The Sun
Sunnyvale's Newspaper

Letters

Hold the Bible passages, please

Regarding the article "A small miracle goes a long way" in the Dec. 24 issue of The Sun: Ms. McCleary could have made her point without interjecting all the Bible passages. As a columnist, she should not be subjecting the public to her personal religious preferences.

I'm sure most of your readers already know where and when to participate in Bible reading/studies.

If there is much more of this, my paper will go directly from the driveway to the recycling bin.

Dennis Jacobson
Sunnyvale

School bond: wait until June and save the money

We recently read of the sad plight of schools in the Fremont Union High School District. After 30-plus years, the roofs leak, heating and plumbing are deteriorating and restrooms need repair. As a result of this, FUHSD trustees are calling for a bond measure of up to $144 million to be decided in a special election next April.

Superintendent Joe Hamilton justifies a special election with only one item on the ballot by stating, "It might get lost among other initiatives if we waited until June." Who does Hamilton think he is fooling? In my opinion, most school bond issues are decided by special elections for one reason only: Voter turnout is very low, and an organized minority of voters can get these issues passed.

If this district's handling of taxpayer dollars is of interest to anyone, let's compare the cost of a special election in April to putting the same issue on the ballot in the June general election.

Information from the office of the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters reveals that as of Sept. 15, there were 100,000 registered voters within the district. The registrar estimates the cost of preparing and mailing materials to these voters runs between $2.25 and $2.50 per voter. That means there is a minimum cost of $225,000 to pay for a special election. If this same issue would be placed on the June ballot with these "other initiatives" Hamilton refers to, the cost would be $35,000, as the costs would be shared among all the issues.

It seems that as good stewards of the taxpayer dollar, the administrators and trustees of the district would see the $190,000 difference between the costs of these two election dates. After all, school maintenance has waited for many years, and the wait in election dates from April until June is only two months.

So, why don't we wait until June and save the $190,000?

Kenneth C. Bruce
Sunnyvale

Donations kept shelter animals well-tended

On behalf of all the animals at the Humane Society of Santa Clara Valley, I'd like to give two paws up to the community for donating enough food during our Holiday Food and Toy Drive to feed the shelter dogs, cats and little critters for the past three months.

That's a lot of chow, as we're the largest animal shelter on the West Coast. People also donated toys for our volunteer dog and cat socializers to use when they interact with the animals every day and for the animals to play with on their own while they await adoption.

Snugly warm blankets and towels will also be much appreciated during the coming months.

The Humane Society cares for approximately 33,000 incoming animals every year, and 91 percent of animals that are placed for adoption find new homes. We simply could not do it without the community's support.

Leslie Baikie
Humane Society of Santa Clara Valley

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This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, January 14, 1998.
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