Surfing Congressmen Are Making Waves

Re “Riding a Wave of Unpopularity” (Sept. 14): Thank you for your article regarding politicians who wear the cloak of surfing as a type of public-relations campaign tool. In the case of Southern California Republican congressmen Dana Rohrabacher and Brian Bilbray, we are treated to petty antics and PR stunts as the so-called surfing congressmen seek to win public support and goodwill (and votes) by casting themselves as fit and friendly, community-loving surfers.

Nothing could be further from the truth. In the past year alone, Rohrabacher and Bilbray have presided over the repeal of clean water laws, destruction of protections for wetlands and ancient forests, and elimination of polluted run-off regulations. Both have notably failed to support coastal protection legislation and are working to repeal the Endangered Species Act and laws protecting dolphins.

In other words, Bilbray and Rohrabacher aren’t surfers at all, but instead are merely the front men, “Barneys” in surfspeak, for America’s corporate polluters.

MARK A. MASSARA

Surfers’ Environmental Alliance

San Francisco

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Dana Rohrabacher may be a “kooooook” but he is still a good congressman. In fact, I think he surfs fairly well for a surfer who only gets to surf two or three sessions a month.

This may be because of his very busy schedule politicking on other issues representing the rest of non-surfing Huntington Beach.

I believe that Rohrabacher does care about the environment, and giving the responsibility of clean water to the local governments instead of the federal level seems more productive because a Kansas or Ohio congressman couldn’t care less about the California coastline.

DENNIS SATO

Westminster