Time for the Occupy movement to elect representatives
Dear Editor,
It’s time for the Occupy movement to stop spinning their wheels and start voter registration and organize get out the vote. They need to elect 33 Senators and 235 Representatives able and willing to support the bottom 90 percent of Americans, the group that controls less of our nations wealth.
Since most of us belong to the bottom 90 percent it is difficult to understand why this is an uphill battle. Should Occupy succeed in getting proper representation for the bottom 90 percent the United States will be much better off and 100 percent of Americans will benefit.
Frank Crosby, Morgan Hill
All resources are shared resources and should be protected
Dear Editor,
No elected leader or appointed official can ignore the impeding challenge of global climatic change. The world, a nation, and every community will be affected. Each must do its part and the sum of all parts will help us meet the challenge. I don’t think we can change it or stop it but I believe we can mitigate its impacts.
The first order of business is to protect our resources. Water, food and shelter come to mind as high priorities. But I am unsure that we are working collectively to address this challenge as much as we are just waiting in a reactive manner for change to occur or for others to plan and manage it for us.
If the change was linear, we could perhaps better manage it, but I understand that the effects are exponential and that dramatic change is more likely than incremental. Everyone, all the cities and the counties need to conference on how to better manage our limited resources. We need to adopt policies and begin planning from individual homes to large commercial interests, from every agency including water, waste and environmental groups, through police, fire and other safety organizations. Collectively we must begin the process of understanding the impacts and how each of us will participate in one manner or another to meet this transformational event.
I believe all resources are collective resources. How one city manages its water cannot be independent of others. We all have an interest and a responsibility. Our agricultural lands in particular cannot be considered as properties of a city, county or state. They are precious to all of us where ever they are. For example, the city of Morgan Hill, should not annex 1,200 acres of prime county agricultural land for housing and other development when 3,000 acres remain vacant within city limits. The loss of these productive lands should be a concern of everyone from California to Maine. As southern arid lands become deserts, other lands must be brought into production or increased. As the availability of water declines, new conservation efforts must be enacted.
It is time for a countywide Conference on Climatic Change. We need to begin understanding the impacts and how each of us will be called upon meet this life changing challenge.
I am not as scientist, nor an engineer. I am a resident with children, but I have become worried and even frightened by the impacts of climate change. I have heard nothing from my elected officials that there are resources, plans and solutions in place. The news is disturbing and distressing. We watch and wait but do nothing. What is your assessment? What are you doing? These are fair questions.
Mark Grzan, Morgan Hill
Obama put ‘accomplished’ back into ‘mission accomplished’
Dear Editor,
On the first anniversary of the execution of Osama bin Laden we hear Republicans crying foul because of the Democrats dirty politics. The Democrats have the audacity to run on their accomplishments, Republicans complain. “How dare they!”
The reason accomplishments are unfair to Republicans is that they are now against accomplishment. They want to distinguish themselves from the “reality based world” and to accomplish something is a sign of weakness. It implies that a reality based world exists and that one should try to make things better. Instead it’s all about what you believe. And if enough people believe something then it becomes true. The world, for example, used to be flat until enough people believed it was round. The liberals with their science brainwashed us into believing the world is round and so now it is.
But because Obama has chosen a reality based view he got Osama bin Laden. Bush, less than two years after 911 said, “I don’t know where bin Laden is. I have no idea and really don’t care. It’s not that important. It’s not our priority.” Romney said, “it’s not worth moving heaven and earth spending billions of dollars just trying to catch one person.” But Obama excommunicated Osama. And the universe is better off without him.
So I’m giving Obama a high five on this one. He put the “accomplished” back in mission accomplished.”
Marc Perkel, Gilroy
