Pearl Harbor and survivors, Sheriff Jones and suit, Bernie Sanders and supporters, etc.

Remember Pearl Harbor; I do

Re “Survivors hope Obama trip is a step forward” (Capitol & California, May 23): Japan owes America the apology, not the other way around. I vividly remember the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Thomas Lea Owsley from my hometown in Idaho went down on the USS Arizona. His name is on the memorial mounted on the ship where he and his buddies remain.

I commend President Harry Truman for having the guts to end what Japan started. I also commend FDR for the internment camps for the Americans with Japanese heritage.

It is easy for survivors of the bomb to cast blame, but those who would consider that America apologize are not looking at the full picture. The bomb did not just end a war and save many lives, but it served as a grim lesson. It tells the world what can happen. Countries will remember what a nuclear bomb can do and will take every precaution to be sure it is never used again.

Appeal is fiscally irresponsible

Re “The high cost of ‘good old boy’ management” (Editorials, May 20): According to a 2007 survey funded by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, only 15 percent of civil case jury decisions are appealed, and of those, two-thirds are unsuccessful.

Given that the chances for success of an appeal are slim at best, I was appalled to learn that Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones immediately declared he would appeal the jury’s decision in the sexual discrimination lawsuit he lost. But why not give it a shot, sheriff? After all, it is not “your” money you are wasting, it is taxpayer money.

I hate to see politicians throw good money after bad all because of ego. The correct response would have been: “The jury evaluated the evidence and made their decision. We will take this as a learning moment and use it to improve our behavior.”

I’m no fan of Rep. Ami Berra, but I don’t believe Scott Jones’ fiscal irresponsibility is what is needed in government.

Sanders’ fans need to support Clinton

Re “Sanders’ strong run has given his faithful hope for future” (Insight, May 23): To Bernie Sanders’ supporters who really want to see the progressive actions that you have pushed Hillary Clinton to adopt: If you want any of the changes to happen, you have to turn your support to her.

Otherwise your dreams for future reforms will die if Donald Trump is elected. It’s clear and simple to understand. Clinton has the best chance of seeing your dreams become reality. Trump, on the other hand, could destroy everything that President Barack Obama has done and head the country into deep, dark, conservatism, or even worse.

When November comes around, you should vote for the only candidate who has any chance of changing things for the better: Clinton. This is not a threat, as so many of you have claimed on social media, but a pure, simple statement of truth. What do you really want to happen? It’s up to you.

Cap-and-trade hurting the poor

Re “Cap-and-trade revenue could drop” (Insight, Dan Walters, May 18): According to the Los Angeles Times and Legislative Analyst’s Office, the cap-and-trade auction program adds about 11 cents per gallon of gas at the pump, hitting hardworking families still recovering from the recession.

Yet, politicians and the California Air Resources Board don’t seem to mind whom they are hitting hardest. They’re more concerned with how to spend the billions collected through the auction. It’s a controversial program that could very well turn out to be illegal because of the fact that AB 32, the landmark legislation that created the cap-and-trade program, never passed the Legislature with a two-thirds vote, as all tax increases must.

Musical therapy and Alzheimer’s

Re “Music as the key to unlock memories” (Explore, May 17): I was happy to see the article on the effort to provide personalized music to people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. As someone who watched her father fade away from Alzheimer’s, I know how heartbreaking it is to lose a loved one a day at a time.

In the face of this relentless and depressing disease, musical memory is a precious bright spot. What a gift that someone who can no longer tie their shoelaces can still thrill to the songs of their youth because the area of the brain storing musical memories is one of the last affected by dementia.

Hats off to Music & Memory Inc., the California Association of Health Facilities and all of the care facilities that are distributing iPods and personalizing playlists for dementia patients.

Doing the right thing for animals

Re “Biotech firm will pay $3.5M fine for animal abuses” (Page 4A, May 22): I had just returned with my husband from a hike at the Miners Ravine Trail in Roseville to get a bit of nature in the midst of the suburbs. I found it heartening to read that people who torture animals are stopped by our federal government. That good news made my day.

This story was originally published May 24, 2016 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Pearl Harbor and survivors, Sheriff Jones and suit, Bernie Sanders and supporters, etc.."