President’s hubris knows no bounds
President Trump claiming to have convinced European leaders to greatly increase defense spending, and the French and Italian leaders quickly dismissing that claim, reminded me of Jack Benny celebrating his 39th birthday, for the 30th time. It was also reminiscent of the great golfer who was a legend in his own mind; everyone said that if he ever hit a hole in one he would mark it as a zero on his scorecard.
Gene Nielsen, Crescent Mills, Plumas County
Spare us, please
After the NATO meetings, President Trump held a bizarre, impromptu press conference filled with phony boasts about getting the European Union to do his bidding and a repeated proclamation that he is a “stable genius.” Many U.S. citizens are angered by Trump’s boorish behavior and the fact that he hasn’t had a press conference in our country for over one year. But others, like me, who think that our public servants should be humble and truthful, consider ourselves fortunate that he hasn’t done so.
Annabelle Devereaux, San Francisco
Back on the border ...
The protests in London were impressive, and it is good to know those outside our borders are paying attention, more attention than many of our own. It was busy news week with the NATO meeting in Brussels and the president’s trip to London. All the while, the concentration camps housing children from Mexico and Central America, remain open with a slow trickle of children being united with their parents. Perhaps, if the outside world would boycott American products and foreign tourists would boycott our country until these camps are dissolved, change might be expedited.
Phil Points, San Francisco
An embarrassment
As someone who was born in Great Britain, I’m angered that President Trump insulted British Prime Minister Theresa May by publicly questioning her decision making concerning Brexit.
Not only did Trump do this during an official visit to England, but he also speculated that one of May’s chief political opponents, Boris Johnson, would make a “great prime minister.” It’s appalling that an American president would meddle in the politics of another country, and do so while visiting it. Someone in Trump’s administration should have carefully explained the meaning of the words “diplomacy” and “etiquette” to him before he embarked on his embarrassing trip to Europe.
Nigel Llewlyn, South San Francisco
The amazing rescue
Like millions of Bay Area, California, U.S. and world citizens, I’ve been hanging on every bit of news about the Thai soccer kids and their recent rescue by an international team of volunteers and Thai Navy SEALs.
What is perhaps more notable than the amazing rescue itself is the rare opportunity this event provides, even in the current dysfunctional political climate. It has drawn us all together around what is perhaps the last few common values we all seem to share: our appreciation for children, the bravery of volunteers willing to sacrifice their lives, the innovation and creativity of the rescue planners’ plans, and the participation of the Thai government in facilitating all the aforementioned.
Can anyone imagine a similar unifying event able to bring us together in this current toxic environment of bipartisanship? Jeff Album, Lafayette
Hello, Hollywood
I read that some people in the movie business now want to make a film about the rescue of the boys and their coach from a cave in Thailand. Please. No.
Don’t bother, as it would have little to no value as we have seen all the important parts on the 6 p.m. news. What would a film portray? What errors would creep into it? For similar reasons I never watched the movie about the Miracle on the Hudson or the film about the shooting of a black man on BART. Whether they portray something good or bad, these types of films serve no purpose. Irving Waldorf, San Francisco
PG&E’s plight
Regarding the need to head off PG&E’s “return to bankruptcy,” I remember that it did quite well in its previous bankruptcy by transferring hundred millions of dollars to one of its entities back East and granting hundreds of thousands of dollars to its top executives — and then rising from the ashes like a phoenix.
Louis Bryan, San Francisco
Real family values
I can’t understand why Friday’s Open Forum commentary by Jonathan Zimmerman has the headline “Abortion Threatens Family Values” when the article clearly states that it is exactly the opposite: Restricting abortion threatens family values. Jane Colman, Oakland
China vs. U.S.
Regarding “China’s dystopian dream: AI, shame, lots of cameras” (Business, July 13): So China’s millions of surveillance cameras, facial recognition software, and electronic billboards shaming jaywalkers and debtors is referred to as “algorithmic governance”?
Well here in our country, with a leader who lies several times each day and has shown little understanding about our Constitution or how to conduct diplomacy, we have “ignoramus governance.” Bennie Oosterhaus, San Francisco
Spin alert
After being taken to the cleaners by Kim Jong Un, our master deal maker is going to come out of his meeting with Vladimir Putin with an agreement that sells Alaska back to Russia for pennies on the dollar. Which, of course, he’ll declare a “terrific” deal. Winning!
Edward Chmelewski, San Francisco