Letters: Violence of Trump administration is creating fear

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Trump administration’s violence creates fear

Re: “Protesters should follow law to avoid violence” (Page A6, Jan. 16).

There is an American tradition of lawful resistance to unjust laws and to what is perceived to be egregious misbehavior on the part of the government and its sworn officers. Protests are as American as apple pie. Ideally, protesters and cops enter into a reciprocal understanding of how to act.

I looked at the recording of the murderous incident in Minnesota. I did not see a lawbreaker driving at a sworn officer. What I witnessed was a hysterical ICE agent cursing at somebody to get out of the car;that same car pulling away from the ICE agent; and the driver of that car, by all accounts a virtuous citizen, shot and killed ruthlessly when deadly force was completely uncalled for.

Everybody is fair game in the lawless regime of Donald Trump. State-sanctioned murder is okay if the victim doesn’t fit the profile of a “true American.” I’m scared.

Stephen Gutierrez
Castro Valley

Writer draws conclusion without seeing the event

Re: “Protesters should follow law to avoid violence” (Page A6, Jan. 16).

In his letter, John Griggs concludes, “Don’t drive at a sworn officer.”

OK, Griggs, simple question: Were you there? Did you witness all the preceding events?

No? I didn’t think so. So your input has exactly zero relation to reality. Try getting your information from a reliable, trustworthy source instead of the fiction that ICE and Kristi Noem want you to spout.

R Cote
Castro Valley

Trump’s incompetence threatens agreement

Thank goodness European countries have stepped in by putting those very important “boots on the ground” to deter Donald Trump from an action that could destroy NATO. What an incredible insult to Denmark, an ally whose soldiers fought and died in support of America’s military.

The Trump administration’s approach, by Vice President Vance, is so insulting that it is embarrassing to knowledgeable Americans. A proverbial “win-win-win” is within reach for Greenland, Denmark and the U.S., for the defense of NATO and Greenland’s economy. Greenland has deposits of strategic minerals that the world, including the U.S., must purchase.

China has sent a message recently, by suspending exports of those critical minerals. This was in response to U.S. tariffs and tech restrictions, escalating a diplomatic and trade dispute. The free world must have access to those minerals. A strategic agreement can be reached if the Trump administration were competent, which it is not.

Robert Douglass
Fremont

Without dialogue, sides enter dangerous territory

Re: “Oppose Trump for sake of our children’s future” (Page A6, Jan. 15).

The writer is among those who have energetically and with absolute certainty asserted that Donald Trump’s actions in Minneapolis are unjustified. I’m sure that many others would argue the opposite, with matched vociferousness and self-assurance.

Any attempt to actually change the mind of the other is almost certainly doomed to failure, and I see little point in trying to do so now. But we are now getting into very dangerous territory, so the cost of avoiding conflict is becoming ever greater. It amazes me that I haven’t even heard the parties explain exactly what their goals consist of. It isn’t specific enough for ICE to say that all they want are “the worst of the worst,” and demonstrators saying they just want ICE out of Minneapolis.

Daniel Mauthe
Livermore

Sliding scale on who is domestic terrorist

Re: “Ex-SEAL guilty of plot to bring explosives to rally” (Page B3, Jan. 15).

I found an article in Thursday’s paper quite interesting. Gregory Vandenberg, a former Navy Seal, was convicted on Monday of leaving Texas with the intent of throwing explosives at law enforcement officers during the summer’s No Kings Day protests in San Diego.

He was convicted by a federal jury in Albuquerque, New Mexico, of transportation of explosives with intent to kill, injure or intimidate. Vandenberg’s phone contained violent and extremist content, including antisemitic and anti-U.S. government materials, as well as discussions of upcoming protests. When arrested in Arizona, Vandenberg’s car, in addition to explosives, contained clothing with an al-Qaida flag, neo-Nazi symbols and antisemitic words.

To the best of my knowledge, he was not charged with, nor convicted of, domestic terrorism. I guess “domestic terrorism” is only applicable when it serves the Trump administration’s agenda.

Mark Gabin
Concord

Outdated legal system isn’t for swift justice

Re: “Minnesota, Twin Cities sue Feds to halt ICE crackdown” (Page A4, Jan. 13).

While Minnesota may sue over the deployment of ICE, it may not get any satisfaction from it.

While the Constitution, written by slaveowners in the 1700s, is the basis of our laws, we interpret it based on a system derived from British common law from the 1100s, resulting in an out-of-date legal system fraught with loopholes and vague wording, such that the courts spend months, if not years, arguing over how something is to be interpreted.

So here we are in 2025 using a legal system from the 1100s to interpret laws written in the 1700s. Good luck with that, America.

Robert Thomas
Castro Valley