Sunday's Letters to the Editor

<p class="bold allcaps">A health care disaster</p> <p>EDITOR: The health care bill is unconstitutional and needs to be stopped. It is a power grab by our government, which will invade our privacy even more than it already does. There are hidden agendas within the bill, which no one was able to read prior to its passage. Where is the transparency we were promised? Where is the fiscal responsibility? How can we possibly pay for this monstrosity?</p><p>For the past 100 years, the powers that be have been systematically destroying our Constitution little by little, with corrupt politicians seeking more power and money.</p><p>The health care bill is not about health, it’s about stealing our sovereignty and freedom. This bill will limit our freedom (penalties for not purchasing health care), bankrupt small business (the heart of job creation) and redistribute wealth.</p><p>In America, everyone has a chance to earn wealth on their own, but that will cease when the government redistributes what private citizens earn. The motivation to work hard and innovate will be eliminated, and this country will become mediocre at best. America is better than that.</p><p>LYNN HARPER</p><p><i>Hidden Valley Lake</i></p><h3>Unhappy cows</h3> <p>EDITOR: In response to the Nov. 14 story about filming “happy cow” television ads in New Zealand, just what happy cows are we talking about? If you call keeping cows pregnant, forcing them to walk around with udders so full of milk they almost drag the ground and then slaughtering them when they no longer can produce milk happy, then what do you consider miserable? The whole campaign is a farce. Happy cows may live somewhere, hopefully, but certainly not here.</p><p>LINDA ESPINOSA</p><p><i>Santa Rosa</i></p><h3>Solar highways</h3> <p>EDITOR: Sonoma County is progressively paving the path for the green movement, and clean and renewable energy should be at the foundation of our focus. Energy independence would be a huge step toward making us a worldwide example of a sustainable society.</p><p>Sonoma County has about 200,000 residential dwellings that consume 200 megawatts of electricity and emit 180,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year. We could cut the emissions down to zero.</p><p>Imagine a solar-panel-covered structure over a 30-mile stretch of Highway 101 from Petaluma to Healdsburg. It would cover land already in use, improve the life expectancy of our roads, could provide on-demand power for electric vehicles and even collect and filter emissions from vehicles if we wanted it to.</p><p>What about costs? A traditional 200-megawatt solar farm costs about $500 million. A solar roof over the highway would cost more, so let’s double that. How long would it take Sonoma County’s 200,000 households to pay off a $1 billion project? That’s $5,000 per house, so at current electricity rates, about five years. How many miles of highway would it take to power all of California’s 12 million houses? About half, or 2,000 miles.</p><p>MARSHALL VANLEUVEN</p><p><i>Santa Rosa</i></p><h3>Blown away</h3> <p>EDITOR: I hope the rest of the county appreciates our wacky City Council in Sebastopol as they wrestle with the issue of the decade: to blow or not to blow? (“Sebastopol seeks options on leaf-blower debate,” Thursday). What better time to take it up then the middle of fall when all the trees are dropping leaves everywhere?</p><p>As I understand the situation, some citizens are unable to convince their neighbors to use leaf blowers at a more convenient time for them, or not at all. So when we can’t communicate, we legislate.</p><p>The rest of the state is bogged down with boring budget problems. Not us. We find new problems and make the headlines. I can see the new welcome sign: “Sebastopol, Amish capital of the West Coast.”</p><p>Cars and trucks also are noisy and polluting, so let’s go back to horse and buggy. And how about those airplanes overhead? We need a no-fly zone to go along with our nuclear-free zone. Not a problem in this town where, from time to time, we also tell the president what we think.</p><p>Santa Rosa may be losing its city manager to Beverly Hills, but no matter how many calls we get from Disneyland, our city government is unapproachable. </p><p>Enjoying the “Kumbaya” atmosphere.</p><p>GREG CHAMPION</p><p><i>Sebastopol</i></p><h3>Saving Mesa High</h3> <p>EDITOR: The Santa Rosa school district may close Mesa High School, an alternative school, to save money. I don’t think district officials realize that if they close Mesa, the kids will leave the district.</p><p>The district gets more than $6,000 a year per student. I can tell you that at least 50 percent of the students at Mesa will leave, because they have tried everything in the district already. If that happens, the district doesn’t get $6,000 per student a year, and it loses at least $132,000. So how would that help the district? </p><p>Since I have been at Mesa, I have met amazing people. Everyone here is like family. This is a school for kids who don’t work well in large schools, but don’t want to give up their on education. The teachers at Mesa keep you interested and focused on learning. I’ve learned a lot more at Mesa about life then I ever learned at a comprehensive school. </p><p>We have all been to a comprehensive high school and didn’t like it. We are not kids who need to go to a continuation school; what we need is an alternative. So if Mesa closes, where do we go? Drop out?</p><p>BRITTANY SILVA</p><p><i>Santa Rosa</i></p><h3>Mixed signals</h3> <p>EDITOR: We have been told over and over again how dangerously fat Americans are getting and about the exploding epidemic of childhood obesity.</p><p>Now, The Press Democrat reports staggering statistics about how so many are going hungry due to the terrible economy. (“More Americans going hungry,” Tuesday).</p><p>How can we be both fat and starving at the same time?</p><p>ANISA THOMSEN</p><p><i>Petaluma</i></p><h3>Swine flu vaccines</h3> <p>EDITOR: Why, I wonder, do the media not condemn Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius for the lack of H1N1 vaccine?</p><p>Every week, for months, she has lied to the public about the amount of vaccine available. Not once in 10 months has she gotten it right. Because of her incompetence, 4,000 Americans have died and more than 20 million have been inflicted with this disease. All of that could have been avoided with proper management. <NO1>Our Health and Human Services secretary is more concerned about her hairdo than the health of Americans. </p><p>President Barack Obama should fire this incompetent woman. Even the left-wing liberals in our community should get upset over this incompetent appointee. Wake up, Santa Rosa. Even liberals can get the flu and die.</p><p>GEORGE MACAULAY</p><p><i>Santa Rosa</i></p>