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Park volunteers get
the shaft from S.J.
When the director of Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services decided on an unprovoked dismissal of the Foundation volunteers in November, they dismissed 40 years of volunteer commitment and millions of dollars in volunteer management, educational services, capital improvements and dedication to the East Side community.
These contributions toward improvements at Emma Prusch Memorial Park included a barn, a windmill, and an educational center along with planting demonstration gardens, feeding farm animals, shearing sheep and other basic farm work, all at no expense to the city or its taxpayers. This one decision shows poor management and shortsightedness that has helped guide the City into this sad state of financial affairs.
By treating this nonprofit organization so poorly one wonders how many other organizations are being harassed, neglected and forced out of long-term commitments under the misguided guise of leadership.
Sharon McCray
Campbell
Trash cans will keep
neighborhood clean
I want to express my gratitude for the welcoming festivals the Sikh Gurdwara hosts, fostering a sense of community and inclusivity. I’ve enjoyed attending several events and truly value the positive atmosphere.
However, I’d like to address a concern regarding the litter left behind after festivals. Despite the well-organized events, trash often accumulates along Gurdwara Avenue and nearby areas. As a resident of Evergreen, I regularly pick up litter on my walks, but the problem persists. Most recently, after the March 23 festival, I collected a full-yard waste bag of trash from just two blocks.
In the spirit of community care, I kindly suggest placing garbage cans along the three-block stretch on both sides of the street during festivals and retrieving them afterward. This small effort would help maintain the neighborhood’s cleanliness while preserving the welcoming spirit of the Gurdwara.
Thank you for your consideration.
Cynthia Berglund
San Jose
CPUC must find way to
reverse years of hikes
Re: “PG&E proposal would raise monthly bills” (Page B1, March 22).
This article suggests that PG&E would like to control monthly bills, as would the CPUC.
My current rate is $0.60 a kilowatt hour (up from $0.50/kWh a year ago). A $25.15 monthly charge starts in three months even if no power is used. Clearly, the campaign to lower bills isn’t working.
The CPUC could control bills. Conceptually, every penny on the electric cost comes from revenue approved by the CPUC. They need to approve lower revenue.
Some revenue comes from “self-approved” projects. This rule allows immediate action for maintenance and emergency repairs, but it is abused. Just require that “self-approved” projects can charge only a 4% return and the abuse will stop. And rates will stop climbing.
Marshal Merriam
San Jose
The word Semite
co-opted to hurt Jews
Re: “Schumer isn’t Jewish like pope isn’t Catholic” (Page A9, March 23).
I appreciate columnist Bret Stephens’ piece in the March 23 edition.
The piece focused on anti-Jewish sentiment present on both sides of the political spectrum.
My only problem with Stephens’ piece is that he failed to make the distinction between Jewish and Semitic.
According to Encyclopedia Britannica, the word Semite is an obsolete word popularized in the 19th century to describe a member of any people that spoke Arabic and Hebrew languages, among others.
Semitic later became an ethnic term even though there has never been a shared Semitic identity among Semitic-speaking peoples.
When the word Semite was used in the ethnic sense, it often referred to people of Jewish origin regardless of what language they spoke. This was a reflection of the antisemitism that was common in 19th-century Europe.
The term has wrongly been co-opted into a derogatory term to refer to Jewish people.
Bruce Halen
San Jose