BART’s bad leadership exposed once again

Re: “What is BART trying to hide from auditor?” (Page A12, April 17):

Once again, kudos to the East Bay Times for speaking up about arrogant mismanagement by the BART Board of Directors. Arrogant because, among other things, they brazenly oppose state Sen. Steve Glazer’s legislation to hold them accountable.

Recently, I attended an online forum hosted by state Sen. Mark DeSaulnier on traffic congestion. The expert speakers said nothing about BART’s low ridership and high fares compared to their peers nationally. Why? The majority of BART board members remain unwilling to secure their system to prevent crime, drug use and, in some cases, putrid filth by fare jumpers. If it were safe, clean and less costly, wouldn’t that improve traffic congestion?

I am pleased that my representative on the BART board, Debora Allen, continually fights the irresponsible behavior of the majority of BART directors. I wish someone else in public office would join Sen. Glazer in doing the same.

— Donald Waters Pleasant Hill

GOP offers obstruction but no new solutions

In 2021, President Biden successfully promoted, and congressional Democrats passed, the American Rescue Plan, which put cash money into nearly everyone’s bank account. While stores, offices and factories were shutting down due to COVID,

Biden’s plan covered our lack of paychecks.

Unfortunately, boosting consumer demand while production was down has caused inflation.

But the alternative of people having no money for food and losing their homes would have been far worse.

Yes, the cost of gasoline is too high, thanks in part to price gouging by oil companies and Russia’s war in Ukraine, but Americans should stop whining about inflation and appreciate how Biden saved us from a COVID disaster that would have been far worse without his Rescue Plan.

Republicans continue to criticize without offering a positive alternative, while Democrats are working to solve our problems despite Republican obstruction.

— Bruce Joffe Piedmont

Time to end colleges’ ‘arms race’ of spending

Kudos to Colin Diver for his critique of U.S. News and World Report’s ill-conceived rankings of American educational institutions (“Why we should liberate students from tyranny of college rankings,” Page A7, April 26). As someone who has spent a career in higher education, I can attest to the corrupting effects these rankings have. Among other things, they have contributed to an “arms race” of spending that has driven up costs.

U.S. News rankings started in 1983. Between 1980 and 2019, college costs rose 169%. Earnings for workers 22-27 years old increased by 19%. The rankings are not the sole cause for the college-cost increase, but they play a part while motivating students to seek admission to schools that are more expensive than those that actually would meet their needs just as well or better. The quality of the educational experience differs from school to school much less than you might think.

America is the only country where people place school decals on their cars.

— Thomas Sponsler Moraga