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Alzheimer’s research
must have funding
As Congress engages in brinkmanship, one of the quietest but most devastating casualties is the fight against Alzheimer’s disease. When the government shuts down, research at the National Institutes of Health is disrupted, delaying clinical trials, discoveries and, most tragically, help for the millions of Americans living with or at risk of Alzheimer’s.
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My mother suffered terribly with dementia, and I am passionate about finding a cure. That’s why I’ve taken part in clinical trials at UC Davis. These trials are part of the research to find diagnostic tools for early detection of Alzheimer’s and eventually a cure for the disease.
These experiences make me hopeful, but only if Congress continues to fund this work. I appreciate my congressional representative, Mark DeSaulnier, for championing NIH investments in biomedical research. And I encourage others to consider joining clinical trials at alz.org/trialmatch. Together, we can help unlock the next breakthrough.
Partha Parthasarathy
Concord
Brentwood tobacco
ban is too broad
Re: “Council passes tobacco ordinance” (Page B1, Sept. 1).
Brentwood City Council members passed a new tobacco ordinance that’ll wipe out neighborhood retailers overnight.
My family and I own convenience stores in Brentwood, and I’m beyond frustrated. If stores selling tobacco happen to be within 500 feet of a school, their tobacco license is gone after Oct. 9. No consideration is given for years of investment, compliance or livelihoods. How is that fair?
Instead of targeting products that actually appeal to kids, Brentwood banned all e-cigarettes, even FDA-approved ones meant to help adults quit smoking. In the meantime, cities like Union City and Contra Costa County took a smarter path. They restricted youth-attractive products without eliminating adult options. Brentwood chose the most extreme route.
These rules won’t stop anyone from smoking or vaping. They’ll push customers to other cities or unregulated sellers while local stores close and employees lose jobs.
We need balance, not bans. Brentwood must fix this.
Amir Hassan
Brentwood
Founders explicit on
church, state separation
Re: “Would you really want to live in Charlie Kirk’s American vision?” (Page A6, Oct. 2).
In regard to John Crisp’s column about Charlie Kirk’s vision of us as a “Christian” nation, I refer everyone to the U.S. Constitution, which states in Article VI, “but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.”
Thomas Jefferson wrote in a letter to a friend, “I have considered it (religion) as a matter between every man and his maker, in which no other, and far less the public, had a right to intermeddle.”
Our Founding Fathers, while standing for the right to practice our religions, made it very clear that the government should not involve itself in its practice in the public square.
Roger Wood
Fremont
Comey’s misdeeds are
a matter of record
If James Comey isn’t convicted, it will be because of the Washington, D.C., jury pool. Comey’s deputy, Andrew McCabe, has said that Comey authorized him to leak information to the press, according to a 2018 Justice Department inspector general’s report. This contradicts Comey’s testimony under oath to Congress.
The inspector general wrote another report, released in 2019, criticizing Comey’s decision to leak his so-called “Comey Memos” to the media in 2017 in an effort by the then-fired FBI director to spur the appointment of a special counsel.
Comey himself proudly admitted in 2017 that he had hoped leaking this information “might prompt the appointment of a special counsel.” A special counsel was subsequently appointed to waste millions of dollars on the Russiagate hoax.
Comey is not a fellow to be admired.
Douglas Abbott
Union City
Citizens must rein
in impulsive Trump
Donald Trump is like the kindergarten student who has the lead in his class play. He flubs his lines, embarrasses his parents and then throws a tantrum when the audience laughs at him.
But this is not kindergarten, this is not funny and, unfortunately, we need to be the responsible parents.
Paulette King
Antioch
