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Column doesn’t support overreaching headline
Re: “Seeking public records could trigger lawsuit” (Page A6, June 18).
The headline writer for the web article went a bit overboard: “Your government wants power to sue you for seeking public records.”
The article mentions exactly one person in government who is proposing this and accuses the whole government of wanting it.
Yes, it is a terrible idea. Yes, there are undoubtedly other people in government who support the idea, though that is entirely unsupported by the article. The article would have been more valuable if other supporters of the proposal had been named.
Niall MacDonagh
Antioch
Officials should restore foreign aid budget
Next week, I will take part in the Alliance for American Leadership’s Soft Power Summer Hill Day, where I’ll urge Congress to recommit to international assistance.
Skeptics characterize foreign aid as irresponsible “charity” from the United States to other countries. This view diminishes the role strategic foreign aid plays in protecting American interests.
The United States spends less than 1% of its budget on foreign aid, a small investment with a big impact on protecting American businesses and containing deadly diseases. Ebola is spreading rapidly, having already claimed 223 lives abroad. Every day the virus proliferates is a day of increased risk to American lives. An American doctor has already been infected.
By employing foreign assistance, we can protect American businesses and consumers. Assemblymember Liz Ortega, state Sen. Aisha Wahab and U.S. Sens. Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff should urge the OMB to expend appropriated foreign aid funds to contain global health crises before they cause further harm.
Nikole Ahne Morales
Hayward
Officials aren’t doing basic work of fire safety
Re: “Few exits add to fire dangers” (Page A1, June 8). Wildfire evacuation challenges are a stark reminder of how much work remains to prepare communities for the wildfires we know are inevitable. Unfortunately, in this regard, we are still not investing our taxpayer dollars where it matters most.
Our state continues to pour time and money into remote fuels‑reduction projects, work that does little to protect people during the wind‑driven fires that destroy homes. Meanwhile, initiatives for evacuation planning, home‑hardening, defensible space, early alert systems and safe refuge areas, the basics of community safety, remain underfunded.
If we devoted even a fraction of the political attention and budget spent on backcountry thinning to helping communities prepare, we would save far more lives and property. California deserves wildfire strategies grounded in what actually works: strengthening the places where people live. Jennifer Normoyle
Hillsborough
Israel’s path to peace doesn’t lie in bombing
Israel’s continued attacks on Gaza, Lebanon and Iran, despite repeated ceasefire calls, expose the failure of unconditional military support.
A growing number of Americans want arms shipments halted. The path to peace is diplomacy, accountability, humanitarian relief and an immediate ceasefire.
Jag Singh
Los Altos