Letters To The Editor

President Theodore Roosevelt’s thoughts in 1907 on being an American should be our motto for all newcomers today, as follows: “In the first place, we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone […]

It’s been rough going lately for working people in the Santa Maria area. According to the California Employment Development Department, the unemployment rate here is 6.3 percent–80 percent higher than the average for Santa Barbara County. So it’s good news when opportunities for well-paying jobs with good benefits come along, especially when they don’t necessarily […]

Cancer impacts people and families from all walks of life, and all races, religions, and political persuasions, including my own family.  Treatment is difficult and expensive, and far too few resources are available to support the doctors, health care providers, and facilities that care for patients battling this terrible disease. So when community members step […]

My graduate studies were in water and air pollution. I’m on the advisory committee of a nearby Groundwater Sustainability Agency, but I am writing this on my own today and am not speaking for the agency. More than 100,000 people totally depend on this water. It sustains many thousands of jobs in agriculture. The entire […]

People are worried that President Donald Trump’s economic policies could overheat the economy. When he was elected, the stock market exploded. Now, many economists fear runaway inflation could harm our economy. Gas prices are on the rise, groceries will be next. The real danger is we’ll find inflated numbers everywhere. Tucson could become Threecson, and […]

I have been following the recent letters regarding the plans of three oil companies to expand production in the Cat Canyon oilfield. Their plans are to use modern, state-of-the-art techniques to increase petroleum production in a well-established oilfield that has seen safe production for many decades. I find it disappointing that some local groups have […]

Memorial Day was first widely observed in May 1868, and serves as an opportunity to honor all who have died in service for our nation. I believe there is not a more appropriate time to respond to a letter in the Santa Maria Times claiming President Trump recognizes our Vietnam War veterans. If that was […]

We were disappointed to see a recent letter criticizing Aera’s financial support of Mission Hope Cancer Center and questioning our company’s motives for doing so (“AERA Energy’s efforts at greenwashing don’t fool cancer survivors,” May 23). While we understand there are differences of opinion regarding energy production in Santa Barbara County, we hope that those […]

Many people, with short time and money, enjoy the convenience of food trucks. The offerings are often fresh, diverse, and tasty. If the city is smart, it will work hard to locate land to place food trucks around work areas. Restaurants will always complain about the competition. Let them open their own trucks.

George Soros, the Hungarian-American billionaire investor and business magnate, known for his donations to Democratic candidates and liberal causes, is shoring up the 24th District’s Salud Carbajal’s campaign funds with donations through his son, Jonathan Soros. Others from the foreign country of Hollywood are doing the same. With all this foreign money we can expect […]

I worked for Santa Barbara County for more than 36 years in the Office of the Treasurer-Tax Collector.� I dedicated my career to protecting our county funds. The Treasurer-Tax Collector works directly with the Auditor-Controller’s Office to account for tax and other revenues collected and invested. During my long tenure with the Treasurer-Tax Collector’s Office, […]

We hired Bill Brown to protect us, and he has done as good or better than any sheriff has ever done. The last thing we need is to experiment with a new sheriff. California has a total of only 58 sheriffs. Choosing the right and best person to lead and represent them is a decision […]