Editor, Manteca Bulletin,

I have two suggestions that I think make a lot of ‘common sense’ — the first is something my husband and I saw while traveling in Far North Queensland, Australia. In the public bathrooms the toilets were just like ours with one very good, practical and simple difference —there were two buttons on top of the water tank, one was black and the other white.  Black was used for a ‘full’ flush while white was used for a smaller flush, simple and it saved water. I appreciate simple.

 My second suggestion is to go back into time when the police ‘walked the beat’ and were expected to get to know the people on the beat.  I think this served several purposes including familiarizing the residents, especially the children, with the police and vice versa hopefully, humanizing the policeperson; they should notice who the trouble-makers are and try to have a stabilizing effect on the community.  When police started to drive cars, they kept their windows rolled up and could no longer hear what was going on around them and I think it isolates and dehumanizes the policeperson or persons driving the vehicle.

 When I was growing up in Richmond, California, there was a 9 p.m. curfew for underage people during the week and an 11 p.m. curfew on the weekends.  Therefore, everyone who might be underage was stopped regardless of race.  I understand that there are many reasons not to impose a curfew but there are also many reasons to impose one.  I do not know if this would be of any benefit in Manteca but it was certainly not onerous to anyone as exceptions can and were made, for instance for someone returning from work.  I think it made raising their children easier for parents as well.

Marie Evans

Manteca