and other fisheries.

Personal attacks are a typical sign of a weak argument. Mike ignores several inconvenient facts. The science supporting higher flows isn’t decades-old, as in out-of-date, it’s decades-long, as in based on an extensive record that definitively proves flow is critical to fisheries recovery. The Tuolumne proposal simply doesn’t change the status quo enough to make a difference for declining salmon runs. The Stanislaus and Merced River interests did not reach agreement with the state – “no” doesn’t signal yes, Mike.

Finally, the state board members voted to allow the Tuolumne proposal – and any others put forward in the next few months – to be evaluated, and potentially adopted, during the next phase.

I expect accurate reporting from The Bee’s newsroom; I guess it’s too much to ask it from the opinion pages. Too bad for Valley readers taken in by this hype.

Listen closely, our faith is calling

Listening to the perennially resuscitated accounts in our news of the “right” words to use in greeting each other, or imaginative offensiveness of songs written decades ago, I am struck by how far we have strayed from the real message of Christmas.

I watched the World Council of Churches YouTube video “Christmas greeting 2018: We know there are no strangers to God,” which shows images of men, women and children who have walked over 1,000 miles to come to us as refugees. They fled their countries – El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala – because of corruption and violence driven by drug money flowing from the cities of our own country.

If you were faced with watching your child starve to death, or your family being murdered, what would you do?

I don’t see any of our politicians addressing the root causes of these problems, but I know the response if we ask Jesus, “Who is our neighbor?”

To find the true spirit of this holiday season, go look into the faces of these men, women and children and ask yourself, “What does my faith call me to do?”

Having shelter is a human right

I was thinking that a park or beneath a bridge isn’t enough in this cold and wet weather for the homeless. The International human rights movement, under the auspices of the United Nations, provides for shelter as a basic human right. Perhaps we could use tax dollars to buy older apartment buildings and provide for the homeless. One of them could manage and they all could do the maintenance.

They need shelter from the elements and an address for many things in life, such as employment. Perhaps a separate complex for those not on drugs so they can focus on other things to get on their feet. For those on drugs, a counselor could visit and help. Just a thought, but it might go a long way to fixing the situation and providing the leg up they need to regain their lives.

Impossible to find psychiatric help

Re “Hard to see a psychiatrist here” (Letters, Dec. 17): My family also has found it difficult to find a psychiatrist who would accept medicare, as Dr. Paul Golden pointed out in his recent letter. I’m a retired physician and my wife is a retired nurse. We adopted a girl from China and she was recently diagnosed as having bipolar and autistic spectrum disorders. No outpatient psychiatrist in Modesto would see her and we had to travel to the Bay Area to get the care she needs.

It saddens me to know that psychiatrists won’t see patients who really need their help. The situation bears looking into.

Build my beautiful wall, or else!

How can we forget candidate Donald Trump’s signature campaign promise. He will build a great, great, beautiful wall along the southern border. But wait. Trump seems to have forgotten about the other half of his promise. Who is going to pay for it? Mexico!

Interesting how his campaign never even hinted at how he would get Mexico to pay for this wall. After taking office, President Trump suggested United States taxpayers would have to front the money, but Mexico would pay for the wall eventually. Now, after almost two years in office, he is demanding Congress continue to appropriate money for the wall, but again, never the slightest plan of how he would get Mexico to pay for it. Worse, President Trump now is stating he would be proud to shut down our government if United States taxpayers don’t pay for the wall. Politics ... gotta love it.

Efforts to get rid of BOE aren’t over

I called Sen. Ted Gaines to congratulate him on his victory in our race for the State Board of Equalization. We both ran clean campaigns throughout the 30 counties of BOE District 1, which runs from the Oregon border to northern Los Angeles County. Though we came up a little short (48.6 percent to 51.4 percent, I am very grateful to the 1,355,782 who supported me.

I am particularly proud of being the first Democratic candidate for the BOE to win Stanislaus County since 1990. Thank you again for supporting my common sense, Central Valley message. I will be working with Assemblymembers Adrin Nazarian and our local Assemblyman Adam Gray on a state constitutional amendment to eliminate this outdated and unnecessary layer of state government.

Judge: Do not deny justice for Chaz

Re “Murder victim’s mother worries shooter will be set free after law change” (Front Page, Dec. 18): Chaz Bettencourt was shot twice in the chest at close range when he refused to comply with the robbers’ demand. He was 21 years old. The shooter was tried as an adult and sentenced to 52 years to life in prison. A state appellate court ruling has reversed the conviction and sentence and a hearing is scheduled for Jan. 9, 2019, due to the shooter being a minor at the time.

I was Chaz Bettencourt’s teacher for three years, 6th through 8th grades. He was a charming, creative and hard-working young man who graduated and went on to high school, looking forward to creating a good life for himself. He was shot down and denied a future.

I ask that the court judge review carefully the case, before making a decision to modify the sentence.