Orange County’s pensioners; a Muslim student group at UC Irvine; and the elusive baby boomer vote.

An O.C. outrage?

Re “Carona collects $215,000 pension,” July 9

Is anyone as appalled and outraged as I am that a convicted felon — never mind the pending appeal — is eligible for any pension, not to mention one of this size?

It’s equally hard to swallow the information that former Orange County Treasurer-Tax Collector Robert L. Citron, who collected about $142,000 last year, seems on track to bankrupt us again, albeit more slowly.

With more than 400 pensioners collecting in excess of $100,000 each last year, we’re talking over $40 million a year — over $40 million a year of your and my tax dollars. This is craziness! Will somebody tell me how we can stop and reverse this trend?

Nora Lehman
Newport Beach

I am getting tired of reading articles about various city and county employees who are collecting exorbitant pensions.

While it is obvious that the pension system is in dire need of restructuring, it must be remembered that the benefits currently being paid out were contractually guaranteed. The employees collecting these pensions may have chosen to work for our local governments partly because of the retirement plans they were offered when they were first looking for employment.

We should quit denigrating those who are receiving their justly due retirement benefits; they have done nothing wrong. While it may not seem quite right, even Carona deserves the retirement money to which he is legally entitled.

Shari O’Connell
Santa Monica

UCI and its Muslim students

Re “Muslim group laments UCI decision,” July 8

Regarding The Times’ article on UC Irvine’s Muslim Students Union and its complaint that the yearlong suspension it received after disrupting a speech by Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren is “unduly harsh” punishment, please give us a break.

Mussolini had the trains run on time.

The group was not penalized for its good deeds, which are admirable. It was penalized because it violated the rights of others. It was penalized because members lied to UCI authorities about conspiring to deprive an invited speaker the opportunity of speaking to a group of students with whom they have a grievance. This is not so admirable.

Do the crime, do the time.

Bernie Kessler
Long Beach

Chasing the boomer vote

Re “A boomer defection,” Opinion, July 8

Doyle McManus is wrong in expressing surprise that baby boomers are shifting right.

I still shudder to recall how our student body president at Stanford in 1967, who refused even to register for the draft, was seized by a bunch of frat brothers and subjected to a head-shaving, merely for opposing the Vietnam War. We liberal boomers were the minority then, as we are now.

Sure, I am concerned about the economy, worried that many I know are struggling for jobs and upset over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. However, I do not see how turning our country back over to the plutocrats who got us into this mess is going to accomplish anything.

Thus, as I did back then, I will continue to vote for those, like President Obama and Sen. Barbara Boxer and Jerry Brown, who offer some hope of change. The alternative offers none.

Perry Anderson
Buena Park

McManus writes that the boomers are leaving the Democrats and becoming more conservative, potentially turning to the Republicans.

What he is missing is that more and more of us are becoming independent or “decline to state” voters.

My husband and I, a former Republican and a Democrat, respectively, eschewed the party line a few years ago when we realized that sometimes the person we agreed with was one from across the aisle. We also started noticing that we had more in common with what was known as a Rockefeller Republican, a legislator who was fiscally conservative and socially progressive.

Unfortunately, both parties seem to think the way to success is to take the extreme left or right of the party, even to the point of destroying some of what we consider their most viable members.

I’m not sure where this will all lead, but while I don’t agree with the “tea partyers,” I can understand their frustration with existing politicians.

Annie Jelnick
Corona Del Mar

Dear baby boomers,

Please realize that Barack Obama and the Democrats worked very hard and risked a lot to pass “health reform” that ensured that those younger than you, whom you have already put into debt, now have to buy into the health system even though we don’t use it much.

That’s to support you. The Republicans opposed it.

So next time you (ab)use your Medicare, think about that, please.

Jennifer A. Zaft
Huntington Beach
The writer is a health economist.

McManus’ thesis that aging boomers will become increasingly conservative and/or Republican because of feared cuts in Medicare spending is intriguing, but boomers have voted Republican before.

Middle-aged boomers favored Ronald Reagan over his presidential rivals and later gave slim majorities to George W. Bush.

Furthermore, the elusive “boomer vote” is likely to remain fragmented by race, class and education. Boomers split their vote between Obama and John McCain, but white boomers heavily favored McCain, by 56% to 42%.

The 2008 election also signaled the increasing role of class, occupation and education: Highly educated boomer professionals generally favored Obama, but white, middle- and working-class boomers overwhelmingly went for McCain. The latter group is the core constituency of the “tea party” movement, yet boomers are also key players in the Obama administration.

The two boomer presidents — Bill Clinton and George W. Bush — symbolize this abiding generational divide.

Frederick R. Lynch
Claremont
The writer is an associate professor of government at Claremont McKenna College and is writing a book about aging boomers’ politics.

Too much LeBron James

Re “LeBron, ESPN share a ‘Decision,’” July 8

Didn’t ESPN showcase a conflict of interest with the LeBron James special?

What is the network known for but hard-hitting, in-front-of-the-story journalism? Some folks at ESPN must have known James’ decision and must have sat on the information. Under normal circumstances, ESPN would probably have run something on the crawl, or led “SportsCenter” with a more definitive “sources say LeBron will sign with xxxx,” but not last week. Not with a huge audience expected to tune in for the special.

It’s a sad day when the world’s leading sports network ceases to act like an impartial observer and instead allows itself to become part of the story.

Dave Brill
Valencia
The writer is a freelance sports producer for KABC-TV.

Why did James’ announcement garner such attention?

The unemployment rate is still over 9%. We have healthcare problems, financial institutions in scandal, a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and huge debates over immigration and climate change reforms. And what are we spending time on? A man who stands to make more than $100 million?

Where are our priorities? Why does James merit so much attention when so many in the country can’t even afford a ticket to an NBA game?

I simply cannot believe this man deserved to have an hourlong special just to announce he is choosing a team to fatten his already bloated wallet. Are fans forgetting it’s our money that makes him richer, and us poorer?

Mel J. Fleming II
Riverside