16 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY MAY 1-7, 2025 www.montereycountynow.com VOTE WITH YOUR WALLET Your hater’s propaganda on your cover graphic aside, I don’t recall you had any covers depicting Barack Obama bowing obsequiously to Arab tinpot dictators during his regime (“Alarmed over the actions of President Trump and corporate support, people are using how they spend their money in protest,” April 24-30). Richard Hellam | Seaside Thanks, Pam Marino, for a fine column (“A growing number of people are using their pocketbooks to protest the presidential administration,” posted April 27). I decided to celebrate Liberation Day in a most appropriate way, by closing my Amazon account. If Bezos can send $1 million to Trump for the inauguration, he doesn’t need my pennies. It’s been exhilarating to find new, neighborly places of business, local ones, to support. Donald Scott | Carson City Find something meaningful to write about that’s happening in Monterey and stay out of politics. Kathleen Curatolo Hannah | via social media FINGER FOOD Many locals, including myself, were out priced to afford to be able to attend (“Pebble Beach Food & Wine in Photos,” posted April 14). It’s really quite a shame. When I reached out to Pebble Beach Food & Wine to ask about a locals rate, they offered 10-percent off the Grand Tasting event, which was around $400. Many locals felt that was a slap in the face. The majority of our industry on the Peninsula is hospitality-based and simply can’t afford the ticket costs this event charges. Let’s make this event accessible to locals next year and push for 50-percent off tickets. There’s plenty of money to be made still, but we need to also focus on letting locals be a part of this event, not just the upper class. Cassandra Grigsby | Monterey PAY UP Five of the seven [members of] city council and the mayor are bought by ag; they are voting the way they are told to vote (“Salinas City Council votes 5-2 in favor of rescinding rent stabilization,” posted April 23). They do not care about the average resident or small business. I say that we remind renters to vote at the next election and make your vote count. If renters do not vote, money wins. Cary Swensen | Salinas Rent control is foolish and destroys livelihoods from the property owner to the renter. Government controlled markets only fail every time! Peter Hernandez | Hollister Note: Hernandez is a past candidate for Congressional District 18. IN HEALTH There is one solution and that is to get profit-making and -taking out of the system (“The health care system is broken. Efforts to fix it are missing the mark,” April 24-30). Maureen Wruck | Salinas The useless middle man—health insurance industry—adds no value to medical services and a ton of cost in a for-profit system. Miguel Banda | Salinas BOOK WORM As a biologist, career museum professional and volunteer on our local library board of directors, I have had a front-row seat to the dramatic, positive results of increasing access to museum and library experiences, collections, science and cultural resources for learners of all ages and desires (“Libraries are under attack at the federal level. Monterey County Free Libraries director is not optimistic,” posted April 8). The mission and vision of your local library and museum is to serve you. We exist to provide you and your family and friends with accuracy, integrity and inspiration by inviting you to think for yourself. Museums and libraries offer unlimited possibilities for engaging ourselves in powerful moments to fuel imaginations, improve scientific understanding, re-invest in our democracy and empower new explorers, inventors and saviors. Take a moment today to use your voice, write a letter, show up at town halls, and most importantly to vote for leaders who believe in the power of truth and the right to know. Carla Bitter O’Sullivan | Pacific Grove SWIM GYM This is great! (“As a Marina sports center inches closer to construction, the public is invited on a tour,” April 24-30.) A community investment for health and wellness, heck yeah! Diane Carmack | via social media To safeguard Marina’s financial resources, City Council and residents must carefully re-examine the past financial analyses. Initial evaluations by the consulting team revealed a promising outlook when considering the sports center as a standalone facility. The analysis projected a positive cash flow, indicating its potential as a self-sustaining investment. However, the financial viability significantly diminished when the aquatic center was incorporated into the plans. A subsequent proposal to dedicate a portion of the sports center to roller sports further eroded the project’s financial feasibility. This addition resulted in an analysis showing a clear negative cash flow, indicating it would require ongoing subsidies. These findings underscore the importance of a fiscally conservative approach. While recreational facilities offer community benefits, their development must be guided by realistic financial projections to ensure longterm sustainability and protect the city’s overall financial health. Hans Ongchua | Marina ONE FOR ALL It was a night of wonderful film, live dance and live music. Our nation of immigrants makes America great (“In three distinct performances, Palenke Arts uplifts one voice—that of the immigrant population,” April 24-30). Jane Anfinson | via social media I love Palenke Arts! Their performances are always awesome. Celia Bosworth | Salinas LETTERS • COMMENTSOPINION Submit letters to the editor to letters@montereycountynow.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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