To the Editor:
Martin, Due Process protects everyone in this country, innocent and guilty. Suspicion, innuendo, or cultural differences, are not adequate to punish. The individuals “grabbed” off the street to an infamously cruel El Salvador prison, were selected because they had tattoos and looked Hispanic or Middle Eastern. One guy had “Autism Awareness,” in Spanish in honor of his brother, but was deported anyway, because “quotas.” The Trump administration defied a court order to return the illegally deported men and provide Probable Cause for arrests, and Due Process before punishment. Trump has refused, claiming he answers to no one, not even the Courts.
How is it, Martin, that you vilify Trump for his international offences, but you think some completely different president is making decisions at home? The guy who is betraying Ukraine, slow dancing with Putin, and insulting our international allies, is the very same guy plotting against every agency of the federal government upon which Americans rely, excepting the military, and defying the Judiciary. We went from 250 years of “Beacon of Freedom” to “Slipping into Totalitarianism” in 70 days.
Martin, you are apparently unaware that Trump is following Viktor Orban’s plan for his despotic takeover of Hungary, upon which the Heritage Foundation admittedly modeled Project 2025. Google it. It is a blueprint of how a despot builds his power base to supplant a democracy, and you “admire” it?
The conservative Wall Street Journal editorial board recently observed that Trump’s rollercoaster handling of tariffs will have, ironically, the most brutal effect on red states that most strongly supported his reelection. “Tariffs are taxes….Mr. Trump’s tariff spree is the triumph of ideology over, well, common sense. Let’s hope the President soon comes to his senses.” It only took two months to drive Japan and India to band together with China against the Trump tariffs.
The Hegseth “Signalgate” debacle is appalling dangerous. Beyond the security breach, the Commander-in-Chief “didn’t know” about the “Yemen chat”, yet he and Hegseth vigorously asserted that the reporting was a “hoax,” the innocent, mistakenly-included journalist deemed “scum,” and the lies just keep coming. AG Bondi refuses to investigate. One particularly notable thing about Hegseth is that he has brought his wife to security meetings and his little brother travels with him as a Pentagon employee, like chaperones. Presumably, his mother is unavailable.
Our Constitution’s ”balance of powers” is under siege from within, international alliances are crumbling, our economy is trembling with uncertainty, and world stability is threatened (as you noted) because of one elected guy who idolizes money and despots, disdains ordinary people, and admits that he is already, less than 90 days in, discussing an unconstitutional third term (“there are methods”). He free-reined a hatchet man-child who thinks he purchased America in the last election for a quarter-billion dollars, and he may well have. Trump and Musk: “Made it Ma! To the Top of the World!” (Apropos. James Cagney, “White Heat”, 1949).
Kelly Scoles,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
Technology disrupts. It always has. It was a significant factor in both the Civil War and the collapse of the Rust Belt.
Technology gives with one hand and takes away with the other. We’re there again—facing radical change to our economy and
culture. With AI, companies are already increasing profits by reducing human labor.
The people profiting from this change don’t want you to notice. They’re playing a modern version of three card monte. This
game, like the card game, uses misdirection. They get you to pay attention to the thing over there, while they do something
entirely different here.
Trump excels at this game. He points you to the thing you most fear. Immigrants. The cost of eggs. The welfare recipient.
Pronouns. The thing he wanted was your vote. Now that he has it, what’s he doing with it? Betraying Ukraine. Destabilizing
the economy. Threatening to make Canada the 51st state. Firing government workers. Closing national parks. Handing out more
tax breaks to the uber wealthy on the backs of the middle class. Killing the Education Department. Getting rid of the watch
dogs who protect us from the big bad wolves out there who would literally take the food from your grandmother’s plate. How’s
that helping the price of eggs?
While you were working overtime, feeding and raising good kids, trying to get your piece of the American Dream—too busy to
pay much attention to politics—the corporate titans were getting tax breaks, growing the national debt. Blaming
“entitlements.” Tearing apart the services people need. And Trump was practicing his craft. Cheating landscapers. Builders.
Contractors. Forcing them into court to get paid what he promised when he hired them. Playing the business wizard on TV
while his bankruptcies piled up. And here we are.
Stop listening to what he’s saying. Watch what he’s doing. While he tells you what to fear. What’s the plan when jobs
disappear? Don’t get me wrong. I’m not a technophobe. Good comes from AI. But jobs are still going away. What’s the plan?
Pat Collins,
Fillmore, Ca
To the Editor:
Martin, it surprises me that, after Trump’s first 60 days, you still don’t recognize that his true motives are not to serve
the People, but rather to create - with shock, awe, and resulting chaos - an oligarchy, to enforce unitary power as outlined
in P2025, and to seek revenge on people who disagree with him. Trump has said, “I alone can fix it,” and he meant without
any Constitutional “balance of power” from the Legislative or Judicial Branches, as he is demonstrating in the deportation
case before US District Judge Boasberg and on appeal in that court.
Chief Justice Roberts rebuked Trump’s AG and DOJ lawyers for their “inappropriate” and ahistorical remarks about impeaching
Judge Boasberg, originally appointed to a lower court by GW Bush and elevated by Obama (confirmation vote 96-0), and a
former Chief Judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. When Boasberg asked very basic questions of the AG and
WH attorneys about their failure to comply with his temporary restraining order (TRO) against the deportation, their answer
was essentially, ”We’re not going to tell you, Judge.” “It’s a national security secret.” AG Pam Bondi then arrogantly and
unwisely instructed the Judge how he should have handled the case.
In a ruling last week, Boasberg noted that the law upon which the WH relies, the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 “AEA”), last used
in the shameful internment of Japanese following Pearl Harbor, was only meant to be used when there was a “declared war or
when there was an invasion or predatory incursion by a hostile nation or government”, i.e., an imminent emergency. No
declared war, no individualized fact-finding hearings, no Due Process though each plaintiff vehemently denied being a member
of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang.
US Circuit Judge Patricia Millett, who heard the appeal of the WH to dismiss Judge Boasberg’s TRO against the deportation
said that, “Nazis got better treatment under the AEA than has happened here.”
This case is the first to determine whether “our flag is still there.” Trump insists that only he has authority over his own
presidential actions, a claim which is clearly denied by the Constitution. FYI: both Presidents GW Bush and Barack Obama
were overruled by District Court Judges several times and complied, but then they didn’t lust to be tyrants.
Sorry, Martin. There is no cable host I respect less than Mark Levin, with the possible exceptions of Fox’s Jesse Watters
and Greg Gutfeld, and the disgraced Tucker Carlson. Levin scored the highest level of “outrage” in a study measuring
incendiary discourse on talk radio. Of the 10 contestants, Levin was deemed the host who “most helped to legitimize the use
of uncivil discourse” in American politics, with his “penchant for hysteria.” There’s already enough poo flowing without
bathing in that clown’s dirty water.
Kelly Scoles,
Fillmore, Ca
To the Editor:
Regarding AI. AI’s useful—even fun sometimes. It’s not going away. AND it’s a significant threat to the way we live our lives. We’d do well to think about the potential impacts and how to mitigate them. While many are legitimately concerned about privacy issues with DOGE, there’s another issue that no one talks about.
Early in my career, I wrote procedures for employees in academic and technical environments. My first priority was to identify employees and their job titles. Then I identified their roles, and finally their tasks. To identify tasks, I asked employees to tell me five things they did last week. That data went into a manual to clarify roles and responsibilities and to train new hires.
The data I collected back then is what DOGE is collecting now. But Musk isn’t doing it to create manuals. That’s old tech. He’s gathering this data to build his AI venture. So he can automate the work. And he’s getting all that data for free. A nice competitive edge, wouldn’t you say? Once he does that for the feds, he can easily expand into the private sector. No humans need apply.
We need to prepare. Where’s the plan? How will we reorganize our economy to accommodate massive unemployment? I’m not saying we can’t find other ways to fill our lives. The question is, how will we transition economically?
Ask yourself, how will it affect me, my children, my neighbors, my community? What do we do when machines take our jobs? During the transition, should we weaken or strengthen our social safety nets? We can’t afford to get distracted by the chaos. There’s a reason why this looks more like a smash and grab than an orderly process.
They aren’t getting rid of waste. They’re getting rid of humans. Then they’re coming for more. Because—for men like Musk and Trump—there’s never enough.
Pat Collins,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
Unfortunately, there is no sunlight between President Trump’s foreign and national actions. They all arise from his gilded view of Himself in His World.
The Republican Legislature is at his command. Any judge issuing an order against Trump’s actions means that the judge is “corrupt”, incompetent, and can be defied or replaced. For Trump, there is no “separation of powers”; all powers reside in him as the Unitary Executive (per P2025).
The WH issued a statement Sunday, conceding that Trump invoked wartime powers, and ignored a US District Judge’s order that two planes in the air with illegally deported alleged criminal immigrants be “turned around” and brought back, the excuse being that the planes were over “international waters”, and the order therefore did not apply. We are going to be a country of laws, or not. Trump chose “not.”
Last week, Trump press secretary Karoline Leavitt (with no legal background or, apparently, an American History class in her past), haughtily insisted that, “for anybody who has a basic understanding of the law, you cannot have a low-level district court judge filing [ordering] an injunction to usurp the executive authority of the president of the United States.” The president, with his executive authority, is still subject to the law, though Trump has asserted that he and the AG will inform the Judiciary what the law is if/when it challenges presidential acts. It’s an unconstitutional claim.
Consistent with Trump’s determination to destroy the Christian concepts of DEI, the National Arlington Cemetery has removed key information from its website about prominent Black, Hispanic, and female service members, including Army Maj. Gen. CC Rogers, a Black Medal of Honor winner (the site now refers to his as a “DEI Medal”), as well as historical topics like the Civil War. Recall that Trump has called war dead “suckers and losers.”
Thousands of American scientists and researchers have been fired and solicited by other countries as “the best science brains in the business.” Demolishing USAID while anti-tuberculosis vaccines sit on docks in Africa, withdrawing from WHO and CDC, increase the chances of the widespread advance of diseases on a small but populous planet. Your 401k’s not going to help you if you are drowning in your own blood with untreatable TB.
Trump’s DOGE fired significant numbers of USDA employees who worked in food inspection. NSA staff has been severely reduced, as has the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. But, who needs them when the president has a stack of black Sharpies?
“Trump just closed Voice of America (VoA). Autocrats worldwide are rejoicing.” “VoA and [Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty] were the beacons of hope…they gave people hope to persist and eventually bring down the communist regimes that many thought would last forever.” Trump deems VoA inessential to the free world’s future. I haven’t even mentioned the economy.
How “American” are we if we will voluntarily succumb to unprecedented exercises of mutant, manic presidential power?
Kelly Scoles
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
I must have struck a nerve with my summation of where we stand regarding the waste and fraud in our government and
entitlement system. First I will address Pat Collins’ question of “Whose fault.....the person using the EBT?” And then
suggesting “How about corporate responsibility.” I did notice that Pat merely glossed over the Cloward/Piven Strategy and
the factual receipts given.
Twenty states have bills addressing SNAP/EBT purchases of junk food. Friday, March 14th, Texas Health and Human Services
held a hearing on SB 75. An American Heart Association (AHA) representative testified against the bill, stating those who
receive SNAP should receive MORE of the entitlement to enable the purchase of both the junk food and fresh vegetables and
fruit. Texas State Senator Lois Kolkhorst responded “I’m shocked at what was said” amazed that AMA would promote a main
cause of obesity which contributes to heart complications. Grace Price, an advocate for SB75, testified “The data shows that
sweet soda is the number one commodity purchased with SNAP throughout the country”. Add to that all the unhealthy snacks and
over processed food that’s also bought. A later investigation reported that Coca-cola, Pepsico and the pharmaceutical
industry are the largest donors to AHA. Follow the money!!! Pepsico has 63 product lines, 30% (cookies, chips, sweet cereal)
and Coca-cola has 35 product lines, the majority sweet drinks and each company lobbies Wash DC with donations to both
parties that influence the FDA, Dept of AG, School Nutrition and SNAP.
California saw two lawsuits (2003 & 2010) against Kraft’s products’ use of GMO and trans fat. The 2010 Class action (trans
fat) is still ongoing with the claim trans fat contributes to type 2 diabetes, heart disease and some forms of cancer. But,
AMA, at that time, stated there were “no safe levels” of trans fat and Kraft used a deceptive message of healthfulness. A
completely different attitude, what a change!!! Then in 2012 Kraft contributed almost $2million to a political campaign to
oppose Prop 37 which would mandate labels inform buyers when GMOs ingredients are used. .
Products are strategically placed on shelves to target the eyes of both children and adults for impulsive buys. It’s called
slotting/listing. Large national and international market retailers receive the highest fees from manufactures for end aisle
shelves. When original fees expire, manufacturers offer discounts or free items to keep its placement. Wonder why so much
junk food is “on sale”? Just look at the ad flyers you get in the mail: chips, cookies and soda. It’s a money game, with our
health the loser.
Globalist conglomerates like Mondelez international, Kraft/Heinz. Philip Morris, Nabisco, Nestilies, Kellogg etc. have
practically taken over the food industry. Without their extremely processed foods and snacks, large supermarkets would be
half empty. Markets only sell what makes the most profit, not what’s best for you and today we have far fewer choices of
where to shop. Basically it is five conglomerates. Kroger with 19 food chains, over 2,750 stores, Albertsons 2,093 stores
1,300 US and Canada. Aldi and Walmart with the most locations, Cosco pulls in 9%.. These five conglomerates own over 1/3 of
US food markets and control 1/2 the trillion dollar food industry. You think they don’t have an impact on how SNAP is spent?
Yes Pat, corporations are responsible for alot! But a savior Robinhood fixation of “Republican mission to rob from the
middle class to feed the rich while blaming the poor” is so missguided. Globalists who took the jobs offshore while
donations greased the hands of both parties to ignore it. How did the Clintons, Obamas, Bidens, Congress/Senate members
ect. become multi-millionaires on a government salary? Consider; have we been part of a Color Revolution for a decade or
longer supported by the CIA, Five Eyes (UK), DOJ, FBI, DOE, MSM ect? BLM, Antifa, proHamas, China Confucius Institute etc in
schools? Why need so many pardons or use Bleachbit on your phone? Where did all the billions of dollars disappear to? Are
the rented protester phony riots, BLM, Antifa, proHamas. funded through nonprofits NGOs, USAID? Is that just a tinfoil hat
conspiracy?
To address Kelly Scoles comment “distaste for all things Democratic Party”. Kelly, I was a straight line Democrat for almost
30 years. But changes in society, especially our schools, exposed the Dem’s real goals. Social Security, Medicare, welfare,
etc. began with good intentions, but the corruption, waste, mismanagement and failures need big fixes. Civil Rights? Kelly,
did you forget the Civil War where Democrats/Dixiecrats killed thousands of citizens in an effort to keep Blacks in slavery?
Are we to pretend real history didn’t happen? Has the Cloward/Piven Strategy put them and others in a modern day Government
Plantation? People are not feral animals to be fed, petted and used for votes/power. When the majority of students can’t
read, who’s responsible for that? Big fixes are needed and the Dem’s need to get out of the way.
Jean McLeod
Fillmore, Ca
To the Editor:
Martin, renaming Mt. McKinley? For this you cheer? Alaskans like the name Denali. It’s their mountain. Shouldn’t they have a say?
Gulf of America? Lordy, someone take that man’s Sharpie away. Why stop there? How about renaming Earth, planet Donaldo? Donnie’s brain dump last week was a spectacle of lies and resentments. On the heels of knifing Zelenskyy in the back. Republicans mute. Shame on them.
Ms. McLeod, I’d like to respond to a few of your questions.
“Does it make sense the more EBT given, the less … nutritional food is available at large corporate markets …?” Whose fault is that? The person using EBT? Your solution is to take away benefits? How about corporate responsibility?
Maybe Clowerd/Piven were prescient. Let’s talk AI. It’s not going to take jobs. It’s taking them, right now. Jobs from talented, skilled, educated, middle class people. Leaving them using EBT. Applying for welfare. Some even homeless. This genie is not going back in the bottle. Maybe we ought to figure out how we’re going to organize the economy when humans need not apply.
Dems completely agree on the debt. “Everyone needs to take responsibility.” Abso-freakin’lootly. The wealthy seem to have an unquenchable thirst for tax breaks. Let’s end the Republican mission to rob from the middle class to feed the rich while blaming the poor.
A modest 2% tax on billionaires could generate nearly a quarter-trillion dollars annually, offering relief to the middle class. 2%. All while enabling us to do what Jesus commanded.
Pat Collins,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
Briefly, to Jean McLeod. Your distaste for all things Democratic Party is clear, though it gave you Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the 40-hour work week, FEMA, worker safety protections, the right of labor to organize, Family & Medical Leave Act, Consumer Product Safety Commission, Americans with Disabilities Act, Freedom of Information Act, bank fraud protection, etc. All designed to help people, financially and otherwise. The evil bastards.
True, Lyndon Johnson was a crude, profane, brilliant, and racist legislator but he also shepherded the passage of the Civil Rights Act (“CRA”), convincing many Republicans, like Everett Dirksen, to encourage his caucus to join the legislative fight for racial equality.
I had planned to detail the path of our present gross economic imbalance, but at a recent Foreign Relations Committee hearing for “advise and consent” of various Trump ambassadorship nominees, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) asked a direct question on behalf of his constituents. Did any nominee believe that that President Trump’s recent actions indicate he may be a “Russian asset?” All nominees evaded the question, but did go into defensive reveries of flattery for the president. It is a question that many free nations are now asking themselves.
Merkley cited 5 instances where the possibility became a legitimate question:
1. In the WH Oval Office, Trump repeated several Russian talking points, including falsely claiming that Ukraine had started the war, Zelensky is a dictator, WWIII will be Zelensky’s fault, etc.
2. Gave away key negotiating points to the Russians, including excluding Ukraine from NATO in the future, thereby advancing Putin’s decades-old objective to weaken free nations. Russian land occupied by Ukraine will be returned, and Ukrainian-occupied Russian land will also be returned to Russia. Trump has left Zelensky out of peace negotiations and demanded that he resign before any treaty is effective.
3. Effectively cut off all funding to Ukraine, terminated Ukraine’s receipt of all US intelligence-gathering and reinstating it under pressure, including of Russian troop movements, and cut their satellite capabilities. He has also “banned” the UK from sharing any US military intelligence with Ukraine.
4. Further undermined NATO by denigrating other free nations (a JD Vance specialty), such as Canada, UK, France, and Poland. Trump is essentially abandoning Europe to Putin. Trump refuses to consider that Putin may violate any peace-keeping terms, despite his history.
5. Given the world a taste of what happens if you disagree with him in his brutish treatment of Zelensky and consequent withholding of funding, materials, and intelligence from Ukraine, which can only benefit Russia and hurt Ukraine and other free nations.
Meanwhile, Putin wisely says nothing, letting Trump do his dirty work for him, with no corresponding advantage to the United States. Our allies have traditionally defended the US, often excusing our failures, because our powerful nation stood for democracy against despots, provided world-wide stability and security, and advocated free-market capitalism, all of which we appear to be abandoning.
Kelly Scoles,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
Martin, I am surprised you found an act loathsome enough to register criticism of Trump. From allowing a manic stranger to upend our government before identifying problems, to Trump’s assertion of independence from the Judiciary and proclaiming himself king, to his salivating regard for the despot Putin, these revelations are not a surprise (except for empowering Musk). They were masked or lied about in the 2024 election. Now, Trump/Musk et al. are gutting our institutions and abandoning our allies in the Name of the American People.
The national scene under Trump II is proceeding as planned in Project 2025, no legislation required, unless the courts demand it and maybe not even then. Essential services, such as the FAA, Social Security, Medicaid, FEMA, National Weather Service, VA programs, WIC and SNAP, CDC and WHO when pandemics are threatened everywhere, are being capsized with no oversight or care for the damage to our society. And he asks us to “trust me.”
Internationally, last week, in a WH-planned ambush, we witnessed an historically unpresidential display in the brutish beratement of Ukraine President Zelensky. Trump threatened to abandon Ukraine completely if Zelensky did not agree to his peace terms. Itching for a conflict, Trump and Vance falsely chided Zelensky for a lack of gratitude toward the US, and for the clothes he was wearing (dignity, truth, statesmanship optional but clothing, vital. Except for Elon).
When Zelensky insisted that Ukraine needed security assurances from the US in case Putin reneged on the peace agreement (as he has done repeatedly), Trump wagged his finger and yelled at Ukraine’s president, “You’re gambling with WW III…with us you have the cards, but without us, you don’t have the cards. “This was public “negotiation” from a heavily made-up draft dodger to a leader whose very name conjures “courage.”
This was not “America the Great.” This was Trump auditioning for a Tony Soprano redux in his lust for the Nobel Peace Prize and an “atta-boy” from Putin. We all want the war to end, but not by sacrificing Ukraine to a murderous imperialist who started the war and wants to be rewarded for it. Ukraine is just the first step in Putin’s annexation efforts, and by supporting Russia in this demand for a forced peace, Trump is setting up a precedent. It is not supportive of the free world.
Tragically, Trump thinks he is manipulating Putin, but KBG-alum Putin was expertly trained to sniff out weaknesses and fatal flaws, including addiction to flatulent praise (a profound defect in anyone), willingness to shank a friend, and desire to be seen as another strongman. The WH has ordered the US Cyber Command to “stand down” from “all planning against Russia including offensive digital actions , and the AG has eliminated DOJ/FBI oversight of Russia. It is obvious that, in fact, Putin is dominating Trump, playing the long game, and he is smiling. For he is getting close to breaking 80-year-old free world alliances, and he’s getting help.
The ultimate irony is that when Trump lied, many people believed him but, when he told the truth, they laughed at it as entertaining hyperbole. This isn’t about the quarrels of Republican or Democrat neighbors. These actions nationally are bringing suffering to many of our fellow citizens in essential ways (take a look at the Republican House budget proposal), and internationally show us as weak but thuggish, who have switched to the side of authoritarians. And it is being done in our names. Google at will.
Kelly Scoles,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
How many times do you wonder why poverty continues to expand and so few achieve a successful path out? Is there a plan to keep it that way? Some facts would point to yes. Who are the people who wanted more power, influence and/or financial gain both politically and in academia. In 1964 LBJ bagan The Great Society better known as the War of Poverty. Racist LBJ stated (heard on audio recording still available today) “We’ll get those *n* on welfare and we’ll have their vote for the next 100 years”. His goal; destroy the family unit by creating large blocks of poor communities with fatherless homes to become socially engineered government dependents. And it worked!!!
Less than seven years later Columbia Univ. Professors Richard Clowerd’s and Francis Piven presented their “ Clowerd/Piven Strategy”. Their goal; to install socialism and a guaranteed universal basic income. Does that sound familiar today? The strategy; flood society with outreach through advertisements, grow unrest, enlarge the welfare state beyond capacity. Look it up!
Ten years later another Columbia student/alumni Barack Obama spent billions promoting a larger welfare population with distribution of brochures in schools, churches, libraries, hired outreach tables in hospitals, civic centers, ads on TV, radio, and billboards. Throughout the country, his promotions were everywhere including two billboards in Fillmore on Hwy 126, as you entered from the east and one from the west. You couldn’t go a day without hearing or seeing the ads and promotions. Then the last four years of Biden (probably Obama in charge with a continued push) practically finished the process. Up to 12 million border crossings were attached to the maximum welfare entitlements and shelter.
Included in Clowerd/Pivin Strategy were Saul Alinsky rules; use of class and ethnic friction by militant low income organizations (nonprofit/NGO,USAID) who declare the poor victims of pervasive oppression and injustice, unable to rise from poverty without a socialist revolution. BLM? Sound familiar? Is the Clowerd/Piven Strategy alive today? Point out welfare’s failures and you’ll hear cries of “children who experience malnutrition” and claims of deprived children whose parents can’t “buy the child an ice cream cone” an “economic imbalance” as Kelly Scoles wrote last week. Please answer, what is your fair share of what someone else worked for? Emotions won’t solve the real problem. Does it make sense the more EBT given, the less availability of nutritional food is available at large corporate markets like Kroger, Albertsons? Follow the money. Thankfully antitrust law stopped that buyout/merger attempt. We’re consuming more calories but receiving less nutrients needed. Thus, we’re getting fatter. Sorry Kelly you feel I “ungraciously” used the word fat, would obese sound softer?
Generations of families are stuck on welfare, becoming a lifestyle for far too many. Isn’t welfare temporary for those capable of working? Not today! Ask a small business owner how many times they’ve offered employment, only to be turned down if he/she won’t pay in cash under the table to allow welfare benefits to continue. Just ask, I have. Shouldn’t we be promoting development to a person’s capacity with work that’s rewarded and better living conditions instead of locked in lives of government dependency? Maybe the problem is a poor education and inability to qualify? For many that may be true. What or whose responsibility? Are poverty rates a result of a planned process toward socialism? Or did it just “happen”? The left pushed it and the right did nothing to stop it. Until now!!!
We are $36 trillion in debt! This cannot continue. We’re now seeing how USAID wasted billions through a grift of kick-backs from the nonprofit/NGO system. More will be exposed in the next months. There’s a reason the Biden crime family and others received pardons!!! Fixing what’s broken after creating it and ignoring the waste, fraud and abuse for so long won’t be easy. Everyone needs to take responsibility.
Jean McLeod,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
A Fillmore Lions “THANK YOU SHOUT OUT” to HARRISON TRASH, QUALITY AG, OTTO & SONS, and the local 4H’S for assisting the Lions Club in the cleanup of the Scout Foundation Property. The cleanup was very much needed and long overdue and could not have been done without you. Thanks, Scott Lee, Lions Secretary.
Scott Lee,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
I understand Musk’s “chainsaw” approach to budget cuts—the try it, see what happens approach. After all, in the tech world, there’s always an UNDO button. There’s a job, testers, who are dedicated to breaking things. I wasn’t a tester, but when I worked in the industry, I found an error (aka broke) something in one company’s system that shut the whole company down for two weeks. For another company, the problem I found was so big, I earned a major bonus for finding it. Ultimately, in tech world, any problem can be solved with the UNDO button.
If only that were true for the rest of life.
A health care initiative giving condoms can sound outrageous—and grab headlines—but when it’s understood to stop the spread of AIDS over there before it gets here, it makes financial sense. Laying off workers while you wait to see where the real need is can seem to make sense. Until you realize there is no UNDO button for either of those scenarios.
When a family is thrown into chaos because they’ve lost their income and health benefits, and their knowledge and expertise is lost to the organization. When AIDS spreads to your shore. When relief foods are left rotting on a dock and people are left starving, and farmers are left uncompensated. There is no UNDO button for that.
Human lives cannot be reduced to a series of 1’s and 0’s that can be deleted and rearranged at will. And that’s what Musk has a hard time computing.
Pat Collins,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
Since Martin has warned us of his waning patience, I will honor his distress and briefly address Jean McLeod’s LTTE of last week.
Jean, the cost of lettuce I used was an educated guess by people more knowledgeable than I for a projected worst-case estimate of an extended loss of immigrant labor. You seem to be upset about several things, and I am sorry that you think I write to induce fear. I write to share what I see but, yes, the view is increasingly chaotic and alarming under this administration, especially for many independent farmers. Will the Republican congressionals ever function again to balance the powers of their newly-elected radical executive? So far, crickets.
Given the economic imbalance, there are many people, mostly children, who would experience extreme malnutrition in the “richest nation on earth” without SNAP or WIC. Is dying really your test of need? Many people you so ungraciously call “fat” may have metabolic or other issues, or can only afford cheaper higher-calorie carbohydrates, like bread or pasta, but can’t always financially access less processed sources of food. But you’re likely right that they sometimes splurge and buy that ice cream cone their kids don’t really need, but want. The shameless reprobates.
NB: There are ways to successfully identify and correct wasteful practices. Trump’s brilliant formula to appoint a man who is even more untethered than he to “burn this village to save it” is not one of them.
Kelly Scoles,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
The first time I heard the phrase “Lettuce will be five dollars a head” was almost twenty years ago. May 1st of 2006 when those here illegally marched and protested by the thousands in the streets of Los Angeles. Well the lettuce never reached even close to that price, yet now Kelly Scoles jumped that price up to ten dollars a head. That’s what Democrats do, they use fear and what better fear than the thought that you’re going to go hungry! No more SNAP or WIC. Oh what will we do, so much fear, be afraid.
The majority of cost in farming is marketing, not labor or lack of it. Marketing includes; the cost of land, water, seed, fertilizer, packaging, transportation, equipment, placement, advertising, bookkeeping/office/legal/insurance just to name some of ;the costs. Blackberry farmers years back couldn’t find the labor needed, so they bought machines to pick the crop. Later it was reported that the harvest cost was less and was much more sanitary. But knowing something as simple as how a business functions doesn’t support the emotional scare tactics of those who benefit from a socially engineered society to believe they need protection from common sense. So why not bring out the old line, “Lettuce will be $10 a head”.
Look into the future crystal ball and feel all the fear of starvation and having no one there to save you but them. Does anyone starve in this country? No, we are too fat from over processed food.
Maybe a better, more accurate vision for our citizens’ future should be a society that takes responsibility for our actual needs instead of unnecessary wants.
We need good medical care, not just taking a pill. Good schools where students actually learn. Food that isn’t over processed. Try finding beef, chicken or fish (not pork) at the market with a bone today. Beef, chicken, fish bones support our hair, skin and nails. Notice how just about everything is “boneless”. Those bones are sold to the supplement manufacturers to make collagen and then sold to the public as a pill or powder. Try getting fresh fish. We live 20 miles from the ocean, yet the market sells us frozen fish from thousands of miles away.
Today, an average of 300 US citizens die of fentanyl EACH DAY! Yes EACH DAY. Not a week or month. But each day. During Biden, the drugs along with the prison population of hundreds of countries, crossed that border. Yet, last week there were some truly ignorant people protesting in this town to let that continue and keep the status quo. Is that the benefit of a failed education and cartel influence?
What’s most valuable doesn’t come easy. It takes endurance and sometimes sacrifice for a better future. We need to start fixing it now!
Jean McLeod,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
You haven’t lost a move since last we sparred, Martin. You are as nimble as ever in vaulting over core issues and coming to a wobbly landing on collateral points. It should be obvious by now that the P2025 blueprint was never intended to be legislated, but rather to be enacted by edict of the president (and his bonus co-executive, neo-Nazi-supporting Elon Musk). The “first 100 days” of P2025 was designed as a blitzkrieg of power through illegal, unconstitutional, unilateral acts designed to instill confusion and disorientation in the government and population. Trump decided long ago that in chaos there is opportunity. None of it occurred as the result of “a bill.” I assure you that this is just the beginning of the onslaught. The effects haven’t yet reached the general population.
In only one month Trump II has made it clear that the Republican Congress will bend to his will or be punished, and few have shown any desire to challenge him and provide the “balance of power” intended in the Constitution. Some make little critter squeaks of objection, but inevitably back down. Does it concern you that Trump has given data-junkie Musk (without oath of office or requirement for advise and consent from Congress) historically unique, sweeping powers including access to your private data, without parameters or transparency?
In addition, Trump, VP Vance, Gym Jordan, Marco Rubio, and other MAGA Republicans have lately insisted that the Judicial Branch has no authority to determine the constitutionality of Trump’s executive decisions. Trumpians have declared that any judge not agreeing with him, as president or personally, is a “rogue judge” and will be impeached.
These moves, coupled with the recent SCOTUS decision in Trump v. US, finding that a former president cannot be prosecuted even for crimes committed during his term of office, signal Trump’s belief that he has absolutely no impediment to doing anything at all. He rejects the Constitutional requirement of checks and balances provided by Congress and the Judicial Branch. What makes you think he will govern at the will of the voters if he rejects the Constitutional requirement of “balance of power?”
January 6 has already shown that Trump won’t honor the will of the people unless it is his own.
Kelly Scoles,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
I promised myself I would stand back from the Trump II administration to see what unfolded. I will step over discussion of Greenland, Panama, Canada, the proposed displacement of Palestinians and theft of Gaza to build the “Middle East Riviera,” (a US [Trump]-owned vacation spot first proposed a year ago by Jared Kushner), or that your personal information, including financial data, has been entrusted by Trump to an unelected, unvetted, unethical, and unscrupulously self-interested data/power addict who bought himself a presidency, the looming economic crisis, assorted unconstitutional executive decisions, and Trump’s proposed sell-out of Ukraine to Russia.
I write to tell you, Martin, that I am sorry you rejected my entreaties to acquaint yourself with P2025 sometime back. It’s right on target. Its co-author, Russell Vought, has been confirmed as OMB Director and helped to prepare draft executive orders for Trump II, though you may recall that Trump had denied any knowledge of it. Prepare to watch Trump ignore Congress and even the Courts to implement his P2025 objective of remaking government so that it is no longer responsible to the electorate, but solely to the Unitary Executive and his allegiances.
On day one, Trump froze federal aid programs for 90 days, an impoundment of funds Congress had already appropriated. This is a usurpation of the congressional “power of the purse” and is not within a president’s constitutional authority. Several courts have already enjoined the action. “Shock and Awe” is intended to completely disorient people who believe their government would never betray them.
But last weekend VP Vance and other MAGA congressionals insisted that “judges aren’t allowed to control the executive’s legitimate power” (not to be confused with the newly-hatched presidential immunity) and should not determine the constitutionality of the president’s handing the nation’s Treasury management to his largest campaign donor, or weigh in on Trump’s attempt to revise the 14th Amendment by executive order. The Republican Congress shows no sign of claiming its duty to “advise and consent,” insisting instead on self-castrating its own congressional power. Trump’s oligarch Cabinet was chosen to never challenge him. That leaves The People.
What will happen when Trumpian policies hit the streets and P2025 unfolds at the granular level? When, without immigrants, lettuce will be $10/head and milk $8/quart? When there are major cuts to our neighbors’ SNAP and WIC? When the CDC and WHO no longer keep data or furnish information about the rising number of horrific diseases and potential cures? When ACA health insurance is decimated? Or when it becomes clear that the educational needs of special students are inessential to “making America great again’? Who will excuse it when grandma’s SSA check and Medicare are reduced so that millionaires can get the renewed Trump tax cut?
Kelly Scoles,
Fillmore, Ca
To the Editor:
A Big 4 Paw Salute and Thanks to the Fillmore Community!!
We, at C.A.R.L.’s Pet Care Center in Santa Paula, want to thank the community of Fillmore!
Last week, the Mountain Fire caused us to evacuate our entire group of Rescue animals, off of Mission Rock Rd. in Santa Paula. Putting our Evacuation plan in to action and sending out S.O.S. on Facebook, we were surrounded by amazing group of wonderful people. Quickly we had a location for evacuation. Trucks, Trucks with horse trailers, an R.V. and private cars as well loaded with animals and headed for Fillmore.
Once we were at the evacuation site, Faith Community Church welcomed us and local Fillmorians, continued to shower us with love and care. Blankets, water, ice, treats, donations and wishes to help were in abundance! The staff was also treated with drinks, pizza, coffee runs, and a freshly prepared homemade breakfast and sweets.
It was wonderful to see the spirit of your community, wrap their arms around us in such a trying time. We are back now at our facility, safe a sound. Our volunteers were, beyond words, the most dedicated and courageous people we know!
Please know we couldn’t have been successful without each and everyone of you. Stop by so that we may Thank you in person. We are located on: 901 Mission Rock Rd., Santa Paula.
Look forward to seeing you again,
Sincerely,
C.A.R.L.’S Pet Care Center Staff
Santa Paula, Ca
To the Editor:
The people have spoken loudly! They do not want to live in an artificial world of make believe, where Hollywood actors and entertainers portray an imitation of life as real and the elites are our betters or where society and science can be changed at will.
It is time for common sense and judgement, not emotions, to guide our path forward. Overwhelmingly this election declared we are not some movie script where society must become a cast of joiners to the elitist class cult or fear being canceled. If you do not use the correct pronouns, being told what to say or when to speak you may risk losing your job, career or future.
The leftist cult used personal traits like skin color, sex or gender to divide society. Coming right out of those “Rules For Radicals” Saul Alinsky game book that Hillary Clinton uses as a bible with the goal of creating a social structure of dependence and victimhood. It was well on its way. Why promote fortitude and responsibility when fear and entitlement will make your cult leaders the heroes. Creating the victim mentality is all that’s needed to get enough hate in someone to join the ‘fight”. Then along came DEI. Diversity is NOT our strength, it is just an ingredient in a complex society. Our strength is believing in each other as individuals with a common goal, a society that benefits our future. Equity is a farce. No one on this earth is equal to any other, we all have our own qualities of strengths and weaknesses, but getting a trophy and not achieving the goal only reduces the quality or significance of the act. It is not equality. That is part of those word games the left cons its followers into believing. Then there’s the Inclusion part. Being forced to accept all the artificial, synthetic, fake people who demand you embrace them is not the freedom of association we should demand. What’s next that we must tolerate: pedifillia, crime, no parents allowed because the children belong to the government? Sound familiar?
Yes, the people have spoken loudly. They want to live in a country with a social structure where respect for females is required and males are admired for their manly characteristics, and where schools teach every student basic life skills of reading, writing, math, civics and history and our country and flag is respected. That sure works for me.
Jean McCloud
Filmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
Martin: We probably don’t agree on the meaning of the word “up,” but I want to thank you for the forum to address political issues over the last almost 8 years in the Gazette. It certainly signaled your commitment to the First Amendment. It provided a challenge to me to find time to research and write about external issues important to me, particularly when John was ill, for which I am grateful. Gazette Staff: I appreciate your professionalism in this endeavor.
I will only occasionally write an LTTE, as changes in my life require my attention elsewhere. Then, too, the current election results are a tsunami of political retrogression that I have not seen at this level in my political life, it saddens me for our country, and I prefer not to wade in it…again. “Do your work and then stand back” (Tao de Ching). Democrats and Progressives will continue to fight for bodily autonomy, assert the constitutional rights of all, and survive the chaos for which many in MAGA long. The election is over, the conflict is not.
What is curious about the “MAGA Manosphere” is that Trump promises the he will restore men to their “manly rightful power,” but if that same man asks for a raise for his family, if he shows any sign of support for union causes or labor rights, including overtime, he will be fired. And they will have fashioned their subservience for themselves, having cheered when Trump said that he will let “Elon Musk go wild.” But, two narcissists in the same space, for even the smallest length of time without an audience, is impossible, even if their objective - control over labor - is shared.
The Institute for Strategic Dialogue reports that the “Manopshere” appears to be “using the election results as permission to be more overtly and aggressive about curbing women’s rights.” “Your body, my choice,” is diametrically opposed to the impetus of Roe. V. Wade’s, “my body, my choice.”’ “Locker-room talk” extended throughout Trump’s presidency and campaigns (grabbing women’s genitalia, or admiration, at length, of a golf legend’s, etc.), and women will be “protected” whether “they want it or not.” Meanwhile, red states ban books that hint at depravity.
There should be no surprises for the Trump Party if they acquaint themselves with Project 2025. Time has come to read it, Martin.
I hope the grace that has always seemed to accompany us in this great American political experiment preserves us, even as we waiver. “The People” have made their choice.
Kelly Scoles,
Fillmore, Ca.
To the Editor:
I must share my reaction to the Trump rally on Sunday. To say that I’m deeply offended is an understatement. Is there anyone who is reading this that isn’t also deeply offended? I’ve known who he is even before he went down that ludicrous golden escalator. He told us who he was when he claimed Obama wasn’t born in the United States. As if we hadn’t noticed his infidelities, his bizarre comments about his daughter, his treatment of the people who work for him, his bankruptcies. The list is endless. The man is disgusting.
I don’t know what anyone thinks they are getting from this man that they are willing to wave away his racism. He’s talking about our neighbors. Our friends. Our families. People who have come to this country and worked hard to create new lives for themselves and their families. They contribute to our economy and our lives.
For those who feel they don’t know enough about Kamala? I know one thing. She is not that. That’s all I need to know.
When you go to cast your ballot, ask yourself. What would Jesus do? Vote for the racist who wants to take revenge on anyone who opposes him? Or the woman who asks you to lift up, not punch down?
Pat Collins,
Fillmore, Ca.