To the Editor:
I watch all the cable channels, including Fox News, for a bit every day. The content can be so divergent, I want to hear all opinions. If, however, you are an exclusive Fox News viewer, you may be unaware of the pile of books out about Trump and his administration. One book is by a respected Watergate-era journalist, Bob Woodward. He has tapes, 20 hours over 18 meetings or phone calls, and Trump knew he was making them. Those tapes are shocking.
I’ll focus on just the most heart-rending and infuriating tape of all: Trump admits that he lied to the American public about the terrible facts of the Covid-19 pandemic, of which he himself was made fully aware at a presidential intelligence briefing on January 28: that it spread incredibly easily, was at least five times as deadly as a really bad flu, and required a near-shutdown of non-essential personnel to contain it. On February 7, Trump admitted to Woodward that, "This is deadly stuff." On February 10, Trump assured the nation that the virus would "miraculously" disappear by April.
Trump now insists that his failure to alert the public and local governments was akin to FDR’s “fireside chats.” He likens himself to Winston Churchill, in WWII England, except he doesn't know that Churchill’s heroic leadership urged his people to, “draw from the heart of misfortune the vital impulses of victory.… Let us move forward steadfastly together into the storm and through the storm.” (February 1942). Churchill did not lie to the public about the threat or the risks; he knew his people would react with resolve and heart. He had faith in his countrymen and, too, the stock market was not Churchill's main concern.
Our president, instead, blamed the Democrats for creating a “hoax” concern about the virus to reduce his re-election chances. When, finally, tens of thousands fell ill and he could no longer "play it down," he left it primarily to the governors and mayors to resolve the national threat and then criticized them (especially the Democratic governors) for not being “prepared.” Trump sidelined science and instead advocated for treatments that were useless or dangerous. He packed indoor rallies with his own political base without advocating protection of masks or social distancing. He knew that, as usual, he could blame others if things turned out badly, and counted on his base to believe him. That, or Trump is engaged in a deadly game of "magical thinking." Either option is a dangerous defect in the man with the nuclear codes.
Kelly Scoles,
Fillmore, Ca

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To the Editor:
Say “Goodbye” to the Elkins Ranch Golf Course
Like so many local golfers I was disheartened by the news that the Elkins Ranch Golf Course was closing. The course was always a pleasure to visit. The staff was friendly, the grounds keepers were conscientious, and the burgers were good.
My golfing partners and I wanted to play on the final day of operation, which we understood would be September 7. However, when I went to make reservations for that day, the staff said the owners of the course did not want to pay overtime wages for Labor Day, so the course would be closing on Sunday the 6th instead.
We managed to get a tee time for Sunday, but when we arrived at the course that day the gate was locked. A hand-written sign hung on the gate read “CLOSED.”
From a personal standpoint, I feel this was a poor way for the Elkins family to terminate its relationship with area golfers. Imagine booking a flight for a long-awaited vacation, only to find out upon arrival at the airport that your flight has been canceled. No emails or texts from the airline; no explanation. The entire course closure process could have been handled in a more congenial manner. Instead, we got a closed gate.
One could argue that weather was a factor. After all, at what would have been our mid-day tee time the temperature was 110 degrees F. However, other golf courses were open. We ended up playing at the Moorpark Country Club. Perhaps there was a power outage, but that was not indicated on the “Closed” sign we saw.
With the course closed, why not keep a small portion of it open for public use? Having spoken with individuals associated with the group that oversees course operations, there was little or no executive interest in retaining the putting and chipping greens, the driving range, the pro shop and the restrooms to serve as a golf practice facility. No community polls were taken to see how much use a facility like that might get, and apparently no detailed analysis of what it would cost to maintain such a facility was ever generated.
I realize times change, and the expenses of running a golf course may appear excessive when compared to the profits reaped from avocados. However, I feel that the Elkins Ranch Golf Course benefitted the whole community. The course brought in golfers from other areas, and they spent money here. Having a well maintained golf course on the edge of town no doubt attracted at least some home buyers to Fillmore and probably had a positive impact on property values as well. Finally, the expansive lawns and plentiful shade trees on the course served as venues for weddings, filming, bird watching, car shows and other activities. It is not just the golfers who lost out when the Elkins Ranch Golf Course closed. The community lost as well.
Dr. J.S. Noble Eisenlauer
Fillmore

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To the Editor:
I was challenged during a discussion I had last week regarding Joe Biden and his support of abortion. "Open your Bible," the man told me. "It doesn't say anything about abortion. The Bible doesn't say, 'You shall not abort.'"
Technically, this is true. The Bible also doesn't say, "You shall not steal your neighbor's tractor." However, God does say in the Bible, "You shall not steal." He also says in the Bible, "You shall not murder," and you shall not "shed innocent blood." (Exodus 20:13; Jeremiah 19:3-4, 22:3) And who is more innocent than an unborn child? She has no say in her conception, and she's completely defenseless; and yet the blood of hundreds of thousands of unborn baby girls and boys is shed each year in our country. This is why the catholic, Christian Church has always condemned abortion as murder.
But the fetus is part of the woman's body, the abortion-rights argument goes, and a woman has the right to do what she wants with her own body ("My body - my choice"). Response: Have you ever heard of one part of a person's body having a blood type different from the rest of that person's body? Of course not, it's a medical impossibility. All parts of a persons' body have the same blood type. However, many unborn children have a blood type different from their mother's. So if a child in the womb has a blood type different from her mother's, how is she simply a part of her mother's body?
Vote pro-life. Give the unborn baby girls and boys a chance to live.
Leslie R. Lanier, Pastor
Wayfarer's Chapel Lutheran Church
Fillmore