Letters: ‘909ers’ belong too

Re “909: wrong number in beachside town,” Sept. 22

I, for one, am a proud “909er” — that group so disdained by Orange County beach community residents for supposedly invading and causing trouble. My house is worth more than $700,000, and my household income is about $180,000.

When I want to go to the beach, I go to Hawaii, where the water and beaches are clean and the locals are friendly. I refuse to spend my money in Orange County, where bigoted people are in abundance.

I hope other 909ers read this article and stop spending their money in Orange County. Once their pockets become lighter, we’ll see how welcoming they become.

Florentina Wilhelm

Diamond Bar

Why beat around the bush? The term “909ers” is used in the same vein in certain Orange County communities as the

“N-word.” The disdain for outsiders and the perceived havoc they bring unfairly persists even though, as The Times notes, only three of the 12 people arrested in the Huntington Beach riot in July were from the Inland Empire.

Imagine if all Southern California cities adopted the notion that a particular area was for “locals only.” Hollywood, Dodger Stadium, the Coliseum, Staples Centre, the Forum and the Walt Disney Concert Hall would be strictly off-limits to residents from beach communities.

Until those who use the term “909ers” can create their own self-sustaining communities, they should stop masquerading as citizens up in arms.

Volney E. Hyde

Sherman Oaks

So those rich kids who live in beach cities look down on others, depending on their area code.

They’re no better or worse than us, but we do have a term for those who load up their expensive cars bought by their parents and drive to Big Bear: flatlanders. They don’t know squat about driving in wintry conditions, negotiating roads with black ice or putting on tire chains.

These people need to learn to get along with everyone, not just their fellow spoiled buddies. And remember, those of us in the 909 or 951 area codes pay taxes too for things like maintaining beaches, so those beaches are ours as much as yours.

Jon Fleischer

Hemet

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