18 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY september 28-october 4, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com Brunch of the Rich It’s astounding that in long-progressive, multicultural California, agricultural business “leaders” who depend so much on migrant workers would invite such a bigoted, fascistic person to brunch (“A message from Salinas to Ron DeSantis: You are not welcome here,” Sept. 21-27). It reminds me of the times I have seen ag business celebrations. Every time I have seen the crowds attending, there were zero brown faces, except for a few who were serving food. These parasites deserve no further special considerations from the state or counties. In fact, it’s absurd that they consume so much of our scarce water to grow food to send to places that have more water than they want or need. All that needless sacrifice, just to make a few rich people richer. We should cut their water allotments drastically and turn most of the exploited, nutrient-drained land back into nature preserves. John Thomas | Salinas Politicians of all stripes swing by California to pick up their campaign checks. The ag people also host Jimmy Panetta and support him. It will be OK, just shelter in place. Bob Roach | Salinas Despite what a letter writer said, Florida’s economy isn’t better than California’s (“Letters,” Sept. 21-27). California currently ranks third for economic growth, behind Tennessee and New Hampshire. There was something Florida has done “well” in: Covid deaths. I’ll take Democrat Gavin Newsom over science-hating, literature-hating and history-hating Ron De Santis any day of the week! LD Freitas | Aptos Race to the Finish I enjoy reading your journalism—and most of this article, but your opinion lacked urgency to me (“A Black family shares stories of racism in P.G. schools, and the district pledges forward progress,” posted Sept. 22). Your words at the end: “If P.G. can make some headway in preventing racial bias and discrimination, the arc of the moral universe will bend just a little closer to justice. It’s just going to take some time.” I’d rather you acknowledged that: Time ran out for these children. And time’s up for these teachers. Wendy Burch | via email Weed Patch I found a job during Covid as a delivery driver for a cannabis company in Sacramento (“Dispensary closures highlight the cannabis industry’s ongoing struggles,” Sept. 14-20). My first day of work I was informed that the business had been bought by a multistate operator from Southern California. After one year the business closed abruptly, laying off 25 employees, and losing over $6 million. I was able to find another job [doing] customer service, inventory management and delivery driving. I was able to see the day-to-day operations, price of goods and cost of doing business. It was shocking to learn that there was no bank, everything was done with cash, there were no write-offs for taxes—the owner paid over $2 million a year in taxes, almost a third of the revenue. I moved back to Monterey in March. A quick survey of Weedmaps showed that prices were dropping quickly, most of the Seaside dispensaries had been bought out by larger businesses and the outlook was not positive. Legalization has not been friendly to the cannabis industry. As more businesses close and the black market continues, there will be no hope for the few remaining dispensaries. How sad to see that the cannabis industry had its moment in the sun. It is unfortunate that it didn’t know how to stay within its limits. Jody Hutchinson | Monterey Crash Landing In 2018 the company Joby set up shop in 120,000 square feet in Marina, promising up to 2,000 lucrative jobs building a fleet of electric aircraft. This set off a national bidding war (“All’s not lost in the wake of Joby Aviation’s decision to build its new factory in Ohio,” posted Sept. 19). Monterey Bay needs technology development and this is what Joby said it intended to do. Shame on Joby for milking our local system then bailing out with no regret. Cherie Pipes | Seaside Jazz Hands What a great weekend of worldclass music, except the closing act, Thundercat. Three musicians playing loud, self-indulgent garbage (“This weekend’s Monterey Jazz Festival showed how the genre stays vital, as one generation passes the baton to the next,” posted Sept. 25). Greg Painter | Gonzales I’m 66; I came with my wife this weekend for my fourth MJF. I downloaded playlists from some of the artists I was not familiar with beforehand. I did not find Thundercat appealing, but I am glad that new artists are being invited to the festival to carry on the traditions of variety and inclusion set by MJF over the past 66 years. My favorite performances were Samara Joy on Sunday afternoon (phenomenal), Lakecia Benjamin on Saturday night (breathtaking, she should have been on the Main Stage), and the Texas Southern University Gospel Choir on Sunday morning. Herbie Hancock, Dianne Reeves, and Terence Blanchard never disappoint, and they were all superb. There seemed to be a larger crowd than I remember, and great music was coming from every stage. I’m sure hip-hop/jazz fusion (the next genre of music) will grace MJF for years to come; youth will be served and deservedly so—that is the evolution of music and specifically jazz. Steven Roseboro | Los Angeles Family Business Villa Azteca is hands down the best in all of the 831 (“Nicolás Cocina de Herencia gets ready to open—and to raise the bar even higher,” Sept. 14-20). They have the most delicious food and kind hearts. Elizabeth Cota | via social media Villa Azteca is the best in Salinas. I’m sure the new restaurant will probably be even better. I will have to try. Matoskah Palma | via social media Letters • CommentsOPINION Submit letters to the editor to letters@mcweekly.com. Please keep your letter to 150 words or less; subject to editing for space. Please include your full name, contact information and city you live in.
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