PUBLIC FORUM.

Losing a councilman

Re ``Padilla to support Garcetti'' (Nov. 22):

Alex Padilla is willing to step down from council president in favor of (perhaps) Garcetti. I just would like to send a word of warning to Garcetti's district: Don't ever expect your councilman to be around in your district. At least, not unless there's the opportunity for a great publicity spot. He becomes president, you lose your council representative.

Does that give you some idea of how I have felt with Padilla as president? And now he'll be running for another office, while still ``representing'' my district. What a sham.

Why doesn't our council pass the office along yearly, so each district only loses their representation for the one year, instead of his whole term?

- Evelyn Catron

Sylmar

Just gives and gives

Re ``30,000 jobs to go from GM, CEO says'' (Nov. 23):

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to our valued laid-off employees - ScrooG.M.

P.S. To demonstrate my sympathy and understanding, I've reduced my multimillion-dollar bonus by $30,000.

- Jerold Drucker

Tarzana

What Tookie does

I have seen what Tookie Williams can do with his ``free time'' while incarcerated. He can write children's books (ho hum) and he can write books advising future punks not to be punks. I have seen what Tookie can do with his ``free time'' on the streets. He is a mass murderer and I don't think for one minute Tookie has regrets he founded the Crips. This is an ego trip.

There is nothing to do in jail but count the hours. You must make your own diversions and it is more comfortable to come up with an acceptable diversion. This is what Tookie did to make the time go by more comfortably for him. Not for you, not for me. He hasn't changed; he has adapted.

- Sherry Behrle

Tujunga

Not the same man

Re ``Finally, justice could have its day'' (Nov. 21):

If one were to read the Associated Press story about Nuremburg prosecutor Whitney Harris, one might think him to be senile. He identifies Rudolph Hess as the commandant of Auschwitz and was ``sent to the gallows.'' Yet at the end of the story it says Hess drew a long prison sentence.

Truth is, the writer mixed two men up. Harris was referring to Rudolph Hoss, who commanded Auschwitz and not Rudolph Hess, Hitler's deputy fuhrer who flew to Britain in May of 1941 to try and end the war with England. That same month, Heinrich Himmler gave Hoss the order to turn Auschwitz into a death camp.

- Jeff Zimmer

Sherman Oaks

OK, look at England

Re ``Handgun ban OK'd'' (Your Opinions, Nov. 22):

Rick Owen's contention that San Francisco should look to England, ``where violent crime has increased after they took away guns,'' should have taken the time to Google that fact. Firearms have always been heavily controlled in Great Britain, and after gun deaths reached 358 in 1995, handgun sales were banned in 1999 and - in a country with a population approaching 61 million, less than double the estimated 35 million in California - gunshot deaths declined to 163 in 2003.

With a U.S. population approaching 300 million, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial (nleomf.com), 601 U.S. peace officers were killed in the line of duty nationwide 1995-2004. Britain in the same period - 3. And yes, I am a multi-gun owner - a reluctant one.

- Clyde Llewellyn

North Hollywood

Just makes sense

Why don't they paint the buses on the Orange Line orange? Seems to me they should have been orange right from the beginning.

If they painted them a bright orange color, maybe people would see them and stop crashing into them.

- Ken Kaitshuck

North Hollywood

Don't worry

Our government announced it was going to take strong action against the latest flu problem. One of their solutions is to make sure all legal persons entering the USA, by air or boat, would have to provide data noting they were OK, or be tested for the flu. Meanwhile, up to 5,000 illegal immigrants enter our country each day, mostly Latino, but also hundreds from around the world, and many without any kind of inoculation, let alone flu. Thank God, we have the government to protect us.

Consider the same problem with our Homeland Security Department. The other day they arrested someone bringing missiles across the border. How many other missiles did they miss? How many insurgents did they miss? But don't worry, our government will protect us.

- Charles Dusheck

Chatsworth

A new low

The right wing, whose motto is ``Live and let die,'' pulled another of their mendacious prevarications on the floor of the House. They brought a bill to the floor that they claimed was the proposition made by John Murtha about when to pull our forces out of Iraq. Naturally, it was a typical Republican lie, leaving out Murtha's caveat ``as soon as possible.''

Rep. Jean Schmidt was forced to withdraw her pernicious remarks against ``war hero'' Murtha. She accomplished the seemingly impossible. In one fell swoop, she reached the bottom rung of female sleaziness, heretofore occupied solely by Ann Coulter. The Republican Party, led by Dick Cheney and George Bush, is ill-equipped to denigrate war heroes.

- Zachary Charles

Burbank

Factor this in

Re ``Factors left out'' (Your Opinions, Nov. 22):

Yes, I did work full-time. Eight hours of having to listen to rude people taking out their anger at the government's red tape on whichever public service worker happened to answer the phone. I worked for the state for 14 years when I had to retire in 1994 on $5,000 a year.

Six years later, I had to return to work for the state. After checking with CalPERS, like Richard Stanis said I should, I found that when I do reach 65, I will be receiving a whopping $12,000 a year. Wow, what am I ever going to do with all of that money? I just might be able topay my rent, and with the little I will get from SSA, I may be able to buy food, pay utilities, make car payments, and, oh, yeah, buy that yacht I had my eye on - with all that money I get from my big retirement.

- Joan Olear

Burbank

Another urban myth

Re ``Teacher's workday'' (Your Opinions, Nov. 20):

Six-hour teacher workdays? You're kidding, right? Those ``six''-hour workdays are just the time spent instructing, guiding, testing and disciplining our students. It's not unusual for a teacher to eat while working, having little time to take a break during that time.

Those ``six''-hour days don't take into account correcting student work, planning curriculum, finding new educational resources and fulfilling adjunct duties. All of that happens in addition to those ``six'' hours. Dedicated teachers continue to work into the evenings and throughout the weekend. The ``six''-hour teacher day is an urban myth.

- Chyre Kan

Simi Valley

Teach your children well

It all boils down to parents teaching their children their preferred religion. Example: the uproar about Christmas and other religious activities in public locations. I was raised in the last century, about 73 years ago, in a very Orthodox Jewish home. I participated in Christmas and sang Christmas songs. My mother and father always said sing and be happy and when the verses say ``Jesus,'' just don't say it. So teaching your children is the rule for any movement.

- Leo Glick

Northridge