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Oakland voters will decide on Measure\u00a0E, a $192 annual parcel tax that would raise about $34 million annually over the next nine years.<\/p>\n
Jessica Christian\/S.F. Chronicle<\/p>\n
I have resided in Oakland and owned property for 35 years. In that time, the city has repeatedly imposed new taxes on residents, all the while promising that more money will solve our myriad of problems, but failing to do so.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That is why I oppose Measure E<\/a>, yet another parcel tax on homeowners.\u00a0<\/p>\n Measure E is a citizens\u2019 initiative supported by unions that takes advantage of a quirk in the law; it can be approved with a simple majority rather than the two-thirds vote needed had it been proposed by the city.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n If Measure E passes, the tax will likely serve only one purpose: to retain jobs and increase the already generous (as compared to cities of comparable size) union members\u2019 salaries and benefits<\/a>.<\/p>\n Oakland will continue its decline so long as the cabal of our City Council and unions has its way and keeps throwing money at problems that are never solved. I urge a no vote on Measure E.<\/p>\n San Francisco Chronicle Logo<\/p>\n Make us a Preferred Source to get more of our news when you search.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Add Preferred Source<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Clear the bar smoke<\/p>\n Regarding \u201cOne of the last places people can smoke in S.F. may soon be gone\u201d<\/a> (San Francisco, SFChronicle.com, May 13): The story frames outdoor bar patios as taking away places where people can smoke in San Francisco. Another way to say it is that they are one of the last places where workers, patrons, performers and neighbors can still be forced to breathe secondhand smoke as the price of participating in nightlife.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n I care about San Francisco\u2019s bars, including queer and neighborhood institutions that have survived an incredibly difficult decade. But protecting those spaces should not require preserving a loophole that treats bar workers differently from restaurant workers, office workers or anyone else with a right to a healthy workplace.<\/p>\n This ordinance is not about shaming smokers or attacking nightlife. People can still go out, drink, gather, flirt, dance and build community. They just should not have to do it in a cloud of tobacco smoke.<\/p>\n San Francisco has led on public health before. Smoke-free bar patios are a reasonable next step.<\/p>\n Save the redwoods<\/p>\n Trees imbue us with a sense of well-being; they also remove pollution and clean the air.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n California\u2019s heritage trees, mammoth and ancient giant sequoias, are increasingly vulnerable to catastrophic wildfires, which destroy habitat and worsen air quality.<\/p>\n Recent wildfires have killed 20% of California\u2019s giant sequoias<\/a>. That\u2019s why Congress should act to protect one of our greatest national treasures by promoting proactive forest management.<\/p>\n The bipartisan Save Our Sequoias Act<\/a>, passed the House and now before the Senate, would give land managers better tools to reduce wildfire risks, improve forest restoration and respond more quickly before fires become devastating.<\/p>\n California Sen. Alex Padilla is a co-sponsor of the legislation; I urge our state\u2019s other senator, Adam Schiff, to join him in supporting and co-sponsoring the bill. California\u2019s senators represent the state with the most redwoods and sequoias, and need to take the lead in this action.\u00a0<\/p>\n Chip\u00a0Goldstein, Half Moon Bay<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Grizzlies aren\u2019t cuddly<\/p>\n