Hutchins pool a Lodi gem

Editor: I want to bring your attention to a part of Lodi that many people aren’t aware of. That is our community indoor heated pool at Hutchins Street Square. It is the original pool used by students of Lodi Union High School before many of the buildings burned down in 1974.

Over the years with various fundraisers the entire campus has been rebuilt and has many uses, especially for us retired folks. Various fitness classes are held including open swim times and even swimming lessons are given by the certified lifeguards who work there and in the summer at Lodi Lake.

What better way to get some soothing exercise in a nice, warm pool on these cold winter days? Plus, we are all very friendly and would love for you to join our second family.

Please come and check us out. We are located at 125 South Hutchins Street and you can find the schedule and prices online or by contacting the Lodi Parks and Recreation Department. See you there! ZACHARY SCOTT SR. Lodi

Talk about timing

Editor: I really question the timing and mailing regarding the City of Lodi's notice of the proposed utility rate increases under Proposition 218.

It was just a few months ago that the City of Lodi did everything in their power to convince us to vote yes on Measure L, saying the tax was needed to keep the city functioning status quo and not further reduce any services but actually add to some services. (We all know that this really was about escalating pensions).

At no time during the Measure L campaign was anything ever mentioned regarding the proposed utility rate increases. I must give the City of Lodi credit for making sure this utility rate increase information never surfaced during Measure L campaign as we all probably know it was a deliberate act not to come out, for if it had been brought up Measure L probably would have gone down in defeat.

For those that may not know, Measure L was not a landslide victory but passed with only 56.9 percent of the vote. I believed in Measure L as I wanted to take part in making sure our city maintains a level in which we can all say we are proud to live here.

But when things like this utility rate increase come up right behind a tax we just voted in I must question the way in which it was done. So my hats off to city management for pulling the wool right under the voters’ eyes.

City management knows there is no way 50 percent of all property owners will file a protest to stop this rate increase, so the city knows they got this increase wrapped up, right after they got their sales tax increase.

Just remember city council, voters don't forget (and I certainly will not) come next election.

TOM SCOTT

Lodi

Who does Pelosi represent?

Editor: Being just an observer of things political, I was first wondering why Pelosi, who claims a love for the common people and their plight during the shutdown, first goes on vacation to Hawaii and on her return has plans to go off to Brussels and parts east for another week out of the country when she, if she really cared about her nonessential employees, should stay in Washington to negotiate a compromise to end this crisis? Second, this telling Trump he is not being invited by Pelosi to give his State of the Union speech because of security concerns rings a little hollow when we learn she had already invited Trump on Jan. 2, which was two weeks into the shutdown. She wasn’t worried about security then and really isn’t now because she knows security will always be present in everything these people do. Or do you believe that she was going to Brussels and Afghanistan without security in the hotels, transportation, etc., without a small army to protect her?

It’s all political for Pelosi and nothing more. As for government workers not being paid, my question is why the politicians and their staffs, who created this crisis, still are getting their pay and free taxpayer junkets and medical benefits and on and on? Let’s go further: why are people who work for the government not being paid when millions of illegals, who have no rights under our Constitution pertaining to welfare benefits, still receiving it?

This government has become unmoored from its original representative republican model and is increasingly a democracy which James Madison wrote in the Federalist, ”there is nothing to check the inducement to sacrifice the weaker party or the obnoxious individual.”

Government workers are defenseless against the Democrat Party who have no problem “sacrificing” them because they simply find Trump “obnoxious” and not only hate him but every deplorable who voted for him. And like all tyrannical movements our liberties will cease.

As Alexander Hamilton said: “If we incline too much to democracy, we shall soon shoot into a monarchy, or some other form of dictatorship.” RON PORTAL

Lodi