Attacks on Gibson aim to distract voters; candidate should stick to real issues | Opinion

Stick to the real issues

For 34 years I worked with three District 2 Supervisors as a county park commissioner. For the last 20, I worked with Bruce Gibson and his staff, first Cherie Gibson and then Blake Fixler. They were always immediately responsive, informative, helpful and professional. Recently there have been numerous attempts to discredit Bruce Gibson by the political right. He has been the victim of gerrymandering, false accusations and two recall attempts. Jim Dantona is running for the seat with Mr. Gibson’s endorsement. However, a candidate running against Mr. Dantona is making baseless claims about Mr. Gibson’s moral character. Such behavior suggests the candidate lacks substantive understanding of the issues facing our county. This tactic is intended to distract voters rather than engage in a debate on the real issues.

This implies he may use personal attacks rather than addressing important, complicated matters. If candidates can’t win on the issues and their own expertise and resort to fake facts or made-up issues, maybe they shouldn’t run for office. Pandora Nash-Karner Los Osos

Another stellar nonprofit

I want to commend The Tribune on the article featuring local nonprofits in need of support now and throughout the year. I would like to add one important nonprofit that you missed. San Luis Obispo County’s Meals That Connect last year served 273,760 free noontime meals to 2,200 seniors throughout SLO County.

Meals were served at 10 congregate dining sites to seniors who could attend and delivered to the homebound by over 450 volunteers. Meals are provided Monday through Friday, with frozen meals available for weekends and holidays. These numbers represent a 30% increase in service over the previous year.

Despite rising costs and greatly reduced public funding, the program continues to deliver nutritious, tasty, free meals to our county’s seniors. This program needs support year-round but especially now. I encourage your readers to visit mealsthatconnect.org to learn more about the program and to donate.

Juliane McAdam

Los Osos

No hypocrisy in importing oil

A recent commentary claims California is being hypocritical by banning offshore drilling while importing most of its oil from other countries. But that misunderstands the core issue. California is banning it because our coastline is one of the riskiest places on Earth to drill. The commentary mentions that regulations have changed since the 1969 Santa Barbara disaster, but the real point is that California’s geology hasn’t changed. Our offshore zone sits atop active earthquake faults, a narrow and unstable continental shelf and some of the most sensitive marine ecosystems in the U.S. A single accident here could wipe out fisheries, devastate coastal tourism and destroy habitats that cannot be replaced. By contrast, deepwater fields in Brazil and Guyana — while not risk-free — operate in geologic conditions far less prone to major seismic events. The consequences of a spill there are not remotely comparable to a blowout off San Luis Obispo or Santa Barbara. Importing oil isn’t ideal, but drilling locally would not reduce emissions, lower gas prices or speed our energy transition. It would only increase the likelihood of a catastrophic spill. Protecting our coast while reducing long-term oil demand isn’t hypocrisy. It’s a responsible, science-based choice.

Jill Stegman

Grover Beach