Thanks to them, there are now some benches for tennis players to sit on and gates to access both rows of courts. These are nice improvements. Play some tennis, check out the changes and check out the Ventura Tennis Club!

Mark Hancock
Ventura

Mr. Smith sarcastically attacked the Ventura City Council's rejection of medical marijuana cooperatives, saying "A person smokes that mind-altering drug, and there's no telling what he/she might do."

Unfortunately, Mr. Smith's sarcasm is truer than he probably understands. In March 2010, John Bedell opened fire on guards at the entrance of the Pentagon. He was killed when the guards returned fire. According to MSNBC, Bedell was diagnosed as bipolar, or manic-depressive, and had been in and out of treatment programs for years. His psychiatrist, J. Michael Nelson, said Bedell tried to self-medicate with marijuana, inadvertently making his symptoms more pronounced.

Marijuana use has been well documented to aggravate feelings of anxiety or paranoia. Mr. Smith describes a more benign portrait of users as "munching an entire chocolate cake or five or six snickers bars. Then ... they finish up by sitting in a recliner and watch re-runs of 'Gilligan's Island.' " So, at best, it would seem that Mr. Smith and his stoner buddies are obese, unproductive couch potatoes. Is it any wonder that the Chinese are kicking our butts?

~ James Willis,
Oxnard

I live in Oxnard. I vote in Oxnard. Camarillo deserves a new high school. Two new high schools for Oxnard, and two Olympic-sized swimming pools. Shame on Oxnard Union High School District.

Vote the trustees out!

What is going to happen when Oxnard student population declines, and it will. All districts do eventually. Six High Schools in Oxnard?

Kathleen Swor,
Oxnard

After almost two years of caring for these horses, we feel that the outpouring of support that we have received for the shelter staff has given us courage to continue doing what we do best - caring for the neglected and abused animals. We are very proud of the staff and the volunteers who devoted their time to all of the shelter animals. Cleaning corrals in 100-plus-degree weather was very difficult on everyone, yet nobody complained. These people are the true heroes.

We would like to say a special thank you to the Ventura County District Attorney's office, Ventura County Sheriff's Department, Department of Animal Regulations Director Kathy Jenks and personnel, Marta Grandstedt, DVM, and the five other veterinarians that assisted. There are so many people that we would like to thank but the list is too long. There will be a special thank you listing on our website. http://www.hsvc.org

Thank you again for your continued support from the Humane Society Board of Directors and staff at the HSVC shelter.

~ Sherry Brockus
Executive Director,
Humane Society of Ventura County,
Ojai

On July 7, Wendy Dager wrote a column about the case of Debrahlee Lorenzana - a woman in the midst of an employment suit against her former employer, Citibank, claiming appearance discrimination. Dager's column, far from arguing her point, perpetuates sexism and further subjugates women to second-class status in the eyes of our discourse.

This is most evident in going through Dager's column - the premise of her argument is that because Lorenzana so-happened to have cosmetic enhancements and that her clothing, whether or not it violated the stated dress code, was too much for the men at her Citibank branch to bear, her firing was justified and necessary.

What Dager does - dangerously - is blame the victim. Lorenzana has repeatedly claimed that she was given a special dress code by her male supervisors because she was being a "distraction" to her male colleagues. Dager doesn't disagree with that. Dager's language effectively treats this woman - a human being - as a piece of meat to be cut apart and evaluated, talking endlessly about her breasts and her "clothing that hugged every square inch of roundness," almost as if we'd started considering a Christmas turkey and no one bothered to mention it.

What this case and this column show is that there still exists a glaring double standard in our culture that systematically oppresses women. If Lorenzana's male superiors couldn't keep their libidos in check, that's their problem, and they should have been the ones fired. The public response - how we see fit to judge her appearance down to the last scrap of meat, and how we think it's okay to use the same logic used to blame rape victims for being raped to justify Lorenzana's firing - shows us that this case isn't a question of beauty. It's a question of patriarchy.

~ Stephen T. Marsh,
Thousand Oaks

Come November, remember which party has steadfastly voted against extending the unemployment benefits to millions of Americans. The Republican Party.

The same senators who voted hundreds of billions of dollars to rescue "too big to fail" institutions, gave a comparable amount to automakers, see no problem spending untold amounts to prop up the defense contractors and who, all of a sudden, got religion and don't want to add to the deficit.

Remember, come November

~ Radu V Metea,
Ventura

Not knowing the small side streets in this area, I became lost and could not find my way back to Moorpark Road. There were no people on the street to ask until I came upon a gentleman who called his wife out to tell me the way.

This lady, who I only knew as "Barbara" not only told me the way to where I was going but, in fact, got in her car and led me there. I do not know her last name but hope she reads this. This just proves that Thousand Oaks is a wonderful place to live.

Cynthia Ratner,
Thousand Oaks

I had to read Charles Hanlon's letter regarding July 4th fireworks twice to be certain I was reading correctly. I agree the fireworks show in a neighborhood is a bad idea. I am truly sorry his Lab is terrified. His dog is lucky to have someone who will stay home and care for him. Many are so terrified that they flee and are killed or injured on the road.

The solution he proposes, however, is just plain heartless. He suggests fireworks be moved back by the Camarillo Animal Shelter because the animals there are "strays who will probably be euthanized in a few days anyway." If they are to be euthanized soon is it OK to terrorize them first?

The premise that animals at the shelter will necessarily be euthanized soon is false. Animal Regulation has a pretty good adoption rate. They work hard to care for their animals and to place them in a good home. A more important point is that a "stray" animal or one turned in because his owner has had his house foreclosed is of no less importance than Mr. Hanlon's dog.

Fireworks terrify animals. They do not belong in any neighborhood or near any animal shelter.

~ Debby Mooney,
Ventura

John Bailey,
Saticoy

The candidate is seeking the agencies' vote and the agencies are seeking the candidates' favors. To be re-elected, a public official must favor these public agencies, and important programs and services for the people are canceled.

Donald Saunders,
Ventura

I suppose if a fellow is hungry, he has to throw all caution to the wind, and come what may.

Martha Kamke,
Port Hueneme

I am not prejudiced against the Hispanic community; I am more concerned abut the laws that should be obeyed in my country.

I lived in Germany for seven years, working for an American company servicing the American military. My wife was told that, in no way, was she to be employed by a German company. I paid German taxes and did not get any special privileges form the Germans.

Maybe these illegal people sneaking over the boarder should try sneaking into Iran where they will be tried as spies.

I applaud the Arizona governor for implementing a law that our U.S. government could not handle. Shame on our current and past administrations for not acting on this matter!

Tony Pavia,
Newbury Park

During World War II, none of the first generation Americans ever gave any though about what country their parents had come from. They were Americans, defending the United States of America. We carried the one flag that represented our country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American.

Here we are with a new kind of immigrant, who wants the same rights and privileges. However, they want to achieve it by plaing with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not what being an American is all about. If they are here in America legally, they should kiss the ground they walk on.

Minnie Anzo,
Camarillo

The nicely projecting curbsides, which keep the huge trees (and some smaller ones) in check and in bloom are a nice touch to a beautiful quiet street. The metal wheelchair access ramps are a great improvement (even for skateboarders) and having the cracking old street repaved is a joy. I'm sure the residents of Bayview (and surrounding streets) also will be thrilled to know if speeders and joy riders wish to buzz through this neighborhood, they will have to drive much slower to navigate it.

Thank you again and what's next?

~ Bob Brill,
Ventura

Admittedly, hospitals are an asset for any city, however, there should be limits to the amount of building allowed on a given piece of property in a residential area. It is not like the hospital could not build a very large facility somewhere else in the city, but that would cost more money.

Glancy, before voting to approve the expansion, said that he would welcome this project in his backyard. I respect his desire and suggest that he trade houses with any of the residents of Sidlee or Young streets for the next eight years to prove his statement. At least Irwin said she wouldn't want this project in her backyard. Nor would anyone else.

Interestingly people call people NIMBY's while living in gated communities with CC&Rs that dictate whether you can park a car on the street and what color you can paint your house, much less whether an obviously too large commercial project for the area would even be considered.

We even had elected officials from Moorpark and Westlake telling us how wonderful the expansion in our neighborhood would be. When they say it's not about the money, it is about the money, rest assured.

~ David Mueller,
Thousand Oaks