Letters to the Editor

No Vacancy Benches

It was a cold, rainy and windy day, while I walked to the bus stop, following my doctor appointment. My doctor’s directives were as follows, “Limited walking and elevate your feet.”

The bus stop benches were occupied by a tenant who set up their living quarters, while sleeping on the bench, with several blankets and personal items. So, sitting on a public bus stop bench was not an option.

My question is, where is the City of Long Beach, that enforces public access to the benches and compliance with ADA regulation and law? Our city leaders must do better

I shudder when I think of visitors who return home and describe their experience of public access being denied, especially to our elderly and disabled population. Disgraceful to say the least!

When the Olympics arrive, we may notice the city suddenly enforcing public access and compliance with ADA regulations. It’s tragic we must wait for the Olympic cleanup before the public can access bus stop benches.

Celeste B.

Last of Dying Breed

Don’t run over that rolled up, rubber-banded paper in your driveway. Pick it up. I’m glad I did years ago, and I’m still picking it up every other Friday.

It’s Beachcomber, my favorite newspaper, which this year is celebrating 25 years of actual news. A truly independent paper, publisher Jay Beeler and the Beachcomber reporters have been undaunted in digging deep and finding stories published nowhere else.

While other Long Beach journals are busy with their saccharine cheerleading of City Hall, Beachcomber is actually investigating the issues, holding the city’s feet to the fire and demanding answers. In this age of media conglomerates and canned news stories, it is refreshing to find unrestricted and original information – and, yes, even a sense of humor.

I am a political junkie and a news freak; I believe that democracy begins in our own backyard and that democracy requires freedom of the press. Beachcomber exemplifies this vital role: it’s an informative and quality local newspaper that prints all opinions, without bias and regardless of political affiliation.

Long Beach is fortunate to have such a paper, and with newspapers being increasingly replaced by social media, Beachcomber is one of the last of a dying breed. I love the news, and I love holding a newspaper, turning the pages and reading what a reporter has discovered and is bringing to me, as opposed to staring at a stagnant screen.

So, when my friends tell me that I should go on social media instead, I quote Meat Loaf: “I’d do anything for love, but I won’t do that.”

Merry Colvin