PUBLIC FORUM : LOCKYER AND DEMOCRATS' VISION IMPAIRED.

Apparently Mr. Lockyer does not recognize the fact that he has Tunnel Vision. I think if Lockyer stopped looking through his tunnel he would find that San Pedro, West Los Angeles and other citys would like to control their destiny without counting on the Los Angeles City Council.

Since when is it not democratic to be able to vote for what you want?

His statement that ``Democracy belongs to every citizen, not just those in the Daily News'' rings of a small understanding of what the public wants even though he would deny it.

- G.R. Judge

Granada Hills

I just finished reading Bill Lockyer's opinion piece, ``Self-determination includes more than just the Valley'' (Aug. 23). What a load of hogwash. I guess as a politician, Mr. Lockyer really has nothing better to do than spend his time justifying, in the most self-serving terms, the cowardice he showed when faced with a choice for true democracy.

His arguments are, at best illogical, and at worst, fatuous. Let's examine Lockyer's logic. He claims that Venice, San Pedro and West Los Angeles must be able to vote on secession because of their ``proxcimity'' and the fact that their ``lives are all greatly affected by it.''

Let's apply Lockyer's logic to other issues. What if the City of Santa Monica wanted to build a huge convention facility, one that would be larger, newer and more luxurious than the L.A. Convention Center. Would this not take jobs and revenue away from Los Angeles? Absolutely. Then to follow Lockyer's logic, the citizens of Los Angeles should be able to vote on whether Santa Monica could build their convention center.

Lockyer conveniently overlooks the simple fact that the Boland bill did not call for Valley seccession, only that the Los Angeles City Council be stripped of its dictatorial power to override the voting will of the people it supposedly serves.

The bottom line, Bill, is that you cast your vote for the dictators rather than the people.

- David A. Champion

Saugus

So the crybabies at City Hall think they won? The wimps that used our tax dollars to flaunt around Sacramento are chuckling in their plush tax-paid offices patting each other on the back, huh?

Well look north, out your fifth floor windows and stand by. It's soon to be payback time.

- Jim Rowe 

Winnetka

Cigarette war suspect

Why is it, that a government that's been a dismal failure in the so-called ``war on drugs'' now wants to add cigarettes to their list of banned drugs?

Why is a government that advocates abortion on demand so concerned that one of three smokers will die of smoking-related diseases?

Why is a government that strongly promotes population control so concerned that people are voluntarily killing themselves with various drugs?

- Sean O'Heathirn

Panorama City

Sales assailed

We recently read a letter to the editor, published by the Daily News (Aug. 9) headed ``Communication Failure,'' which was written by LAUSD board member David Tokofsky.

It is ironic that a so-called professional of the district, whose duty is to communicate, participates in stone-walling, obstructionistic tactics with the public. As Mr. Tokofsky put it ``holding a report for 52 days . . . is failure to communicate.''

In the same vein, Mr. Sale's efforts to communicate with the Latino community have been deplorable, since he was appointed as the assistant to the superintendent in charge of communications; we have seen no significant projects or efforts aimed at improving public relations with the Latino community. This serves to alienate us from the district, and this is the antithesis of ``communication.''

Perhaps Mr. Sales should take a few classes in multiethnic communication because it seems he only knows how to communicate with the superintendent's cabinet.

- Louis Martinez

Los Angeles

GOP wants it both ways

Sen. Bob Dole and his Republican cohorts constantly rail that the federal government should not and cannot solve all of America's problems. All of us, including President Clinton, a former governor, agree.

O.K. Now that Republicans hold three-fifths of U.S. governorships, what have they done and what are they doing about increased teen drug use? Most of that increased teen drug use has occurred in the big states which are governed by Republicans, except for Florida.

Since Republicans claim that local and state leaders can deal with local and state problems better than Washington, D.C., what responsibility and blame do then Republican governors carry in view of this increased teen drug use?

Republicans refuse to give President Clinton any credit for the 10 million plus jobs created in the U.S. since 1992, yet they heap all the blame for the increased teen drug use on him. We citizens and voters cannot and should not allow Dole and the Republicans to have it both ways.

Harley Spoon

Woodland Hills