Letter to the Index-Tribune editor, Oct. 18, 2023

No home for hate

EDITOR: When my mother was growing up in New York, as a young Jewish child, in the 1930s and 1940s, she suffered great fear and humiliation because the non Jewish children at her school had been told by their parents that Jews had horns. This idea was fabled from a misinterpretation of the Hebrew language in the torah about when Moses came down from the mountain with beams of light behind him.

Hearing about this from my mother at a very early age made me feel shame and embarrassment for a reason I could not identify or describe. I didn't know about hate yet.

How does hate grow, catch fire and spread to the levels of Hitlers Nazi Germany? It is spread through covert channels and groups that fund hate speech with messages whose sole intention is to inflame and create fear. This hateful diatribe is being aimed at LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, Jews, women and immigrants. We can see these flares in certain parts of the country, and yes, even though we do have a very inclusive community, it’s now reared it’s ugly head here in Sonoma Valley.

The rash of antisemitic flyers that were covertly tossed at people’s homes in the middle of the night is an indication that they are here and hiding in plain sight. Think about the shocking hate speech that others and I were assaulted with at a recent Zoom meeting of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors meeting.

This is how hate works. It hides behind a curtain of anonymity – and Wake UP Sonoma is working to pull that curtain back and promote transparency. The call to action cannot be overstated. We need to promote safe visibility to the people in Sonoma Valley who are susceptible to being targeted. We need to develop programs that counteract this type of behavior by infusing our community with love and acceptance for all. Wake UP Sonoma is taking up this call to action. Join us to continue to support inclusivity, diversity and transparency in our Valley. Visit wakeupsonoma.com for more.

Lisa Storment

Sonoma

Oumuamua questions

EDITOR: Mr. Nichol's recent letter concerning the sighting of the asteroid/comet Oumuamua in October 2017 was certainly interesting. I remember following the story very closely when it first appeared.

However, there is in no shape or form any scientific support that this was part of some alien technology. Merely a hypothesis presented by astronomer Avi Loeb, it generated a lot more heat than light, and in fact, zero evidence for it representing some form of alien contact. No signals or emissions of any unusual nature were detected. In fact, this object is so utterly obscure to us that speculations even as to its actual shape are very tenuous, much less its origins.

What do we know? We know it's weird. Modern science fiction in film and books always seems to depict alien life as either our enemies or our saviours, and in that regard I'm pleased that Mr. Nichol chose to hope for the latter.

Joe Troise

Sonoma

EDITOR: This is regarding Allan Nichol’s recent letter on Oumuamua. It’s a good way to sell a book, but “Scout Rock” being an alien space ship has been debunked by the scientific community.

Questioning just what energy source powered it just is ludicrous. It had a unique shape, but its observable characteristics are consistent with any asteroid passing through out atmosphere. Don't inflame the conspiracy crowd.

Loren Warburg

Sonoma

Send letters to editor/publisher Emily Charrier at emily.charrier@sonomanews.com.