Letters to the Editor 2-19-15

Making a buck
Editor: Something to think about: A few years ago various news agencies filed lawsuits against the 58 counties in California demanding the release of booking information, including arrest (mug) photos. Arrest information is public information. Following the lawsuits, arrest/booking photos have been published in newspapers, TV news shows as a matter of “good reporting.” Tonight watching TV news, there was a story of arrest photos posted on the Internet and the troubles arrested individuals have getting their photo off the website. The news station condemned the websites on their intrusion into personal rights of the arrested persons who had their arrest photo published. Lets back up a few years and think; exactly why are these photos so available to the public? I’m not saying it is wrong, but again the press has two faces, neither of which has anything to do with reporting the news. It is about making a buck from “reporting” anything that will stir the pot and sell.
Robert Smith
Sebastopol
Sell the hospital
Editor: And now yet another controversy: The Russian River community wants out of the health care district. They don’t want to pay for something they don’t use. I don’t blame them. We should take heed here in Sebastopol.
My suggestion is this: sell the whole facility, apply the money to the bankruptcy and the debt, use all the parcel tax revenue to retire the debt as quickly as possible and let’s get out of this morass of wrangling and ideas that don’t work. If the doctors want to operate their specialty clinics here, they can raise the money and buy the place.
Enough is enough.
David Little
Sebastopol