Suggestions for Writing Letters to the Editor

Write a letter in support of Paul. The ballot box of printed public opinion is important. The letters section of our local newspapers is where you can vote for Paul Gallegos, our District Attorney. If you see or hear anything in this campaign that inspires you to speak out, please do so!The main thing is to get something in, however imperfect. So don't stew over the letter. Put your thought down on paper as if you were trying to explain it to your neighbor.

Hints for a really good leter:

• Keep to one point. Don't try to cover too much ground. Stick to your one point.
  
• Opening sentence should set the scene; tell why you are writing. It's always good to reference some article that ran in the publication. You don't have to have the correct headline or date.
  
• Next sentence should describe your position or point.
  
• Second paragraph should go into the details or why you think as you do.
  
• Use as many paragraphs as you need, but make sure you separate each with a different paragraph. That makes it more likely people will read it.
  
• Concluding paragraph should re-state your point or position. Use different words, but don't introduce any new ideas.
  
• Final sentence could be your zinger. Try for memorable language or image.
  

Some considerations:

• Keep letter within 250 words. It is better to write two short letters than one long one.
  
• Edit your letter severely. Really get words out of the way by deleting any that are repetitive or any that are unnecessary. The quicker it reads, the better.
  
• Try to eliminate all pejorative adjectives. It makes you appear more objective and, therefore, readers will go all the way to the end of the letter. Don't turn people off by being overly zealous.
  
• Make sure that the words and sentence structure you use can only be read in one way. Some words can be read in two ways and you don't want the reader to go off on the wrong path.
  
• Break sentences up rather than making compound sentences. Look for the word "and" in your letter and see if you can't break the sentence up to eliminate it.
  

Some Sample Letter topics:

• Paul Gallegos is independent of the police; he's got the courage to stand up to them.
  
• Paul Gallegos understands today's Humboldt County. He's a father of three young children.
  
• Paul Gallegos has stirred things up by pursuing the goal of justice for all; Dikeman resorts to lies and distortions to avoid the truth.
  
• Paul Gallegos is a successful prosecutor. He won all 9 of his cases. Worth Dikeman is over the hill, losing 9 of his last 13 cases. Dikeman refuses to admit this in public and slanders Gallegos by saying he's not an experienced prosecutor.
  
• Worth Dikeman and his backers -- the police -- violently opposed implementation of Proposition 215 (medical marijuana), even stalling the implementation of DA Gallegos' guidelines. The Board of Supervisors unanimously rejected their opposition and voted to adopt Gallegos' guidelines.
  
• Paul Gallegos is the man we need. He can take the heat and get the job done. No one has ever had to fight a recall and run the office.
  
• Despite all this, and a declining budget, he accomplished the lowest crime rate in 15 years.
  
• Worth Dikeman's distortions sound like sour grapes. Paul Gallegos keeps his eye on what's important: Public Safety and Justice.
  
• When former DA Terry Farmer took office about 25 people left the prosecutor's office. When Paul Gallegos took office 15 people left. What's the big deal? Change of leadership means change in staff.
  
• California Attorney General, Bill Lockyer, says that Paul Gellegos is one of "California's finest DAs."
  
• Paul Gallegos has the energy to run a ship-shape office and implement new management ideas in today's world of lower budgets. Worth Dikeman wants to drag us back to the "good old days" and is detached from reality.
  
• Paul Gallegos has the support of the people while Worth Dikeman is the pawn of the Good Ole Boys network. Look at who is funding their campaigns -- that tells the story.
  
  

You can send letters to most of the following papers. The Times-Standard has stopped accepting letters for this election. The Eureka Reporter is accepting letters until Monday, June 5th. Remember when you send a letter to include your name, address, and phone number. If you write a long piece (500 plus words) that you want to be an op-ed, include a couple of lines about yourself to be printed, and check with the paper to see if they will put it in. We need to let our voices be heard!

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