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Story ignored full
measure of Kirk

Re: “Activist fatally shot at college event” (Page A1, Sept. 11).

I am so disappointed by the biased article concerning the death of Charlie Kirk.

Instead of pointing out some of the great things this man stood for, your paper is quick to point out, in fact, calling him a liar for some of his comments about the pandemic.

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You missed the fact that Kirk was the Pied Piper of the conservative movement. He took to Twitter and college campuses during the Trump campaign and created an incredible movement within the Republican Party. He was instrumental in helping Donald Trump get re-elected.

Additionally, there was no mention of his Christian faith and how he has led many youth to Jesus Christ and changed their lives for the better.

Of course, those facts don’t fit your left-leaning narrative.

His legacy will live on.

Michael Macfarlane
Antioch

State must stop fires
before they start

Re: “Landmark study gives pathway to fire safety” (Page A1, Sept. 7).

As an East Bay resident, wildfires have become an ever-present and devastating reality. The Camp Fire showed how entire communities can be destroyed and skies filled with ash for weeks.

While home-hardening has a role, it is unacceptable that the burden of wildfire protection falls mainly on homeowners. Our leaders must act to prevent catastrophic blazes before they start and protect forest ecosystems rather than just advising costly home improvements. Recent policies have enabled the timber industry to degrade forests through practices like clear-cutting, leaving landscapes drier and more prone to fast-moving fires. Those choices put vulnerable communities, often with no safety net, squarely in harm’s way.

If we truly want resilient communities, let’s prioritize safeguarding forests and holding decision-makers and industries accountable, instead of shifting responsibility onto individual homeowners and their gardens.

Rowan Halligan
Walnut Creek

Fewer births enhance
our quality of life

Re: “Birth rates aren’t in favor of liberals” (Page A6, Sept. 10).

My take on the article referenced by the writer in the Financial Times of London that “progressive” birth rates, which are lower than “conservative” birth rates, threaten “liberal women who aren’t with the baby program” is that having fewer births enhances quality of life for all: less congestion, more housing, more food and respect for the environment.

Conservatives, if you wish to call them that, are the real endangered species.

Virginia Kamp
Berkeley

Writer assumes kids
inherit parents’ politics

Re: “Birth rates aren’t in favor of liberals” (Page A6, Sept. 10).

This is in response to Mike Heller‘s letter.

The flaw in Heller’s reasoning is that liberals have liberal babies and conservatives have conservative babies, which, of course, is utter nonsense. Perhaps it was uttered tongue in cheek.

A more determinative factor would be education, where people who get higher education tend to think more critically and are also exposed to other ideas and other people’s thought processes. Hence, they tend to lean liberal/Democrat.

John Mooney
Concord

Appliance rule’s aim
is to keep all healthy

Re: “Appliance rule is too expensive, impractical” (Page A6, Sept. 5).

In response to Andrew West’s Sept. 5 letter: the Bay Area Air District exists to protect our health by ensuring clean air. Gas furnaces and water heaters emit nitrogen oxides and particulate matter that cause thousands of asthma attacks and up to 85 premature deaths in the Bay Area every year.

These rules are not about inconvenience — they are about saving lives. With generous rebates and lower operating costs, electric appliances are increasingly affordable. Let’s keep the focus where it belongs: protecting health, reducing pollution and creating safer homes for all communities.

Cheryl Weiden
Los Altos

Misguided health policy
will harm thousands

I’m in remission from two difficult bouts of cancer. Like other survivors, my hope for a healthy future depends on continued research by dedicated professionals for more effective treatments. Without them, the fear of relapse that I live with daily worsens.

The mRNA COVID vaccine, developed during the pandemic, saved countless lives. The technology that allowed it is being researched for potential cancer treatments, now canceled by Health Secretary Robert Kennedy.

You can’t just claim something is harmful based on theories or anecdotes. To prove the efficacy or harm of a vaccine or treatment, there needs to be exhaustive study that follows strict protocols.

Furthermore, to suggest without evidence that researchers who have worked to find ways to keep us all healthy are creating drugs that will harm people is slanderous and indecent.

I and thousands of other cancer victims may suffer terribly from this heedless decision.

Teri Shikany
Danville