Letters to the editor Letters to the editor (April 29, 2005)

Why are BART supporters unwilling to debate?

Editor:

I was present at the San Jose press conference that responsible transit advocates, including the Sierra Club, put on outside the pro-BART presentation at the Commonwealth Club last week.

This press conference was called to protest the exclusion of a vocal and effective advocate of responsible transit spending, Councilman Greg Perry.

Rod Diridon blocked Councilman Perry from being inside on the Commonwealth panel. Carl Guardino, president of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, used thuggish tactics outside to try to silence the Sierra Club and other transit advocates. Guardino even threatened to have me arrested because I was trying to move his sign that he has shoving in my face. This is reprehensible behavior from a person who characterizes himself as a leader of the community.

Real leaders look and listen to all the facts, especially those that are unpleasant. There are a lot of unpleasant facts about BART. Extending BART to San Jose will require that Santa Clara County have the highest sales tax in California. It will mean gutting transit service for the rest of the county. Patrick Moore Wright Ave

Desperation tactics from leadership group

Editor:

Last week's physical disruption by the so-called Silicon Valley Leadership Group of a citizen-organized press conference critical of the proposed San Jose BART extension was an appalling and frightening slap in the face to freedom of speech in the Bay Area.

Why are normally reputable Silicon Valley businesses, including Apple, eBay, Yahoo, and Google, providing support to a "leadership group" which sends a gang of muscle-bound thugs to stifle the ability of citizens' groups to speak to the press?

As for the Commonwealth Club, which expelled BART extension critic Greg Perry from its transit forum and then stacked its panel with BART supporters, their idea of "balance" doesn't match any definition I'm able to find in my dictionary. If BART extension supporters have to resort to these types of desperation tactics to stifle the voices of opponents, the arguments for the BART extension must be extremely weak. Bruce Hahne Winstead Terrace, Sunnyvale

Disturbed by confrontation over BART

Editor:

I am appalled by the thuggish tactics of Carl Guardino who used union members to shout down a community group press conference.

What are he and other BART-to-San Jose supporters so afraid of that they resort to such heavy-handed tactics? I am equally disturbed by organized labor's participation in a very anti-democratic action.

Not only were the voices of environmental and transportation groups silenced outside, but also the Commonwealth Club forum did not present a real dialogue with all perspectives represented. Santa Clara County taxpayers have a right to hear all relevant information when considering how best to invest in public transportation. The Sierra Club supports an honest discussion of the alternatives. Melissa Hippard Chapter Director Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter

Zero tolerance in MV-LA Schools

Editor:

The letter from Ginny and King Lear supporting zero tolerance of vandalism in the MV-Los Altos schools is hard to disagree with on face value. School vandalism should definitely not be tolerated. But something else seems to have come along with the zero tolerance package -- zero good judgment by school officials.

I'm admittedly late to this story, but when I learned of the punishment given for graffiti painting and gluing lockers to David Lee and others -- four months suspension from school -- I felt proportionality had been thrown out the window. And proportionality comes from good judgment and experience. When the impact of the offense could be rectified even before students arrived the next day speaks to the need for punishment that is less than draconian.

Four months suspension from school is for extreme misbehavior, not for minor vandalism. What about community service or special school maintenance as fair punishment? There seem to be so many ways to turn a high-school prank into an ultimate learning experience.

I came away with the impression that the real offense was breaking the bubble of the "perfect world" that school officials, and perhaps a lot of parents, desire for their schools. Perfect houses, perfect streets, thus perfect schools.

An attitude of intolerance appears to have been expressed that delivers more retribution than education. With zero tolerance should come certainty, firmness, and also proportionality. Allen Price Velarde Street

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