Mailbag: Senator’s vote on vaccines was well-considered

Re. “Moorlach puzzles with vote against vaccinations,” (May 18):

Kirby Piazza’s letter questioned Sen. John Moorlach’s vote against Senate Bill 277, which would force every child to be vaccinated in order to attend school on the basis that an unvaccinated child endangers the lives of others.

I find that reasoning badly flawed. In the unlikely event an unvaccinated child should become ill, how can that child be a danger to classmates who have been vaccinated and are thus immune?

SB277 is an emotional reaction to the recent unusual measles outbreak in California, during which 59 California residents contracted the illness. There are over 9.2 million children in the state, demonstrating the exceedingly low infectious rate, even when an outbreak occurs.

The major problem with SB277 is that it allows the government to take away a parent’s right to make decisions for their own child, and then threatens parents into compliance by refusing the child’s admission into school. I would hope everyone would see the danger in a government that enacts new laws that rob citizens of their rights and threatens them with unreasonable punishment if they dare not comply.

Consider this: If officials can take away these basic rights from a family, what other freedoms and liberties might they consider denying next? I applaud our new state representative, Moorlach, for reading, researching and opposing this bill and am exceedingly disappointed that the majority of his senate colleagues chose to pass it.

Bonnie O’Neil

Newport Beach

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Stop spending so much on city building

Re. “Corona del Mar Today: Trustees suggest second story for library/fire station,” (May 24):

Why not add a second story to the proposed Corona del Mar Library?

Why not add a shared lobby with public restrooms? Why not add parking for 20 to 25 strollers? Why not add 800 square feet of outdoor space for a reading porch? Why not build a bigger library? Why not add a drive-through for fire engines? Why not add a community room on the second floor?

Newport Beach is going through the same process that brought the city the gargantuan “Taj Mahal” Civic Center and soon-to-be-finished Marina Park mega-facility.

The process flows from an original idea, design concepts, stakeholder input, design plan, stakeholder input, redesign plan, contractor input, new architectural plan, new redesign, added square footage, contractor change orders and finally an architectural award for a project far beyond the needs of the built-out city — which already has a huge library minutes away.

Douglas M. Wood

Newport Beach