Letters: More than gaming | Helping police | Who benefits? | Dumping Trump | Hurting democracy

Mercury News Letters to the Editor for Oct. 15, 2023

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Lottery is more
than gaming only

Re: “Powerball ticket sold in Kern County wins $1.76 billion jackpot” (Oct. 11).

The recent Powerball jackpot, reaching $1.76 billion, undeniably captured public attention and excitement. The article rightly celebrates the life-changing impact this windfall will have on the fortunate winners and highlights the shared optimism that lotteries like these bring to millions.

I believe such events, beyond their entertainment value, significantly contribute to public initiatives, enhancing education and social services. I think people should recognize the broader implications of supporting lotteries. Beyond individual fortunes, these games serve as vital revenue streams for essential public services.

My appeal is for the public to consider how their participation in lotteries can be a force for good, enabling continued contributions to societal progress. Let’s view these games not just as matters of chance but as opportunities to contribute to a better society collectively. Everyone can enjoy and play lotteries, as long as we are being responsible.

Haoran Liu
San Jose

Help police with more
mental health workers

Re: “Losing control” (Page A1, Oct. 8).

The Mercury News article in the Sunday, Oct. 8 paper illuminates the appalling failure of the San Jose Police Department to help people in a mental health crisis. “An overwhelming majority of those seriously injured by police in San Jose are mentally impaired.” “80% of the victims of fatal incidents were classified as mentally ill or intoxicated.” The CIT that the police are receiving is not working.

A better way is to have more mental health professionals available for such calls. San Jose should add another Trusted Response Urgent Support Team. TRUST teams include a crisis intervention specialist, a peer supporter and a first-aid responder. San Jose currently has only one team.

The direct phone number to TRUST should be made public by the county. 988 calls come through to a national hotline and can be redirected to the police.

Police are trained to apprehend, not to provide psychiatric care.

Debora Ow
San Jose

Who benefits from
intractable conflict

I am so sad about all the suffering in Israel and all the suffering yet to come in Gaza, with no solution that I can think of.  When the Israelis and the Palestinians fight, they always fight to a draw.  Neither side can defeat the other, but the score is always something like 700-2.

And then I wonder, why does this go on?  As they say in the law, “cui bono,” who benefits?  I think the “leadership” on both sides see this war as somehow to their advantage. The Israeli Army will surely invade Gaza, again, and achieve their objectives. For completely perverse reasons, Hamas invites a slaughter of its own people, offering them as involuntary martyrs to their cause.

Keith Meehan
Los Gatos

What’s the secret to
breaking with Trump?

What does it take for people to reject the disgraced, twice-impeached, quadruple-indicted Donald Trump?

We know that in office he damaged our national security by mishandling classified documents, a behavior he continued after leaving office. But even that does not describe the national security damage that he continues to do. On Oct. 5 we learned that, while president, Trump told secrets about our nuclear submarines to an Australian businessman, who in turn told them to multiple people. Those secrets are circulating around the world and are in the hands of our enemies, thereby posing a great threat to our national security.

Despite this, Mr. Trump is the frontrunner to be the Republican candidate for president. Why? What does it take for people to reject this walking national security nightmare from holding office again?

Raúl Martínez
Sunnyvale

Few quality candidates
hurting democracy

One overriding problem that I perceive in our aging representative democracy is an extraordinary lack of qualified candidates for office.

Lax eligibility laws allow for even the least qualified to apply (consider George Santos). Donald Trump — among others that could be named — would not even have qualified for a security clearance before election to national office. Clearly, our sitting and prospective representatives are not being held to any reasonable standard of ethics, competence and performance while seeking — or even after gaining — office.

The obvious remedy is a thorough independent (nonpolitical) background investigation immediately following every major party candidate’s declaration of candidacy. Absent jurisdictional means of disqualification, independent news agencies and investigative reporters have an implied responsibility for that due diligence. And, whenever candidates display more loyalty to a political cause (or to themselves) than to our Constitution, we should realize they are unqualified to serve.

Jerry Meyer
San Jose