Letters: Legal immigration | American plutocracy | Democrats dither | Election is personal

East Bay Times Letters to the Editor for July 18, 2024

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Legal immigrants
grow our economy

If you invest in the stock market (or have a 401k or IRA that does), then you have likely bumped into Nvidia, a computer hardware maker that has found itself able to grow immensely as artificial intelligence (AI) has become so popular.

Nvidia is now roughly the same size as Microsoft and Apple, both of whom have been around longer and are much better known.

Why do I mention Nvidia? This company was founded about 30 years ago by a legal immigrant from Taiwan named Jensen Huang. It is interesting to note that more than a third of the leading tech firms in our country, including Google and Intel, were also founded by legal immigrants.

This is what we need more of, not unskilled laborers who slip across our southern border.

Mike Heller
Walnut Creek

American plutocracy
has taken over

Can Joe Biden get away with biting the hand that feeds him?

I admire Biden for calling out the elites, and he may well succeed in taking on the intellectual elites. But what about the financial elites — Wall Street and Silicon Valley? There’s the rub. Without the support of the supposedly “progressive” billionaires of the top 1%, can anyone get elected president?

In other words, has America finally become a full-fledged plutocracy, controlled by people of great wealth and income? I’m afraid so.

Jim Wolpman
Walnut Creek

While Democrats dither,
authoritarians rally

These past weeks have been easy for Republicans. While hand-wringing Democrats and the media have focused on President Biden, Donald Trump met with Viktor Orban, the Hungarian prime minister.

Orban has systematically dismantled his country’s democracy, taken control of the media, legislature and judiciary, yet Trump and some Republicans have endorsed and praised him and his methods. Project 2025, a plan developed by a long list of former Trump administration officials and the Heritage Foundation, promotes similar methods: dismantling the Department of Education, replacing civil servant employees with loyalists, and granting near absolute power to Trump. If there is any hand-wringing going on, it should be due to the frightening scenario of another Trump presidency.

President Biden is a patriot working tirelessly for the American people with an incredibly successful proven record. I have no doubt in his acuity, strength or ability to win this election and continue to govern.

Elizabeth Phelan
Pleasant Hill

Project 2025 makes
this election personal

This election is personal. The Republicans’ 2025 Plan is intended to cause chaos by firing the educated, experienced and expert talent in government jobs, to be replaced by those with one qualification — loyalty to Donald Trump. An educated, experienced workforce is what makes for a peaceful transition of power and allows the government to function.

We won’t notice much at first. There will be a slow deterioration of the quality of our lives. Potholes could remain unfilled as funds fail to come from the federal level. Incidences of salmonella and e-coli could become common as food inspections drop off. Tax returns could be delayed as the IRS is dismantled. It is possible that contraceptives would not be available, let alone abortion. Your right to vote could be challenged or ended.

We take potholes personally. When considering your vote, think about how your everyday life will be affected.

Nancy Thornton
Concord