色情论坛

The opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics included good performances, not-as-good performances and controversial performances. But the biggest takeaway for me was that the focus on the athletes was diminished. I think we need to return to a more traditional opening ceremony that keeps the focus on the athletes and the competition to come. Hopefully, L.A. 2028 will come to this same conclusion.

— Jon Emery, Laguna Niguel

Rafael Perez on the disgruntled readers

Re “A peek into the wild world of newspaper column responses” (July 28):

I am happy to say that I do not see my world the same way Rafael Perez sees his world, “receiving a lifetime’s worth of emails from disgruntled readers.” In fact, I would question my presentation, if I did. And Rafael stated that because it was a family publication, he edited the harshest language. Really? I am sure your readers could fill in the expletives and phrases, sort of like a dementia test!

Some words and phrases came straight from Rafael’s thoughts and I was aghast, wondering why he is  now a regular part of the publication. And lastly, why post such hateful, demented thoughts by a “disturbed individual.” What are you trying to prove? I came away from this article with questions about the writer.

— Janice Smalley, Castaic

Clearing California’s homeless encampments

Re “色情论坛om right to take down the tent cities” (July 26):

Although I agree with most of the editorial, including giving credit where it is due to Gov. 色情论坛om despite his overall atrocious performance as governor, I object to the last sentence stating that the inability of construction of affordable housing is what has “created this crisis in the first place.” Any number of sources of research on the subject refer to the ever-growing problems of drug addiction and mental illness, which tend to go hand-in-hand, as the primary causes of rampant homelessness. And while the high cost of real estate in California undoubtedly exacerbates the problem, the notion that homelessness would significantly decrease if rents were $800 per month for a 1-bedroom instead of $1,800 is patently absurd. I suspect the vast majority of these folks would have difficulty putting together $80 a month for shelter, let alone 10 times that amount.

— Bob Cunningham, Cherry Valley