In defense of pension boosting

I was disheartened with the Editorial Board’s suggestion that AB 1383 eliminates the reforms adopted in the Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act. Rather, AB 1383 is a measured adjustment to the retirement law that reflects the realities firefighters face each day. Whether responding to wildfire or a hazmat incident, California’s firefighters are facing heightened occurrences of injuries and illnesses, including cancer. To meet this reality, AB 1383 would make targeted, prospective changes to the state’s retirement law. For public safety personnel, it would reduce the normal retirement age from 57 to 55, reducing exposures to dangers. Further, the measure would adjust the pensionable compensation cap to better align with our current cost-of-living realities. Finally, it would allow employees and employers to bargain over prospective increases in their pension formula, within the limits allowed by the law. AB 1383 does not permit retroactive benefits; it protects both firefighters and taxpayers.

— Brian K. Rice, California Professional Firefighters

Ontario voters defeat union ballot measures

Thank you, Ontario voters!

You rejected Measure V’s unsustainable mandates on Ontario’s hotel, event center and airport hospitality operators that included ridiculous workplace restrictions and crippling penalties on employers.

You said no to Measure W’s demand that every major hotel and event center project require an expensive citywide election, creating lengthy delays, uncertainty and new barriers to investment.

As it was, Tuesday’s election demanded by the special interest group cost Ontario taxpayers $1.2 million. Imagine the total costs to taxpayers had Measure W succeeded.

Thank you for protecting the future of small and family-owned hotels, which comprise the majority of Ontario’s hotels.

— Lynn S. Mohrfeld, California Hotel + Lodging Association

UFW no better than ALRB

I farmed south of Bakersfield in the 1970s when Cesar Chavez and his United Farm Workers Union were at the height of their organizing activities across the San Joaquin Valley. These were far from peaceful efforts to unionize farm workers; it was a violent time. Farmers’ rights were trampled not just by the UFW but also by the California Agriculture Labor Relations Board (ALRB) that was headed by Roger Mahony who, at the time, was the auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Fresno.

The UFW treated workers badly and the ALRB treated farmers badly.

The UFW would punish workers by splitting work assignments, which would separate a family by sometimes as much as 30 miles.

The ALRB acted like a gestapo. They would come into a farm office and pull files out of filing cabinets and throw them across the room. Elections were a joke.

The press loved both Chavez and the ALRB because they had both been lionized and almost given sainthood by Robert F. Kennedy. When the press moved on to other things and the ALRB was neutered (but it still exists), UFW membership plunged. Most farm workers do not, and never did, like the UFW.

— Dick Porter, Coto de Caza

People are complicated

My life has experienced men who have made tremendous contributions and suffered horrific punishments. John F. Kennedy, Nelson Mandella, Martin Luther King and Cesar Chavez come to mind.

All of us come into this world of ours with imperfections which can sometimes detract from whatever contributions we make. Once upon a time these men would have been recognized as saints. It’s unfortunate that everyone can’t be born an angel like myself. Just ask grandma, mom. Dad, maybe not so much. Thank you Cesar Chavez for what you have done for your fellow man.

— John Waters, Lake Forest

War powers

The framers intended to have a republic of literate and moral people. That desired outcome is suspect. Those elected as representatives may not look solely to what’s best for America, but what’s best for them.

Partisan politics necessitates unannounced action, based on fast-paced intelligence gathering, and what appears to be ongoing collusion of leaks at the government level to the news entities which have become partisan.

I have been aware of the need for the military action taken on the Iranian regime. I fear that the extreme partisanship within our country will not allow for any effective debate or resolution when it comes to declaring war on an enemy.

I look forward to the Supreme Court reviewing Article I, Section 8 and the War Powers Resolution. We may then have a way to prosecute wars with more resolve and less angst.

— Douglas Wood, Mission Viejo