To the Editor: I really enjoyed the article in the August Senior News regarding the “PETS Program [Ashley Gouthier, “PETS Keeps Seniors and Their Beloved Pets Together,” page 11]. It really touched me.

In the 12th century, the peasants of England grazed their animals on common land — fields held collectively, managed by custom, open to all who belonged to the community.

To the Editor: Dr. Jennifer Heidmann noted in her July column (“The Last Straw,” page 5) that pollution from factories and cars was estimated to cause about 42 million excess deaths worldwide in 2019. She then stated, “Here in Humboldt County, we have some of the cleanest air in the world, scrubbed by the Pac...

To the Editor: In 1983, psychiatrist M. Scott Peck published a book titled “People of the Lie,” a psychological examination of human evil. Peck’s central premise is that evil comes from deep-seated narcissism, which is a refusal to take accountability, and a chronic state of self-deception.

To the Editor: Thank you so much for the wonderful stories and photos in the August 2026 edition, “Animals Are People, Too!” Senior News is always a treat.

From the Editor: The August issue of Senior News, “Animals Are People, Too,” included a listing of Humboldt County animal rescues and shelters (“Help for Humboldt Animals,” page 21), reminding us that most of our local animal support organizations are honest and caring. Because of space limitations, the follo...

To the Editor: The influence that personal experiences have on public opinion, public policy and allocation of public resources cannot be overemphasized. Voices of courageous individuals and media describing personal challenges, struggles and suffering are what form the foundation on which progressive legisla...

To the Editor: I read the article on Parental Stress, kids, etc. [Brenda Cooper, “Parental Stress, Kids & the Rolling Stones,” June Senior News, page 1] and thought to myself, “I see so many stories centered on mostly loving parents and their offspring. Nobody talks about those of us who grew up with abusive,...

To the Editor: John Heckel invites other elders to join him in apologizing to young and future generations for allowing continued degradation of our planet and ruinous changes to our climate. Here’s my confession: In 1970, when I first saw a call to mass participation in teach-ins and other actions to challen...

To the Editor: I always get something good from Senior News, but thank you especially for the expansive examination of health care in the May issue [“Health in Humbioldt 2026”]. It is such an important topic, and I commend all your writers. Then I came across this quote from Groucho Marx that I wanted to shar...

The majestic old pine near our house that I first thought was being trimmed was being cut down. Sad to see its life ending while it was still so vibrant and enjoying life. I’ve been reading about how much we never knew about the plant world, that trees and other growing things are connected through their root...

It’s America’s birthday, and although it is quite old, my friends and I have been around for about one-third of its entire existence! Which makes us older in human years than the country is in nation-state years. Born at the conclusion of World War II, we experienced the best that America had to offer in her ...

To the Editor: Many of us seniors, especially in this rural area that is so prone to power outages, depend on our landlines. In some areas that is the only reliable form of telephonic communication. As you probably remember, AT& T made an effort a couple of years ago to get rid of its landlines, but had to pu...

To the Editor: “Once to every man and nation, comes the moment to decide/In the strife of truth and falsehood, for the good or evil side/Some great cause, some great desires, off’ing each the bloom or blight,/and the choice goes by forever, twixt that darkness and that light.” So wrote James Russell Lowell in...

To the Editor: Joan Rainwater-Gish wrote in the May Senior News about a friend who realized he needed to downsize as he ages from his home he has lived in for years [“Extraordinary 80s: Planning for the Rest of Your Life,” page 8]. I commend her friend’s efforts in planning ahead. Joan lists his options as mo...

To the Editor: I’ve been on vacation and arrived home in NW Arkansas last night. I delighted to find the June Senior News issue [“Mothers & Fathers”] in my stack of mail. Here I sit, eating my third bowl of bean/veggie soup and drinking boxed white wine while I lavishly read the “Sr. News.” It’s so wonderful ...

To the Editor: I really appreciate Brenda Cooper’s article in the June Senior News [“Parental Stress, Kids & the Rolling Stones,” page 1]. Maybe because it was real life as it is — gritty. Not that my experience was hers, but something came through her article that I felt was mine, too. For the “Mothers and F...

I want to thank Dr. Keith Flamer for convening the New Vision for Humboldt Health Care Task Force (see “A Call to Action,” May Senior News, page 1). This effort of local community and business leaders deserves our full attention and support.

We all too often forget and cannot neglect life’s demons. They cannot be eradicated without seriously believing that they are real. Femicide is such a demon. The term “femicide” is rarely used in official U.S. statistics, as murders of women are normally categorized as homicides.

To the Editor: Were you perplexed as I was over the May “Health in Humboldt 2026” issue of Senior News? As in this issue, recent local forums have addressed the current defective state of healthcare availability in Humboldt County. While pertinent questions have been asked along with recognition that our curr...