Halting Muslim holidays at SF schools is not Islamaphobic or racist

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Regarding SF school board backtracks on Muslim holiday adoption (Bay Area & Business, Sept. 22): Once again, San Francisco school board member Ann Hsu is the voice of reason and honesty. Adding two additional Muslim holidays to the school calendar basically vacation days is ill-thought and discriminatory. Students, especially after enduring closed schools during COVID, need more instructional days, not fewer.

Opposing the process in which these holidays were added is not an Islamaphobic and racist attack by those who want a more democratic process, as alleged by the executive director of an Arab advocacy organization. Hsu and others want a process that promotes more class instructional days, doesnt play favorites with religious holidays and follows open meetings laws.

The school district should offer one or two floating days for students, to be taken at their choosing for religious holidays or other significant personal reasons. Those should come with restrictions, such as no day off when an exam is scheduled.

Jahan Byrne, Richmond

Less politics, more work

Regarding Oversight needed for homelessness response (Endorsement, Sept. 20): I commend the Editorial Board for the information it provides about our intractable problem. But I strongly disagree with the conclusion that Proposition C and a newly created commission are the answer.

The flaw is stacking the deck in favor of the system we have where 5 of 7 new commissioners must be either from service providers (conflict of interest?) or formerly homeless persons, and only one is reserved for a member of a merchant or neighborhood organization (the rest of us who experience the impact of our homeless problem but dont have a personal stake in the game other than concern and frustration).

That the budget for homeless services has ballooned from $165 million to $700 million shows that oversight is badly needed. But we have audits now, and our elected officials must surely read and evaluate them if they do their jobs.

Too much energy in San Francisco is spent on politics and not enough on simply doing the job for which people are elected or appointed. Lets let our mayor and supervisors demonstrate oversight by doing their respective jobs, not passing the buck to a new group that is structured to continue enabling our intractable problem.

Richard Stratton, San Francisco

Buckle up on the road

Regarding Too old to drive? Trader Joes crash prompts debate (Front Page, Sept. 20:) The National Safety Council finds that 7% of multi-vehicle accidents are caused by drivers 65 and older while drivers younger than 35 are responsible for 46%. Statistical information abounds regarding this subject but the general conclusion is that younger drivers pose more of a threat than older drivers to road safety. Therefore, it would seem reasonable that any restrictive legislation should target younger drivers.

However, there are myriad exceptions on both sides of these age groupings. The real challenge is how to increase courtesy, responsibility and rationality for all drivers. Perhaps, the predicted wave of driverless vehicles will be the ultimate solution. Until then, look both ways and fasten your seat belt.

Steve Abney, San Francisco

BART owes me $1

Regarding Weirdest moments on iconic transit system (Front Page, Sept. 13): Peter Hartlaubs recent article reminded me of my first ride on BART, which was during Watergate. I deposited a dollar bill for change, which the machine promptly shredded like a White House memo. (Herb Caen used it in his column.)

A BART attendant told me Id receive a refund. Im still waiting, 50 years later. Im thinking of giving up.

Burt Dragin, Berkeley

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