Challenging semantics
In your Dec. 13 front-page article titled
”
Croy Victims get Reprieve
”
you refer to victims who lost their
”
illegal homes
”
as
”
scofflaws.
”
I am one of those victims, as are many of my friends. We are
not
”
scofflaws
”
and our
”
illegal homes
”
warmed our hearts. Most of us built without permits after waking
up to an oppressive County
”
no growth
”
policy that discriminated against many hillside landowners by
making it increasingly difficult, if not impossible, to get site
approvals or building permits. Most of us built scrupulously to
County codes. To refer to us as
”
scofflaws
”
is inaccurate and an insult to good citizens who are
conscientious stewards of the land. Many of us wonder how the
thousands of hillside lots in Santa Clara County got approved by
the County, included in tax rolls, and promoted by sub-dividers and
realtors, when they are essentially un-buildable by County codes.
It is clear to me something went wrong, but seems unfair to blame
only the current owners, who are trying to live good lives on
property they spent good money on.
Roy Guist
Morgan Hill
Challenging semantics
In your Dec. 13 front-page article titled “Croy Victims get Reprieve” you refer to victims who lost their “illegal homes” as “scofflaws.” I am one of those victims, as are many of my friends. We are not “scofflaws” and our “illegal homes” warmed our hearts. Most of us built without permits after waking up to an oppressive County “no growth” policy that discriminated against many hillside landowners by making it increasingly difficult, if not impossible, to get site approvals or building permits. Most of us built scrupulously to County codes. To refer to us as “scofflaws” is inaccurate and an insult to good citizens who are conscientious stewards of the land. Many of us wonder how the thousands of hillside lots in Santa Clara County got approved by the County, included in tax rolls, and promoted by sub-dividers and realtors, when they are essentially un-buildable by County codes. It is clear to me something went wrong, but seems unfair to blame only the current owners, who are trying to live good lives on property they spent good money on.
Roy Guist
Morgan Hill
Those who forget history…
I don’t understand all the fuss being made over what Trent Lott said at
Strom Thurmond’s birthday celebration. Perhaps the public has forgotten about the history leading up to this statement.
Way back in the 1960’s, the South was almost all Democrat – in fact the
party there was known as “Dixie-Crats.” Then along came Jack Kennedy.
He tried to get equal voting rights for black Southerners, but ran into great opposition from segregationists in the South, where he was hated for his actions.
The new President, Lyndon Johnson, being a “Good Old Boy” from the South, was supposed to put segregation back on track. Johnson decided to pursue
Kennedy’s voting rights plans and was immediately held in contempt by white
Southerners. Previous to this, all of the “White Sheets” were kept in the Democrat linen closet. Then as a protest to the Democrat Party, many white Southerners bolted the party, took their white sheets to the Republican linen closet, and joined the Republican Party.
Now it has been over 40 years, and the Republicans still control most of the Dixie states. So, what Trent Lott said should be no surprise to anyone.
Especially anyone who is old enough to know the history of it all.
Jack Dwan
Gilroy
Resident talks trash
At long last I am now a happy and proud recycling customer! Of course,it took Waste Management to FORCE me to recycle, but that’s exactly what I was waiting for.
Why wasn’t I a recycling customer before? It’s simple. When Hollister’s recycling program first became available I did a little number crunching and quickly realized that I had two choices. The first was to not change my garbage lifestyle and pay $17 per month for garbage collection service. The second choice was to pay an extra $5 per month and embark upon the daily chore of separating recyclables from the rest of my regular garbage. In shorter words, they expected me to pay more while doing more work.
I don’t know about the rest of Hollister, but I stayed with my current program of doing nothing extra and paying less. I would have felt too stupid to willingly pay more and work harder when I didn’t have to. It was a matter of principle. I long maintained that I would be happy to recycle if they made it mandatory, even if they raised the price in the process. That they have
now done and now I am a proud recycler. Thanks Waste Management!
John Rinck
Hollister
Gang story hurt Hispanics
I am writing in response to your recent articles and editorial in The Pinnacle about gangs in Hollister. I agree that a small group of people, mostly youth, participate in anti-social behaviors for a variety of reasons and organize themselves in gangs. As a caring community I think we should search for a variety of solutions to end the problem of youths being marginalized and being attracted to a gang lifestyle.
I read The Pinnacle regularly because it is an important source of news and information for San Benito County. Consequently, I was surprised at the
tone and depth of the articles about gangs in Hollister, which could potentially create an alarmist attitude about Chicano and Mexican youth in general.
The focus on Gilroy police activities offers only one solution to the issue of gangs and does not treat it as the complex issue that it is. Many cities have gang task forces or gang units that collect data and closely follow youth in their neighborhoods. However, there have been complaints because they often incorrectly identify young people, especially Chicano, Mexican and African American youth because of how they dress, look and where they hang out. This type of profiling incorrectly and unjustly identifies the wrong people as gang members.
Referring to the gangs as a “plague” in this context symbolically dehumanizes Chicano and Mexican youth. The articles did not look at the socio-economic conditions of youth nor entertain possible solutions for intervening and preventing youth from engaging in anti-social behaviors. Issues such as whether youth have been marginalized and disenfranchised from receiving a quality education, whether they have ample services available, such as crisis counseling, or other family related issues are not discussed.
I want to deter youth from becoming gang members and encourage them to become productive citizens, yet still allow them to dress the way they want without being harassed or profiled. As a Chicano, I am opposed to gangs because of the senseless violence and self-destructive behaviors, where Mexicans and
Chicanos hurt each other. I think we should look at a variety of solutions, including programs like Barrios Unidos in Santa Cruz, which provides positive and reaffirming direction for youth and deters them from joining gangs.
Joe Navarro
Hollister
Bowling strikes a nerve
Martha and I always enjoyed attending the Supervisor’s meetings or reading about them. Much of that enjoyment was due to Rita Bowling’s common sense comments. She didn’t always bowl a 300 game, but we never saw her throw a gutter ball. We will miss you, Rita.
Sid Moses
Hollister
The unpatriotic act
Thank you, Kate Woods, for your courageous journalism! It was so refreshing to hear your passion as you excoriated what the Administration and Congress have allowed to happen to our constitutional rights under the oxymoron of The Patriot Act. Unless we want to drift (while we eat popcorn and watch sitcoms) into unspeakable horror abroad and a police state at home, we must speak out now! I am reminded of Pastor Martin Niemoller’s quote from World War II:
“First, they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me.”
There are many ways to speak out, including letters to our local papers, letters to our president and those who are supposed to represent us in Congress, encouraging the pastors of our churches to treat this crisis from the pulpit as the moral and spiritual issue it is, joining the silent vigil of Hollister in Black at 4:30 on Friday afternoons, attending the huge protest scheduled for Jan. 18 in San Francisco. Each of us must find our own way to make ourselves heard.
Alan Boesak of South Africa told the story of a man who dies and appears before God at the gates of heaven. God asks him, “Where are your wounds?” The man answers, “Wounds? What wounds?” And God replies sorrowfully, “Was there nothing worth fighting for?”
Peggy Kingman
Pinnacles
LoBue’s act was shameful
Due to his childish nature, along with an inept ability to rationally approach serious issues facing the community, Tony LoBue keeps the Hollister City Council from being united. LoBue continued his personal vendetta against Councilman Brian Conroy when he voiced his lone vote of “NO” for the selection of Conroy to be the next mayor of Hollister.
The council can sit in front of the chamber audience with a smiling face for the cameras, but LoBue is content on dividing the council for personal pleasure. The City Council must act and perform for the community and not for its own self-interest of portraying something it is not.
LoBue will continue to be a thorn in the side of the council until he resigns – or he’s ousted in the next election. The new Mayor and City Council must repair those fractured relations with the County.
The new Mayor and City Council must move foreword and disregard any attempt by LoBue to disrupt the harmony and spirit of the City and County working together.
Paul Grannis
Hollister
SJB needs Subway and other outlets
Subway Sandwiches would like to open at our Windmill Center at Highway 156 and The Alameda in San Juan Bautista and some merchants have expressed concern. The Subway is one of several new uses that we intend to bring before the City in the next year that, I believe, can increase retail traffic in the historic district and in our center.
No one predicted the Highway 156 traffic volumes that exist today. On a hot summer weekend 50,000 people pass along the city of San Juan Bautista that are hungry, need gas or just want to walk around. What is our penetration of this great new gift of a market for our goods and services? Zero, zilch, nada. Our historic retail district is stagnant and declining. The number of businesses in San Juan with increasing revenues could probably be counted on one hand.
Tourism will not make us thrive: it did not do so in the 19th century, it did not do so in the 20th, and it will not do so in the 21st. We must add the traveler to our tourist base and then grow them both together. We need to address the traveler in the 200 yards or so on either side of the intersection where they are in our line of sight. It is only one short block from our entrance to Don Ciccio’s, one more block to the Mission Burger and Doña Esther’s.
Here is the plan: On the Windmill Center side of the intersection, on property that I am prepared to dedicate to this purpose, we make a big, beautiful entryway for San Juan. The core of it would have to be something on the order of “Welcome to San Juan Bautista, Founded in 1792. Historic Old Town 2 blocks that way: Shops Antiques Dining” or something to that effect. Very few travelers will turn off if there is not at least one familiar name to get them to stop and that is where the Subway is important. It will help us get folks off the road. We do not need a whole string of big names to get traffic off the highway, but we sure as hell need at least one.
We also need to put gas on the corner if we really want to increase the customer count. We can put up a station with restrooms and a visitor’s center that fits in with our historic town, perhaps a replica of San Juan’s History Museum, which is an old gas station.
Think about Harris Ranch or Casa de Fruta. They are packed with travelers most days of the year. We have more to offer and better or equal highway access; yet we do not do anywhere near the travel business that they do. The truth is that we don’t even try. We need to get into that highway and the sooner the better.
Jim Gibson
Owner Windmill Center & Market.
The fight for freedom
I have done something un-American; I’ve squandered the freedom that Thomas Jefferson, Martin Luther-King Jr. and Robert Kennedy all fought for during their lives. What I have done is said nothing against the proposed Patriot Act with all of it’s blisters filled with unconstitutional acts against Americans.
Thank you Kate Woods for reminding me of a story that my Father told me when he was trying to explain to me how important that our rights as Americans are protected.
He told me that he heard a holocaust survivor speaking about the atmosphere before the Jews were taken to the concentration camps because they were considered a threat against the Nazi government. This is what he said:
“We began to see the Nazi soldiers gathering the homosexuals and lesbians and taking them away. Then the outspoken critics of the government were taken never to be seen again. After that was the banning and burning of books that questioned the government. I knew that perhaps I should speak out against what was happening but was too fearful. And when they came to get my family and myself, then there was no one to speak out for me.”
We should never forget and be saddened by the acts of Sept. 11, and we should never forget that we need to oppose acts of terror in all countries with rational and lawful intelligence.
Margaret Baker
Gilroy
