Other countries have seen death penalty’s problems

Re “Is it time to put an end to the death penalty in California?” (Feb. 8):

I am opposed to the death penalty. At a moral level, it is wrong for the state to kill a person held in its custody. In the name of the people, the state cannot condemn killing by killing itself.

Instead, the state can demonstrate that killing is wrong by punishing a convicted killer with life in prison without the possibility of parole, which California has used in over 3,000 situations without anyone ever being released.

Beyond the moral dimension, the death penalty system is deeply flawed. It is riddled with errors. Over 150 innocent people have been condemned to death due to mistakes by the police, prosecutors, expert witnesses, defense lawyers, judges and juries.

People of color are sentenced to death out of proportion to their share of the population due to prejudice and racism in our society. Poor people cannot afford adequate defense lawyers, investigators and expert witnesses.

Independent studies have shown that the death penalty doesn’t deter crimes; states with the death penalty have higher crime rates than states without it.

Also, the death penalty system costs millions of dollars more than life without parole due to expensive trial procedures, lengthy appeals and higher prison security costs.

The death penalty is a dysfunctional system. That’s why the vast number of countries around the world have ended it. Once it’s abolished, we will no longer risk executing innocent people and can devote the $150 million in annual savings toward crime prevention, education, literacy, housing, employment and other programs that have a proven record of reducing crime and helping create a better and safer society.

— Stephen F. Rohde, Los Angeles

Boomers had it easier than millennials on college, jobs

“Forget socialism, Sanders Kasich best for president” (Letters, Feb. 26):

As a baby boomer I have a much different take than this writer.

When I attended El Camino College in the early 1970s, students paid for one thing: books. Everything else was free.

Ditto for Long Beach State, except for parking.

If you were willing to do physical work, there were good-paying — unionized — jobs out there in which you only needed a high school diploma.

Billionaires paid their fair share of taxes then. None of this exists for young people today.

— Steve Varalyay, Torrance

Others people’s money fuels socialist’s projects

Re “Could you vote for a socialist?” (Question of the Week, Feb. 16):

Britain’s former Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher said it best: “The trouble with socialism is you soon run out of other people’s money.”

— Dick Ettington, Palos Verdes Peninsula

Vote for a socialist? Hope, pray that never happens

Re “Could you vote for a socialist?” (Question of the Week, Feb. 16):

I have read that there are eight levels of control that must be obtained before you are able to create a socialist/communist state.

This makes sense as we have seen it happen in many countries around the world. They are as follows:

No. 1. Healthcare: Control healthcare and you control the people.

No. 2. Poverty: Increase the poverty level as high as possible. People are easier to control and will not fight back if you are providing everything for them to live.

No. 3. Debt: Increase the national debt to an unsustainable level. You are able to increase taxes and this will produce more poverty.

No. 4. Gun Control: Remove the ability for people to defend themselves from the government then, you are able to create a police state and have total control.

No. 5. Welfare: Take control of every aspect of their lives, (food, livestock, housing and income.)

No. 6. Education: Take control of what people read and listen to; take control of what children learn in school.

No. 7. Religion: Remove faith in God from the government and schools.

No. 8. Class warfare: Divide the people into the wealthy against the poor and races against each other. This will cause more discontent and it will be easier to tax the wealthy with full support of the voting poor.

It is scary to realize that we in the United States, under this administration, have fallen into the most of the above traps and are well on our way to losing everything.

Think carefully about what is at stake in these upcoming elections. Vote in a socialist? I hope and pray that never happens!

— Joe Zelik, Torrance

Where did winter go?

Re “This month could be hottest February in 95 years across Southern California” (Feb. 25):

So, it seems we have summer and summer now.

— Diana Craig DeMarti via Facebook