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Moffett decision

ridiculously costly

All persons participating in the decision (or suggestion) that the 129th Rescue Wing should relocate to Atwater should be relieved of command and immediately discharged for the good of the service and the state.

Forgetting the $16 million already down the drain for the new hangar, $45 million from relocation costs would go a long way in providingn pay to those who are required to live close to Moffett.

I don’t know how many “permanent full-time members” there are in the 129th but, assuming 30, it would take 125 years at $1,000 per month per individual to cover the $45 million relocation cost.

It’s no wonder that Gov. Davis is being recalled if his appointees are in charge of this scheme.

Edward Kelley

Los Altos

Be careful whom

you vote for …

While we wait for the power-travelers to slow down long enough to share their solutions for our state’s problems, maybe we should give some thought to just why we are going through this recall dance of death.

Dump the governor and save our state! But how? And from what? Continuous brownouts while paying inflated electric power bills to our good friends in Texas and Washington? Legislative procrastination on the budget to the point of having bond ratings drop to their lowest level in recent history? Failure to predict the dot-com bubble burst, despite the fact that the Wall Street crowd didn’t? And what about 9/11, while we’re at it? Mass innocence on the part of 8 million citizens of this state who elected their governor into another term?

Look at all the money they could have saved on the recall. Granted, we are offered a menu of the widest variety, from the slick to the sleazy, loaded with cynics and wannabes. But who in his or her (thank you, Sen. Feinstein) right mind would want the job? One does. The candidate who has the charisma of a flat rock, has the ability to raise hell as a campaigner, and is a miracle worker when it comes to raising money. And, as he confesses, is not responsible for all the problems on this globe. So let us recall (using the word here properly) the philosopher’s plea: Be careful what you wish for, because you’re liable to get it. And that goes for voting, too!

Dave Marin

Los Altos

Why I oppose

the recall election

I am opposed to the recall election, which may well cost Gov. Davis his job. I take this position largely due to my concern that political stability and predictability have been a cornerstone of American life. This stability and predictability have led in no little way to the prosperity of our citizens. This prosperity in turn has helped lead to greater freedom and minority rights.

As a venture capitalist, I am keenly interested in political stability. When you are trying to build a startup company, you have enough uncertainties without having to worry about elections and constant changing of the guards in Sacramento or Washington, D.C.

We should never mistake temporary political advantage for long-term advantage. Who believes recall elections will make our governors more politically courageous? Quite the contrary is likely to occur. No major voting bloc or special interest can be ruffled due to the fear that a recall election will be triggered.

Let’s deal with the substantive claims of the recall proponents. They claim Gov. Davis misled voters about the impending deficit and was responsible for running up expenses at a record level. I do not know many wise people who were not caught up in some way by the late 1990s boom and the perception it caused of unending good times. Recalls, like impeachments, should be reserved for serious misconduct on the level of Watergate. If a Governor is on the take, is found to be personally corrupt or otherwise violating important state or federal laws, recall gives a reasonably clean way of getting him out of town. Based solely on errors of judgment or nuances of political speeches, that should be the sole province of the regular election cycle. The better approach is greater political involvement during and between regular election cycles by more of our citizens.

Craig A. T. Jones

Los Altos Hills