16 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY APRIL 23-29, 2026 www.montereycountynow.com FLOCK OF CAMERAS I’m so impressed with your reporting on this topic (“Is the monitoring of license plates in Monterey County and beyond a boon for policing or another step closer to a mass surveillance state?,” April 2-8). These things move fast, and demanding rigor from our leaders is key to protecting our rights. The carelessness of assuming that these private technology companies have set the correct privacy filters without double checking them is disappointing. I’ve been deeply involved in attempts to expect/demand medical privacy along similar lines. We passed AB 352 to prevent sending abortion or trans care information to other states, which could potentially jeopardize the health of our patients and put California clinicians at risk of prosecution in other states, but the tech companies that have created electronic health records can do more to accommodate this data privacy need. We should both be able to share our records when needed in an emergency, and suppress them from the eyes of those who are not directly providing relevant care. As with these Flock cameras and the loss of privacy for all drivers, we should care about medical privacy and support good design to minimize leakage. Dr. Sumana Reddy | Salinas FAILURE TO FLY I feel for Cyn Currie and her loss of business, but this story is much bigger than that (“Paragliding instructor loses access to Sand City eco-resort property,” April 9-15). This closure has affected our entire community. There is a huge group of local pilots that met here every day and flew. It was a beautiful group of supportive individuals from all walks of life. People came from all over the country to fly this site every year. This developer even used photos of us flying in advertisements for the hotel he is trying to build. We can still fly the Marina sites, but only advanced pilots are allowed there. This closure has made it impossible for beginner pilots to fly locally and for new people to get into flying. My heart is broken for what this is doing to our paragliding community. Casey Gerstle | Seaside The Sand City dunes have been a cornerstone of the paragliding community in Monterey County for years. Development is one thing but removing access to a long-established, community-driven use of this coastline is another. Once access like this is gone, it’s almost impossible to get back. I really hope the City, Coastal Commission and developer can find a solution that preserves public access. Jake Rendina | via web ARMS RACE I found it interesting that in your photo of the day taken at the Naval Postgraduate School there were less than a dozen protesters, and yet this made the front page [of the newsletter] (“Etc. Photo,” posted April 9). No doubt the sentiments expressed are shared by many in this area, but let’s see what negotiations will bring before finalizing judgement. Iran has been at war with the U.S. since they captured our embassy and took Americans hostages. Iran has been responsible for the deaths of hundreds of Americans and has funded and armed several terrorist organizations. Women who speak their minds are killed and the LGBTQ+ community is persecuted. Last January, 30,000 protesters—like the few who were at the NPS—were murdered by the regime there. Monterey County protesters should ask themselves why they oppose getting rid of this theocratic, brutal regime that teaches “Death to America” as part of daily education lessons. Gil Stein | Aptos I have been attending the demonstrations outside of NPS since November. The original motivation was against the genocide Israel was committing in Gaza, and the protest was specific to American military transferring arms to the IDF. I’m a recent member of Veterans for Peace, having begun my military service when Nixon was in the White House. I support our troops, and I also support the protocols of the Geneva Conventions and the rules of engagement. It seems to me that regardless of a person’s thoughts on the military actions in Iran, nobody should think it makes America great when humans floating in the sea are murdered, or when bombs are dropped on noncombatants. Tony Amarante | Seaside TEMPERATURE RISING Chris Valadez’s call for prioritizing adaptation gets it wrong (“County’s climate plan misses an opportunity to prioritize practical strategies for adaptation,” April 2-8). Adaptation accepts problems, it doesn’t solve them. Imagine climate change like a hole in a ship, a hole we’ve created and are continually enlarging. There’s really no way to adapt to a sinking vessel. You can patch up the hole, but that will have little effect if you continue to make it. Our current climate disaster requires adaptation, yes, but it also requires curbing the activities that are causing it in the first place. The idea that Monterey County’s overall impact on world climate change is so small as to obviate the need for prioritizing mitigation is appealing in its simplicity. Unfortunately, it’s a flawed argument. Climate change is the sum of various actions by various actors; there is no single impact or entity that alleviates responsibility for all of the others. We all contribute to the problem, and we all have a role in the solution. The County does well in focusing on reductions in its Community Climate Action and Adaptation Plan; California law requires it. No person, county or nation is insignificant when it comes to mitigating climate change. Laura Davis and Michael DeLapa | via email Note: Davis and DeLapa work for LandWatch Monterey County. BEYOND BOOKS Old Capitol Books is the place to be in the whole Monterey area (“From 318 to 831: Miss Fortune performs at Old Capitol Books,” posted April 15). Amazing reading groups and cultural exposure to fringe, quirky and soul-stimulating is just part of what you could find there. Reza Satrap | Monterey 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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