Orange County Bankruptcy

* Re “O.C. Gets Scant Sympathy in Plea to Assembly,” March 9: Who died and appointed Willie Brown and Tom Bates (D-Berkeley) the gods of taxes for Orange County? As an Orange County resident, I consider myself no more responsible than they are for bailing out this debacle.

Woe be unto any Orange County elected official who tries to raise taxes come election time. As far as I’m concerned, we can all go down in flames. Irresponsible? You bet. I’m just trying to learn from the real experts.

FRANK SHOFNER

Lake Forest

* It is shocking that Orange County CEO William J. Popejoy and the Orange County Board of Supervisors are going to fire 1,040 innocent workers because of inept investments and their abdication of responsibility (March 8). Not only is the County financially bankrupt, it is now morally bankrupt. Honorable government leaders should raise taxes, so that wealthy enclaves and corporations share the losses, which they can painlessly afford. Instead, these cynical “representatives of the people,” knowing where power lies, choose to destroy the lives of their employees.

Popejoy and the Gang of Five don’t personally suffer when they devastate the families of middle-class workers. Their corrupt abuse of power will force many to lose their homes and automobiles, health benefits and pensions. The result will be an increase in crime, homelessness, disease, welfare costs and social instability.

In the supervisors’ skewed value system, it is more important to pay lawyers, accountants, bankers and their own salaries, than to fulfill their moral responsibility to workers. Unlike investors, the citizens of Orange County did not knowingly put their savings at risk, gambling like greedy Vegas denizens. They moved there to live relatively secure lives, raise healthy families, and support their communities.

In a just, sane world, Popejoy would be immediately fired, and the supervisors would be on trial for crimes against humanity.

RON NORMAN

Los Angeles

* Addressing the Orange County bankruptcy, we’re spending too much time on the problem and not enough time on the solution. Restructuring county government, squeezing homeless shelters and searching for culprits are just mean-spirited and time-consuming ways of dancing around the pain we know we have to face.

Bankrupt entities need money. Since Orange County is bankrupt, and since we fear a state or federally imposed solution, the only answer is to pay an Orange County tax. An Orange County tax not only will maintain our precious autonomy, but it’s the only sure way to maintain the quality of our services, such as schools, police, roads, libraries, beaches and health centers.

Anyone with an ounce of financial sophistication understands we must unshackle ourselves from petty ideologies and straightforwardly address the situation. Only then, with a healthy county restored, do we have time for blaming, streamlining and safeguarding. The only remaining question is this: Do we, the citizens of Orange County, have sufficient character to reach in our pockets and make the sacrifice necessary to enact a timely solution?

RICHARD F. DOWLING

Dana Point