Disappointing
As a parent of a fifth-grader who participated in the Odyssey of the Mind competition, I found the article "Local students find a spark in Odyssey of the Mind" (Monday April 2) very disappointing and insulting.
Our sole purpose in inviting the Journal to one of the practice sessions was to expose the community and the other schools to what we consider to be a superlative learning experience for our children, not to critique their performance. The judges are trained specifically for this purpose, and the judging is very precise.
The Journal implies that the accents were hard to understand, but in fact it is the creativity that the judges saw in these accents that enabled our children to enjoy first place in the regionals.
The Journal implies that the performance is "loosely based on Hamlet"; in actuality, the rules are strict and participants have to follow specific elements of style in drama. The children who participate in any Odyssey competition demonstrate their imagination, creativity, team-building skills and competitive spirit — all without any assistance from teachers or parents. Odyssey competitions inculcate quality characteristics in young minds. It is my hope that your article does not deter any school or children from future competitions. It is also my hope that in the future, the Journal does appropriate research before reporting.
KHAISHOON BASRAI
Clemmons
Violating God's law of love
The writer of the April 6 letter "A culture of life" stated that houses of worship are exempt from President Obama's contraception mandate. Religious schools, hospitals, etc., are not exempt. Sadly, most chemical contraceptives are abortifacients. They destroy nascent human life. No individual or institution should be forced to violate conscience, a commandment, or fund non-reproductive "services" that are not inherent rights.
The writer is disappointed that the church that produced Mother Teresa, Oscar Romero and John Paul II "allowed itself to be dragged into this circus." The government dragged the church in by attempting to impose human authority over divine through legislating immorality on the church and its members. The aforementioned saints opposed contraception and abortion in humble obedience to the church's authority in matters of faith and morals (Matthew 16:18-19) because they violate God's law of love. The church and its saints affirm life as the ultimate gift of a loving God, who sanctified life when he took on human flesh in the womb and gave his life for us on the cross.
Embracing a total culture of life desired by the writer requires restoring the moral order the Creator established; revering human life, made in his divine image, from conception to natural death and defending and living God's plan for marriage, family and sexuality. Humble obedience to truth is the cornerstone of a just, moral, peace-loving, environmentally and economically stable and regenerative civilization, because it is rooted in divine authority and love, God himself, who cannot err.
TONI BUCKLER
Clemmons
Liberal-arts degrees are worth it
To all students, parents and educators questioning the value of a liberal arts degree ("Colleges face questions on whether degrees worth costs," April 8), I stand as evidence that you can study Nietzsche and still find a job. I have a liberal-arts degree in philosophy, and I'm the senior vice president of editorial and software development at Alexander Street Press, a publisher included in eContent's The 100 Top Companies in the Digital Content Industry.
Not only do I have a job, I hire new employees. And I prefer candidates with liberal-arts backgrounds. They are better able to adapt, learn new things and think critically than students who narrowly focus on business or technology. My college career counselor taught me that the value of my degree wasn't in my knowledge of Nietzsche but in my ability to analyze an argument, debate opposing views and support my own ideas. Those are skills I use every day as an executive.
I commend Wake Forest University's conference on examining the value of higher education. Tell any graduate this spring with a humanities background that I'm hiring.
ANDREA EASTMAN-MULLINS
Winston-Salem
Election Deadline
Letters about the primary election must be received at the Journal by 5 p.m. April 26 to be considered for publication. Campaign workers and family members should please acknowledge their relationship when they write.
Violating God's law of love:
ReplyDelete"Embracing a total culture of life desired by the writer requires restoring the moral order the Creator established; revering human life, made in his divine image, from conception to natural death and defending and living God's plan for marriage, family and sexuality."
In Number's 3:15 God instructs Moses to "Number the children of Levi after the house of their fathers, by their families: every male from a month old and upward shalt thou number them".King James Bible (Cambridge Ed.)
Interesting in that culture life appears to begins for males only and only after they have attained the age of one month. Now that's a Bible based "culture of life" and "love".
Yes, Wordly, a truly primitive patriarchal system that shows up all over. For instance, the founders were not Founding Fathers; first of all, not all the male founders were fathers and second, not all the founders were male.
Delete"from conception to natural death" does that mean that people who are kept from dying by means not found in nature need no longer be revered?
Liberal-art degree are worth it:
ReplyDeleteMy family is pleased that our daughter will graduate in May with a liberal arts degree. She will be employed, and she had more than one offer.
Congratulation 'o daughter of Wordly
DeleteGroovy! Did she play one offer against the other to get a better salary package?
DeleteShe accepted a position which she feels has the most potential to get back to DC. (Why anyone would want to live there I'm not sure, but she very much enjoyed her time there). She negotiated for a later start date and the ability to return home for her brother's graduation and for a wedding. This was by far her most generous offer, but it is a long way from home or what was home.
DeleteTo be young and in DC...I don't blame her a bit.
DeleteThere could hardly be a better place for a fresh college grad than DC. It is very much a college town, with great schools like American U., Catholic U., Gaulladet, George Washington, Georgetown and Howard, all in all a total of about 70,000 college students, which means great music clubs, cafes, shops, museums and trendy places to live...not to mention being at the center of gravity of national politics.
DeleteGood afternoon folks!
ReplyDeleteLTE 1: An example of how journalism has regrettably morphed into editorializing. Before informing the public about what happened at this event, one would think the reporter would consult with the coaches to learn how the competition works, what the judges are looking for, get some feedback from the participants, then base the report on the facts as opposed to offering a critique of the performance.
LTE 2: The tone of this LTE is a bit ironic considering 50 years ago JFK made a speech stating he would not be beholden to the church in his decision making to calm fears concerning his Catholicism. Institutions such as schools and hospitals may be owned or affiliated with a church, but they have a secular purpose albeit with a religious tint which differentiates them from the purely religious institutions. If we are to let organizations dictate which insurance plan they will consider based on their perceived moral judgement of what should or should not be included in those plans, will some employees be left with coverage only for witch doctors or spiritual healers? This is a secular country, not a theocracy. People are free to use or not use any part of their health care plan including contraceptives according to their moral/religious persuasion.
LTE 3: The UR for college graduates is under 5% which means over 95% are employed (if looking). That total includes lots of liberal arts degree holders. While there is certainly a huge demand for STEM degrees, there also appears to be a high demand for graduates who can "analyze an argument, debate opposing views and support (one's) own ideas".
We need far more students to take on the rigors of math, engineering and the hard sciences, all fields now dominated, especially at the graduate level, by foreign students.
DeleteThat being said, the liberal arts require high level thinking in analysis, interpretation and logic. Anyone who doesn't think so should try untangling Milton or Joyce or Tacitus or St. Augustine or Freud...Nietzsche is a walk in the park compared to any of those.
I know of many businesses, large and small, that prefer to or will only hire liberal arts grads, except in areas of scientific specialization.
Cuz, your comment re the philosophers et al above reminds me on a religion professor's note in a blue exam booklet: "Mike, this does not reflect thorough reading of Tillich." He was right. The writing was incomprehensible. Later, I had a go at a philosophy course entitled Ethics. There I encountered Immanuel Kant. I remain convinced that whoever translated Kant spoke English as a second language. I had to buy Cliff Notes to get thru that course. By comparison, the musings of quantum physicists and the like are much easier to follow.
DeleteI don't know what the big deal is concerning the Secret Service Agents and the Colombian women. I can't blame them. After receiving a bunch grief from scale 4 and 5 gringo women in the U.S., getting a nice smile from a hot Colombian woman had to have been irresistible.
ReplyDeleteThe hotel that they stayed at isn't that nice. They should have switched venues for their 'adventures'.
All Secret Service agents and anyone else involved in protecting the President and other top US officials are required to have a Top Secret clearance. Anyone who has ever had such a clearance is aware that engaging a prostitute is automatic grounds for loss of the clearance.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, such engagement is forbidden under the Code of Conduct of the Secret Service and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Under both this is grounds for immediate dismissal as well as possible imprisonment.
These are not moral rules. They are practical, because prostitutes have and can again blackmail US personnel, to the benefit of foreign intelligence services or an assassination plot.
So this is a very serious offense. Only a moron would think otherwise.
The State Department has more same sex rump lovers, banging male prostitutes all over the world, than you can shake a stick at.
DeleteIf they fired everyone involved in prostitution homosexual or heterosexual, most of the State Department and people in the foreign service would be fired under your premise. Only a liberal nitwit would think otherwise.
A number of these party animals are married. They will no doubt exchange their comfortable suburban existences for rented mansions on wheels. I hope the partying was worth it.
DeleteIt may have been. I have a friend who years ago went off with another ex-Marine to spend the weekend in a Nuevo Laredo whorehouse. They had told their wives they were going duck hunting in Arkansas (they lived in Memphis). While they were cavorting in Mexico, a stupid acquaintance came by to see him, and after being told where my friend supposedly was, said no that couldn't be right: duck season had ended months before. Busted.
In telling that tale of marital dissolution, my friend said he was now trying to live a righteous life, as he was sure that Heaven is a lot like Nuevo Laredo.
Bucky, whence come the stats for the conclusion you cite re State Dept staff and prostitution? And please spare us the graphic descriptions that so fever your mind.
DeleteMy, my, Stab, you've got me laughing again. Some years ago I went out to San Antonio to visit one of my old Navy friends who had become something of a millionaire in the aviation brokerage field. He collected things, and had heard that there was something he wanted in Nuevo Laredo, so we drove down at the typical Texas break neck speed.
DeleteHaving survived the journey, I was happy just to observe what was going on there. Did not catch a single glimpse of heaven, but plenty of potential bits of hell.
As to Zero's stats, you can compare them with those of war criminal Congressman Allen West re Communists in the House. Birds of a feather do tend to flock together.
As always, stupid is as stupid does.
The State Department publishes their health stats. What it doesn't tell you, but is well-known is that over 90 percent of the people that test positive for HIV when they return from overseas, are male homosexuals that have been engaged in trying to bang foreign, male, rumps flat.
ReplyDeleteThe reason you don't hear of these stats is because it's not politically correct to tell the truth about male homosexual behavior, and it's consequences.
Just so you know, Stab, you and I are paying for these sexual deviants' healthcare through federal taxation. So it DOES affect all of us.
It always amazes me how utterly ignorant liberals claim to be.
DeleteTo quote Mike Krzyzewski "That's fucking bullshit."
DeleteSo what is the total number of people returning from overseas that test positive for HIV?
Delete