Histrionic lesson

People like the 20-year-old student should be allowed to substantiate her legality ("Status Update," Open Mic, Aug. 18). The ones I personally am against are those who work here under the table and then send their earnings back to Mexico and do not pay any taxes on their earnings. You and I are the ones picking up their tab while they take advantage of our social service system. They have free healthcare, free food and nearly free housing. I can say this because I worked with one! This person told me she didn't think it was fair that she had to pay taxes etc., because she was not going to live here forever, just until she had her home in Mexico built and substantial monies put aside for her to live! These illegal immigrants don't even have to learn our language; it is made easy for them by printing most everything in their native language! I feel everyone should have a chance, but when your attitude is such as I stated above, you don't belong here.

Sheree

Windsor

Youth: still Wasted on the young

After laughing at the genius inventions in the article "Bong Wrongs" (Aug. 18), I felt mildly outraged. I appreciate the wink writer Gabe Meline has thrown toward us, but as the fall looms, I'm thinking less about bong condoms and more about what the crap I'm going to do when college ends.

I hope that, in between rips, students are wondering where to channel the idealism and brilliance that we've been cultivating for four years. We have been cultivating brilliance, right? Because it seems there are a lot of lolling tongues aimed toward Spongebob reruns.

A lot of people treat the college years as a joke, and in some ways I would agree—but that is no one's fault but our own. We're suffering from a massive lack of passion, we are unaware of the thousands of possibilities slipping through our fingers like snaking blunt smoke. If you are in college, wake up and make these years count. Take hold of your education. Ask millions of questions, meet your professors, use campus resources.

We should be grateful for having access to education, and if you're not, then go choose one of the other million adventures that existence offers.

Alana Maria

via email

A more perfect union(s)

The story about farmers being persecuted for hiring low-paid or unpaid labor ("Nothing's Free," Aug. 11) attempted to tug at my heartstrings. You couch the article as a story about big, bad government forcing small organic farmers to fire a volunteer farmer. I find it curious that your left-leaning publication failed to mention that this law is being aggressively enforced due to pressure from the big labor unions. These same labor unions also lobbied for regulations that prevent environmental groups from using volunteer or low-wage help to mitigate environmental damage.

The Bohemian consistently casts its support toward union shills like Michael Allen, then fails to realize the unintended consequences of such support. Those consequences include the potential failure of small organic farms due to "crippling violations" of regulations pushed by labor union bosses, and the inability of environmental organizations to clean up polluted waterways on limited budgets.

Americans should be free to make their own choices regarding their employment, volunteerism and giving back to their community. In a perfect world, labor unions would focus on protecting the powerless, rather than interfering with our efforts to help others in need or to improve the world we live in.

Mark Burchill

Santa Rosa

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