Listen to expert on education ideas
Thank you for your editorial “The roots of learning (Nov. 17).” Thank you for citing Ronald Ferguson (Harvard) and his concern that experiences outside the classroom are a major factor causing our children to fail.
You are on target but the expert is from Yale and his name if James P. Comer. He’s been trying to convince school systems to engage all adults who have anything to do with rearing and/or educating children. He’s been doing this since his success with two failing New Haven schools in 1968.
The closest school system to introduce Comer’s SDP (Student Development Program) is in Asheville, N.C. Asheville is one of the latest school systems (out of about 1,000 schools) to get “Comer in the Classroom.” Go online and listen to Carol Ray, principal of Hall Fletcher Elementary School, testify to how well it works. In five years the school went from 42 percent on passing proficiency tests to 97 percent. Her students were 85 percent low income and 70 percent African-American.
I can’t find anyone here in Chattanooga (public schools and/or public school foundation) who knows about Dr. Comer. His books are at the downtown library.
So let’s quit this forever talking about our failing children. Dr. Comer is eager to hear from Chattanooga. Will the Times get behind this effort?
BLAKE MOORE
Signal Mountain
Income figures could repay debt
Re: Sunday’s editorial (Nov. 14) “Kill the high-end tax cut.”
I believe in doing your arithmetic calculations you misplaced a comma or totally made up a number. The top 2 percent of households having an average income of $8 million is absurd. Assuming (there are) 100 million households in our country, this would mean that this group makes $16 trillion a year and could pay off our national debt and then some in a year. They may, if this were true, gladly do so. Considering myself a moderate it is the use of numbers like this that deflects the true issues.
LEX TARUMIANZ
Editor’s note: The White House has frequently said that more than half the households with incomes above the $250,000 level actually make more than $8 million.
Restaurant again honors veterans
The Golden Corral restaurant at Hamilton Place Mall was once again busy Nov. 15 in their annual project, honoring all vets who have served in the U.S. military.
This event has grown and the parking lot was full with so many dedicated people who have given so much to keep our flag flying.
The management, cooks and servers went all out to prepare a meal to long be remembered. The atmosphere was filled with the smell of excellent food, conversations of war stories and discussions of varied opinions of needed common sense to get our country back on the right road to success again.
Thanks, Golden Corral.
JOE CANNON
Hixson
Extra security a minor bother
On Sept. 11, 2001, my wife and I were in England. Through considerable effort we were able to get a flight back in about a week. Several things happened during that flight.
Quite a few of those who were on flights from Europe to the U.S. on 9/11 and were turned back were sobbing, and some were out and out crying.
When someone got up to go to the restroom, everyone watched, especially when it was a male, until they returned.
It was an unforgettable flight, and considering that it was one of the first flights back to the U.S., only half full.
Since that time, I was intimately involved with homeland security for about five years with a major sheriff’s department in South Florida. The intelligence that security forces have that is not publicly available is considerable. If it takes pat-downs and X-rays to ensure a safe flight for the general public, I believe it is a minor inconvenience for a safer flight.
WAYNE MAILLIARD
Soddy-Daisy
Tea party too restrictive
I read your recent article about Sen. Bob Corker and his potential for censure by the tea party movement, resulting from some of his past votes and positions on specific issues that were apparently out of sync with the tea party agenda.
I hate to say that I find the concept of “eating your own” strange, but I guess it sounds all too familiar, in politics and … nature.
It would seem to me very restrictive and narrow to have a club where the members are expected and required to follow the company line to a “T” without any thought or rights of their own. Like the right to independent thought.
The tea party seems to have some steam right now. Some years ago, it was “The Contract with America.” The Congress turned over and various groups took credit for the results. Right or wrong.
TIM ENGEL
Hixson
Defense not the problem
When call comes to balance budget, it’s answered by call to cut defense budget.
Soon, libraries will have IRS 1040 Forms and Instructions 2010 available for all. Using page 100 for 2009 and same Major Categories of Federal Income and Outlays for FY 2009 would negate call. Page 100 is for results ending September 2008. New one for 2011 ends Sept. 30, 2009.
Deficit for fiscal year 2008 was $459 billion. Outlays were $ 2.983 trillion, with 20 percent, or $596.6 billion to equip, modernize and pay our armed forces and to fund national defense activities. Latter include disaster relief for nations suffering famine, flood, hurricane, etc. It doesn’t include costs of fighting two active wars, or about $140 billion more (total appropriated for FY 2009 was $141.8 billion.)
Deficit for FY 2009 was $1.413 trillion. Defense authorizations, including war costs, were $612 billion. President signed bill Oct. 28 authorizing $681 billion for FY 2010 defense. Yet, predicted FY 2010 deficit will be $1.413 trillion.
Sensible analysis doesn’t conclude defense expenses are problem with growing deficits of almost $1 trillion per year. Let’s look at other outlays.
JOHN A. LYNCH
Whitwell, Tenn.
We must maintain family values
On Nov. 18, you ran an AP article about marriage being obsolete. This is one of the main problems facing our country today.
The financial and international issues we are dealing with are the symptoms, but the underlying cause is the moral decay and loss of family values that made this country strong.
As young people grow up in single-parent homes or homes where there is not a solid basis of love and commitment, we see an increase in welfare, domestic crime and overall dissatisfaction with and disrespect for what we’ve built in this country.
The family unit, a father and mother, legally married and committed to each other, teaching and training children the principles of discipline and respect, will be the one thing that can help us recover as a nation.
The government cannot do this for us in our schools or through its programs. The family is the most basic and most important organization established by God, and if we do not respect and adhere to the principles of strong families, then the deterioration of our society will continue and the Lord will no longer tolerate our existence in this, his Promised Land.
DOUG THARP
Ooltewah