Wisconsin’s union battle; Michael Hiltzik on stimulus spending; Israel, the United Nations and the United States

On Wisconsin

Re “Wisconsin governor: ‘We’re broke,’ ” and “Unions losing their grip in stronghold,” Feb. 19

Scott Walker, the Republican governor of Wisconsin, created a deficit by reducing taxes. He then used it as a reason to try to take away collective bargaining rights. This has nothing to do with reducing the state deficit and everything to do with destroying unions.

Without unions, we would not have the eight-hour workday or requirements for safe working conditions. What power does an individual employee have? None.

Germany has unions, pensions and universal healthcare. Its strong economy is symbolized by the Deutsche Boerse’s purchase of the New York Stock Exchange.

Unions have not damaged our economy; corporate short-term thinking and financial institutions’ greed have.

Doris Isolini Nelson

Los Angeles

The events in Wisconsin are not a “backlash” against organized labor. To the contrary, a recent poll shows that most Wisconsin residents support the unions in this struggle.

Future historians are far more likely to describe the Wisconsin protests as the time in American history when the working middle class finally engaged the corporate powers and their political cronies who declared class warfare against them many years earlier.

Dennis M. Clausen

Escondido

Wisconsin has a Republican governor, a Republican-led state Senate and a Republican-led state Assembly.

The lesson learned from the union protests in Wisconsin is that if you don’t want a Republican agenda, don’t vote Republican.

Thomas Sexton

Huntington Beach

Since when is Scrooge the hero?

Republicans claim a mandate to hurt the poor and bust the unions, while continuing to aggregate power and cut taxes for the wealthiest. In the last election Republicans ran on jobs. This bait-and-switch is a cynical assault on our future, our legacy and our decency as Americans.

In this version of “A Christmas Carol,” Scrooge would be denying Tiny Tim’s medical treatment, taking away his turkey and kicking his family out on the street.

Nancy Ganz

Newton, Mass.

Red ink and red herrings

Re “To build our future, we still need stimulus,” Business, Feb. 20

Michael Hiltzik builds a strong case for his thesis. Perhaps the most useful point is that the deficit-reduction mantra is a red herring. He shows that our deficit is nowhere near as serious as the GOP has claimed.

The conclusion is that Republicans are using the deficit to get rid of those things they hate, or at least to severely weaken them.

The list of things under attack includes the Environmental Protection Agency, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Social Security, Medicare, women’s rights and more.

We need all of these to be strengthened.

Emil Lawton

Sherman Oaks

I could not help but note the irony that Hiltzik’s piece calling for continued stimulus (deficit) spending to “build our future” was next to the Money Makeover article titled “Bankruptcy didn’t set them straight.”

The couple in the Money Makeover article were spending far more money than they earned. Their financial planner advised them to get their dangerous overspending under control before they faced total financial ruin.

I don’t see much difference between this couple and the federal and state governments.

Gary Thornton

Montebello

Israel’s in the Middle East too

Re “U.S. vetoes U.N. decree on Israel,” Feb. 19

Israel and its allies see U.N. resolutions such as the one the United States vetoed as being inherently flawed because they always frame the Arab-Israeli conflict from the perspective of a Palestinian propagandist.

Any objective observer would acknowledge that Palestinian rejection of past Israeli peace proposals, official incitement of hatred for Jews and Israel, and deadly terror attacks have been a far greater impediment to peace than the settlements.

It was the Palestinians who walked out on the last round of talks, dodged talks for the first eight months of Israel’s nine-month settlement freeze in 2009 and set preconditions that are preventing a resumption of talks today.

Aharon Shifron-Ronnie

Concord, Calif.

These past weeks the U.S. has berated the leaders of several Middle East countries for dealing harshly with their citizens and demanded that their right to peaceful demonstration be respected. The same U.S. government vetoed a resolution to condemn Israel’s refusal to stop building on Palestinian lands despite the universal condemnation of such illegal actions.

Where is our sense of shame, or our awareness of the complete hypocrisy of our position?

Peter O’Reilly

Claremont

This is the country that professes the rule of law yet bars enforcement of international law; the country that venerates freedom of determination yet quashes the aspiration of a whole people; the country that accedes to the demands of an ally that fears the democratic expression of its neighbors.

To the American public I say, yes Virginia, some animals are more equal than others.

Joe Batarse

Azusa

Not buying this fish story

Re “Discrimination claim a hard one to swallow,” Business, Feb. 18

Plaintiff David Martin makes an argument that is simply a nonstarter. Rice is a key ingredient in sushi, and to suggest that restaurant owner Jay Oh should have served sashimi in its stead because Martin has diabetes is nonsense.

This is not a matter of semantics; sushi and sashimi are not the same. This fundamental distinction is widely accepted as convention among those who enjoy the cuisine. Oh knows this, and he was well within his rights to limit the offerings.

Diabetics in the know will surely agree with Oh’s position, as well as the frivolity of the lawsuit. I only hope the judicial system will too.

Bill Davenport

Arlington Heights, Ill.

I have been a customer of A Ca-Shi in Studio City for many years. I know the owner to be as nice and generous a man as you could meet. If Martin wanted sashimi that day, he should have ordered it. I assure you, he would have received generous portions at a reasonable price.

It is very disturbing to me that he is allowed to put Oh through some legal hell when there is no basis for a claim of discrimination here.

Caryn Keller

Studio City

Gas sipping

Re “Gasoline hits a high for February,” Business, Feb. 18

The wringing of hands over rising gasoline prices does no good. Recent revelations that Saudi Arabia has grossly overestimated its production capacity, combined with reports that we are very close to peak oil, mean that the price of gasoline will continue to go up.

Rather than fight a losing battle, people need to switch to the new electric cars as soon as they are able. In the meantime, everyone should practice “hyper-miling” techniques to extend the miles they get from a gallon of gas. Because most people drive without considering efficiency, they are throwing away money.

Paul Scott

Santa Monica