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Letters

Forums are a sham

Dear Editor,

I am writing to comment on the Around Pleasanton column by Jeb Bing on March 2, "Keep the waterslides open." I would like to thank him for the first clear, straightforward, lack of BS reporting that I have seen in years. For the first time someone acknowledges that these open meetings or forums are a sham and a waste of time.

It is a shame that the slides will not open this summer or ever again. I enjoyed many days there with my kids and their friends. It is more shameful that this is controlled by a handful of people instead of those that really utilize this public facility.

These people do not reside in our city and do not care. I will not be renewing my East Bay Park membership. Please keep writing these kinds of articles. We need them. They cut to the point of a problem and it is only at this point that resolution can begin.

Allow competition

Dear Editor,

I am neither a Walmart shopper nor a Walmart representative, but just a Pleasanton resident who lives in the area that Walmart is moving into. I believe in equal opportunity and fairness. I understand that Walmart followed the necessary procedures to be granted the permission to move in the vacant store.

So far as Walmart obeys the country's and the state labor laws, union pressure should not prevent a business from opening in Pleasanton and providing an opportunity for Pleasanton residents to shop. Competition leads to lower prices and is a big winner for Pleasanton residents. Lack of competition (what Councilman Matt Sullivan wants) will lead to high prices.

The government should let businesses compete. Only allowing their favorite businesses to flourish and suppress competition is not what the USA is built on. Such Matt Sullivan beliefs happen only in one country, North Korea, where the citizens are not only deprived of choice but their daily basics because the government dictates to them. Also, residents pushed by their union affiliations should not tell other Pleasanton residents where to shop.

If Pleasanton even begins to treat Walmart differently than it treats any other business in town, beware of the 14th Amendment, Equal Protection Clause, which provides that "no state shall ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." The day shall never come in Pleasanton when the government or the unions tell Pleasanton residents where to shop.

Rajinder Ghatoaura