Letters

Stand up, be heard

On Aug. 23rd, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Race was held in Tennessee. Young men and young ladies stood and repeated the pledge of allegiance with Old Glory waving and honored.

Then a young man prayed to the Lord, God of heaven. He closed his prayer in God's only son's name, Jesus, the Christ.

How great was that! People who have the grit, gall and stamina to go against what has become unpopular and pray. I say amen. Stand up, Christians, and be heard.

OLEN HILL

Morrilton

Can aid rural schools

Re Anthony Lloyd's commentary on expanded Internet services in rural school districts: I found it difficult to identify precisely what his objections are, but they seem to be that he didn't have it in his time; the Internet is little more than a nexus of text, Twitter and PlayStation; and since college costs have risen dramatically and a great many more degrees are now granted, a college diploma has diminished value, and even less value if the graduate has a student loan. He concludes that expanded broadband Internet in rural schools will not change any of that.

I am a transplant. My prior home state is remarkably similar to Arkansas even though it is not in the South and has a smaller population. In this context the similarity is an abundance of small-town schools. Rural districts everywhere face the problem of limited population and budgets.

My former state had a different outlook. The education community there embraced new technologies and in doing so brought greatly expanded curriculum offerings to small outlying districts and enhanced communication between teachers and state-level curriculum consultants. Many special needs can be addressed online and gifted students can be challenged in ways they wouldn't otherwise be exposed to.

I suspect I am older than Mr. Lloyd. My time paging through the Encyclopedia Britannica was more than two decades ago. Much of that time was spent in one room with one teacher and multiple grades. And, honestly, late at night I reminisce and share his "good old days" memories, but I wouldn't wish that experience on anyone. The Internet is a reality and a marvel. Rejecting the value it can bring to educating and learning because we didn't have it in our time is indefensible.

ALAN REESE

Bryant

Not on fence about it

I have been paying attention (with some amusement) as Sen. Mark Pryor tries to explain his votes to give apparent amnesty to illegal immigrants and votes against building a border fence. Even though he voted three times against building a border fence, Pryor wants to point to another time when he did support it.

He sounds to me like just another Washington politician trying to "straddle the fence"--no pun intended. If you support a border fence, then why vote against it three times? Israel had an illegal immigration problem on its border with Egypt, but those problems largely went away after Israel constructed a border fence. Here's my question for Senator Pryor: Why is it OK for Israel to defend its borders, but not the United States?

Our other Senator, John Boozman, opposed any amnesty plan. Seems to me that Senator Pryor just rubber-stamped whatever President Barack Obama wanted him to.

I think our crisis at the Southern border is far too important to send Mark Pryor back for another six years!

LLOYD HOFFMAN

Hot Springs

Teach children well

What are we teaching our children? Hardly a day's drive goes by without witnessing the unpleasant and dangerous driving habits of many parents.

A recent morning, a young parent barreled out of a side road, forcing me to brake suddenly, as well as those drivers behind me. There were three children in that car. What was that parent teaching those children?

On numerous occasions I've observed a parent talking on the cell phone, texting, or checking emails with kids strapped into the vehicle. What are those parents teaching their children?

Then there are the parents tailgating, passing on solid yellow, changing lanes without turn signals, speeding, not coming to a complete stop at stop signs, right turns on red without stopping, and countless other violations.

Just what are they teaching their children?

I've even seen parents, with their children, leaving church parking lots, and within a few blocks operating the vehicle in all sorts of illegal ways. Really ... didn't you just leave church? That's not what you should be teaching your children!

OK, I'm not a perfect driver. I make mistakes like any other human. Yet, these parents to which I refer have bad driving habits. They are teaching their children the same bad habits.

I would like to think that if they slowed down enough to think about it, they would change their ways. Or are they the ones who tell their children, "Do as I say, not as I do?"

KEITH DE NOBLE

Bigelow

Out of their playbook

Recent news tells us that the Arkansas Department of Human Services is proposing some big changes to the Medicaid part of the Affordable Care Act/Obamacare. They look to me like they came directly from the national Republican/Paul Ryan playbook on attempts to scrap Medicare.

At the Human Services website, all the buzzwords are being used: independence accounts, accountability, personal responsibility, transparency, encouraging responsible choices--all part of adding additional demands to the Medicaid program in Arkansas. The Republicans at the state legislature level already secured a number of requirements before they would vote for Medicaid expansion.

It appears that the Department of Human Services has been tasked with doing the dirty work for the Republicans so they don't get hit with the backlash in November.

These additional requirements, along with the flim-flammery that goes along with them, appear to be a blatant attempt to sabotage the Medicaid portion of Obamacare. As a result of Obamacare, Arkansas has the highest percentage of people nationwide that have received medical insurance. If the Feds don't agree to these added conditions, the private-option Medicaid program will end.

A number of Southern states have refused to expand Medicaid as part of Obamacare, and I believe thousands will die.

FRANK NEWMAN

Huntington

Editorial on 09/02/2014

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