Unfortunately, police in U.S. have to be armed
Regarding “All the outrage over a S.F. restaurant not serving armed police officers is absurd” (SFChronicle.com, Dec. 7): Soleil Ho draws an analogy to a toxic waste handler bringing a barrel of waste to a restaurant. This is not a reasonable analogy; the waste handler does not require the waste to be with him to be ready to do his job on a moment’s notice.
The abundance of firearms in our country is regrettable but is a fact. Suggesting that this country has not had a serious discussion about gun control or gun control is patently false; the outcome has simply not been what many of us would like.
While unarmed police can work in the United Kingdom, here the proliferation of weapons mandates that police be armed.
It is also a fact that when in uniform, police are required to be ready to respond immediately, even if it interrupts their lunch.
The statement that the restaurant would welcome officers when they are off duty and out of uniform is disingenuous. Are they not allowed to eat while on duty?
Marc Gautreau, San Francisco
Put kids first at schools
Regarding “Audit S.F. school leaders” (Letters, Dec. 15): Thank you Bonnie Lindauer for shining a light on a problem not unique to the San Francisco Unified School District. Granted, that district may be the worst-case scenario, but the top-heavy administrative model she describes can be found in other districts as well. Teachers, parents and even students scratch their heads when asked, “What does this district-level administrator actually do on any given day?”
The answer tends to be, create issues that justify the job title. It is sad to see decaying classrooms, outdated equipment, lack of on-the-ground staff and other cuts, whilst district offices continue to create new titles, add more highpaid staff and dish out dollars to a raft of third-party providers that help promote the agenda du jour.
Meanwhile, students and teachers are slowly drained of the resources needed to succeed.
San Francisco Unified is the canary in the coal mine, so let us hope it rights the ship lest other districts follow them to the bottom.
Mark Allendorf, San Mateo
Don’t believe RFK Jr.
Regarding “RFK Jr. is not spouting conspiracy theories” (Letters, Dec. 13): Really? Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been an active anti-vaccine voice for years. His own family has repeatedly condemned him for this.
Sirhan Sirhan was standing close to Sen. Robert F. Kennedy with a gun that he fired at him. Sirhan may at this point be perfectly harmless and reformed, and maybe Kennedy Jr.’s conspiracy theory that Sirhan did not kill the senator has some merit. If so, maybe Sirhan should be released, but at this point Kennedy Jr. has very little credibility.
Joseph Johnson, San Francisco
Too many are in need
Regarding “Homeless in Oakland after fleeing to safety” (Front Page, Dec. 14): There are thousands of similar stories about people risking everything to come to America hoping for food, housing, education and more, and we have thousands of our citizens in the same predicament, many of whom receive no assistance.
As a retired teacher, I saw it every day. Individual stories like this Haitian family are always sad and desperate, yet there is a never-ending supply of these stories with no solution, just sadness.
Dennis Price, Pine Grove, Amador County
California did right
Regarding “Have strict mandates really paid off in state?” (Front Page, Dec. 16): Perhaps residents of Texas and Florida take pride in their defense of perceived rights and freedoms supposedly threatened by public health mandates. However, I think we in California should be proud that we did all we could to protect ourselves and each other in the face of a global health crisis. I certainly am.