Wiley Drake

* Re “Pastor Convicted of Letting Homeless Camp at Church,” July 29: The conviction of the Rev. Wiley Drake heralds a low point in our society. The same government that chose to arrest, prosecute and punish Drake is also the one that offers no solutions to the problem that he is actively doing something about.

Here we have an example of a decision to enforce the letter of the law to the detriment of society as a whole. Every day officers make good, practical decisions about what they are going to spend their time and energy on. If they were to arrest every single person violating every single letter of the law, then none of their squad cars would get more than a block or two from the station parking lot!

Thumbs down to both the Buena Park Police Department and the Buena Park city attorney’s office for so efficiently handling a matter that should not have been handled at all.

ROGER BARWISE

Reseda

* Amen, Rev. Drake! The poor need you. Ignore the verdict. There is a higher court we must all listen to. Remember what former President George Bush said about “a thousand points of light.” Where is George? And what about all those Democrats on Capitol Hill who called the Republican welfare plan “mean-spirited.” Where are the Democrats?

I thought we wanted to get rid of the welfare system as it was. The Republican Congress and the president set it up, and the American people backed it. Where are the Republicans, the president and the American people? Rev. Drake, we know where you stand.

JOSEPH D. MARTINEZ

Hacienda Heights