April 25 Letters to the Editor

Carrillo's 'gesture'

EDITOR: Sonoma County Supervisor Efren Carrillo only wanted to "hang out" with Jane Doe and have a drink at 3:40 a.m., wearing only underwear and socks? Unfortunately, he accidently broke the screen while knocking on the window? He was just trying to follow up on a previous social encounter, as he had walked through her open garage and into her backyard with a bottle of wine, knocking on a sliding glass door leading into the kitchen? Jane was wearing a towel or robe. Bringing a bottle of wine over was a "nice gesture," as stated by his attorney?

What was the true gesture when trying to visit Jane in his underwear at 3:40 a.m.? Oh, yes, he had a drinking problem, so he took cover at a rehab center. He pleaded not guilty to "peeking." Are you kidding me? Carrillo must be the leader of the war on women that the Democrats have been talking about.

Accept responsibility, as it appears to be more than a drinking problem. Is a guilty verdict in order? The jury will decide. The taxpayers' money is at work again with this trial. Oh, yes, Carrillo is still on the taxpayers' payroll. Just another politician who feels he did no wrong. Unacceptable.

KRAY HENSLEY

Sonoma

Help nearby

EDITOR: Like many west county residents, I've privately sung the praises of Palm Drive Hospital. My husband's admission last week finally generated this letter.

The emergency room felt like a ghost town. He breezed through intake and was getting urgently needed care within minutes. While the speed with which he was seen was in part due to the hospital's impending closure, the professionalism and courtesy of the staff are what we have always received there.

He spent three days in ICU because of consolidation of staff and closure of units as the doomsday clock ticks down. With the hospital only five minutes from our house, we could visit briefly, which was all he could handle, and we could bring supplies from home when they were needed.

When he was discharged, I left happy to be taking him home and heartbroken at the thought that Palm Drive might not be there the next time. The proximity to our home and the first rate care cannot be replaced. Palm Drive Hospital is a priceless resource for the west county for which we should all be fighting.

JEANETTE LEBELL

Sebastopol

Carrillo trial

EDITOR: It is really sad that Sonoma County Supervisor Efren Carrillo considers himself a model of civic mindedness when he is wasting taxpayers' money by insisting on his innocence. If he were really a good leader and outstanding public figure, he would have presented himself to the district attorney and asked to waive a trial and accept the charges as filed.

There is way too much time and money being spent on a guy who seems to have no sense of wanting to do the right thing for the people he was elected to serve. My advice is for him to admit guilt and accept the ramifications rather than hide behind a team of lawyers who are burning our time and money in court. There are many more important cases that should be going to trial.

CHRIS PINO

Santa Rosa

Partisan attacks

EDITOR: I'm disappointed reading letters that vilify the right and, by a cosmic connection, Fox News. I understand why MSNBC doesn't like Fox — they are polar opposites politically. We need, as a country, to respect one another's points of view, even in disagreement. The media will toss dirt on one another to enhance their image. We shouldn't help them.

There are many reasons to distrust President Barack Obama's numbers. He has been loose with the truth. I hope for the country's sake we have achieved the Obamacare numbers; people need coverage.

We have to accept that

MSNBC will cheerlead for the president, and Fox will give him no benefit of the doubt. We should use as many sources for news as we have time to stomach. That's the only way to divine the truth from all the noise and inaccuracies.

We need to listen thoughtfully to other points of view because we expect others to do that for us. Being conservative is as legitimate as being liberal. Do we want a conservative president, some day, to treat liberals the way conservatives are treated today? Do we want to be dogmatic on points of view we are willing to let people express?

MIKE HAWKINS

Windsor