Letters to Modesto Bee editor | Wednesday, March 11, 2020: Primary election debriefing

Voters think for themselves

No voting is stupid. My vote is what I am thinking. You may not like my thought processing, but it is mine and it’s my vote. A Bee column with “early voters tend to be conservative” says a great deal about who or what I am voting for; it means I know why I am voting a certain way or I would not be voting early.

All votes count for something. The fact I voted at all says I care, even if I’m on the losing side. Isn’t it the duty of the press and proponents to educate us? I choose not to be engaged in politics but that does not mean I’m uninformed. Name recognition or what group is backing a certain subject are among the things one might use in choosing who to vote for.

My thought process is mine. You can try and educate me as to your thinking, but it is still my thinking that dictates how I vote.

Richard A. McCullogh, Modesto

Accountability for school money

Re “Six Stanislaus County school bonds put on ballot went up in flames” (Page 1B, March 8): The column stated that Modesto City Schools probably will miss out on $85 million, the amount the district might have leveraged in Prop. 13 money by putting up what’s left from Measures D and E that local voters approved in 2018, in matching funds, and acknowledged that “it’s entirely possible that people are fed up with high taxes and fees.”

Prop. 13 was fueled by many factors: powerful unions, special interest groups, political agendas, waste, mismanagement and greed. The column stated in the past Stanislaus County “embraced 11 different school bonds, bringing hundreds of millions of dollars.” The question people are asking is where did the funds go? A portion of lottery revenue was supposed to be earmarked to assist schools.

There should be some accountability as to where these funds are being dispersed. It appears increasing taxes has become an easy remedy. Taxpayers have become overburdened. California is the second most costly state to reside in. California has one of the highest sales taxes, property taxes, state taxes and fees. Possibly residents are fed up with being hoodwinked and fleeced.

Greg Silva, Keyes

Howze won’t be intimidated

It didn’t take long for politics to turn ugly in Congressional District 10. Just after Republican Ted Howze won the right to face Democrat Josh Harder in the general election in November, Ted and his team immediately put “thank you” notices on various campaign signs throughout the district. The next day, “Ted Howze for Congress” signs were torn down and vandalized, primarily in Manteca.

While the other side may attempt to intimidate Ted and his supporters, Ted is focused on issues that are important to our community, throughout the district, and for our nation. We will have many issues to discuss in coming months to show a difference between the campaigns; in the meantime, the other side has shown disrespect.

Frank Aquila, Manteca

Let it go: he won

Re “Democrats need to plant their feet, make a stand” (Page 10A, March 6-7): It has been a struggle, reading Leonard Pitts Jr. columns, but last week’s flatly topped them all. He showed that he just does not comprehend that Donald Trump entered the race because he knew he could win, followed by more whining that “our antiquated electoral college system” allowed President Trump to “eke out wins in a handful of key states.” I can assure Mr. Pitts that was exactly the president’s plan, and it worked to perfection.

One can only wonder when these so-called educated individuals will admit that relying on their selected polls was the reason our president surprised everyone with a win, and he will win again. The column ends with, “Our national survival is on the ballot this year;” all one has to do is look back four years to see that Pitts was right on. Our national survival was on the line and the correct individual entered the White House.

Larry Dovichi, Modesto