Fresno residents share excitement over Politi library branch move and expansion | Opinion

Exciting announcement

“Fresno library set for big move after discount chain folds,” (fresnobee.com, Aug. 18)

Hooray for the welcomed culmination in a 10-year lease agreement for the Politi Library’s future location in the old Rite Aid building at Bullard and First streets. Marek Warszawski’s opinion column from this past week was a welcomed read.

I have been going to the Politi branch of the library for years, and our neighborhood is long overdue for a larger site. The renovation of the new location will be perfect!

Thank you to all Politi library staff and volunteers for always being helpful and cheerful in their cramped working environment. I am sure they — and all of us frequent library users — are excited and looking forward to the impending expanded facility.

Edith Barnette

Clovis

Opinion

The aspiring king

“Donald Trump promises to rescue California from ‘leftists’,” (fresnobee.com, Sep. 29)

A recent Axios article discussed the Republican Party’s worry that Donald Trump continues to skirt the issues and be unfocused and unpredictable — exactly who he has always been. This is seen as a negative factor by political veterans who understand elections to be a matter of clarity and issue-friendliness to fit what the fickle electorate wants.

But folks are missing the point here. Trump represents a shift in American politics from a public servant mentality to a national ruler mentality. He wants voters to know and love exactly what he thinks about people and institutions, because his views matter above everybody else’s.

Trump feels he is the God-blessed leader of a new American political order. He demands immunity from prosecution and the unquestioned acceptance of anything and everything he says, because royalist history has always declared, “the king can do no wrong.”

Kimball Shinkoskey

Woods Cross, Utah

Overhaul Electoral College

“Voting on Election Day? Here’s where to drop off your ballot in Stanislaus County,” (modbee.com, March 5)

Once every four years I feel obligated to joust with the windmill that is the Electoral College. With each state receiving two electors regardless of population, the least populated states have a disproportionate advantage in our current system. For example, an individual’s vote in Wyoming is weighted as having 70 times more of an impact than a vote from California. Plus, approximately six battleground states receive a majority of the attention and visits from the candidates, while the other states are largely disregarded.

The Electoral College is a broken, outdated system in need of overhaul. I am not aware of any other country in the world that implements a similar method of determining who wins an election.

There is a principle called Occam’s razor which holds that the most accurate response to a problem is often the simplest of competing theories. In this case, one person, one vote; whoever gets the most votes wins. Simple as that.

Kent Mitchell

Riverbank

Drug policy reform

“Prop. 36: CA Dems split over retail theft & crime measure,” (sacbee.com, Aug. 14)

What would be wrong with drug policy reform, when the policies extant have added to the death toll of thousands of Californians, many of whom never reached adulthood? Or incarcerating thieves who are repeat offenders? And, yes, what of the costs? How much does it cost business owners and tax payers when prices for goods and security explode exponentially because there are no tools available to deal with the would-be felons?

That Democratic lawmakers are supporting sensible changes in our criminal justice system provides hope, despite Gov. Gavin Newsom’s unsupported, speculative concerns.

Bill Motmans

Sacramento