To the editor: I’ve lived in Placentia since 1990. Great place to live. I like the name but it’s not really memorable, and people tend to mispronounce it. (“White House bars AP reporter from Oval Office because of AP policy on ‘Gulf of America,’” Feb. 11)
I decided to take the bold step to rename the city, as President Trump did in renaming the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America. Placentia will heretofore be called Disneyland.
We are the next town over, and the city council will surely approve the name change since it will bring in plenty of marketing dollars. My grandchildren will be ecstatic to know that their grandparents live in Disneyland. There also will be no trademark infringement to worry about, as Trump will surely allow the Walt Disney Co. to buy the city at a deep discount.
God bless President Trump, God bless America, and greetings from Disneyland.
Matts Hirschler, Placentia
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To the editor: It’s juvenile and petty but not without precedence to change geographic names.
Some islands to the east of southern South America are called the Falkland Islands by their inhabitants and Great Britain. Claimed by Argentina, the islands are called Las Islas Malvinas on maps in South America.
In the Middle East, the Persian Gulf is known by another name on maps in Arab countries.
Mexico should not bother suing Google for using “Gulf of America” on its maps; it should continue to print maps reading “Golfo de Mexico.”
Besides, “America” refers to North and South America, not the U.S., even if Trump is not aware of that.
T. D. Proffitt, Santa Ana
The writer is a former instructor of the history of the Americas at Cerritos College.
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To the editor: I commend the Associated Press for using the correct geographic name for the Gulf of Mexico.
The names of international bodies of water are formalized by the International Hydrographic Organization, which has 100 member states. It is really important to use the correct names so that we don’t get even more criticism from other countries about our ignorance of geography.
Joann Stock, San Marino
