Letters to the Editor 7/13

Elderly drivers

What to do with an elderly relative who insists on driving but is no longer capable? Ellen Goodman had some thoughts about this in the July 3 Tribune. She urges conversations, rather than legislation. That sounds good, but it is hard to broach this subject. I bet my family was not the only one to put off taking away the car keys.

My dad, a Maryland resident, had Alzheimer’s and was no longer a safe driver. Though my mother was afraid when he drove, she just cringed in the passenger seat, white-knuckled and dreading both the accident she feared and the conversation about his driving privileges that would signify his loss of control.

Here is how I found help. I approached a family friend, a judge, and we brainstormed solutions. Our friend urged me to contact the local sheriff in Maryland. That was good advice. The sheriff recommended I make a strong case to my father’s doctor and cite specifics to show that the illness should preclude driving. The doctor then took the initiative and contacted the DMV. Soon a letter arrived letting my father know that he had to turn in his license.

Unable to drive, my dad started riding his bicycle on the back roads near home. The neighbors kept an eye out for him. I lost my dad to the disease last summer. I can still see him riding that bicycle — too stubborn to give up and determined to keep his mobility to the end.

Patty Andreen San Luis Obispo

Women’s right

The truth about abortion rights is this: Imagine a world where boys and men were the producers of human offspring. Is there one person out there who would dispute the simple truth that not a single man would stand for the idea of not being in control of his ability and right, or not, to have a child?

In a society where insurance legislation clearly favors a man’s ability to get his groove on (think Viagra) over an infertile woman’s ability to receive treatment that might help her conceive a child, do any of you actually believe that the subject of abortion wouldn’t become a moot point in such a scenario?

And I’m supposed to acquiesce quietly, like a good girl, while my right to choice is questioned? Get real.

Jeri Luther Templeton

Taxpayers drowning

I never considered myself a conservative, but I guess I’ve turned into one. Regarding Jim Mallon’s July 1 letter (“Almost drowning”) about our disastrous state finances, I see it completely different. For decades, we’ve been adding more and more entitlements, burdening the taxpayers and businesses in our state. 

When there’s a budget cut, it never comes from entitlements, it comes out of our schools, roads, fire and police. We pay billions in welfare to people who have never worked in their lives and are perfectly able-bodied. That’s ridiculous; it shouldn’t be long-term unless you’re disabled. This has crushed our state budget, and the businesses and higher-income people are leaving.

It looks like your solution is just add more tax burdens on everyone. Where’s the end? The taxpayers are the ones drowning.

Karen Durham Paso Robles

Good wildlife care

We recently found two birds that had been injured in separate incidents near our shelter.

Twenty minutes after I left a message with Pacific Wildlife Care, my calls were returned. In both cases, the phone volunteer didn’t hesitate to accept the birds and directed me to take them to the Pacific Wildlife facility in Morro Bay. Our two volunteers who transported the birds and were met by caring and knowledgeable volunteer staffers who agreed to rehabilitate the birds if possible.

We are so fortunate to have this wonderful non-profit organization in our community. They are met with the unique challenges of caring for some of the most helpless creatures in our midst, and they do so with integrity, professionalism and compassion.

Cheri W. Lucas President, Second Chance at Love Humane Society, Templeton

Different generation

Affordable housing? We called it apartments; (then small houses where kids shared rooms).

Health care? We went to emergency rooms, county hospitals and veterans hospitals.

Transportation? We traveled by walking, buses, trains and finally used cars.

Investments? We invested in our children. We didn’t abort them, nor spend/borrow $50,000 a year to send them away to college.

Savings? We saved for our retirements. We recognized “snake oil” salesmen who promised too much to be real.

Leaders? We all laughed at comedians and had statesmen, rather than politicians.

Vacations? We just visited the relatives.

Our generation is now dying out, but we still aspire to our children’s generation doing better than ours.

Sue Perry Morro Bay

Concern for Lucia Mar

I have lived in Arroyo Grande for more than 50 years. I am a mother, grandmother and great grandmother. I have been involved in the school system for many, many years.

I am concerned about the laying off of teachers in the Lucia Mar School District. The quality of education there has been going downhill for quite some time.

Laying off teachers makes for even bigger classes. What we need is smaller classes for better quality of education for our children. There has to be a better solution to this problem.

LaVeda Britton Arroyo Grande

No explanations

I wanted to explain to my grandson about the dead elephant seal pup lying on the beach; that there there were more pups born this year than last; how there were fewer food fish this year than last, so that the pups couldn’t gain enough weight to head out to sea to follow the herd’s path; ... how nature needs to balance out overgrowth of certain populations.

I wanted to explain how human population was growing out of bounds; how our poor quality food was being grown in polluted fields; how hybrid seeds were replacing those which should resprout; how beneficial species were being killed off.

I knew I could not explain why human beings were deliberately and determinedly setting out to make the earth uninhabitable for us.

Jane Beckett Cambria

Kudos for letter

Her parents must be so proud to have such a thoughtful and talented daughter. I hope she considers a career as a writer, because she certainly has the chops for it.

If our fate is with young people such as her, America’s future is in good hands. Kudos, Ms. Pomeroy!

Sheila Taylor Pismo Beach

Madden out of touch

Am I the only one who, upon reading the splashy front page story on John Madden’s supposed “estrangement” from Cal Poly, wonders what planet he and the Tribune editors inhabit?

In this day of cleaver cutting of our education budgets, layoffs of needed teachers and furlough days in Cal Poly employees’ future, should we really be concerned that San Jose State and Fresno State have bigger football stadiums than Cal Poly?

It seems John Madden is in a sort of snit when he says he could possibly become more involved with the football program if the university gave the program a higher profile.

John, it may come as a surprise to you that some of us would rather see the education of our students as being more important than matching stadiums with San Jose or Fresno. Get a clue, John; the state of California is upon hard economic times and football stadiums should be our last concern.

As for the Tribune editors, I wonder what made them believe this story deserved a two-day series.

Jerry Davis Los Osos

State budget fix

When candidates get elected to a public office for the first time, before they are sworn in, they are taken to the hospital, where they have a common sense bypass, which is replaced by an insatiable desire to get re-elected.

State legislators and the governor refuse to make tough decisions, which really are not all that difficult. I am sure that everyone will agree that state government is not run efficiently. Departments spend more money than needed in order to justify a budget increase in the following year.

An order needs to go to every department of the state government: “Decrease your department spending by 10 percent without reducing services!” This would require every segment of the government (legislators, department heads and employees) to accept a reduction in pay (rather than furlough) and to use better judgment when making purchases and hiring in all areas.

Finally, there can be some increase in taxes in the areas of cigarettes and alcohol (to pay for the medical costs they cause), along with some increase in use fees so that those who use facilities pay for them. This proposal will take care of 85 percent of the budget deficit.

Ken Koenen Paso Robles