Letters: Familiar leadership will continue Oakland’s financial trouble

Also: Camping ban | Wasteful spending | Power and profit | Putin untrustworthy. East Bay Times reader letters to the editor for March 5, 2025.

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Familiar leadership willadd to Oakland’s trouble

A city and an entire school district are paralyzed and at the edge of bankruptcy because of political philosophy. That should be unheard of in the 21st century.

Yet, here we are, the city of Oakland is set to elect more of the same that has been destroying it. The Oakland Unified School District could run out of money by next year — sad. The district is bleeding severely and obviously has been for some time. Both organizations need forensic audits and drastic changes in leadership.

Oakland’s current list of candidates will drive the city into receivership. The state will take over the OUSD more than likely. Liberal leadership killed both entities. Returning to the same will not create meaningful change.

Mark GassterNapa

Camping ban hobbledby lack of outreach

A controversial homeless ban recently enacted by the city of Fremont has sparked widespread criticism about the policy’s substance and the city’s communication strategy.

City of Fremont councilmembers lost control of the public narrative surrounding the ban, making it difficult to justify. The ban prohibits anyone from “permitting, aiding, abetting, or concealing camping on private property.” News of the controversial ban has spread far beyond municipal boundaries, attracting national and international scrutiny in the UK, challenging the city’s credibility. Environmental and social justice advocates have expressed concern about the ban’s potential to displace vulnerable populations into environmentally sensitive areas without addressing the root causes of homelessness.

The council needs an outside legal review to reassess its approach to creating equitable policies that address the most vulnerable in our community. One attendee at the recent council retreat summed it up: “The path forward requires acknowledging this misstep and recommitting to thoughtful, balanced governance.”

William WyraguiFremont

PG&E should cutits wasteful spending

Re: “PG&E customers facing new rate hikes” (Page B1, March 3).

Surprise. PG&E is raising rates again, per today’s news. This is simply insulting to customers, those of us who have no choice to shop elsewhere due to PG&E’s monopoly and stranglehold.

Many people find it a financial struggle to simply buy milk, bread, eggs and cereal.

Suggestions to PG&E management to reduce your “expenses”:

• Stop running expensive TV ads designed to influence us to “feel the love” and your “concern” for the environment and for us (your trapped consumers).

• Stop sending us mailers “evaluating” our net energy usage compared to other homes. You have no idea as you rate us how many people live in “similar” homes or what their ages, health conditions and personal needs are. We need not be graded as “fair, good or great.” Try applying that approach to your corporate conscience.

• Stop the outrageous compensation of top staff members.

Perhaps then we will “feel the love.”

Delana JamesPleasanton

Power and profitdrive Trump to Putin

I fear we have lost track of two very revelatory, not-too-recent statements regarding our current political situation.

The first, by Sen. Lindsey Graham, “If you don’t want to get reelected, you’re in the wrong business,” emphasizes the attitude where propriety is trumped by power and profit, demonstrated again in Graham’s recent support of Trump.

The second is by Fox Chairman Rupert Murdoch. When asked why he kept ads with false comments in them on the air, he agreed that “It is not red or blue, it is green” (or more about profits than truth).

The realization and acknowledgement that the behavioral motivation for such politicians and businessmen is not informational, patriotic, nor for the common good of America, but is simply self-serving misinformation, and something to which all Americans need to learn to pay attention to.

This is even more important with Trump’s recent words and actions showing his alliance with the dictator Vladimir Putin.

Douglas McClellandBrentwood

Putin can’t be trusted,especially on Ukraine

Vladimir Putin is playing Donald Trump. Trump is wrong about Ukraine and Putin’s intentions. Consequently, Europe will be more vulnerable to Russian aggression, and America will be less safe.

Trump claims Putin will keep his word on Ukraine. When the Soviet Union fell, Ukraine had one-third of Russia’s nuclear weapons. In exchange for security guarantees, Ukraine agreed to transfer them to Moscow. The 1994 Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances guaranteed Ukraine’s borders and political independence. It was signed by Russia, Ukraine and the United States.

Putin wants to restore the Russian empire. Russia invaded and occupied Georgia and Crimea. In February 2022, he invaded Ukraine.

Putin breaks treaties, lies and can’t be trusted. Trump blames Ukraine for Russia’s invasion and mirrors Russian talking points. Without a Ukrainian security guarantee, we are abandoning Ukraine and our principles. Europe is more vulnerable to Russian aggression. America is less secure.

Putin won’t stop with Crimea, Georgia and Ukraine.

Larry BieberCastro Valley

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