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Court rules on invented
emergencies in secrecy
Whether we agree or disagree with the Supreme Court’s most recent “emergency” rulings, we’re all victims of a supreme injustice when the issues being decided don’t comply with Supreme Court requirements for emergencies.
A true “emergency” requires that irreparable harm will result if the issue is not acted upon immediately. What could be more harmful than a series of rulings misrepresented as emergencies in order to keep us in the dark about how justices voted, what evidence supported their rulings, and why they classified these issues as emergencies in the first place?
Bravo to those few Supreme Court justices who refuse to go along with this sham and to those lower-level judges who have the courage and integrity to take their oaths and duties seriously. Unfortunately, while Supreme Court justices took oaths to the Constitution and the people, most have chosen to pledge their allegiances to campaign promises instead.
Linda Thorlakson
Castro Valley
Could sirens have
saved lives in Texas?
My chiropractor was born in Hawaii and grew up there. So when I saw him for an adjustment on July 9, I asked him what sort of warning system Hawaii has when dangerous weather is coming. After all, his native state experiences hurricanes, tsunamis and even volcanic activity.
With no hesitation, he answered, “Sirens. And they are tested on the first of every month.”
Hawaiians know what natural phenomena they live with and are as ready as they can be. In the hill country of Texas, local government officials could not bring themselves to spend the money on a siren warning system in an area prone to flash flooding and now wallow in the consequences. Too bad.
I can only think of the Boy Scout motto: Be prepared.
Bob Benson
Lafayette
Masked ICE agents
lack moral authority
Why aren’t we paying attention to the source of the masked men? Where did they come from? Was there a pool of angry, faceless men just waiting for the call? How many more are ready for duty now that the regime has oodles of money to hire with?
If these men and their lack of empathy did not exist, the paramilitary would collapse. I don’t buy that they were created by violent video games or groomed in social media chat rooms. Something had to break inside them first: the sense of right and wrong, of good vs. evil. That has to be absent, or at least totally suspended, for them to behave as they do.
These are the men our country is giving authority to — do we think it will be easier to fight back once they’ve been emboldened by early success? Really? God help us all.
Shoshana Helman
Berkeley
Open men’s athletics
to all competitors
Re: “California will not ban trans athletes” (Page A1, July 8).
Here’s a simple solution to the controversy around trans athletes. Allow anyone who wants to compete with men and men’s teams, including people born women who identify as men, nonbinary people, people born men who identify as women, or even people born women who identify as women. But restrict women’s sports to people born women who remain women.
That way, no one would be excluded from participating in competitive athletics.
Marilyn Langlois
Richmond
Trump’s law shows
disdain for most
Re: “Trump signs his bill to law” (Page A1, July 5).
There are those in our government who hug the flag, professing their love for America and Jesus. But their actions speak louder than their words. Every action so far has taken from us, who are designated by our Founding Fathers as the self-rulers of the United States.
Thomas Jefferson did not write “we the White men” or “we the Christians.” He clearly says, “We the People.” Jesus never said “read the bottom line” or ‘balance the budget” at the expense of the poorest of us. We, the people, are being treated as collateral damage, and those in the current government justify their actions with patriotism.
Perhaps those making decisions for the rest of us do love America and Jesus. Too bad they don’t love us.
Nancy Thornton
Concord
Republicans are left
to explain themselves
Re: “House approves Trump’s tax bill” (Page A1, July 4).
To the Republicans in the House and the Senate — especially those who pretended they were going to vote against Trump’s big, ugly bill — I say, “Cowards, the lot of you.”
Good luck explaining to your constituents how and why you sold them out to save your own political skin.
Anne Stafford
Oakland
Opening Hetch Hetchy
could relieve Yosemite
As national parks like Yosemite grapple with DOGE’s cuts and Donald Trump’s budget proposal, can folks around the Bay Area please re-evaluate using Hetch Hetchy as a water reservoir?
With unpleasant overcrowding at Yosemite these days, demolishing O’Shaughnessy Dam and reopening Hetch Hetchy would give people much-desired elbow room.
And it would be a step toward the ideal of living in greater harmony with nature, instead of making perpetual demands upon it.
As a guy who used to live there, I ask folks in the Bay Area to please advocate on behalf of national parks. Please never forget the look of awe on people’s faces when experiencing the wonder of sites like Mariposa Grove. And please flex some political muscle to restore a Hetch Hetchy where visitors can roam free, feel breezes flowing through the valley, bask in sunshine surrounded by nature, and gaze contentedly upon the Tuolumne, feeling only peace.
Thomas R. Hundley
Seattle