Minorities Become California Majority

The Aug. 30 headline, “Minorities Become Majority in State, Census Officials Say,” is a bit of an understatement, as the figures show that no single ethnic or racial group has a majority in California, thus making us all minorities. On that basis, minorities are not only a majority in California, they make up 100% of the population.

Now that we are all minorities, can we get along a little better?

MERRITT D. MULLEN

Ridgecrest

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Regardless of composition, California’s population is simply too large. Our 34 million equals over a third of Mexico’s population and more than Canada’s.

It’s a shame, because Americans have few enough children that our numbers should be shrinking slowly. But for the past 30 years, Congress has allowed record immigration levels, so California grows ever more crowded. Freeways are jammed, affordable housing a memory, water scarce, and every year the state loses 100,000 acres of farmland to development.

The public and local politicians, who must live with this mess, should insist Congress return immigration to low levels. The United States already supports the world’s third-largest population. If we continue to grow, both our population and our prosperity will rival the two largest--China and India.

KENNETH PASTERNACK

Santa Barbara

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I see that white Americans no longer comprise the numerical majority in California. Odd, I’ve yet to see a meaningful shift--much less a corresponding commensurate share--of political or economic power to nonwhites. The more things change, the more they remain the same.

GEORGE C. BALDERAS

Corona