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Kevin Johnson was elected Sacramento mayor the same day Barack Obama was elected U.S. president. Johnson is no 'Little Obama' Re "Johnson acting part of strong mayor?" (Our Region, Sept. 13): When President Barack Obama's popularity ratings were higher, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson pronounced himself "the Little Obama." In terms of style, nothing could be further from the truth. Ironically, both Obama and Johnson could benefit from a stylistic exchange, however. While Obama is the consensus builder, trying to bring wolves to the table, expecting them to work in a polite and cooperative manner, Johnson is the wolf in Democratic clothing, allied with powerful corporate "volunteers," marching toward ever-greater power and demanding mindless servitude from others. Given the dire conditions the president is in, if Obama adopted some of Johnson's ruthlessness, it might assist him in moving us away from the flames. On the other hand, Johnson needs to relax his personal ambition and build from cooperative interaction. Sacramento still works best with a mix of honest and diverse views hashed out in open discussion. The fires of dissent that Johnson wants to squelch are the lights of democracy, not the inferno that Obama faces. ? Craig Rieser, Sacramento Mayor's doing what we wanted Has it not occurred to anyone that Kevin Johnson was elected mayor to do all of the things he is doing? His platform issues were public safety, economic development and education. Johnson has helped to secure more than $12 million to improve public safety, he's trying to improve downtown Sacramento by encouraging Westfield to invest in the dilapidated mall or make way for someone else, and he wants to create a common vision for education. He's doing exactly what he said he would do ? and 25,000 more people voted for him to do just that. Sure, tranquility might have resumed under Heather Fargo, but the status quo would have resumed, too. It's easy to point fingers at Johnson ? or anyone currently in office, for that matter ? but let's not forget why the majority of us voted for Johnson after eight years of Fargo. ? Bianca Lee, Sacramento Health care story was lacking Re "Health plan's costs covered? Experts say no" (Page A6, Sept. 11): David Lightman's article cites the Lewin Group study as its sole source when discussing the deficit spending potential of the proposed health care reform. Let's be clear about the Lewin Group, what it really is, and why it has an enormous conflict of interest regarding this debate. The Lewin Group is part of Ingenix, a UnitedHealth subsidiary. UnitedHealth is one of the largest providers of private health insurance in the United States. Ingenix was accused by the New York state attorney general of providing skewed data to allow insurers to shift medical expenses to consumers. In January, as a result of its conduct, HealthCare agreed to pay $350 million in a class-action lawsuit. To not inform your readers of the Lewin Group's potential bias, and to present it as a "health care consulting firm" without revealing that it may be acting as a front for a major insurance company, is either sloppy reporting or just plain disingenuous. Either way, it's a disservice to those of us who need reliable information about this crucial issue. ? Dorothy Eller, Carmichael Columnist 'left-sided and racist' Re " 'You lie!' removes doubt: Skin color is a political factor" (Viewpoints, Sept. 15): If Maureen Dowd's crystal ball works so well that she knows what Rep. Joe Wilson meant to say, I would suggest to her that she mark some tickets for the lottery. That way she could get out of the field of journalism and leave left-sided and racist columns such as hers out of a good many daily papers. ? Gary Smith, Sacramento Premeditated childishness Re " 'You lie!' removes doubt: Skin color is a political factor" (Viewpoints, Sept. 15): Rep. Joe Wilson's childish "You lie!" comment did not rise to the level of an involuntary statement brought on by a perceived untruth. He deliberately planned this faux pas ahead of time, probably the night before, so that when the time was right, he'd be ready. No doubt, he was getting antsy waiting for that magical moment. I'm surprised he did not stand up to take a bow. ? Lorraine Kalb, Elk Grove Maureen Dowd, 'extremist' Re " 'You lie!' removes doubt: Skin color is a political factor" (Viewpoints, Sept. 15): Maureen Dowd has a love of labeling people. Her labels are inflammatory and represent huge leaps of logic and outright distortions that cannot be substantiated. She refers to the "shrieking lunacy of the summer," unintentionally becoming an example of just that. The vast majority of citizens who question the cost of health care reform are looking at facts and figures, such as data from the Congressional Budget Office, not at anyone's skin color. To inject race into differences of opinion about the cost of health care is irresponsible. How sad that The Sacramento Bee chooses to select a far-left extremist to showcase on the opinion pages. I would much rather see a well-reasoned, balanced piece from a nonpartisan economist on the virtues and failings of proposed legislation, not the hopelessly biased views of a quasi-journalist who is anxious to hang labels on everyone who disagrees with her agenda. ? Ruth Heiser, Auburn '1960s radical' distrusts Obama Re " 'You lie!' removes doubt: Skin color is a political factor" (Viewpoints, Sept. 15): We can eliminate partisanship because I am an independent voter, but I do hold traditional values. I was a 1960s radical right here in this city, but I have read much and changed my paradigm over the years. I line up with those who distrust President Barack Obama, and not without good reason. I am disgusted with those who accuse me of racism because I don't agree with his policies and his radicalism. How convenient to write off all dissension as racism ? and what a cheap shot. The left always represents more and bigger government as well as the curtailment of personal liberty. I agree with those protesters who say to government, "Just get out of the way and let us ordinary Americans fix it our way," without partisanship. ? Rachel Johnson, Sacramento Don't bill me for your cancer We freedom-loving, laissez-faire capitalist Americans must unite together to stamp out all vestiges of socialism in our country. Socialism means that we all pay into a system whereby only a few reap the benefits from our hard-earned work. Ugh, I guess this means: ? My fire insurance goes to my neighbor because his house burned down. ? My health insurance goes to a co-worker because he has cancer. ? My auto insurance increases because some driver had an accident. Let's ban this evil of collectivism that has gone on for hundreds of years. ? Frederick W. Nichols, Sacramento Let's draft some 60-year-olds Re "War? We all must contribute" (Letters, Sept. 15): I agree with John Reay about reinstating the draft. Instead of relying on the brave men and women of our volunteer and National Guard forces, I suggest the draft age be for males and females be 18 to 60. If we are to sacrifice equally, we must include the older among us who are the most vocal in support of war, but, you know, don't actually have to bleed. I also suggest that legislation be passed that requires all wars to be funded out of current-year taxes. We should feel the financial pain now, not pass it on to future generations. Let's see how budget votes go when people and politicians have to choose between social programs or war. ? Richard Thorn, Orangevale