Letters To The Editor

The Old Town Orcutt Revitalization Association (OTORA), by working with the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments, Supervisor Joni Gray, and Santa Barbara County Public Works, was able to help acquire more than $300,000 in federal stimulus monies to build our “model intersection” at Clark Avenue and Gray Street in Old Town Orcutt. The project […]

Each time I pick up the Santa Maria Sun, I am delighted to see the ongoing versatility displayed by your Editorial Intern Henry Houston. The subject matter of his Community Corner is as varied as his Athlete of the Week. It was interesting to read about lawn bowling several weeks ago. To my surprise, after […]

Wow. Four full columns on the state Senate candidates. (“Here we go again,” July 22). Looks impressively in-depth. But it breaks down like this: one full column on two third-party candidates who got single-digit vote totals in the primary; one and a half columns on how much the election is costing; and a column and […]

Much has been written lately about what should be expected of our local humane society. However, no one has mentioned what should be expected of all nonprofit humane societies. Many elderly people, such as myself, will leave humane societies monies and/or property in our wills. However, most people automatically assume that all nonprofits are honest. […]

In a letter in the Santa Maria Times, Steve McCoy (“Short memory for Democrats,” July 16) claims “one of the unsaid platforms of the Democratic Party is to avoid responsibility at all costs,” taxing the hardworking “to pay for many who don’t want to work all that hard.” I hear this a lot from those […]

I like your paper. I read it weekly. That’s why I’m so disappointed in the paid advertisement you recently ran across from your opinion page. Why? Because it is nothing more than Andy Caldwell bashing John Laird. He paid you to bash John Laird in what looks like an op-ed piece when, in truth, it […]

Spike, the antithesis of a lap dog (in the July 22 issue), who is “no liberal or conservative leg-humper,” is indeed an extremely right-wing conservative leg-humper! The placement of the political ad, though it appears to be an editorial-type new column in the Sun, is in reality a strong partisan attack piece. The person who […]

Property owners in Oceano Beach, especially near Pier Avenue where Oceano’s air quality was monitored, are at risk of losing our quality of life and property values. ODSVRA activities, particularly traffic dragging dust from the beach, are a growing concern in our neighborhood. These activities are an unabated nuisance that creates a health hazard and […]

Facts: 1. Our country has very, very low taxes. It is almost at the bottom of the list of top 30 developed nations, 26th in fact. 2. Millionaires default on home payments at more than twice the rate of us ordinary citizens. 3. The right wing agitators lie, lie, lie. Check it out for yourself […]

As an old ’60s counter-culturalist, I should rejoice at the prospect of my state finally legalizing marijuana. Certain things bother me, however, such as the 1,198 alcohol-related driving deaths in California in 2008. I have to assume that if we legalize marijuana, the number of DUIs and their attendant deaths will also increase. Legalization should […]

With respect to the article “¿Cuánto cuesta?” (June 24), illegal immigrants do indeed benefit from our social service programs: According to a United States General Accounting Office Report to Congressional Committees (see gao.gov/archive/1998/he98030.pdf) in fiscal year 1995, about $1.1 billion in AFDC and Food Stamp benefits were provided to households with an illegal alien parent […]

Bill Denneen We had an expensive special election on June 22. It will be repeated Aug. 17 with the exact same candidates. Total cost? A million dollars. Like me, more than 60 percent of citizens will be voting by mail. Rather than hiring 650 people to cover polling places, voting should be by mail only. […]