Measure O: Tobacco Funds

* Re “Measure O Would Ease Burden of Caring for the Uninsured and Working Poor,” Ventura County Perspective, Oct. 29.

Community Memorial Hospital executive director Michael Bakst points out that politicians don’t always tell the truth, warning us not to blindly trust what they say about Measure O. I accept that.

I would add that anyone who lavishes $2 million of his hospital’s health care dollars on a political campaign, as Bakst has done, is himself a politician in a big way.

I don’t trust politician Bakst’s self-serving explanation of Measure O--he wants to recoup his $2 million campaign cost. Furthermore, I don’t want Bakst dipping into our $261 million tobacco settlement to fund his next foray into the political arena. If he does it now with hospital funds he will figure out a way to do it later with tobacco funds.

To keep that money out of his hands, I’m voting no on Measure O.

DEBORAH SCHREIBER

Ventura

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Measure O has pitted the residents of Ventura County against rich and powerful Community Memorial Hospital, which apparently is willing to spend millions to take away public control of our tobacco settlement money.

But a wonderful thing is occurring as individuals and organizations study the fine print in the initiative and learn how misleading Measure O is. From all corners of the county, we are witnessing the coming together of people and organizations from different backgrounds, with different missions and with different constituencies. All are joining together to prevent Community Memorial from hijacking our money.

There are too many individuals to thank personally, but on behalf of the grass-roots Coalition Against Measure O, I would like to thank the following organizations opposing Measure O:

Health related organizations: American Lung Assn., American Cancer Society, Ventura County Medical Assn., California Nurses Assn., National Alliance for the Mentally Ill and the National Association of Social Workers.

Civic organizations: League of Women Voters, Ventura County Taxpayers Assn., League of United Latin American Citizens, Urban Counties Caucus, El Concilio and the Ventura County Democratic Party.

Chambers of Commerce: Camarillo, Ojai and Thousand Oaks / Westlake.

City Councils: Moorpark, Ojai, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Santa Paula, Thousand Oaks and Ventura.

Others include the Ventura County Deputy Sheriffs Assn., Ventura County Professional Firefighters Assn., Ventura County Psychological Assn., Service Employees International Union Local 998 and the Tri-Counties Central Labor Council.

To join the effort to defeat Measure O, call 655-7755 or visit www.NoMeasureO.org for the latest list of those opposed.

Keep taxpayers’ money under public control. Vote no on Measure O.

DAVID MARON

Chair

Coalition Against Measure O

Ventura

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Re “Measure O Shows It Takes Money to Take Money,” Oct. 27.

The excessive costs related to Measure O are in part due to the way the Venture Country Supervisors handled the tobacco settlement money issue from the start with their shell game. The ordinance passed last week by the supervisors may be an extension of the shell game they have played in the past.

We the people of Ventura Country do not know the specifics of the ordinance. Until we see the exact words of the ordinance, we should be concerned that the supervisors may think of the people of Ventura County the same way P.T. Barnum did about his customers when he said that there is a sucker born every minute.

We do not want to be suckers for this merry band of supervisors. We also want them to recognize that the tobacco settlement money belongs to the people of Ventura County and not them.

Therefore, I suggest that the supervisors state the ordinance in the following simple fashion for the people of Ventura County:

“We, the people of Ventura County, authorize the Ventura County Board of Supervisors to allocate the tobacco settlement money to pay for health care only. Reimbursement of the Ventura County private hospitals for any free health care they give to people who cannot afford to pay for it is the main priority of people of Ventura County. Reallocation of any part of the tobacco settlement fund for any purpose other than health care must be approved by a simple majority of Ventura County voters.”

BERNARD W. MERKLE

Thousand Oaks

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Measure O? O no!

BARRY MORTON

Thousand Oaks