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closeHealth care for all
Can you still afford your medical insurance? Many of us have had to increase our deductibles to $5,000 or more just to keep up with rising premium costs.
Are you in good health, and taking a chance by not having insurance? One accident could wipe out all of your savings. Medical costs are the leading reason for personal bankruptcies.
If you plan to change jobs, graduate from college or start your own business, watch out. You may be priced out of the market. If you already have a medical condition, you might lose your coverage.
State Senate Bill 840, “The California Universal Health care Act,” makes sure everyone is covered. Private insurance company profits would be eliminated. Premiums and medication would be affordable. And you get to choose and keep your own doctor.
Gov. Schwarzenegger shot down the bill even though 60 percent of the California Senate and 54 percent of the Assembly voted for it. We can get a veto-proof bill if three more senators and nine more Assembly representatives get on board.
Go to www.healthcareforall.org to find out more. Tell your friends. We can do it if we try.
Bonnie Wolfe
San Luis Obispo
A political shift
I think it is a shame that the state of California is $18 billion in debt. This state should be the richest state in the nation.
Our state is filled with vast valuable resources such as fertile land, forest, oil and fish. However, our forests are being burned instead of being cleaned out by conservative foresting practices; our land is being so regulated it is unprofitable to farm; oil is spewing out of leaks in the ocean floor, polluting and going to waste; and all the large dominant creatures like sea lions, otters and large fish are eating all our fisheries as our fishermen catches have dwindled down to only 10 percent of their allowable catch from 10 years ago. Also, there are small areas left to fish secondary to massive “no-fishing zones” throughout the state.
This is why we are in debt. We prevent the people of California from utilizing what we have and are content to import from other states or countries. This costs us billions of dollars that leave our state needlessly.
We need to stop attacking state workers and programs and start putting our state to work by utilizing our God-given resources in a sustainable and profitable approach. I think the pendulum needs to swing back to at least the middle regarding this subject.
Sheri Hafer
Atascadero
A little truth here
When a person resorts to lies to win a debate he knows his arguments are inferior to his opponent’s, and he is running scared and frustrated.
Sen. John McCain keeps saying Sen. Barack Obama “would rather lose a war in order to win a political campaign” and that he is unaware of what is at stake in Iraq.
McCain confuses opposition to an unnecessary war with a lack of courage and an unwillingness to use force when needed. He also says that Obama is untested as a commander in chief, while McCain is likewise a tyro in this respect.
McCain complains that Obama is opposed to offshore drilling, while he is overlooking all the sites that are available and not being used. T. Boone Pickens, a fellow oilman, is correct — we cannot drill our way to oil independence, we must learn to conserve.
McCain has even suggested that Obama is so far left he is a socialist. This is ludicrous, considering that some Democrats are concerned that he is not far enough to the left.
Isn’t it time for both parties to stick to the truth?
Eugene Fabricius
San Luis Obispo
A juror’s conscience
Opinions about the trial of Charles Lynch regarding the sale of medical marijuana were often based on either states’ rights or compassion. An overlooked issue is that of jury nullification— the jury could have acquitted even if the defendant had violated a literal interpretation of the law.
This approach can be used when the laws are felt by the jury to be misapplied, inappropriate or, as in this case, contradictory. The concept was briefly summarized by our second president, John Adams, who stated, “It is not only (the juror’s) right, but his duty ... to find the verdict according to his own best understanding, judgment and conscience, though in direct opposition to the direction of the court.”
Most judges do not want jurors to be aware of this option that was used during the years of Prohibition. For more information, see the Web site of the Fully Informed Jury Association, www.fija.org.
Kenneth Shamordola
Nipomo
Seeking change
Wake up, America. Isn’t it about time we think about making changes in our presidential election system?
We spend millions and millions that could be spent elsewhere — feeding the less fortunate and the homeless; nations suffering from earthquakes and floods; and even helping build up our own country.
Whether Republican or Democrat, I was brought up respecting the office of the president of the United States. Imagine what other countries must think of us.
La Verne B. Hawkinson
San Luis Obispo
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