Youth sports has lost it purpose
The Jackie Robinson Little League team stripped of its title is a splashy headline but sadly nothing new. The only surprising element is that anyone is genuinely surprised by the seedy undercurrents in play.
Ever since youth sports have become a venue for community entertainment, the quest to field a winning team at all costs has trumped all other purposeful considerations.
Non-skilled kids need not apply, and less skilled players never leave the bench. Behind the scenes, you have coaches and managers manipulating the system to garner that upper edge.
And all for what for their egos, the glory of school colors, a faded page in a record book? Winning and losing an athletic contest is a metric, not a measure of who you are.
By denying participation of average and less-than kids in favor of only elite players, we have lost the very essence and purpose of youth sports -- fitness and healthful activity.
The most recent Little League debacle is only the tip of a very ugly iceberg.
Denny Pistoll, Rising Fawn, Ga.
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Explore other options for health expansion
I do not support Gov. Haslam's Insure Tennessee plan. He is trying to sell the idea of this plan being a conservative approach.
Since when is expansion of a benefits program with federal dollars a conservative approach?
This program would be under the auspices of the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare). Why would we want to cooperate under a law that was fraudulently foisted on the country?
The state would be better served if the governor called a summit of state business, charitable and health care leaders to seek a solution that is privately funded and administered.
I know that the Memphis Plan sponsored by the Church Health Center is an example of local communities coming together to provide health care for the uninsured. There are similar programs throughout the country.
Steve Rowland, Bartlett, Tenn.
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Abortion is unnatural; protect the unborn
I was sickened by the recent negative comments from a female letter writer.
She said pregnancy is more dangerous than abortion, but abortion always kills the unborn child. No choice there for the child.
Pregnancy is normal and natural; abortion is unnatural.
It has been pointed out that the "victims" are not the women. They are the "unwanted," killed before they enter this world.
Instead of the unborn (killed) babies becoming a burden on society, think of the persons they could have grown to become, who might have made great medical discoveries or become great teachers or doctors.
Annabelle Lauderman