Signal schools' exit challenged as harmful
Why a town councilman took it upon himself to call various county representatives to warn that Signal Mountain was interested in leaving the Hamilton County school district - before running it by his fellow commissioners or his constituents in a public forum - is beyond me.
At the council's working meeting last Friday, after the Times Free Press had headlined then-Commissioner Chris Howley's "idea" in the morning paper - the newly elected Mayor Howley explained his thinking (or lack thereof) to his fellow commissioners.
He said he had been approached by some friends (whom he did not name and who might not even live in the town), and said that these friends had done some research on the windfall profits that Signal Mountain might reap from leaving the district.
I'm appalled that we might pull our funding from the county where we make our livelihoods possible and sustain our bottom line. I am appalled that we would increase the suffering of school children by isolating ourselves from those who would suffer more through our absence.
Without Chattanooga, we aren't much of a force. Can't we support and sustain one another through good times and bad?
Susan Jones, Signal Mountain
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Seat belts on buses not at all clear cut
As a former school bus driver for more than 13 years, I would strongly ask you to ponder these thoughts about putting seat belts on school buses:
What happens in a crash and the driver gets knocked out or killed? Who will get 50-plus children out of their seat belts, out of the bus and safely away in limited time? Can you live with the thought of the above children possibly burning to death because they were strapped in seat belts?
Some children will unhook them and beat each other with the buckles. Is that OK? Who is going to make sure they stay hooked up? What about the cost of fire retardant, thick padding inside the entire bus?
Does every bus driver in Tennessee do mandatory fire and crash drills on a regular basis? Is every driver drug tested randomly anywhere from one to 10 times a school year? If not, why not?
When I drove, at least one-third or more of the drivers would have quit driving because they could not have handled such a task that seat belts would create.
Art W. Lyonais
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Trump supporters protest too much
So Trump supporters are suing to block the recounts in the three contested states - Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania.
If they are so sure he honestly won the election, why are they wasting their money on filing the lawsuits?
Allen Chesney
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UPS driver deserves high praise for service
This happened Monday around 9:30 a.m.:
I was on the treadmill looking out the window when the UPS truck pulled up at the end of my driveway. I continued watching hoping I could tell what was in the box he was delivering. After he got out of the truck with my package, he bent over and picked up my newspaper and placed the box and my paper on the front porch.
I guess I'm not surprised he did that because I know him, but in this especially busy season in his profession, he didn't have to do that. If you live in Soddy-Daisy/Lakesite area and Leslie Wells is your UPS driver, you are very lucky. You are a class act, Leslie Wells!
Lisa Bean, Soddy-Daisy