Marin IJ Readers’ Forum for March 13, 2021

Desalination discussions need to begin right now

Barring a miraculous March and April, we are heading for a very dry summer. With it, there is a rise in the likelihood of water rationing similar to what we experienced in 1976-77.

I believe that desalination as a solution should be put on the agendas of our respective water districts. There is plenty of experience now with the plants near San Diego (50 million gallons per day) and Tampa Bay (25 million gallons per day) that should minimize the expense of an updated feasibility study.

With climate change (call it “nature,” if you prefer), I think the need for water to drink has more significance than a successful vaccine. Our needs could be met by a plant tailored to meet our expected emergency supply demands. We saw a mad rush for certain “essential” products when the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns began. Just imagine what the reaction would be like if the commodity was lifesaving drinking water.

The pandemic has taught us about preparing for and anticipating the unexpected. It took almost 15 years for San Diego’s system to come to fruition. I think it’s time to begin serious discussions on this subject right here.

— Louis Bartolini, Novato

Memorable month for Novato nonprofit

The heartwarming generosity of the Marin Community Clinics and Marin Independent Journal during the month of February has boosted the children of NovatoSpirit. As executive director of the nonprofit, I wish to express our thanks.

Our mission is to use sports to strengthen kids who live in poverty. During recent conversations with school district officials, I learned that poverty among children has risen dramatically in Novato. Fifteen years ago, the poverty rate of public schoolchildren was 20% — now it’s close to 40%. That translates to 3,000 kids, hundreds of whom are homeless.

During the Valentine’s season, the medical staff at Novato’s Marin Community Clinics hosted their annual fundraiser, raising $1,850 to keep our kids active. Meanwhile, the Marin IJ published a free color ad for us and surprised us with a $5,000 grant through their partners’ Giving Marin program.

The pursuit of equity weaves our three organizations together as we work to make Marin County a kinder, healthier place for people of all races, religions and socioeconomic backgrounds.

The Marin Community Clinics provides care to all, while the Marin IJ shines the spotlight on injustice, so that it can be addressed by our county’s readers and leaders.

— Marian Huntington, Novato

Marin officials must fight state housing mandates

Once again, Marin IJ political columnist Dick Spotswood has it right about the “ostrich effect” and what happens when local governments choose to ignore history and fail to prepare for high-impact natural disasters (“Marin must stay alert, plan for future possible disasters,” March 3).

A case in point is Marin County and cities recklessly adopting state officials’ “build at any cost” strategy. I believe officials are planning as much dense housing as they can on any piece of available property — including steep hillsides, fire hazard areas, flood zones and sinking landfill.

The slow-growth movement started in Marin in the 1970s to stop land-hungry developers from filling in San Francisco Bay and plowing down hills, as well as destroying wetlands, pastures and creeks. Despite knowing all this, legislators and building advocates continue to push for more and more high-density housing here. This is happening even though little has been done to update our aging roads, sewers and infrastructure — not to mention protection for our environmentally sensitive areas.

So why are our elected officials not pushing back harder against these proposals that keep putting our residents at greater and greater risk?

— Susan Cluff, Belvedere

Vaccinated, cautious folks can still catch cold

I am an octogenarian, therefore I must have a pretty substantial infectious disease antibody profile.

Years ago, my dear grandmother preached the evils of the Spanish Flu of 1918. I have had annual flu shots since that practice went into vogue, the last one in September 2020. With this current pandemic raging, I have adhered to all the guidelines set out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (masking, distancing, hand-washing, sequestering — all that). Two weeks ago, I had my final COVID-19 vaccination and made one of my infrequent visits to the store. Communication with friends, relatives and neighbors has all been electronic. I have been very careful.

Recently, I awoke sneezing, with a runny nose, a mild fever and feeling crummy. I have one rhetorical question: How in the hell did I catch a cold?

— Dr. Hank Simmonds, Kentfield

It’s a bumpy road no matter what you call it

I recommend that Fairfax rename Sir Francis Drake Boulevard “Benign Neglect Avenue,” which perfectly describes how the town cares for its roads.

— Michael Miller, San Anselmo

Senate must join House, pass For the People Act

Our democracy grants outsized power to a minority of its people by giving sparsely populated states the same Senate representation as heavily populated states like California.

Republicans have been exploiting this inequity for decades. Even now, it appears state legislatures in places like Georgia, Texas and Arizona are pushing through voter suppression laws meant to create obstacles to voting, mostly affecting people of color and those with little means.

It’s time to fix this and Congress can do so by passing the For the People Act. The proposed bill addresses corruption, the buying of elections, election security, expanding voting rights and more. It’s time to redistribute power throughout this great country by giving everyone a voice, regardless of who they are, their means or where they live.

The House has already passed its version of this act, now the Senate must pass it. The For the People Act makes things right for our democracy and our country.

— Susan Stanger, Mill Valley

Locofocos were opposed to elected legislature

On March 3, the Marin IJ published a cartoon by Bill Day. It reproduced a quote by a New York lawyer named Gideon J. Tucker. Tucker is believed to have used the statement in a legal brief filed in a court of law. Some attribute the quote to Mark Twain.

Tucker’s quote reads, “No man’s life, liberty or property is safe while the legislature is in session.” Considering that the statement is an anti-government attitude, it is not a surprise that Tucker’s father was a member of the Locofoco faction of the Democratic party of the time. The group was dogmatically laissez-faire and free trade.

One wonders, however, if Tucker was opposed to an elected legislature, did he feel more comfortable with kings and dictators? Ralph Waldo Emerson is quoted as saying of the Locofocos: “The new race is stiff, heady, and rebellious; they are fanatics in freedom; they hate tolls, taxes, turnpikes, banks, hierarchies, governors, yea, almost all laws.

— Niccolò Caldararo, Fairfax

World War II was fought to destroy evil like this

If you have reached the age of 70 years old, as I have, you may have had parents that lived through World War II.

My father fought in Europe. My mom, like many women, was left at home and helped in any way she could. She worked at Brookley Air Force Base in Alabama.

My father and the others who fought and died beside him were fighting to stop the evil of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi horrors.

What would my parents think now with large hate groups here in America who still support former President Donald Trump?

— Mary Lynn Kunkel, Fairfax