To: San Diego Union-Tribune
From: Fran Zimmerman
Subject: San Diego "Lightning Rods" Story
Date: 10/28/02

On a day of Alice-in-Wonderland Union-Tribune coverage of the news, you run a comparison of elected District Attorney Paul Pfingst and the stealth-appointed Superintendent of Schools Alan Bersin in a lead story called "Lightning Rods Election 2002."

The only things Paul Pfingst and Alan Bersin have in common is that they are both male lawyers with wives and daughters. End of comparison. Pfingst is a highly qualified prosecutor with an excellent record for toughness, honesty, fairness and humanity who is in the midst of a rugged re-election campaign. Bersin has always been unqualified for his job and never gets anything except by appointment from influential or rich friends.

In the interest of full disclosure – something your paper seldom does – I have a relative by marriage working in Pfingst's office.

Frances O'Neill Zimmerman
Member, Board of Education
San Diego Unified School District