Close the digital divide for the city’s students
Technology companies are lending Chromebooks to students in San Francisco schools who do not have access to computers. Why not close the digital divide by giving the students the Chromebooks? Why not reduce inequity by having free WiFi in every home in the city? I have seen so many acts of kindness during this time. Let’s give the students the gift of equal opportunity to learn. What a valuable investment in our future.
Leslie BelleauSachs, San Francisco
Public financing
Regarding “Virus making it harder to ask for political cash” (March 30): Tim Lim, a Democratic consultant, is quoted as saying, “It’s a world where no one has a good answer” to the lack of money for political campaigns. There are several good answers, including public financing, requiring media to provide free time to candidates as a conditions of their licenses and shortening the campaign season.
Selina Faulhaber, Alameda
Keep a physical distance
Government officials are concerned that not enough people are staying 6 feet apart. Perhaps this is because distancing is being sold as social, not physical, and many people just don’t understand. While, for ordinary people, physical distance is the most important contribution to this cause, social connection and affiliation reduce the isolation many people have long felt, as well as the cabin fever so many others will experience the longer they shelter in place. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a leader in the battle against COVID19, understands. He’s been consistently promoting physical distancing. Let’s all follow his lead and get physical.
Lorne Evje, Hercules
Don’t sacrifice elderly
Should we say goodbye to granny for the good of the economy? According to some politicians and television news personalities, old people should sacrifice themselves to COVID19 in order to keep the U.S. economy in the black. Maybe before willfully doing in a generation, they should consider all the unpaid hours that retirees give to the country and its economy. Experienced seniors work for free in schools, libraries, hospitals, museums and state parks.
They serve on community boards and help feed the homeless. They tend to grandchildren so that their sons and daughters can work fulltime jobs. Countless hours are shared at no financial gain by skilled, experienced professionals in administration, science and the arts. People with craft skills are building houses for Habitat for Humanity. The next time politicians or opinion gurus call for human lives to be sacrificed, they should be reminded what those lives have meant for the good of the community and what their adept, unpaid work has saved in government spending.
Diane Diamond, San Luis Obispo
Friendly gestures
How about a smile, nod or quick hello when you are practicing social distancing outside? We’re all in this together. These acts might be contagious and do us all some good! Stay safe.
Ann Maier, San Francisco
Pressure the protectors
In “Don’t neglect climate” (Letters, March 31), the writer rightly urges maintaining focus on present and future global environment beyond COVID19 impact. Currently, the virus has helped us as noted in the reduction vehicular/industrial carbon emissions. But there’s another unexpected possible benefit, the order for us to “shelter in place.” Some who have time or feel at loose ends in that isolation could work to put pressure on the putative environmental protectors below to remedy a problem antedating the virus’ arrival: Former Gov. Jerry Brown and Gov. Gavin Newsom, legislators or the Board of Forestry have not had the will to stop the ongoing decimation of our mature forests by forestry corporations intent only on future wood profits. By killing and removing the trees able to absorb tons of carbon dioxide and emit oxygen, it is past time that their destructive, inexcusable clearcutting must end; if an emergency proclamation is required, do it! Citizens’ emails, phone calls or letters should help.
Bob Moncrieff, Monte Sereno
Lockdown’s side effect
Here’s a contrarian viewpoint. Satellite data already shows a dramatic decrease in global carbon dioxide emissions as a side effect of the lockdown of billions of people worldwide. We have essentially flipped a switch and turned off most carbon dioxide emissions worldwide. Beautiful, clean skies over the Bay Area are just a small, local example. Of course, this is all temporary, and as soon as the pandemic is over we will all go back to work and start driving and flying again. Factories and industries all over the world will start up again. Why not just stay on permanent lockdown? I can already hear the howls of protest!
People have got to go back to work and make money again. Well, think of it this way: Right now, we are caught up in the shortterm crisis of the virus. But a much bigger longterm crisis that is already affecting everything and everyone is climate change. We just proved we can turn off the global industrial machine and its disastrous effects on our planet. But if we don’t learn how to change the machine, we will eventually be in a worldwide crisis that will make this look like nothing.
Scott Serata, Oakland
Cost of mitigation
Regarding “Report: Urgent action needed amid rising seas” (Page 1, April 1): I’m afraid the race against the climatechange clock is all but lost. The international community has for too long ignored the overwhelming empirical evidence showing that the climate crisis is real and is largely caused by man. This is not a theory; it is a fact. The international response has been too little, too late. Our task now is to mitigate the effects of climate change: rising sea levels, raging forest fires, thawing permafrost, flooding, drought and extreme weather. I fear the cost of mitigation will end up being more costly than if we had only acted sooner.
Ralph Stone, San Francisco