Water shortage ruse?

Water shortage? Rationing? Can't be true! Developers want to build 2,700 new houses on the west side of I-15!

Leonard Wilson

Escondido

Kern fundraiser is pitiful

Jerry Kern, a city councilman in Oceanside, has decided that killing some defenseless birds is a good way to raise some money to defend himself against a recall effort. Based on this decision, I can see why he is the subject of a recall.

If I lived in Oceanside, I would certainly be calling for his removal. They call this a hunt, but when birds or other animals raised solely to be shot at are the subject of a "hunt," it should be called what it is: organized murder.

Picture Dick Cheney driving up to the canned hunt in which he partook. Same thing here â€"â€" men who need to kill something to feel powerful. What it is, is pitiful.

Sid Shapiro

San Diego

Killing birds more important than crisis

State Sen. Dennis Hollingsworth and Assemblyman Martin Garrick plan to attend a canned hunt to raise campaign funds for Oceanside Councilman Jerry Kern on May 22. Invitees can kill as many farm-raised, non-native pheasants and chukkars as they can blast away for $1,000 per person donation.

Any birds who escape death by shooting cannot survive in the wild.

Apparently, killing defenseless birds to raise a campaign war chest for a fellow Republican is more important than attending to the state's fiscal crisis. How about canning the hunt and finding ways to flush out some solutions for your strapped constituents?

Linda Kelson

Scripps Ranch

'First responders' slow to respond

Wow, I sure hope I, or anyone I know, never need emergency help in the Valley Center area. The Mother's Day evening crash that killed Brian Simnjanovski might have been avoided had 911 notified the proper authorities ASAP.

Maybe they did; I don't know. I came upon the scene minutes after the accident had occurred, and after speaking to the two young people who placed at least two calls to 911 telling the operator of the … crash, still no emergency people had arrived. So with their 911 calls, and myself standing by, we waited and waited for at least another 20 minutes before a Cal Fire crew rolled up.

So after somewhere around at least 30 minutes, the "first responders" arrive. No CHP, no sheriff, no nothing. I know they're all heroes when they help people, but what about when they don't?

Anthony Thallas

Escondido

Harbor dredging not done correctly

It is so nice to see the dredging from Oceanside Harbor, pumping the sand all the way south of the pier.

Too bad the contractor couldn't finish the job and provide a proper slope to the shoreline, as opposed to the 6-foot-plus bluff that they left. Another good south swell or two and all the newly pumped sand will be history.

Doug Parker

Oceanside

Difficulties receiving unemployment benefits

Have you folks had the opportunity to speak with anyone who is having problems getting their unemployment paperwork completed? I have witnessed three persons having nothing but problems with the Employment Development Department and their online registration process. All three are people with families and have a real need for the benefits that were prepaid by their previous employers.

This would be an excellent opportunity for the North County Times to research and report on the type of service (or lack of service) provided by EDD to those who rightfully deserve these benefits.

These unemployed folks do not need the frustration and inattentiveness that is imposed upon them by EDD â€"â€" and EDD needs to be exposed and challenged to do the job for which they are being paid.

Nick Nixon

Carlsbad

Good idea, bad implementation

Escondido Police Chief Jim Maher has the right idea in that the only way to get unlicensed drivers off the street is to make it possible to get licenses and insurance ("Maher supports licenses for illegal immigrants," May 12). Those who want to "punish" illegal immigrants only hurt us Californians.

He is also right that the driver's license for illegal aliens should only allow them to drive, and nothing else.

But he is wrong on one critical point: This whole mess only came about because we are abusing driver's licenses as identification cards in the first place. It's called a driver's license. Not "beer-buying license" or "board-a-plane-license."

Instead, let's issue driver's licenses (maybe even without photos) to everybody who wants one and passes the test, and a separate ID document for Americans and legal immigrants.

Kevin Keane

Oceanside

Bird shoot another reason for recall

So Oceanside Councilman Jerry Kern is having himself an expensive turkey shoot â€"â€" I mean, a "wild bird hunt," in which the birds are released so that rich folks can execute them like in a firing squad. What a farce. Just like Kern himself. He holds a fake hunt in order to subsidize his sham service to the public.

I earned a hunting license in Germany, where hunting is a responsibility to be taken seriously, and is not for (those) who can succeed in killing game only when it is personally delivered to them for execution.

Looks like Kern's supporters are a bunch … who are incapable of giving the time and patience that it takes to be a real hunter.

When these despicable Kern (supporters) shoot helpless birds that are being released right in front of their gun barrels, the people will clearly see for themselves the very thin and greedy characters of Kern's deep-pocketed supporters. Just another good reason for the recall.

Ramona Byron

Oceanside

TEA party hypocrites

Stop already with the TEA party posturing. That was a thinly veiled losers' party for those who voted for McSame. Talk about singing "Kumbaya" with all these transparent and altruistic letters. Sorry, but most of us are not buying it.

Where was all this heartfelt concern for the debt placed upon our grandchildren when Bush was piling it on for the past eight years? Bottom line is, those who voted for Bush and voted for him again are squarely to blame for the mess we are in today. Incredibly, these Rush Limbaugh-clones feel like they haven't done enough, so they had to come up with a charade to try and obstruct President Obama's solution to their failure. Tell that to your grandchildren.

Robert Watson

Carlsbad

Who's the racist?

Back from "Coventry," maybe. A riddle for you readers. Ms. Maggie Anderson and Mr. Michael Hill (who happen to be black) have started a movement called "The Empowerment Experiment," which translates into buying only from black-owned businesses. I have decided to buy from only white businesses.

Now the riddle: Which of us is racist? I am sure that I will hear from the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Al Sharpton, and, of course, Jesse Jackson, et al., with the answer.

Anybody?

Phil Epstein

Carlsbad

The BIA and San Marcos

You've got to be kidding! The Building Industry Association is now going city to city, crying for ways they can build more crappy housing projects so they can cram our streets with more cars, waste more water and fill up what little available land is left with cookie-cutter houses on 5,000-square-foot lots ("Building Industry Association asks council for help," May 13)? What a joke.

How much money are they giving Hal Martin, Mike Preston and Jim Desmond and his bunch to get this pork on the city's agenda? And what's this B.S. about how the city's planning department is so full of wonderful people? Heck, Rick Gittings gutted the whole department back in the 1980s, and now all you've got left is Jerry Backoff and Paul Malone …

Follow the money, people, follow the money. Maybe it's time to call in the grand jury and indict all these (people); either that or vote them all out of office ASAP!

Dennis Rathbourn

San Marcos

Postage going up again!

The post office is $2.3 billion in the hole already this year! It's time they cut back like everyone else. No more mail delivery on Saturday. No overtime. Stop all the junk mail â€"â€" no one wants it anyway!

Gloria Seelye

Fallbrook

Thanks to California Highway Patrol

Recently, the wife of a deployed Marine was relocating her horses from Colorado to the Camp Pendleton stables via trailer. She was passing College Avenue on the 78 freeway west when she experienced a major trailer failure. Her insurance refused to assist while the horses were onboard. Her only option was repair on the NASCAR-like 78 shoulder (which was limited by a retaining wall). She requested safety support from the California Highway Patrol and called a friend for repair assistance.

CHP Officer Mike Wurster positioned his cruiser to protect the rear of the trailer. He moved the driver away from danger and comforted her throughout the repair. His professional performance, appearance, sincerity and demeanor were exemplary! Officer Wurster provided continuous safety lookout and friendly, helpful support throughout the very stressful/rushed repair. Upon completion, he maneuvered his car to provide the loaded trailer safe entry back into traffic.

There was major potential for disaster, and the value of CHP support is incalculable! This is the sort of accident that can happen to any of us at any time. We Californians are most fortunate to have such a professional and responsive public safety force as the CHP with members like Officer Wurster!

Bob McClendon

Oceanside

All the best to law enforcement

My best to all law enforcement â€"â€" street, desk â€"â€" in all categories: fire, sea, land and air. All rescue, OPD! Good to go!

Don Leet

Oceanside

One party is responsible for debt

Bob Whalen concludes his May 9 Community Voices letter thusly: "I and others are really mad at government â€"â€" both parties, for the burden they are passing to the generations that follow us."

In reality, nearly all of the humongous federal debt has been accumulated during the 20 years of Republican presidential administrations, starting with Ronald Reagan's in 1981. Republicans bizarrely increase military spending while simultaneously cutting taxes for their rich friends. Bad! Bill Clinton's Democratic administration, in contrast, left office in 2000 with a healthy budget surplus.

Anti-tax zealots, mostly conservative Republicans, believe that personal income casually spent on restaurant dining, Las Vegas trips, Indian casinos and ocean cruises is money well spent; whereas taxes they pay spent on schools, libraries, parks, road maintenance, police and fire services and health care is money badly spent.

I can imagine that many people with children in public schools ($10,000 in tax money per child, per year) attended the April 15 anti-tax TEA parties.

Harold Weber

Oceanside

Forum spotlighted agency's 76 agenda

Credit is due to Gerald Raymond Walson. His timely Community Forum, "Agency has broken vow on 76," May 11, was an outstanding article on the history of the San Diego Association of Governments and Highway 76. His history of SANDAG from 1987 regarding Highway 76 funded for completion to Highway 15 shows what a political agenda SANDAG has become. The voters approved TransNet to appropriate monies for its completion, but what SANDAG did was reprogram 76 funding to 52, where the 52 is from La Jolla to East County.

It became political when you look at the record of deaths on Highway 76. The only completed freeway from the coast is Highway 78 to Interstate 15, which takes us south for about 20 miles. Today, we waste time, money, lives and energy by the political agenda of SANDAG not completing its obligation to the cities of North County.

As a result, Highway 78 is also a death trap and congested every day of the week.

Thank you, Mr. Walson, for an informative and timely forum.

Mary Ashworth

Carlsbad