Letters to the Editor 7/20

Decriminalize it

I would like to bring attention and support to the factual column “Seduction, slavery and sexual abuse” by Nicholas D. Kristof (July 16). Soroptimist International of the Americas recently held a convention in San Francisco (attended by more than 1,500 women from 19 countries), adopting a resolution related to prostitution.

The keynote speaker was Victor Malarek, a Canadian investigative journalist who has written a book decriminalizing prostitutes and criminalizing the johns and pimps who prey on them. He also speaks to trafficking in the United States, as well as worldwide.

Two additional workshops provided information on trafficking and prostitution to the membership. As recently reported in The Tribune, prostitution and trafficking are occurring in our own county.

You can obtain more information on these topics at www.soroptimist.org. Click on the “white papers” link and you will find informative reports on this topic. Soroptimist International has a mission of supporting women and girls in local communities and throughout the world.

We fully support more education, outreach and stricter enforcement of the laws related to prostitution and trafficking.

Cathy LeMoine

President, Soroptimist International of San Luis Obispo

A worthy step

On the beach in Cambria recently, a turkey vulture and a seagull nibbled on a dead harbor seal. Three crabs had shed their shells, needing a larger size, and I picked up their discarded shells. First-graders next month will study crab shells with unlimited curiosity and questions.

Walking the beach, I stopped at the sites where the Cambria Community Services District and the Army Corps of Engineers plan to dig deep holes in the beach to insert test wells for pumping up ocean water.

The lawsuit LandWatch San Luis Obispo County has brought (“Suit challenges desalination testing in Cambria,” July 14) reads like a detective story, pulling facts out of hiding and policy decisions out of cover-up.

The grievous damage to the Gulf of Mexico prods our conscience to pay attention to what is being done to the Earth locally and globally. LandWatch has taken a step worth following right here in San Luis Obispo County.

The ocean shows us its complexity daily. But given our deep ignorance and deeper self-interest, we often act as if engineering were exempt from moral judgment and comprehensive environmental study. The ecological shape of the present and the future already call us to account.     

Elizabeth Bettenhausen

Cambria

High fee for Palin

Regarding the latest news about CSU Stanislaus’ payment to Sarah Palin (July 17) — $75,000! If Palin believes in limiting government spending, why demand so much money from a cash-strapped public university?

Helen Anderson

San Luis Obispo