San Francisco Chronicle (Sunday)

Breed playing political games with City College

Regarding “S.F. Mayor Breed appoints City College trustee ahead of pivotal election” (San Francisco, SFChronicl­e.com, Sept. 10): The rushed and backroom appointmen­t of a City College of San Francisco trustee by Mayor London Breed shows the low regard she holds for the voters of San Francisco.

Rather than allow a transparen­t and robust election to determine the future of City College, Mayor Breed has decided to tip the scales in favor of a “political operative” who was a candidate for trustee and has little or no experience in the California community college system.

The seven seats on the City College Board of Trustees should not be used as a political football by a mayor and her minions.

Instead, they should be given the dignity of being treated as education leadership positions with great impact on the lives of thousands of students who rely on City College to improve their future and daily life prospects.

We can only hope that Mayor Breed’s appointee understand­s the dividing line between politics and maximizing student success at City College.

Julio J. Ramos, candidate, City College

of San Francisco Board of Trustees

Try smaller shows

Regarding “No one wants to splurge on concerts and festivals anymore. Are live music events dead?” (Arts & Entertainm­ent, SFChronicl­e.com, Sept. 13): As a live music fan, it doesn’t surprise me to hear about waning audiences at arena concerts and festivals.

Ticket prices are a factor, but there is a bigger issue. When I commit the dollars, I want to take in that experience. I hate having to ask the people packed in around me to stop yelling their conversati­ons over the music. I try first politely nodding my head to them, prompting them to respect the audience and performers, but

they’re too self-centered to care.

This is the consequenc­e of streaming videos and music that can be stopped and paused whenever one wants. The skills of engaging as an audience get lost.

My solution is to opt for intimate, smaller venues where the crowd is self-selectivel­y passionate. I’ve seen performers in these shows stop and admonish someone for talking loudly. The concert resumes, and the audience doubles down on the sacredness of the shared experience.

Too much packaging

Learning that Trader Joe’s little totes are back as a “limited edition,” in pure haute couture fashion, has brought up an issue I’ve had with the chain for some time:

The hypocrisy between the attention the store’s eco-friendly bags is getting without acknowledg­ment of the huge amounts of plastic used for packaging the foods going into the little tote.

I’m drawn to Trader Joe’s prices and relatively good quality, but I have stopped buying many of its products because of the packaging.

We cannot afford to continue to add more of this stuff to the planet. If Trader Joe’s truly wants to make a difference and reduce plastic waste, it has the leverage to do so.

Insisting on compostabl­e packaging from its suppliers would reduce plastic waste and its associated health risks and would also make for great (and honest) marketing.