Letters

Death of journalism

I believe ethical journalism has ceased to exist. True ethical journalism strives to ensure the free exchange of information that is accurate, fair and thorough. Ethical journalists should be honest and courageous in gathering, reporting and interpreting information; they act with integrity.

I have always tried to keep up with current events by way of television and newspapers. I'm also a strong supporter of the free press. However, I do not support false, untrue or fake news. I think for all news reported, no matter how it was received or by whom, the reporters should take responsibility for the accuracy of their work and verify the information before releasing it.

All news that can't be substantiated may as well be a fairy tale. Having an anonymous source is great; however, to print it as news it must be able to be confirmed true and accurate. It has gotten so bad, if the New York Times receives an anonymous call from someone who said Donald Trump had Russian dressing on his salad last night, then therefore he is connected to Russia. It's a joke; what's worse is other newspapers pick up the story and now we have hundreds of newspapers and television stations compounding the initial lies or untruths.

I believe any member of the news media that spreads falsehoods or untruths needs to expelled from business and face criminal charges. It appears that is the only way we can always get the truth.

ROBERT L. MAYNARD

Hot Springs Village

Abandoned America

It seems these United States of America that we all say we love so dearly have been abandoned by the people we vote into positions of responsibility to make sure we as American citizens have our government stable on the world stage. It doesn't matter if you have a bigger gun. This democracy that we live in at the present was improved by great men and women of the past, but here we are: confusion, lies, negative examples to our children and their children.

I will always be a Marine. Semper fi; it means always faithful. Seems to me the Trump administration has a way of making things worse for common hardworking people. He fans the flames of any situation wherever he goes.

Love will overcome the hatred. When God decides, he'll expose any and all of us, Mr. Trump included, and I believe his has started already. God help us all.

JACKIE PAUL JOHNSON

Scott

Remarkable insight

I was indeed impressed by the manner in which Mr. Philip Martin crafted his column, "Let's not be suckers." He exhibited remarkable insight, perspective and delivered a no-punches-pulled approach. He astutely identified the players as predominately incorrigible politicos, their disingenuous motives, self-serving priorities and the manifestly valid rationale for our not engaging in lemming-like behavior in support of either of the major political parties. The status quo appears to suggest that we are all headed over the cliff in unison, not far behind Granny.

Neither party offered a standard-bearer of unimpeachable character. But as Mr. Martin so succinctly emphasized, it is largely a failure on the part of the electorate in general.

Moreover, Mr. Martin's analytical observation is a testament to the reason that government-supervised wealth redistribution is at best an oxymoron of significant proportions with dire consequences. It is metaphorically akin to the fox (no, not Fox News) guarding the proverbial henhouse.

The unrelenting, endemic political cycle reminds one of a former president who philosophically and with unabashed aplomb dared to address, not the complex meaning of life, but rather the obscure, esoteric sphere of "what the meaning of is ... is."

Can that provocative and ingenious example of double-think be attributed to President Tweedle-dee or Tweedle-dumb? You make the call.

BOB HARRIS

Sherwood

If it had been Hillary

If Hillary Clinton would have fired the FBI director for investigating her friends, she would be impeached. Comey was fired after asking Congress for more money. I think Trump is the one who is outlandish and a showboat.

STEVE WHEELER

North Little Rock

Children and climate

Do children have the right to a sustainable future? Children believe they do. Many are aware of the climate-change threat to the world they will inherit and wonder why their future isn't being protected. Jayden Foytlin, 13, became aware of climate change at age 7: "I always thought, 'Oh, there are people who will handle it.' [But as the years passed] I noticed that nothing was getting better" (quoted in Winter 2016 Audubon magazine story by Molly Bennet).

Jayden learned about Our Children's Trust (OCT), and decided to take action. She and 20 other children from around our country, with the help of OCT, filed a civil suit that accuses the government of failing to protect future generations from the impacts of climate change. OCT is an Oregon-based, youth-driven nonprofit organization whose goal is to secure the legal right to a stable climate and healthy atmosphere (www.ourchildrenstrust.org).

Children should not have to fight for the right to a livable planet alone. Parents and adults can support their struggle by backing the Carbon Fee and Dividend policy proposed by Citizens Climate Lobby. This effective solution proposes a fee placed on fossil fuels at the source; 100 percent of the net fees are returned to American households on an equal basis. A border tariff adjustment is placed on goods imported from, or exported to, countries without an equivalent price on carbon. Details of the proposal can be found at www.citizensclimatelobby.org. This Carbon Fee and Dividend is successfully working in British Columbia, Canada.

Children do have the right to a sustainable future. We all can help defend that right by supporting the Carbon Fee and Dividend proposal.

ROBERT J. PEKEL

Rogers

Let Metroplan know

Metroplan wants to know whether you're OK allowing the Highway Department to add as many lanes as it likes to our local interstates--their Option B. They're asking you to comment before they take their last possible controlling action on the I-30 Corridor project.

You have until May 30 to let them know what you think about this Option B. The other options under consideration are an Option A which would keep the current six-lane restriction, and an Option C which would regulate any further expansion.

You can tell them what you think by email at comments@metroplan.org. Details on these options are available on pages 12 and 13 of the pdf at tinyurl.com/30corridor. Further information is available at tinyurl.com/30comment.

DALE PEKAR

Little Rock

World seeking leader

Who is the real leader of the free world? Will the rest of the free world follow President Trump's "leadership"?

CHARLEY PENIX

Little Rock

Editorial on 05/19/2017

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