A Fresh View
I don’t think that Richard Reisman’s Aug. 7 Notebook, “Thoughts on the Times Piece,” was belaboring the point. Rather than being repetitious, I thought his article was a fresh viewpoint on the data. In fact, I particularly enjoyed his point/counterpoint approach in critiquing the analysis of the Los Angeles Times article as to whether or not high-tech glory is passing Orange Country by.
Kirk Maldonado
Principal
Riordan & McKinzie
Costa Mesa
Election Issues
Conservatives and liberals alike are bashing Proposition 38, which is venture capitalist Tim Draper’s school voucher initiative. Their concerns include fear of exposing both home schools and private schools to government control, as well as somehow increasing the cost of private education via the voucher process.
Given enough time, we could no doubt rip this measure further apart. However, I submit that doing so would be misguided and ultimately could consign thousands of our young people to dreary futures. Now more than ever we must act not only on behalf of our families, but also in the name of our fellow Californians.
Vouchers would allow everyone, including those without other means, to at last obtain a decent education for their children. Will vouchers hurt our government schools? No. Consider that the state spends upwards of $7,000 to educate each of our children, but the vouchers will provide only $4,000. Simple math dictates that the balance of $3,000 will stay in the public school system.
Vouchers will also do something that perhaps nothing else can,they will blunt the power of the California Teachers Association. Our system of public education is so completely broken that even Gov. Gray Davis, an ally of the CTA, admitted during his campaign that drastic action must be taken. If nothing else, the needs of our workforce and raging economy dictate that we must do more to properly educate our kids.
If we allow our system of public education to continue unimpeded, we will pay for it and pay dearly. The riots you saw after the Lakers’ championship game will pale in comparison to what will happen on an increasingly regular basis if we continue to allow this system to graduate thousands of children who are bereft of the ability to read and write letters like this one.
Art Pedroza Jr.
Chairman
Santa Ana Families Who Care
I’m writing this open letter in support of opening the presidential debates. First of all, what kind of debate is a two-party debate? The same kind we hear every day on the news. The kind of debate where you have three or four parties represented is much more interesting, informative, and productive for the candidates and the voters. History also shows that viewership of the debates rises with the number of candidates.
No independent thoughts or ideas are represented in a two-party debate where the two parties debating are both financially supported by multinational corporations. Moreover, the debates themselves are sponsored by major corporations!
Let’s go back to the future and redefine what American is. It used to mean independence, revolution and freedom. Today it means follow the pack, buy this, buy that. “What I buy makes me who I am.” Let’s have a third and maybe fourth candidate in the debates who represents some original ideas!
Scott Williams
Woodland Hills
