The California Assembly bill to require charitable foundations with assets over $250 million to report on the status of minorities on their boards, staff and among grant recipients is precisely the issue your readers would support it is taxpayer transparency.

Your Tuesday editorial did not make clear that the proposed law concerns investment portfolios that pay no state or federal taxes on their portfolio revenue because they ostensibly give their money to charity for the public benefit.

We taxpayers have a right to set the terms of public benefit when these portfolios are tax exempt. If any investment portfolio wishes to pay taxes on their revenues, they can do whatever they want with the revenues and they can run their operation in any manner they wish.

Our public interest in this matter is restraining tax-subsidized investment portfolios from being used as old boys clubs. One of the great achievements of America in the last 40 years has been to replace the private club on top of the hill and the Social Registers of the birthright WASP aristocracies with a meritocratic society. We all want jobs to go to the most qualified, most competent, not to friends and family members.

This story continues below
Advertisement

Most California investment portfolios that call themselves public charities are in fact self-dealing old boys clubs that give most of their money to associations, schools, colleges and social organizations that are arcane relics of the sad WASP era.

We need to fix that problem.

Michael Phillips

San Francisco

Two-faced personality

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s antics in the last week illustrate the two-faced nature of her personality. During their debate in Texas, she accused Sen. Barack Obama of giving “Xerox” speeches. When these disrespectful statements were met by boos from the audience, she retreated and said she was honored to be on the stage with Obama. Then, less than 24 hours later, she was attacking him and accusing him of using Republican tactics.

What a strange about-face for someone who claimed she was honored to share the stage with Obama. The truth of the matter is that Sen. Clinton has no interest in sharing the stage with anyone else, other than her husband.

Richard Beleson

San Francisco

Ulterior motive to firing

Susan Leal is fired “without cause” (“Utilities commission votes to oust general manager ‘without cause,’” The Examiner, Feb. 21). Could it be that she was too competent? In the search for a replacement, should they find a candidate who is qualified, but not too qualified? Or could it be they should find a candidate who is not in favor of public power?

At least, this is one case of municipal misfeasance that the “nattering nabobs of negativism” can’t blame Supervisor Chris Daly!

David R. Dawdy

San Francisco

NAFTA’s economic truth

Froma Harrop stumbles onto economic truth in “NAFTA getting bum rap from Dems Obama, Clinton” (Viewpoints, Feb. 21). U.S. farmers have a market advantage with corn, a crop that needs abundant water and lends itself to mechanized harvest. Mexican farmers have an advantage with avocados, which require hand-picking. If U.S. avocado growers wish to employ cheaper Mexican labor, what does this tell us? (Leaving aside the Marxist rant about “exploitation.”)

The economic truth is that producers will consider their cost if they hope to stay in business. We lose jobs because we think that we are entitled; that we don’t have to compete. We wrongly suppose that green paper is our wealth when, in fact, the wealth is output. We are encouraged to gather like bandits at the whiff of success.

Paul Burton

San Francisco

Tallying the lies

Two highly respected organizations have officially exposed the blatant falsehoods of the Bush administration in the lead-up to the Iraq war. What is even more telling is the corporate media’s eager willingness to echo these lies and serve as cheerleaders for the Bush propaganda machine.

The Center for Public Integrity, working alongside the Fund for Independence in Journalism, tallied 260 lies President Bush told, including 231 statements claiming that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and 28 that Saddam Hussein had close ties to al-Qaida.

The New York Times and The Washington Post have admitted their role as “in-bed” journalists but tragically continue to propagandize the administration in its highly dubious rhetoric of claiming the “surge” to be a success and amplifying the danger of Iran.

Largely ignored by the media is the corresponding increase in aerial bombardment that is killing and maiming more Iraqi civilians and destroying their homes.

Tej Uberoi

Los Altos