Occupying Sense

Interesting comments made by CSUMB student: “We are sick of hearing the system does not have money,” Erika Rodriguez, a junior in communications, told the crowd. “We believe education should be free.” (Occupy Monterey regroups after encampment for more focused protests,” March 8-14.) So college should be free? How do you pay the staff and faculty? How do you maintain the buildings? Since when is a college education supposed to be free? Nice to see that basic economics isn’t taught at CSUMB. Another invented right? - Mach5Motorsports | via Web

Old Coots

Really? Have you been out there? (“Feds poison 300 pesky waterfowl at Rancho Cañada Golf Club.) I would suggest going out there. Forget the course, the health concerns are awful. The amount of ammonia in the area around these birds is suffocating. I’d classify it as a human health hazard. Educate yourselves before you jump on those guys. - tmoney25 | via Web

More Old Coots

I pick up a copy of the Weekly every week to scan. It’s free and that is understandable: Who would actually pay for this fishwrapper with a leftist agenda? Some of your stories without a political bias are actually interesting and informative. Case in point, “Mudhen Madness” about the coots at Rancho Cañada Golf Course where I play golf.

But the most constant irritant to me is the Rob Rogers “cartoons.” I use that word loosely because his art work is subpar. What burns me is his constant bashing of Republicans. A pox on this guy! - Burt Bailey | Pacific Grove

Jason Yes x 2

Jason Burnett has been key in elucidating the most important issues for the community, and in bringing them to the table for discussion (“Burnett for Mayor,” March 15-21). He has probed and scraped, to make everyone aware, and to consider what we need to do now, in light of the current economy, and how we can prepare for the future. He is intelligent, thoughtful, a good listener and a very hard-working member of the Council. Those of you who have commented here – if you have other good suggestions about how to resolve our current budget problems or liabilities, I am sure he will be happy to listen. However, I know for certain that he has already considered spending down our city’s reserves for this purpose. - CarmelResident | via Web

Jason has delivered on his promises for Carmel, including making our government more inclusive and transparent. And we can expect more of the same when he is mayor. He is the only candidate who will work hard for the benefit of the whole community and the only candidate who will not hand off the job to others once in office. - Coastalvillager | via Web

Jason No

“He’s devoted to transparency, in the water agreement and in government as a whole, and transparency is something Carmel’s sorely lacked for too long.” – Weekly’s endorsement for Jason Burnett for Carmel mayor

Really?

This election, we don’t see Jason touting his role in the public-private partnership at the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History. Last election, it was his major achievement.

His presidency of the foundation that took over P.G.’s museum was cited time and time again, and Jason was portrayed as some sort of white knight poised to transform the museum into a “major world-class attraction.”

When Jason placed his hand over his heart and promised the Dan Cort-led city council that he would personally guide this 100+-year-old institution into the future with openness and transparency, many bought into the magical aura that the polished and agreeable scion of wealth, power and “a major world-class attraction” brought to the table.

Pacific Grove officials couldn’t hand over the museum fast enough. Despite the city’s sizable annual contribution funding the new museum foundation, coupled with the substantial assets of the Museum Association (a generations-old and quasi-governmental friends auxiliary organization that was gobbled up by the foundation in what can only be described as a corporate raid), open meeting rules were misinterpreted to allow closed-door foundation meetings.

This circling-of-the-wagons attitude toward the public has resulted in a complicated and peculiar relationship with the city that has devolved from a secretive public-private partnership into a contractor-employer relationship that allows only the city manager to have access to the museum’s management and board. - ET | via Web

Nixed Marriage

I cannot think of a worse scenario than Natividad and SVMH combined – it would dilute the strengths SVMH has and there would be no infusion of new capital and expertise as there would be from a successful outside entity combining with SVMH (“Natividad says ‘We do,’” March 15-21). More people with good insurance would go to CHOMP, leaving mostly poor people going to Salinas Nativi-Memorial… think it through more precisely, Jane! - mslulu2 | via Web

Reform the Reform

David Cole is wrong about Obamacare (“State of Sickness,” March 15-21). There is nothing in the Constitution that gives the government the power to force people to buy a product from a corporation or others. Many of our Founders viewed government as an enemy, or, as Thomas Paine wrote, “evil.” But Cole’s attack on free choice is also hypocritical. For instance, the left-wing blogosphere was up in arms over a Virginia state bill that would mandate women to have an ultrasound before receiving an abortion. The phrase “free choice” was yelled from the tops of buildings. Critics likened the compulsory part of the bill to being raped by the state. And they have a point. Anything that is forced onto peaceful people is a type of violation that approximates being physically abused. But where are the outcries for the lack of free choice when it comes to Obamacare’s mandates?

Too many people believe in free choice only when it suits them. Choice has to be everywhere, or soon it will be nowhere! - Lawrence Samuels | Carmel

Another County Heard From

Local Spin is quite an apt description. Wow. Childish, vitriolic, vengeful yellow journalism. Using your paper to facilitate your personal vendetta about your reporter being snubbed (“La Costa Nostra Boys refer Shriner to Grand Jury,” March 1-7). You should be sued for slander. - cloud_swimmer | via Web

(Editor’s note: Slander is spoken. Libel is what you’re thinking… )