Friday, January 1, 1904
I take exception to your editorial concerning the over-zealousness of the Signal Mountain police by arresting those underage drinkers. The writer cited the few arrests by the other law enforcement agencies when making his (or her) point. I don't see compassion in that statistic. I see failure on the part of law enforcement employees -- I decline to use the word "professionals" to describe them -- to enforce the law. Or, perhaps those failures smack of favoritism or elitism?
One last point. At what age below the legal drinking limit would the writer give merely a slap on the wrist, instead of jail and a record?
The high school student whose life opportunities might be damaged by poor choices, or the 20-year old on the cusp of being legal age, who decided not to wait. How about a 19-year old out of high school for a year or more? Leave the Signal Mountain police alone and editorialize about parents who don't know (or don't care) about what their kids are doing, regardless who those parents might be.
STEVE ORENDER, Dayton, Tenn.
A daily routine for me: read the newspaper all the way through. This may sound silly, but it is something I have done for years with only a few exceptions. I even worked at the Free Press when I was a college student as a proofreader who proofread the old-fashioned way, with a red waxed pencil.
After teaching Latin and English in college and high school for almost 40 years, I still find (or make) time to read the paper. However, the political cartoon (a few Sundays ago) about the Bush Library and the Holocaust reference has to be one of the most distasteful use of words and opinion I have ever seen in my beloved Chattanooga Times Free Press. I am glad Mr. Roy (McDonald) is not alive to see such misuse of space in his paper.
I realize this is an editorial cartoon, and the person who drew it has a right to give his opinion, but he owes the patrons of this paper an apology, and he should think about retiring. While there are millions of words and subjects to satirize, some subjects should be off-limits and the Holocaust is one of them.
DR. PAT TAYLOR, Ringgold, Ga.
Drew's Views on May 13, stated that Head Start does not work. Head Start does work! Head Start has made a huge difference in the lives of its children. One of the most notable examples is Tennessee Department of Human Services Commissioner Raquel Hatter, who is a Head Start graduate.
Head Start is not a babysitting service, easily replaced by pre-K or quality child care. Rather, Head Start prepares poverty-level children for school.
"It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men," Frederick Douglass said. "Let's take the hard path now, for our future will be easier [and better] for it."
JOAN HAMMER
OK, both sides of the aisle, let's step back, take a time-out, and focus on taking care of our country, children and veterans.
Gosh, what a novel idea!
BEN SUTTON, Hiwassee, Ga.