As mayor, Green should fight districts I...

As mayor, Green should fight districts

I would like to see Mayor Cathy Green come out strong against the

districting measure and to show the kind of leadership needed to

defeat this brazen attempt to hijack our local government and reduce

the voting rights of our residents.

While the mayor has limited powers to affect the budget, to take

care of labor negotiations and to make policy on her own, she can be

instrumental in rallying the electorate to preserve the many voting

rights they have now to determine how our city is run.

Green is much better situated than her two predecessors to bring

all points of the political compass together to stand against a

measure that some of her friends and supporters appear to be for. She

would be an ideal champion to oppose the evils of districting if she

has a mind to bring her clout to bear on it. However, she must be up

front and out front on this issue and galvanize opposition to

districting in the influential circles in which she travels.

I am sure the mayor knows that it is not enough to pay lip service

from the dais on this critical threat to our city, and that bold

action is required to oppose it. I am confident that defeating the

districting measure could be one of the crowning achievements of her

administration.

TIM GEDDES

Huntington Beach

Proposed increase in heath care ridiculous

The city’s proposal amounts to a 41% increase in health care cost

in one year. How could anyone think that is a reasonable increase for

any worker to absorb? Add to that no cost of living increase, no wage

increase, proposed lay-offs, down-sizing of all departments including

the 15% reduction officers in the Police Department and one has to

wonder what is going on in city administration. The super markets’

proposed a $5 to $15 per week charge for health care and the

employees went on strike! A $350 per month is a ridiculous increase

in one year.

LLOYD EDWARDS

Huntington Beach

City workers should chip in, or accept less

Huntington Beach city employees and retirees should accept some of

the rising health care costs or accept reduced benefits. Throughout

the USA most other workers/retirees are paying more for their health

benefits as costs increase.

CURTIS STELLEY

Huntington Beach

Employees should pay heath increase

Make the freeloaders pay. Time for the [city employees] to taste

reality. They’re all overpaid, over-benefited and over-pensioned --

at taxpayers’ expense, of course. A similar health plan costs me $750

per month, and I’m not demanding that city employees pay mine.

Bureaucrats are greedy and take for too much for granted.

CON BLISS

Huntington Beach

Districts will not serve city as whole

I couldn’t agree more with Linda Peterson’s letter (“Residents

need more than one council vote” Nov. 27) which pointed out the many

downsides of a council elected by district. One council person per

district could be the single worst thing that ever happens to our

city. Council people will be “chained” to only support the viewpoint

of their district, whereas now, council members know that all the

people in the city are their constituents and, consequently, they

vote for what’s best for all the city. If we had a council elected by

district council people representing individual districts would not

feel accountable to the rest of the city. They would have to support

their small area regardless of how off the wall their constituents

desires were.

I encourage those voters who may be too young to remember former

Assemblyman Scott Baugh’s political problems when he was an elected

California official, to research his background and wonder why he is

so excited about this issue. You might also look at his list of

clients. The first rule of investigative journalism is to “follow the

money.”

Naturally I don’t support everyone on our council but I think the

Huntington Beach has transformed what used to be a council elected by

special interests into to one of the most honest groups of

politicians in the state. Scott Baugh would like to take it back to

what it used to be.

BILL HALPIN

Huntington Beach

Dramatic change isn’t needed in Huntington

I have to agree with Bob Polkow (“People are too negative in Surf

City” Dec. 4) in his previous letter that our glass in life is,

indeed, half full. Given this positive outlook, I don’t see the need

to change so dramatically our council representation. Reducing the

number of council seats to five and the number of accountable council

members in an area to one is a very drastic step. Why turn our glass

over?

EDWARD DEMEULLE

Huntington Beach

There’s no such thing as free eduction

“Fight for free education,” screams the headline of the

Independent’s Dec. 4 editorial. There is no such thing as a “free”

education. Although no tuition is charged, we all pay for public

schools through our taxes.

It is this illusion of free education that is at the root of so

many problems. By breaking the direct connection between paying for

the schools and using the schools, the accountability inherent in the

need to satisfy a paying customer is replaced by political

micromanagement.

The $200 per child contribution to reduce class size is a step in

the right direction. I suspect that the $200, because it is willingly

and voluntarily paid, will be better spent than the bulk of the tax

dollars that fund education.

The statewide education budget averages something like $9,000 per

student. That’s $180,000 for a classroom of 20 kids. I don’t think

teachers make six-figure incomes, so where’s the money going?

FREDERICK SINGER

Huntington Beach

It isn’t easy, give what you can

I am writing in response to Mary Hills’ letter (“These parents are

asking too much” Dec. 4) in which she asks the question, “From what

planet have these eight parents descended?” then answers her question

with “A place where money is no problem.” Obviously Mary lives on

planet “Assumption.” A place where one assumes others have more money

than most. Writing a tax deductible check for $200 or more for

something we feel entitled to is never easy regardless of how much or

little one has. The real question is, Is it worth it?

What does $200 buy today? It buys admission for three and lunch

for one at Disneyland for a day. It also buys a large portion of

class size reduction for kindergarten through third grades in our

city schools. I encourage Mary and others who are not able to

contribute the suggested donation of $200 per child in the schools to

donate what money they are able to and donate their time to both the

schools and the cause and most importantly, make an effort to write

both Richard Riordan, the Secretary of Education and Jack O’ Connell,

Superintendent of Public Instruction and tell them how important

class size reduction is to us in Huntington Beach and our lack of

funds to pay for it.

CRYSTAL KERINS

Huntington Beach

Smaller class sizes are imperative

I believe I speak for most parents in our school district in

stating that 20 to 1 ratio has been proven to improve learning among

our children. In addition, I’ve witnessed increased confidence among

the children when they get more attention from the teacher.

As a classroom volunteer, in the 30 to 1 classes, I’ve observed

many children get lost in the crowd as those that struggle are left

behind while the brighter students are bored and restless as the

teacher works to the middle. This lowers the bar overall for all of

our children. In the current climate where most children have both

parents working and 50% are from broken homes, it is imperative that

they get the necessary attention to secure a solid elementary school

foundation.

MEG REEVES

Huntington Beach

Thank you for drawing attention to this very serious subject, 20

to 1 classroom size. As a parent of a fifth-grader and a

second-grader, who have both benefited from the 20 to 1 classroom

size, it is my opinion that this issue is paramount in achieving a

quality education for our children. My older son is now achieving

straight A’s in fifth grade, and I fully believe it is, in part, due

to the focused attention he received in those crucial lower grade

levels. I have volunteered in both my children’s classrooms and seen

for myself that this is a case of, “less is more.” Teachers have such

a variety of intellectual and maturity levels to combat with in the

earlier grades, that only with more individualized instruction

(smaller classrooms) can all of our children succeed. My hope is that

we prioritize our children and our next generation, first, in this

very critical budget year and in the years to come.

LISA BAUER

Huntington Beach

As a parent of a fourth-grader and now a kindergartener, it is

plain to see the advantage my older child had in a small class room.

I feel this is a very important program during a small child’s early

formative years.

LENA VERGARA

Huntington Beach

Educating voters can not start soon enough

Based upon the letters printed Nov. 27 from Larry Barnard (“City

Council districts are the way to go,” Mailbag) and Barbara Vuncanon

(“Seven districts would be best government,” Mailbag), Huntington

Beach Tomorrow and the City Council cannot start their no-districts

education campaigns too soon. Both letter writers speak in false

generalities and ignore specific realities.

Barnard claims Southeast Huntington Beach gets no services

“whatsoever compared to the rest of the city.” Excuse me? Southeast

Huntington Beach has its own library branch (Banning). Southeast has

its own community center (Edison). Southeast has its own fire station

(No. 4, Magnolia). In comparison, north Huntington Beach does not

have its own community center or fire station. In fact, plans to get

the north its own fire station have been pending for decades and have

gone nowhere because of lack of funding.

Vuncanon repeats the rumor that all council members live in or

near Huntington Harbour. That is false. Currently, only one council

member (Dave Sullivan) holds that distinction. The other six are

scattered throughout other parts of the city. True, none are

currently from the Southeast area, but there’s nothing in the city

charter preventing a council member from living there.

The truth is out there if you just look at the facts. The fact is,

districting reduces your voice in city government by giving you only

one representative to turn to instead of seven. With districts, if I

don’t agree with the one person chosen to represent me, I’ll have

nowhere else to turn to for help. How fair is that? Just say no to

districts.

JULIE BIXBY

Huntington Beach