.Letters to the Editor: June 10, 2015

Care for our watershed; The price of security; A draconian measure

Required Viewing

If you haven’t seen The Russian River: All Rivers—The Value of an American Watershed, you can catch it June 16 at 7 pm at Rialto Cinemas in Sebastopol. As drought threatens every aspect of our lives here in Sonoma County, this film is a timely reminder that we have to protect our watersheds for our future and for our children’s future.

This independently and locally produced film should be required viewing for all Sonoma County citizens and elected officials.

Anne O’Brien

Santa Rosa

Pay Attention

The so-called Freedom Act further poisons our democracy by allowing access to our private phone calls and emails by merely keeping them one step removed from our voracious National Security apparatus. With 1.5 million contractors and employees holding top secret security clearances at a cost of over $50 billion a year, they have got to keep inventing reasons for their bullying and continued existence. Like Bush’s color-coded security alerts, their main tactic is to make us afraid by using faulty risk analysis.

Of course, Congress is either too gullible or too ignorant of the actual probabilities to deny the military anything less than the 50 percent of our federal discretionary budget they feed upon, with great waste and damage to our democracy. Over 70 democracies have collapsed and given away to authoritarian regimes during this century, many due to the reckless operations of the CIA and the National Security establishment.

Rand Paul and Bernie Sanders are both right on this one. We should pay attention.

Lagunitas

Crying Foul

The California Assembly Health Committee will be the sole committee to vote on SB 277 before it goes to the Assembly for a general vote, and if passed there, will go to the governor’s desk. Senate Bill 277 will require a state-mandated vaccination schedule for children to attend public or private school, and will eliminate the personal and religious exemptions, prompting many to call this law draconian, as it infringes on informed consent laws, which are highlighted in the Nuremberg and California Health and Safety codes as a personal right.

Previously in the Senate, this bill was heard in the Health, Education and Judicial Committees, but over the protest of thousands, the Assembly Rules Committee bypassed the Education and Judicial Committees in the Assembly. How can we have such a significant piece of legislation that will effect thousands of California children and their education and not have it heard in the Education and Judicial committees?

People are crying foul for good reason. It is looking like this bill is being fast-tracked by Big Pharma lobbyists and their partners in the California State Legislature like Richard Pan and Ben Allen. Please call your Assembly member and demand this bill be heard in the Education and Judicial Committees and also ask them to vote no.

Castro Valley

Write to us at [email protected].

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

spot_img
North Bay Bohemian E-edition North Bay Bohemian E-edition