14th amendment

A recent editorial made some salient points. But, early in the piece it allegedly quotes the 14th amendment. To make the point a set of dots indicating an ellipsis was put in. The phrase was skipped because it does not fit the piece’s viewpoint.

Here’s how their opinion started “all persons born or naturalized in the United States… Are citizens of the United States.”

It was obviously intentional on the writer’s part, to leave out the very important part of that paragraph which states “and subject to the jurisdiction thereof .“

Crossing the border illegally, without getting your proper papers, is NOT “being subject to the jurisdiction,” plain and simple. If you don’t follow the laws, you don’t get the privilege, plain and simple.

— Jim Clark Del Rey Oaks

Housing

I would like to thank and acknowledge MidPen for their mission to house those who struggle to find or maintain a safe, reliable living space in Monterey County. My son was one of the first residents at Moon Gate in Salinas (operated under MidPen). It was quite a relief for him (and his family) to have a living place with the necessary help and support services available to him. His number of hospitalizations decreased and his overall well being improved greatly.

The city of Salinas spent time, money and effort to clean up Chinatown so Moon Gate Housing could be established on Soledad Street. However, shortly after Moongate Housing was completed the Salinas City officials left and the same issues shortly returned to the street. Tents and homeless people lining Soledad Street living amongst their garbage and waste.

Adding to this problem are well intended organizations and people feeding the homeless. Some of these groups hand out food in styrofoam containers to be eaten on the street, without adequate garbage cans. These styrofoam containers and leftover food then end up on the street making an unsightly hazardous environment. There has to be a better and more humane way to feed the homeless and not add to the deterioration of Soledad Street.

I also believe these feeding programs divert public attention from the more important need of shelter and housing for our homeless population. People need a roof over their head for a more lasting solution to our homelessness problem. Feeding the homeless assuages people’s guilt and distracts from the bigger need of housing/shelter.

The city of Salinas can also do more to turn Soledad Street from a slum to a respectable place to live and work. Please stop hiding our homeless on Soledad Street.

Bigger and cleaner facilities are needed to service our homeless population. Soledad Street is too small and hidden from the public eye to get the necessary attention needed to address this problem.

— Denise Powers, Salinas

Leadership values

In recent edition of the Herald, a quote from Henry William Lamb, former British prime minister, who, per Wikipedia, was dismissed from his first premiership by King William IV in 1834 and mired in scandal in his second term, leaving an unfavorable legacy:

“What I want is men who will support me when I am in the wrong.”

Hopefully, William Lamb’s tarnished legacy will be restored, as his portrait makes its way to a special place of honor in our newly redecorated White House.

— Andrea Harrod, Pebble Beach

PG&E

A full-page PGE ad in the Herald recently stated they are listening to our concerns. Well, hear this:

You state that as soon as you trim trees that they grow back again. Is this a revelation? Of course, trimming trees over and over again is like digging a hole, while another sits at the top and fills it in. You must step up your efforts to make your energy grid less vulnerable to wildfires and more reliable by means other than trimming.

You finally came around to a better approach by understanding that those uninsulated high voltage conductors are not safe dangling and blowing in the wind and are beginning to underground some limited areas. But I do not see any plans by PG&E to underground Monterey Peninsula forests. You also cited your trimming trees to underground utility costs are 20 to 1 and where your conductors are underground the wildfire ignition risk is reduced by 98 percent.

Be more strategic and less reactionary in your strategy. One example, encourage people and businesses to take the power situation in their own hands by incentivizing energy storage “nanogrids” at their homes and at work. Power outages are far too frequent.

— Ray Meyers, Monterey