03-28-24

14 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY march 28-april 3, 2024 www.montereycountyweekly.com Park Power Another fantastic project with help from our friends at the Big Sur Land Trust (“A new place to play breaks ground soon in Salinas,” posted March 22). This will indeed be a huge win for the folks in Salinas. Congratulations to all those involved who have worked so hard behind the scenes to help bring this vision [for Carr Lake] to life. Bravo! Derek Dean | Monterey A World Divided Thank you for your writing, your efforts to help people see Palestinians as humans deserving of our concern, attention and empathy (“A P.G. woman from Gaza fights to save her family, against the odds,” March 21-27). The Hamas attack against civilians was atrocious and morally repugnant. But given Israel’s mistreatment of Palestinians over decades, the attack was probably to be expected. And Israel’s response is as immoral as immoral gets. Slaughter. Genocide. Certainly a crime against humanity. Thank you for highlighting the humanity of the Palestinian people. Michael Marsh | Salinas By the way, Hamas started this war. Ask the PhD about their charter calling for genocide of all Jews worldwide, including you and me. That’s all I need to know. My dad, a World War II veteran, liberated death camps in Germany, an ally of Israel. Carl Silverman | New York Due to the complexities of the Middle East, an inclusive approach that tackles the underlying causes of conflict and promotes effective interaction among all parties involved is necessary (“Time and time again, the United States gets foreign relations with the Arab world totally wrong,” March 21-27). Tensions have only become worse and divisions have gotten deeper as a result of military operations and unilateral acts. Diplomatic solutions that uphold the dignity and sovereignty of all parties involved must take priority. The UN and other global organizations play an important role in helping to organize peace talks and assisting with conflict resolution. The international community’s support for a coordinated diplomatic effort can offer the framework required to manage intricate geopolitical issues and advance inclusive peace processes. We cannot afford to do nothing about the continued misery and war in Palestine and Israel. It is our responsibility to urge our political leaders to take action and to speak out in favor of justice and peace. Ruben Ortiz | Salinas After the devastating terrorist attack on Israel by Hamas, resulting in the murder of 1,200 people and more than 240 taken hostages, James J. Zogby writes: “Fourand-a-half months later Israel is pursuing a devastating war against Palestinians in Gaza.” Of course it is. I wonder what he would write if the U.S. suffered a devastating terrorist attack. He adds, “Too many of our policymakers see the Middle East through the lens of Israel exclusively.” Israel has, since its onset, been forced to defend itself against surrounding nations—which have Israel’s destruction as their primary objective. Can you imagine Zogby criticizing U.S. policymakers for not being nicer to neighboring countries who wish to destroy us? Not to mention that attacks against Israel often occur to disrupt peace talks between Israel and its neighbors. And time and time again Palestinians have rejected a two-state solution, preferring to concentrate on terrorist attacks against Israel. Betty Oberacker | Santa Barbara Pay Out This is so sad (“A local equine therapy group falls victim to UnitedHealth cyberattack,” March 14-20). A lot of good companies, providing needed therapies to people around the country, are going to have to close their doors due to this catastrophic event. My thoughts are with them and all victims of this hack. Lexi Morris | via social media Quantity over Quality In a recent California Public Utilities Commission hearing on water supply and demand, Cal Am claimed the Peninsula would need 14,480 acre-feet a year by 2050 (“Peninsula’s water supply drama is now playing out in court,” posted March 13). The Peninsula’s use has dropped by thousands of acre-feet over the last 10 years. We only used 9,083 acre-feet last year, but Cal Am claims we’ll need another 5,397 AFY by 2050. How could we use all that water? We can’t. To justify Cal Am’s proposed $400 million desal plant, they inflated demand by double counting for growth. The Monterey Peninsula Water Management District argued we’ll only need 10,599 AFY by 2050, about 1,500 AFY more than we now use. There’s no demand for the massive amount of water Cal Am projects. It’s far more than we could use by 2050. Melodie Chrislock | Monterey Note: Chrislock is managing director of Public Water Now. Soup’s Up Fisherman’s Wharf has had a notso-good reputation for food over the years, basically a tourist trap (“Some of Monterey’s most admired restaurants are on a strip that some residents avoid,” March 14-20). My husband and I decided to brave this reputation and give it a try. We ate at Old Fisherman’s Grotto and it was very good. Why we won’t go back: parking. Got a $48 ticket. There was no security in the parking lot that we could see; at night this is a little concerning. We tried to find street parking, not successfully. A. Hubbard | Monterey The Grotto has the most amazing chowder bread bowl topped with shredded crab, shrimp and cheese, baked for a bit before serving. Stef Helbock Pummell | via social media Abalonetti has been my go-to since I was little. Robert Backus | via social media I love eating on the wharf—have found some really great places to eat, and we go to the beach afterward. Laura Gonzales | Ceres, California 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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