The truth is simply what we want to hear
Michael Crichton (“ET,” “Jurassic Park”) was once asked to address the question, “What is the greatest challenge facing mankind today?” Briefly stated, his answer was it’s “the challenge of distinguishing reality from fantasy, truth from propaganda.” His thesis is illustrated by two editorials on opposite pages of the Dec. 8 Perspective section.
On the left, Paul Krugman states that “The positive results of Obamacare’s first year are striking.” He goes on to cite figures from the Urban Institute: “– a sharp drop in the number of uninsured adults — Premiums for 2014 came in well below expectations.” He concludes, “If you think of Obamacare as a policy to improve American lives, it’s going really well.”
On the right page, Robin Smith presents a different picture, offering “The promises of Obamacare in the president’s own words … ‘If you like your plan/doctor you can keep your plan/doctor.'” She goes on to quote a Gallup survey: “One in three Americans say they have put off getting medical treatment that they or their family need because of cost.”
Truth or propaganda? Studies confirm that people tend to listen to or read only those things with which they agree. Don’t confuse me with the facts. My mind’s made up!
Warren Sharp, Rising Fawn, Ga.
Toss Common Core and feds out of education
In response to a Dec. 16 letter about Common Core: I am in total agreement. It is a shame that students aren’t taught to think on their own. Are we to have a generation of young people dumbed down and unable to think their own thoughts? As per “Webster’s Dictionary,” dumb means markedly lacking in intelligence. Common Core is sick. Throw it in the trash where it belongs. Get the federal government out of the education system.
Elaine Bell, Cleveland, Tenn.
Common Core falsely maligned
A letter writer recently stated “Common Core Based on Flawed Premise.” That writer’s analysis is badly flawed. The ideas expressed in the letter are simply more misinformation about standards and their role in the classroom. Common Core is a set of standards. It does not establish a curriculum, lesson plans, rubrics or grading scales. Standards, be they Common Core or the new Tennessee Academic Standards, “… set goals for what students should know and be able to do.” For example, the first goal for kindergarten math in Common Core is to “count to 100 by ones and by 10s.” Curriculum and supporting texts are selected by administrators at the state and local levels. Lesson plans are written and executed by classroom teachers. Grading schemes are established by state and local administrators and school boards. Teachers base grades on rubrics. Standards simply establish a goal. Districts and teachers decide how to help students reach those goals. The writer suggests that the standards call for a certain curriculum, lesson plan and grade scale. This is not true. The new standards are designed to teach students to think logically, look at problems from a variety of perspectives and solve problems.
Paul E. Dean
Dynamic church puts love to wheels
The root meaning of the word dynamic is “power.” A dynamic person is energetic, vibrant and full of life. And so are the members of Dynamic Church of Chattanooga. For the third year, the Chattanooga Salvation Army was privileged to partner with Dynamic Church for its extraordinary “Love Gives Wheels” bike drive. This year, 420 bikes were donated by shoppers at Walmart on Gunbarrel Road over 36 straight hours as members of Dynamic Church braved the weather and encouraged them to buy a bike for a local child struggling with a hard life in an often dangerous neighborhood. The bikes will be given through the Salvation Army Angel Tree program to provide practical hope and fulfill the Christmas dreams of these deserving kids. More than 1,000 bikes have been donated through Love Gives Wheels over the past three years. So, we of your hometown Salvation Army are delighted to thank those who shared with the less fortunate by donating a bike and especially to thank our friends of the Dynamic Church for your faithful, caring dedication. You are truly dynamic!
The Salvation Army, Chattanooga
DOMA law was unfair from start
The Dec. 14 Free Press editorial on “The Loss of Fairness” cites the Obama administration’s decision to stop defending the Defense of Marriage Act as an example. DOMA’s sole purpose was to treat some legally married couples unfairly. It had no other purpose. Nobody benefited from the law. When the Justice Department stopped defending it, House Republicans spent millions of taxpayer dollars on the best private sector attorneys they could find to try to defend the law. They were unable to justify the law in any court including the Supreme Court. The executive branch made the right decision to decline to waste taxpayer money defending such an unfair law.
Greg Gloss Cleveland, Tenn.
Use common sense dealing with police
Login to Facebook and you will be blasted with opinions about the police and the recent victims in Ferguson and Staten Island. It’s a little more interesting when I read a comment from the perspective of policemen, who have to deal with the public 24/7. I admit, I am a liberal who is not all that fond of the police as a rule. Most cops I have dealt with have a hair-trigger temper when they suspect I might have an “attitude” problem. If I want to get beaten up, shot or arrested, all I have to do is act a little aggressive toward the police officer or give him a little “attitude.” Now that I am older and wiser, I make sure I’m not doing anything to attract the police. Do the right thing and you won’t have to worry about being a victim of police violence. However, I am a white man. If I was a black man, doing the right thing might still attract police attention. A word of advice? Do what the police officer says, do not argue, and, first and foremost, stay out of trouble.
Pat Hagan Fort Oglethorpe
Burglary victims thank officers
In mid-November, we carelessly left our Signal Mountain home unlocked as we rushed off for a quick errand. At around 3 p.m., we became the 20th home on Signal Mountain robbed since mid-summer. The thieves only had a few minutes to grab all the jewelry they could. How foolish we felt. We knew we had been naive to think we did not need to lock our doors every time we left the house. We want to encourage folks to be more sensible than we were when leaving home, and we want to express appreciation for the hands-on response of the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office. Officer Spalding was here within five minutes and returned twice for the list of stolen items. Last week, we got a call from Detective Langford. An arrest in Red Bank yielded an unexpected stash of jewelry. Would we like to see photos of it in case some might be ours? In short, 95 percent of our stolen jewelry was pictured in those photos. We are so grateful for the work these folks did. We hope you’ll take our advice without having to go through the experience yourself.
Ginnie and David Harris, Signal Mountain
What Sharpton owes would reduce debt
If the Republicans are serious about bringing down the national debt, they could start with IRS employees. Some owe taxes as far back as [former Obama Secretary of the Treasury] Timothy Geithner, and then there’s Al Sharpton, Obama’s’ right hand man in charge of overseeing and promoting all the riots happening now. He probably owes more than the IRS employees combined. So Speaker Boehner? What say? Would it be a good start? Jo Ann Whitlow Harrison
Biased television reporting hurtful I just watched a segment on the distrust between black men and police. The question was asked as to why. The answer is because of history, but more immediately, and ongoing, is because of politically bigoted and prejudiced reporting and commentary by major news organizations such as NBC. NBC has repeatedly stated “the failure of the grand juries to indict.” The use of the term “failure” has been chosen to present that the grand juries were wrong. Otherwise you could, and would, say “the grand jury succeeded in not indicting” in the same number of reports to present balanced reporting, but NBC has never used that term. Both terms are judgments and not reporting. NBC and the other politicized organizations have prejudged or are prejudiced and politically bigoted. Fair and impartial reporting would say the grand juries “decided” to not indict. Unfortunately, we have come to understand NBC and other major news organizations cannot or will not report the news fairly. There can be no improvements when young black children are indoctrinated by such biased and prejudiced reporting. Improvements have to be on both sides, not just police.
Jim Hill, Harrison