Sacramento Bee readers react to extreme summer heat, Measure A, ruling that bees are fish

Us vs. them

“A new tiny home project is coming to Florin, but neighbors there may be right to be upset.” (sacbee.com, June 10)

Robin Epley writes that “well-heeled neighborhoods like Land Park” don’t have to shoulder the burden of housing the homeless. She is mistaken. Thousands of us living in the Land Park area — including my neighbors at the city’s public housing project at Alder Grove and Marina Vista — shoulder the burden of a de facto homeless shelter spread underneath the freeway between W and X Streets. There is no fence around the neighborhood that insulates us from this problem. We must compassionately deal with issues that come from homelessness everyday.

To bluntly state that we are immune from this issue is naive at best and only helps to promote an “us vs. them” narrative that helps no one.

Greg Sabin

Sacramento

Summer days

“UC Davis graduation abruptly halted mid-ceremony due to extreme heat, people hospitalized,” (sacbee.com, June 13)

As a UC Davis alumni, it breaks my heart to see the current crop of graduates suffering through extreme heat on their big day. No doubt other outdoor events were also punished by the recent heat wave. With climate change getting worse, there will be more days of intolerable heat in our future. For future generations, it may be impossible to have summertime events outside without the risk of heat stroke. And in a few weeks it will be fire season, and then there will be even fewer reasons to go outside this summer. How many good days of summer do we have left? We must demand that our leaders do something to reduce greenhouse gas emissions before we are all robbed of our precious sunny summer days.

Trevor Cleak

Sacramento

Feeling the heat

“UC Davis graduation abruptly halted mid-ceremony due to extreme heat, people hospitalized,” (sacbee.com, June 13)

Every now and then climate change smacks us right in the face. On June 10, the UC Davis graduation ceremony was abruptly cut short after extreme heat left six people hospitalized.

Yes, we are in the midst of a decades-long drought. Yes, temperature records are being broken throughout the western states. Yes, we are on the verge of significant mandatory water restrictions. However, the sight of robe-clad graduates having to clear the stadium where they sat to receive their degrees had a particularly visceral impact.

Congressional Republicans are making a reasonable calculation: They believe they can continue to obstruct meaningful climate change legislation without endangering their electoral prospects. Are they right?

Harold Ferber

Elk Grove

Go vote

“‘It was kind of an election about nothing.’ Why turnout for California primary was low,” (sacbee.com, June 8)

I’m sorry I voted six times. I didn’t mean to, but I didn’t commit election fraud — it was completely legal.

California has almost 40 million people, but only 16% of us voted. That means my one ballot counted for six people — myself and five others. Not everyone can vote — children and visitors can’t. But voting for so many people isn’t easy for us who do go out and vote. It’s tough to make decisions for people we don’t even know. We try, but sometimes we make mistakes. We only have 16% of California’s wisdom. Please don’t make me vote six times again.

Jim Heldberg

Pacifica

Save the bees

“Bees are legally fish in California, court rules. Here’s why and what led to it,” (sacbee.com, June 7)

As of last week, bees in California are legally classified as fish. No, bees cannot swim, and it’d be harmful if they were put under water. However, bees and fish are invertebrates, so they’re grouped together under the Endangered Species Act.

This recent court ruling that classifies bees as ‘endangered’ is a big step toward saving the bees. They are essential to keeping other species in our ecosystem alive. Unfortunately, last year, we lost over 40% of our honeybee colonies.

One of the leading causes for this bee die-out is a class of pesticides called neonics. Please join me in calling on our legislature to vote ‘yes’ on Assembly Bill 2146 — banning the use of bee-killing pesticides.

Julia Smith

Pleasanton

Reject Measure A

“Sacramento County transportation tax proposal offers $8.5 billion but risks so much more.” (sacbee.com, June 2)

In the June 5 issue, buried on page 16A, was a story about carbon dioxide levels in our air having shot past 420 parts per million and continuing to threaten the livability of life on earth for billions of people. In the same issue, Yousef Baig reported on a visit by lobbyists to the mayor’s office for the developer-backed half-cent sales tax known as Measure A. The primary goal of Measure A funds is to build the Southeast Capital Connector that, according to our own Sacramento Area Council of Governments, would risk federal transportation funds due to the expected carbon emissions from traditional suburban development.

I encourage everyone to oppose this measure that puts profits for a few ahead of creating new, regenerative opportunities in and around our existing communities.

Jennifer Wood

Sacramento