Letters to the Editor 08.25.16

Under Penalty of Death

She deserves whatever sentence she is dealt (“Death penalty sought for accused child murderer,” posted Aug. 17). To try and defend her as a mother of twins is crap. I do feel for those children, but she doesn’t deserve to even come near them. Andrea Houston-Garcia | via Facebook

“She exhaled a loud cry and sobbed”? Imagine the cries of those children as she tortured them for a year. No sympathy here. Too bad taxpayers will have to pay for the endless appeals before a needle slips into her cold veins. Deborah Szczepanski | via Facebook

She deserves severe punishment, but it’s doubtful her execution will prevent child abuse, and it won’t bring those children back or save them from the horrible things they went through. Erik Roycraft | via Facebook

NIMBY Or Not?

Read the [environmental impact report] (“Squid watches neighbors prepare final fight against Pebble Beach Co.,” posted Aug. 22). They’re going to remove 500-plus metric tons of CO2 from the 700-plus trees being removed, then emit just as much building the project. The land becomes another developed parcel producing greenhouse gas emissions, while it is currently acting as a carbon sink. Wrong way, folks. Wyatt Patry | via Facebook

Really? You call that journalism? Slinging aspersions at a group of neighbors who have put forth a logical and sustainable argument against plunking the inclusionary housing project in an area that has been shown, even by the EIR that the county paid for, to be less environmentally favorable than already-disturbed sites? I can only assume that the Squid is a shill for the Pebble Beach Company. They certainly got their money’s worth with you – unfortunately, what they bought smells to high heaven. Shame on you, and shame on the Weekly for printing this tripe. Elinora Mantovani

Gone to Market

I think this is a great idea (“Update on controversial ‘fresh market’ concept in Carmel from Carmel Belle owners,” posted Aug. 19). It sounds like a modern iteration of the landmark Mediterranean Market I used to love and still miss to this day. If done right, I think it will add to the wonderful restaurant scene in Carmel, not take away from it. Kirsten Brown | via Facebook

Yeah, who doesn’t miss the Mediterranean? Carmel survived decades with the Med as a much-loved fixture. Now it’s what? Another overpriced furniture store? These people want to save Carmel’s character? Um, look at a bit of history. People used to enjoy the town a lot more when they catered to regulars and not just the moneybags. Shavaun Wolfe | via Facebook

Burning Up

You think insurance companies should pay for fire suppression? (“As the Soberanes Fire rages on, it’s time to think about what’s ahead,” Aug. 11-17.) You are promoting a new tax. Certainly any new government fee placed on the insurance companies will be charged directly to the people they serve.

If you’re mad, take a look at the management of the fire. Rather than letting it get out of control to the massive fire it is today, why didn’t the government take their 5,000-plus personnel and use them on day one? The tiny day-one fire would have been extinguished instantly. But if Cal Fire actually put the fire out, they would be de-funded. You see, in government, you need to spend money to prove you need money. Yes, there is a problem with the government burning money, but it’s not the insurance companies’ fault. Kent Knoll | Seaside

Water theft and nasty chemicals are used, plus their total trashing of our forests and the increased fire dangers, to say nothing of the fact these are criminals and will do anything to protect their grows (“Illegal pot grow operations found, destroyed in Big Sur area,” posted Aug. 18). I don’t know if legalization is the answer, but it seems like the incentives would be lost to the cartels. Janis Wilson-Pavlik | via Facebook

Speaking Spanglish

Porque no es… Hillary es un Ladrón! (“Trump eres un pendejo,” Aug. 11-17.) I suppose when you care more about a political agenda than actual journalism we get propaganda bullshit like your article trashing Trump and ignoring an “inconvenient truth” like Hitlery and her past and present of scandal. David Fairhurst | Carmel Valley

Z as in Zoo

I want to thank all the firefighters who have valiantly protected Monterey County these past few weeks. There is a fueling station in Corral de Tierra that has been integral for firetrucks to fuel up. It’s times like these that we realize how essential oil is to our safety. And not just safety; we live in a society driven by energy. While renewable energy has steadily been coming along, Californians still consume energy faster than we can produce it. We need to find a good balance. Measure Z attempts to shut down oil and gas production countywide (“A to Z: Monterey County voters decide on 23 measures Nov. 8,” posted Aug. 17). We cannot afford to let this happen. Susan Hanks Marscellas | Salinas

The science is clear and straightforward. Easy-to-harvest oil is simply pumped out of the ground. Tar sand oil must be liquefied by a process like steam cycling or fracking. These procedures are cousins. Pressurized steam or a steam-and-chemical mix is injected to create fissures and access to oil. Both use large quantities of water and produce commensurately large quantities of toxic wastewater. Reverse osmosis can clean toxic waste, but it produces sludge requiring disposal. Pressurized injection of contaminated water and sludge back into wells already in a fault zone cannot fail to contaminate our water supply. It is just a matter of time. Vote yes on Measure Z. Roberta Myers | Monterey