Letters: New leadership will unlock S.J. animal shelter reform

Submit your letter to the editor via this form Read more Letters to the Editor New leadership key to animal shelter improvement Re Animals underserved at beleaguered shelter Page A May I was a San Jose shelter dog-walking and rescue volunteer when the issues started during COVID I was very vocal about the shelter not having a social media presence to find homes for its animals I was involved in numerous meetings with shelter management and the city along with other society and rescue assistants Although that looked promising the resistance by the shelter management club to accept help was evident and these groups eventually dissolved without any results after a handful of meetings As a certified dog trainer I offered to help with behavior modification of the more challenging dogs but my offers for free help were declined The animals are suffering under the so-called care of the anatomical and operations directors with little adherence to policies that are evidently unclear The region and the shelter animals deserve a better leadership squad Ani Elmaoglu San Jose Tordillos the candidate District necessities Re Elect Tordillos for San Jose council seat Page A May We need a data-driven District council member to be voted in on June Thank you Mercury News for your endorsement of Anthony Tordillos I appreciate that Anthony provides specificity to the goals he wants to accomplish While talking to the locality and hearing ideas are good they need to be put in the form of records specific actionable goals that can be measured and adjusted as needed if the desired outcome is not achieved This level of figures analysis ultimately brings value to us taxpayers which is long overdue I appreciate too that Anthony Tordillos has served our group for a number of years including holding a leadership position in his District neighborhood and his time on the San Jose Planning Commission My vote is for Anthony Tordillos I hope yours is too Tina Morrill San Jose Zuckerberg cuts are a lesson in greed Re Zuckerberg philanthropy quietly cuts funding Page A May We know Mark and Pricilla Zuckerberg can afford to fund a thousand housing and learning programs without feeling a pinch in their billion fortune They do not care about the damage their decision causes to multiple people when housing patronage and schools disappear The reason they have shut down programs is that they wished to send a message Not to people who benefited from their programs Rather they decided to communicate their allegiance to the president The Zuckerbergs want the associated power of the cabinet even if children go hungry people can t get medicinal care and people become homeless Shame on billionaires Congress and Donald Trump s supporters who are so greedy that they throw away their values and humanity Paula Sanford Aptos Affordability isn t the only plan question Re The correct question is Can we pay for it Page A May Elizabeth Erickson s opinion that elected functionaries need to ask Can we afford it is a valid one and deserves to be demanded I would add a corollary Is it vital for the strength and welfare of our citizens and country If Erickson feels we cannot afford to spend more money on Alzheimer s she certainly must also agree that we cannot and should not spend upwards of million for a military parade next month Establishing priorities for spending our tax money is as critical as Can we afford it Our elected officers also must ask Can we afford not to do it To greater part of us Alzheimer s research is far more major than a military parade Marcia Fariss Saratoga Gaza war is part of a larger conflict Re Hamas attack opened door to Gaza horrors Page A May We often hear that the war in Gaza began Oct when Hamas attacked Israel This is not accurate History does not begin on Oct this war started May when Zionists forcibly removed Palestinians from their homes so that Zionists could create the state of Israel This is the Nakba the Catastrophe as referred to by Palestinians The Oct attack was just another battle in this long-fought war A two-state method is the only fix John Francis San Jose Trump is rewriting America s principles I grieve for America which I no longer recognize Related Articles Letters With so numerous apartments empty the housing problem is a sham Letters Where is Newsom as refinery closures threaten state economic activity Letters Walters deserves readers thanks for his perspective Letters San Jose s animals are underserved by beleaguered shelter Letters East Bay should prepare now for refinery closure In the poem inscribed on the base of the Statue of Liberty She who is also called Mother of Exiles cries Give me your tired your poor Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free I lift my lamp beside the golden door In the current era Donald Trump and his enablers and supporters are saying in effect Give me your money your rich Your white nationalists yearning for autocracy Or else I shut the door Molly Rose Palo Alto