Dec. 17 Letters to the Editor

<p class="bold allcaps">Don't rush climate</p> <p>EDITOR: As usual, New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman managed to be provocative (“Cheney's doctrine,” Dec. 10). And, as usual, Friedman was fullovit.</p><p>When Mount Saint Helens blew in 1980, the energy of the eruption was equivalent to 1,600 times that of the atomic bombs in 1945. The forces of nature are so powerful that my suspicion is that the notion that man even possesses the capability of altering the climate smacks of hubris on the order of a cockroach climbing the leg of an elephant with assault on its mind.</p><p>The possibility of global warming being significantly anthropogenic (human-caused) constitutes all-the-more reason to <i>refrain</i> from rushing off to implement far-reaching actions aimed at affecting it.</p><p>If there turns out to be so much as a smidgen of truth to the thus-far suspect, and bitterly-disputed, theory that we really can and do alter the climate, then precisely by imposing such blanket measures, we risk the real possibility of running headlong into the Law of Unintended Consequences: We could wind up making things a helluva lot worse.</p><p>Surely a more rational application of the precautionary principle than that which Friedman and his true-believer heroes, Cass Sunstein, Al Gore and other neo-Fabians, propose here would entail substantially more extensive and open-minded study of the matter before pressing us to hop precipitately from fry pan into fire.</p><p>MICHAEL ZEBULON</p><p>Rohnert Park</p><h3>Helping homeless</h3> <p>EDITOR: How wonderful that the students of Ursuline and Cardinal Newman high schools took donated jackets from Sonoma County to San Francisco's homeless men and women (“Comfort from the cold,” Dec. 10). Why couldn't they take the donated coats to the homeless men and women of Sonoma County?</p><p>We have a lot of homeless men, women and children right here in our own county. It is not necessary to drive all the way to San Francisco to give away donated jackets.</p><p>Please help support our own homeless men, women and children by supporting Catholic Charities, the Living Room, the Family Connection and COTS. Every time you put on your jacket to stay warm and dry, think of the homeless of Sonoma County trying to stay warm and dry.</p><p>SHEILA WHIPPLE</p><p>Santa Rosa</p><h3>Exemplary program</h3> <p>EDITOR: Thank you so much for printing “The truth about Free to Be” by Sue Bisbee, the founder and executive director of Free to Be (Close to Home, Nov. 29). I found the article to be very informative and the Free to Be program exemplary in form and content. Our teens deserve the opportunity to participate in and be part of this wonderful program.</p><p>It is more unfortunate that the American Civil Liberties Union, an organization thought to be a defender of an individual's right to free speech, has gone to such unworthy and certainly less than honest lengths to discredit this exemplary program. As Bisbee states in her article, the ACLU claims are, indeed, false.</p><p>I applaud the teens and staff of Free to Be for their efforts and dedication in continuing the program. </p><p>KATHLEEN GARRETT</p><p>Santa Rosa</p><h3>Care not insurance</h3> <p>EDITOR: Isn't it about time that the people called out the politicians on the whole “health care” debate fiasco?</p><p>Clearly the government is absolutely not interested in the health of the nation. If it was, then the debate would be about affordable health <i>care</i> for the nation, which they are not. The entire debate is focused on affordable health <i>insurance</i>.</p><p>They don't care if you get medical treatment or they would be negotiating contracts with providers to ensure that the majority of Americans would have access to doctors when they need them. Instead, they are looking to assist you in making payments to your health bookmaker (insurance is after all just a gamble against your own health; you only get a payoff if you get sick), and insurance companies are only too willing to take your wagers against yourselves and use your money as investment capital to develop their own wealth whilst seeking ways to not pay off once crisis strikes.</p><p>Government for the people, the bitter pill of reality, $1 per dose.</p><p>JORDAN THEAKSTON</p><p>Santa Rosa</p><h3>Congress' needs</h3> <p>EDITOR: Recently I had to renew my driver's license and noticed there's a box you can check to become an organ donor. Can we designate the recipients? The Republicans in Congress seem to lack heart and brains, while the Democrats can use some spine and more guts.</p><p>JERRY GUFFEY</p><p>Healdsburg</p><h3>Punishment?</h3> <p>EDITOR: I've followed the story of the greatly reduced sentence for the drunken driver who killed an innocent person and left another seriously injured. The best conclusion I can draw is that the local courts have adopted as their slogan one used for better purpose by many sports fishermen, “catch and release.” Perhaps it's time to put signs out on the roads to inform the public about the criminal justice system in this county. May I suggest this slogan: “Don't do the crime if you can't do the probation.”</p><p>CHARLIE METCALF</p><p>Petaluma</p><h3>Vote ‘neither'</h3> <p>EDITOR: In the election to be held at Memorial Hospital, I am a “neither.” There will be two unions and “neither” on the ballot. I am one of many employees who are being ignored by the media, clergy and community leaders in this debate.</p><p>The unions say they can save jobs. In the current health care crisis, nobody can stop layoffs. Even unionized nurses received pink slips in the recent round of layoffs. I, too, was laid off, but management found me comparable work in another department.</p><p>The unions say they will give me a voice against management. I already have a voice with management. I have always been able to go to my supervisors to discuss issues I might have.</p><p>I have done so with help from Memorial Bridge, a group of concerned employees who believe we can represent ourselves and change the culture without having an adversarial relationship with administration. Every employee, unionized or not, has the right to ask a coworker to join them in an investigatory conference with a superior.</p><p>Join Memorial Bridge for free instead. We speak with our own voices. Vote “neither.”</p><p>CONNIE BERTLSHOFER</p><p>Windsor</p>