Letters To The Editor

Ronald Reagan’s perhaps finest moment came when he stood next to the shameful Berlin Wall and challenged the Soviet premier: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.” Not too long thereafter, the wall did come down, and with it the Soviet Empire. Now, two decades later, it is the U.S. Empire erecting or supporting shameful walls […]

The federal bike-to-work tax break is a subsidy to the physically healthy who already make a good living and a tax on all others, including physically handicapped, who cannot ride a bike to work. This stupid tax break should be stopped or else anyone who rides on public transportation or in car pools should get […]

The Unmet Transit Needs season is once again upon us. This is an annual reminder that the holidays are over, a new year underway, and state money for public transportation will be fought over: $14 million in Transit Development Act (TDA) sales taxes for Santa Barbara County. The South Coast transit agency, MTD, will receive […]

I agree with the government affairs director of the Homebuilders Association of the Central Coast that we are facing “the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression” (“Get home buyers back in the market,” Dec. 25). Although the Homebuilder’s lobbyist and I agree that there is a problem, I strongly disagree with his organization’s statement […]

Regarding the Israel/Hamas fiasco, when the schoolyard bully beats up on the skinny kid, his friends will come to the underdog’s aid, even if he deserves a beating.     Israel, the bully in this case, has not learned this fundamental truth.

Take a deep breath, America, as we look at the number of foreclosures, the stock market dive, and the percent of unemployment.     What is the reverse of those numbers? Ninety percent of people are still in their homes, a large population of people are still working, and a lot of people weren’t in the […]

A couple of weeks ago, I gave an opinion about Tom Knepher’s commentary in the Sun, and it attracted a juvenile response from a Michael Smith (“Get it straight: Take a history class,” Dec. 18), who felt that I was wrong about most every opinion. I reread my submission (“History and another point of view,” […]

Once again, our bumbling president and his cohorts have proved they know nothing about our economy or how to fix it. To top it off, this crew single-handedly brought about a worldwide recession. What a legacy! Their ineptness and hindsight saw fit to bail out our financial institutions and the auto industry with billions of […]

With our nation in the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, Congress must be willing to take bold, decisive action to spur a housing and economic recovery. Unless we halt the slide in home prices, the nation’s housing and economic woes will grow even worse. This is why a robust housing component must be […]

No one wants state-mandated housing in their backyards, Montecito to Orcutt. The difference between the two areas is this: Montecito residents have money to keep this government-sponsored ghetto out of their neighborhoods. Some do not like this. In fact, Montecito did not tell the county or the state to put these houses in Orcutt or […]

As we begin the process of closing the David Ryan Gallery, we wish to thank the Santa Maria Sun for its coverage of the many events at our gallery over the past seven years. Our artists too are grateful for the positive exposure you have given them during this time. We especially want to thank […]

It will soon be just a memory. And a very pleasant one, too. Ron and Terri Thatcher opened the David Ryan Gallery in Old Town Orcutt several years ago, redesigning a rather notorious building into a most appealing space for an art gallery. Who would ever have thought such a place of fine art would […]