More transparency needed

EDITOR: Santa Rosa City Schools is a large and complex district with over 15,000 students, 25 schools and a budget of $200 million. The district offers a superintendent’s salary of more than $260,000 plus benefits (it also comes with a lifelong bump in retirement benefits) to attract capable leadership. The job description is designed to ensure that a new superintendent hits the road running.

Given the volatile nature of state finances and the complexity of the district budget, a superintendent should have exceptional skills in the area of fiscal oversight. There must be a devotion to developing and retaining a highly qualified teaching corps — the district’s most valuable asset. As more details of the new superintendent’s résumé become public it becomes painfully clear there is a major disconnect with traditional expectations for this position, especially in the areas of fiscal management and personnel.

An inexperienced, unqualified superintendent can cost a district dearly. This can take many forms, from having to hire consultants to paying off avoidable lawsuits to “resigning” early (usually with a buyout), to mention a few. The school board needs to open up the superintendent’s annual evaluation to the public to discuss the real costs of its choice.

RON KRISTOF

Santa Rosa

Deceived by Democrats

EDITOR: As Gerard Baker wrote in the Wall Street Journal on July 2, “They’ve deceived and gaslit us for four years, all in the name of ‘democracy.’ That collapsed Thursday,” during the presidential debate. Deception came, in part, by hiding the president’s infirmity.

Deception came with bad policies hurting Americans from all walks of life. Excessive regulation is one area used to compel an all-electric society by trying to ban gas cooktops, as well as changing standards to ensure only electric vehicles can be purchased. Political handouts were illegally given to people with student loans who no longer had to pay them back; taxpayers are now on the hook to pay for someone else’s degree. The list of progressive policies goes on. Hiding Joe Biden from public view and manipulating him behind closed doors was required to mandate dangerous policies using executive orders.

“So much for the moral high ground Democrats have claimed to occupy,” wrote Baker. “The events of the past week have exposed the depth of the Democrats’ deception and disregard for democracy.” Where are presidents like Ronald Reagan or Abraham Lincoln when you need them most?

ROBERT KOSLOWSKY

Cloverdale

Look at third parties

EDITOR: The Biden-Trump debate showed two candidates with insurmountable flaws. It’s long past time to give media exposure to a third-party candidates. It certainly won’t make things any worse than they already are.

ANISA THOMSEN

Petaluma

A new Manhattan Project

EDITOR: The Manhattan Project was a secret government program to develop the first atomic bomb. Because of the magnitude of the threat, nothing was spared: money, men, machines, military, land, secrecy.

Could the threat posed by the Nazis and Japan have been more grave than the threat of global climate disaster today? When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, we immediately created a global project to organize the world and create a comprehensive plan to safeguard humanity. Why is climate change different? President Joe Biden could declare a climate emergency. The United Nations could form a group of the best scientists, military and political leaders, heads of state — whatever is necessary to recommend solutions to save the planet.

We could begin by replacing the ineffective cap-and-trade policy with a carbon fee and dividend policy, which actually takes carbon out of the atmosphere instead of allowing corporations to pay to pollute. Why not a Manhattan Project for climate change before it is too late? We are in a crowded theater, there are shouts of “fire,” and we all remain seated.

GENE A. HOTTEL

Santa Rosa

Sticking with Biden

EDITOR: I am so disturbed by the calls for Joe Biden to bow out of the race. I know Donald Trump sells papers, but the forgiveness level and normalization of traitorous and despicable behavior that is tolerated with Trump vs. the impatience with Biden is striking. Yes, Biden had an abysmal performance, and I think his “team” bears some of the responsibility for that fiasco, but basically Biden had a bad night. He is old, and it might have been great to have two different candidates, but this is who we have now, and you don’t kick someone to the curb over one night. What about Trump’s constant lies? No one is discussing that. Biden has done a great job in this term, and when you compare the two candidates it’s bigger than night and day — it’s total darkness versus a champion of American values.

DONNA CHERLIN

Forestville