Election, campaign finance, bathroom rules, women priests, combat

You have a voice, use it to vote

Re “No-party voters still face hurdles” (Page 1A, May 13): It seems as though the average California resident’s excuse for not voting is “I don’t have time.” However, after elections have concluded, they have a bunch of time to complain about the results.

If people really cared about what happened, they would be proactive and take the steps to vote in the primaries. Take time to become informed, vote and possibly change the outcome of the country for the next four years. The time invested doesn’t seem so bad.

If we vote racist people into office

Re “Some Trump delegates drop out after backlash” (Insight, May 13): The online article has a short video that shows Latinos protesting Donald Trump. I am shocked and will forever continue to be shocked that there are members in my community that support a man who is racist against us.

If we let racist people into office, what will we become?

I had hoped we were past all the blood spilled due to segregation and the ill treatment of immigrant field workers, but it seems we might be headed that way again. I am glad to see that Latino and white politicians are seeing the errors of their ways.

The crazy man, the socialist or the liar

Re “Sanders has Valley rallies in Clinton stronghold” (Page 4A, May 11): The conservative couple at the Bernie Sanders rally in Stockton expressed the views of many voters. For me, I’ll take my chances with the crazy man Donald Trump or the socialist Bernie Sanders. Neither will get all that they want, but at least you can count on their sincerity. Hillary Clinton, who the man called a “liar,” should not be president.

Reform campaign finance laws

Re “Bera family tragedy can’t excuse illegality” (Editorials, May 11): We know that Rep. Ami Bera of Elk Grove is in deep trouble, alienating the labor community and regarding his father’s involvement in donating money to his campaign. Sometimes we wonder whether the campaign contribution law is really a bigger mess than Bera’s mess?

In Bera’s case, his father should have chosen a different path to give money to his son in a campaign. Is this fair to send a devoted father to jail for breaking that law? Is the Supreme Court right in allowing more money in campaign contributions?

Do we need to overhaul the campaign contribution laws in this country?

Uncomfortable bathroom rules

Re “Obama to tell schools to let transgender kids pick bathroom” (Page 12A, May 13): The Obama administration has determined that it will require every school to allow students to use the facility of their self-determined sexual identity under the threat of loss of funds. This may sound reasonable to liberal-minded people. But this allows a student with male genitals, who just cross-dresses, to claim he is a female and use the girls’ school showers.

I believe this would make most teenage girls uncomfortable, at a time in their lives when they are trying to become comfortable with their sexuality.

The Obama administration is moving to accommodate the very limited number of self-determined transgender students who feel uncomfortable in using the bathroom of their physical sex but to make the large majority of students ill at ease. Is this crazy or what?

Women deacons won’t fix problem

Re “Pope OKs study of women as deacons” (Page 16A, May 13): Pope Francis announced a study to see if the Catholic Church should allow women deacons. Deacons are generally helpers for a parish priest but cannot perform many priestly functions such as saying Mass or hearing confessions.

A 2000 study by the U.S. Catholic bishops showed that 27,000 parishes in this country did not have a resident priest. The situation in 2016 is even worse. Will allowing women to act as deacons solve that problem? The answer is no.

The real solution is ordaining women priests or allowing priests to marry. I suspect some cynics, including me, might believe the current discussion on women deacons is a way to tamp down growing discussion of the real solution to the problem.

Dump bullet train for hyperloop

Re “Hyperloop shows off technology at demo in Las Vegas desert” (Page 9A, May 12): Gov. Jerry Brown’s high-speed train should be canceled. The hyperloop supersonic train would be cheaper to build and four times faster. Private industry would do a better job, considering the state can’t build a bridge without monumental problems and obscene cost overruns.

Nothing prepares you for combat

Re “3 deaths raise questions about Navy SEAL training” (Insight, May 13): I’m a USMC combat vet. There is no training that prepares you for combat, so the celebrity Navy SEALs should lighten up a bit on their macho training. The idea is to kill the enemy not your own.

This story was originally published May 16, 2016 at 3:00 AM with the headline "Election, campaign finance, bathroom rules, women priests, combat."