Letters To The Editor

Right on, Mr. Donegan (“Conservatives and guns,” Aug. 4)! When people realize that it’s the idiots behind the guns that cause the problems and the existing laws that are not properly enforced, then understanding the problems will not be changed. Plus, without the care and treatment of the mentally impaired, the problems will not be […]

I fear that the Sun/New Times and the Santa Barbara County Health Department completely missed the key underlying reason for the higher death rate among older white males in North County (“Death report highlights long-standing geographic inequities in Santa Barbara County,” July 28). Granted, poverty and access to quality health care do play a role, […]

If we’ve learned anything from the Jan. 6 hearings so far, it’s that Trump and his allies will go to any lengths to gain and stay in power. The hearings have proven that they planned, promoted, and paid for a months-long criminal conspiracy to overturn the election they knew they lost—and which ultimately ended in […]

Our county wants to improve the Oceano County Airport by adding a lounge bar, more parking, and a bigger campground for its users. The Oceano Beach Community Association (OBCA) opposes this project.  SLO County, and Oceano in particular, does not need this airport. We already have an airport 20 miles to the north, San Luis […]

Regarding your July 14 article titled “The price of housing”: We hope that the developers of the so-called Dana “Reserve” (the question remains as to what they are in fact “reserving” or “preserving”) will return to their prior top development priorities of “open space uses within the oak woodlands.”  “Do a smaller project and leave […]

These are very very stressful times. Green open spaces are known to make peace with your heart and soul and body. Many scientific studies show that the benefits of open green community space is space well spent for the well-being and happiness of the community. Driving around town, I noticed when I come to an […]

This is a scary moment. The Supreme Court just dismantled abortion rights across America. As a result, 26 states could outlaw abortion, including 13 that have passed “trigger” laws to take effect immediately after the court overturns Roe v. Wade. This news should set off alarm bells for all Americans. Our fundamental freedoms are coming […]

The original idea of federalism was the promise of limited government. A federal government would offer the separate states collective power to raise and keep a military for protection. Collectively we would have leverage for trade. As a collective we would be recognized as a country to negotiate deals with the rest of the world.  […]

Imagine an apartment complex, almost the size of the senior center near the second corner of the four corners of a downtown “that draws people there to shop, recreate, and in the end also produce tax revenue.” NOT! Then let’s imagine room for 100 to 200 parking spaces to accommodate the said occupants of the […]

I have always voted in person at my local voting precinct in Lompoc, except during the pandemic when I mistakenly thought it would have long lines. It did not. Both times, we had mail-in ballots sent to all registered voters in the county. In addition, two booklets were sent to all, including a sample ballot […]

John Donegan is fortunate that, as far as I know, there are no state laws that make it a crime to be ignorant. Else, he’d be in danger of being incarcerated. His diatribe (“A medical miracle,” New Times, June 9) about Merck’s decision to update its legendary “manual” to reflect 21st century thinking by replacing […]

There have been opinions written lately about the grid experiencing 100 percent renewable energy but no mention of when or how long this occurred. The grid needs reliable, sustainable energy, not just spotty, occasional renewables that cannot fulfill the need for consistency. Renewable energy is not 100 percent unless it’s 100 percent all the time, […]