Cannot our national-level elected officials, Sens. Laphonza Butler and Alex Padilla and Congressman Jimmy Panetta, do more to protect our young people from having to work for war and in war corporations? 

Some young people want to enter the military or to work for war companies, to kill and to risk being killed. But most who enter the war business are forced by economic circumstances, misunderstandings about the risks, and pressure from recruiters. Perhaps the government even strong-arms our young people into the business of war. There exists a possibility for reinstatement of the draft. Once in the military, what personal liberties they had will be gone.

If our legislators would but invest our public money in community empowerment and stop pouring the majority of our public money into weapons and war, our communities, and particularly young people, would have a multitude of opportunities!

Dolores Howard

Paso Robles