Nancy Pelosi was not polarizing as speaker of the House: Opinion

Pelosi not a polarizing politician

I just read an article in my digital version of The Bee and have one question: Why was it necessary to refer to Nancy Pelosi as a “polarizing” figure? She was speaker of the House, and is a longtime representative for her district in San Francisco. I’m not aware of her advocating for or expressing ideas that were outside the boundaries of what her political party wanted to accomplish.

Is every speaker a “polarizing” figure just because they advocate for their political party’s positions? Or is it because she is from San Francisco? By the way, was this article a news piece or an opinion piece … just asking.

Rose Safarian Sirabian, Fresno

Clovis Unified must honor its mission

As a retired Clovis Unified School District high school teacher still holding a valid credential and active in education, I urge CUSD to honor its statement, “This school district does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, religion, political affiliation, gender, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation ...” as well as basic student privacy rights.

The district must resist calls for a policy to divulge to parents/guardians any student’s request to be addressed by a different name (including nicknames, middle names) or gender pronouns than those listed on the official rolls.

As a teacher, I invited my students to share the name, pronunciation, and pronouns they preferred I use to address them in class. This might be using a middle name or explaining an alternate pronunciation of an ethnic name or the correct way to say a name with non-phonetic spelling.

On at least one occasion, it meant honoring a student’s request through a school administrator to be called a name associated with a different gender than listed on the roll, which I was glad to oblige without resulting issues.

In my own school experience, having been named at birth for a grandfather’s nickname soon after associated with a female movie star caused me multiple problems, including ridicule from other students. Partly to ameliorate this, my parents used both my first and middle names, which I found embarrassing. As soon as I was able, I legally changed my name to my grandfather’s full name.

Kimbrough Leslie, Clovis

This waffle shop is an eyesore

Who doesn’t like a good waffle? The Fresno Bee’s food columnist Bethany Clough recently wrote that Fresno is losing another breakfast restaurant specializing in waffles. (Bee, Aug 26). I wrote Ms. Clough about her informative waffle article, and I commented on the complete eyesore of the Country Cooking Waffle Shop on Blackstone between Gettysburg and Shaw.

I volunteer at the Assistance League thrift store/boutique located across the street. Every time I drive to our store, I think what a horrible eyesore this dilapidated restaurant building/property is. If this restaurant is owned by the same person who has the other waffle shops, shouldn’t he be responsible for cleaning up this property?

The old Waffle Shop needs to be demolished or tidied up to improve this block of Blackstone Ave. I am surprised the city has let it stand this long. It certainly would help beautify our city if this Blackstone eyesore was better maintained.

Edith Barnette, Fresno

Get registered to vote

National Voter Registration Day is Sept. 19. This is your reminder. Go to vote.gov to register, update, or confirm your voter registration. In person registration and mail-in forms are available at the DMV or the county election office.

National High School Voter Registration Week is Oct. 2-6. In CA, 16-and 17-year-olds can pre-register to vote and be eligible on their 18th birthdays.

To learn more, go to nationalvoterregistrationday.org. Make sure your voice is heard. Be a voter. Our democracy literally depends on it.

Cate Chielpegian, Fresno

Needing update on police

In 2020, a historic youth-led march in downtown Fresno paved the way for the creation of the Commission on Police Reform. This diverse, qualified, and committed group diligently developed 73 policy recommendations.

The city of Fresno officially adopted these recommendations, acknowledging that many of the city’s challenges stemmed from preferential treatment of the Fresno Police Department, a lack of transparency, and a deficiency in political willpower to address other community needs urgently.

Fast forward to 2023, and there seems to be a troubling apathy within our City Council and mayor concerning the 73 recommendations that require legislative action. As a member of the Police Reform Implementation Team, sworn in 2021 to support the implementation of these recommendations, I find myself out of the loop regarding any meaningful progress.

In 2021, with taxpayer funds, my colleagues and I were sent to cities in the Pacific Northwest, such as Eugene, Oregon, to study crisis intervention programs like CAHOOTS. Our findings indicated the need to create a program in Fresno akin to CAHOOTS, one that curtails the power of police.

However, after making this recommendation, it feels like we have been left in the dark. What’s the current status, and why the silence?

Pedro Navarro Cruz, Fresno

Trump was good for the economy

We had a good President Trump. Really a nonpolitician. We had low inflation and low gas prices and we were energy independent and the No. 1 producer of oil in the world.

Yet we have the Democratic party and RINO Republicans persecuting him. Wake up America and let Trump lead this country back to greatness. He put our country first and wasn’t even taking a salary.to do it.

Do you want our vountry to be completely destroyed? Right now under Biden we couldn’t handle a war with China or anyone else.

Jerry Jones, Visalia

Say no to dirty, illegal lab

Aren’t there enough upstanding businesses to fill Fresno’s empty spaces without toying with the idea of allowing a cesspool lab into our city? A business which would have to be monitored 24/7 to be certain no illegal and even deadly activity was going on.

I shudder to think of the sick mind who was in charge and ordered mice to be infected with Covid, tainted blood to be kept, infectious materials ready to be released.

The lab has lied, been a fire hazard, has illegally operated in different cities they have endangered.

City Council, if ever there was a “heck no,” this is it!

Suzanne Lawson, Fresno

Leaders must act on climate goals

Thank you for printing the letter (The Bee, Sept. 2) calling on Republicans to discuss a plan for addressing climate change. I watched the presidential debate and couldn’t believe how the candidates barely answered the student who said that young Republicans are intensely concerned about climate change.

I admire local congressman David Valadao, a Republican from Hanford, for stepping forward to support some bipartisan legislation to try to address air quality and climate chaos. My member of Congress, Democrat Jim Costa, has also shown bipartisan leadership in this area.

The higher intensity fires and storms all over the country affect us all. We need strategies to lower greenhouse gases to be supported across the political spectrum.

Climate smart agriculture, good forest management, planting urban trees and supporting electrification can create good jobs and clean up our air. If we charge oil, coal and gas companies a gradually rising fee to make up for the costs of fossil fuel pollution, we can return that fee to households as a “carbon cashback” . This would be easy to implement without growing the size of government. It would inspire investment in clean energy and would assist low- and middle-income households to meet their needs.

Andrea De Zubiria, Fresno

Prepare for emergencies

When you’re displaced by a disaster, it turns your life upside down in a matter of seconds. Just as quickly, your mind is flooded with questions: Where do we go? What do we bring? How do we leave? Who do we tell?

While disasters will always be stressful — they are a crisis after all — there are steps you can take now during National Preparedness Month to feel more confident springing into action during an emergency.

1. Build your emergency kit.

2. Make a plan of what to do.

3. Know how to stay informed.

You can also prepare to help others as climate disasters become more frequent and intense. In fact, the American Red Cross now responds to nearly twice as many large disasters in the U.S. as we did a decade ago. More people need help more often — and as fast as our volunteers are working to deliver relief and care, the needs are escalating faster. Visit redcross.org/VolunteerToday to join our volunteer teams and be the light in other people’s darkest hours.

Lori Wilson, Executive Director, American Red Cross Central Valley Chapter

Many thanks to county clerk

A huge thank you to Fresno County Clerk/Registrar of Voters James A. Kus and hisincredible team that hosted “Candidate Filing Class” on Sept. 7.

The class was well organized and presented in a professional insightful friendly venue. Anyone who is interested in running for an elected position or are just curious how the process works, you should take this class.

The training was basically the ABCs and 123s for how to file to become a candidate in our local or statewide elections. Thank you also to Senior Deputy District Attorney Victor Lai from the Public Integrity Unit. Truly an outstanding presentation and fascinating insight!

Monte Forkas, Fresno