Marin IJ Readers’ Forum for Jan. 13, 2024

Father of jumper lauds new suicide net on bridge

I have been waiting nearly 16 years for a headline like the one that appeared in the IJ on Jan. 4: “Suicide netting in place on the Golden Gate Bridge.”

On Jan. 29, 2008, my 17-year-old daughter, Casey, took our car, drove to the Golden Gate Bridge and jumped. Like another jumper, Matthew Whitmer, who was mentioned in the article, she was never found.

My life went up in a fireball that day, but it also led me to connect with the Hines family, the Whitmer family and others dedicated to putting a stop to suicides from the bridge. I am forever grateful to the politicians, Golden Gate Bridge District directors, families, Bridge Rail Foundation activists and construction crews for coming together against the barrage of naysayers.

Our efforts will never bring the likes of Casey and Matthew back, but we can at least feel some satisfaction that we accomplished what many times felt like the impossible.

— John Brooks, Fairfax

Editorial cartoons in IJ provide moments of levity

I rarely look at cartoons in newspapers, but I’ve noticed that the Cartoonist’s Take in the IJ almost always makes me smile.

John Darkow’s editorial cartoon published Jan. 5 with the title “My New Year’s Resolutions” made me laugh out loud, which is not something I’ve been prone to lately, given all the bad news.

I think that the cartoons selected for publication in the IJ are second only to those in The New Yorker Magazine, where the bar is very high. I would also like to send kudos to George Russell, the IJ’s local cartoonist, who contributes three cartoons a week and can change my frown to a smile in a second.

— Christine Clayworth, Novato

TUHSD’s focus should be on student performance

A recent article in the IJ about how Marin students rate on the new California education online dashboard (“Marin schools receive new marks in state data update,” Dec. 25) shared how county students scored higher than the state average in test scores, college readiness and graduation rates. It also noted that Marin is lower in chronic absenteeism and suspension rates.

There are several categories measuring students’ progress, but I was curious about how they are doing on the education “basics” of math and English proficiency. On the state’s website, each school is graded using five colors (green to red) covering a scale of areas from good to bad. My more traditional thinking translated the colors to grades — spanning the spectrum, with green for an A and red for an F.

My mind has been on students in the Tamalpais Union High School District (since district officials are asking for what will amount to over $1 billion in taxpayer funding in the March election). The three main schools in that district are Archie Williams, Redwood and Tamalpais. Using grades instead of colors, all three of them did no better than a D (orange) in mathematics (with a red F for Tam High students). For English language and arts, Tam got another F, while Archie Williams and Redwood received very average Cs.

All three of those high schools scored well in other categories, including good ratings for a low number of school suspensions and high graduation rates. You might think everyone is apparently going to have a good chance of a good career or going to college. But I don’t see how that’s going to happen if some of these grades are an indication.

It appears to me that TUHSD’s expensive proposed tax will be spent on construction projects rather than directly improving student performance. I think the district’s priorities deserve an F.

— Kingston Cole, San Rafael

Come together to help stop avian flu outbreaks

It is truly disheartening to learn that avian flu has reached Marin County (“North Bay poultry farm area imperiled by bird flu ‘chain reaction’,” Jan. 3). According to the article, infections in birds suffering from respiratory and gastrointestinal distress have led to entire flocks being euthanized.

The news of 151,000 birds recently being euthanized due to this outbreak is deeply saddening and raises questions about the effectiveness of culling as a solution. It also highlights the presence of factory farms in Marin County.

The disease is rapidly spreading. More than 1.1 million birds in Sonoma County’s poultry industry have been euthanized. Prices for products of this industry could increase. Workers could lose their jobs as facilities need to remain empty for a certain period of time.

Avian flu poses a significant threat, not only to birds but also to the local ecosystem and those involved in the poultry industry. Although human illness from avian flu is rare, the disease mutates and is zoonotic.

The root cause of avian flu outbreaks needs to be addressed through comprehensive measures such as vaccination programs, restricting wild bird access to flocks and prohibition or reform of intensive farming practices. Furthermore, it is crucial to invest in research and development to find more sustainable and humane alternatives to treating affected populations.

By focusing on prevention, early detection and effective treatment methods, we can work toward mitigating the impact of avian flu and protecting both the birds and the community’s health.

It is essential that we come together as a community to support and advocate for proactive measures that prioritize the well-being of both animals and humans. Only through collective efforts and a commitment to finding innovative solutions can we hope to prevent future outbreaks and ensure the welfare of our avian populations.

— Erik Allen, Larkspur

Ban high-capacity ammunition magazines

A recent push for new policies about guns has been focussed on high-capacity ammunition magazines. California has banned them. Some are trying to get that law overturned. The issue is now before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Attorneys general in politically “blue” states have filed legal briefs in support of California; while “red” states have filed briefs in opposition. No Western nation, besides ours, is stupid enough to think these weapons should be in the hands of civilians.

Recent horrific mass shootings involving high-capacity magazines include incidents in Lewiston, Maine (19 people dead); Uvalde, Texas (22 dead); Nashville (seven dead); and Monterey Park in Southern California (12 dead). High capacity magazines were also used in the school shooting at Sandy Hook in Connecticut (26 dead) and a night club in Orlando (49 dead).

The Supreme Court recently decided, overturning precedent, that a government firearm ban is legitimate only if deeply rooted in American history. But, of course, high-capacity magazines at the level used in mass shootings today weren’t in existence at the time the Second Amendment was enacted.

And what of the states leading the fight against California’s laws? I suspect some of these states also filed briefs before the Supreme Court in 2020 in failed attempts to overturn the presidential election. It appears to me that some of them have as little interest in protecting democracy as they do in protecting the lives of its citizens.

— Ruth Dell, Tiburon

Call for cease-fire doesn’t mean support for Hamas

I found the commentary written by IJ political columnist Dick Spotswood, published Jan. 3 with the headline “Supervisors make right move, avoid Gaza resolution,” to be sad and shocking.

Spotswood wrote that he believes local governments calling for an Israeli cease-fire, “always seem to be on the side of Hamas.” I consider that to be an insult to the many people urging their elected representatives to support a cease-fire simply because they find it horrifying that thousands of innocent civilians are dying needlessly.

Calling for a cease-fire is not taking sides. It is calling for an end to violence. As we all know, violence solves nothing and only leads to more violence. All citizens, including the Marin supervisors, should be promoting peace in whatever way that they can.

— C. Gannon, Fairfax