Hugh Simons
California is targeting reopening on June 15 as we move towards collective immunity from COVID-19. Unfortunately, some people are still hesitant to get vaccinated. I understand, I was reluctant myself. It is normal human behavior to be wary of new things. However, there comes a time to listen to the science and take action.
Now there are incentives to get vaccinated. Gov. Gavin Newsom has announced that he is offering $ 50 gift cards to all remaining unvaccinated people to get vaccinated. In addition, there are cash lottery prizes of up to $ 1.5 million. All residents who have received the vaccine are eligible for the lottery.
Now you can be a vaccinated hero and a millionaire. Even if you don’t make any money, you can still celebrate by helping your fellow Californians achieve herd immunity to COVID-19. Remember, when everyone is immune, we all win!
No need for cars
Regarding “Making the roads in the park accessible to the elderly” (Letters, April 3): Most of the roads are still accessible by car. You can always park on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Nancy Pelosi Drive, as well as in the parking lot under the museums.
Plus, the park offers a free shuttle along John F. Kennedy Drive on weekends for anyone to use. With all due respect to our elderly citizens, all San Franciscans need a bucolic retreat away from the evils of modern society, and the choking and changeable circulation of the climate is one of those evils. Golden Gate Park is the very place for this retreat. Do we want everything to go back to the Golden Gate Parking Lot? Cars do not beautify nature. They undermine it. The three kilometers of JFK Drive were a godsend.
I have used my bike, my form of transportation, for decades here and have always been shocked that our gem of the parks is dangerous to cross. I’m sure Superintendent John McLaren did not consider that. If New York City can protect Central Park for recreation enthusiasts, why can’t the San Francisco eco-center save a small portion of the 1,000 acres (still cluttered with traffic) for bicycles and pedestrians?
End excessive logging
Regarding the “Problems of agricultural plantations” (Letters, May 29) and “Stop clear-cutting” (Letters, May 28): recent letters criticized the millions proposed for fuel reduction. I too am concerned. Our state resources should be used directly to harden homes and communities, not for projects in forests far from residences. Reducing fuel or thinning actually means logging. This means removing trees, often large old trees, as well as dead trees and wood on the ground. Forestry research shows that this results in an increase in the amount of sunshine in an area, an increase in air temperature, drier soil and a decrease in windbreaks.
The fire spreads faster, hotter and more widely in this setting. In addition, the loss of dead wood and moisture reduces a forest’s ability to regenerate and makes it more vulnerable to the effects of fires in the future. Natural, untapped forests of biodiversity burn less intensely than logged forests. But, with current logging practices, the severity of forest fires increases, with loss of carbon sequestration protecting us from climate change, loss of valuable habitat, and degraded water supplies. The preservation of our natural forests rich in biodiversity is an environmental imperative. Excessive felling and felling which masquerades as fuel reduction or thinning should, on the other hand, be condemned.
Too much ammo
I don’t think anyone should be able to amass 22,000 pounds of ammunition. Ammunition kills people. That’s what he does. Is there a “National Ammunition Association” that thinks this is a good idea? There probably is.