Monday, November 16, 2009
Obama's fallen soldier photo-op offensive to their families
Letters to the Editor
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Obama's fallen soldier photo-op offensive to their families
Herb Detweiler's letter "President Obama's fallen hero salute speaks volumes" (Nov. 5) praised President Obama for saluting the caskets of the casualties of the war in Afghanistan, while implying President Bush hid from the realities of war and avoided the families of the fallen. Nothing could be further from the truth.
While there were not pictures, Bush routinely met with the families of slain U.S. soldiers. For example, in August 2006, he met for 90 minutes with families to hear their stories and share their grief. One widow, Hildi Halley, said Bush "wept and hugged me and apologized for my pain." This is hardly ordering that "thousands of casualties ... be returned in secret," as Detweiler asserts.
Regardless of how you feel about the war, to accuse Bush of ignoring the families of war casualties is wrong.
You might be surprised to know that most of the families present at the Obama photo shoot with the returning dead found his use of their loved ones' deaths as a photo-op rather offensive. All but one family refused to be photographed with Obama. Clearly, they felt these photos were worth 10,000 words as well. Just not the same ones Detweiler does.
KATIE McKERNAN
Please continue looking for Morgan
If through your compassion you have sent a card, a meal, flowers or prayers, or have donated your time or resources in the search for our daughter, Morgan Harrington, we thank you for your loving support.
Please continue to help us find Morgan and bring her home. If you have any information on Morgan, who was last seen at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, please call the 24-hour tip line: (434) 352-3467 or Crime Stoppers (434) 9774000. Crime Stoppers and Metallica offer a $150,000 reward. www.findmorgan.com.
A masterful story on a master painter
Thanks to Ralph Berrier Jr. for his Extra section story "Feeling blessed" (Nov. 11) supporting visual artist Ken Johnson. Yes, this painter is a true master of the fine arts and blessed to make his paintings shine.
"It's a Beautiful Day" is a great American visual statement, as is all of his artwork. I want Johnson to know, coming from another visual artist, that his artwork shows he has mastered his God-given gift and to just keep on painting.
This artist news coverage is truly a delight to read, and may much more surface for our young artists to read. This story is an award-winner; it will be a hard one to beat.
I will cut this letter of thanks short, leaving room for other artists to step up and express their good feelings on the arts.
Printing sniper photo was in poor judgment
What gets into a page layout editor even to think of running a double column, 10-inch picture of a sociopathic killer of innocent people ("D.C. sniper set to be executed," Nov. 10 front page)? Is it an attempt to attract attention to a noteworthy, inspiring achievement? Or is it a way to provide some kind of perverted glorification of a complete nut?
Where is the sense of social justice? Why should not this man, John Muhammad, and his evil work be relegated to the back page or even a footnote?
The negativity is compounded by a thumbnail photo of the recent killer Nidal Hasan. This is enough to make any decent citizen with some idea of discernment immediately wrap some garbage in your Nov. 10 issue and pitch it in the garbage or start a fire with it (especially issued on the eve of Veterans Day). The forgoing must be a test of First Amendment rights. All it really demonstrates is that any fool can abuse freedom of speech.
Please try to impress your readers with less disgusting graphics of despicable human beings. Otherwise, The Roanoke Times may win a graphics award for the most brutal, senseless murderers yet.
Marijuana shouldn't be a Schedule I drug
The American Medical Association recently shifted a 72yearold policy about smoked marijuana, acknowledging there could be medical benefits and urging reconsideration of the drug's Schedule I status. (Schedule I is a drug of abuse with no accepted medical use. Heroin and ecstasy are also Schedule I.)
The AMA's new policy language suggests that marijuana's status as a federal Schedule I controlled substance be reviewed with the goal of facilitating the conduct of clinical research and development of cannabinoid-based medicines.
More than 800,000 Americans were charged last year with some crime associated with marijuana. This is a ridiculous burden on our judicial system and proof of a loss in the war on drugs. Marijuana is not as harmful as alcohol or tobacco, much less heroin and similar drugs. It needs to be rescheduled, and science needs to lead the effort to determine its usefulness in treating certain medical conditions.
I'm not calling for legalization, but for research and lessening of the punishment in Virginia for such a victimless crime as possession of small amounts of marijuana.
Call or write your representative and senators, and ask them to support the AMA in studying the drug for usefulness in some medical situations.
Enough smug letters from poor winners
I suppose a little modest gloating is in order, given the results of the recent election in Virginia. And I don't really mind that The Roanoke Times has been so over-the-top generous in printing what must be nearly all of those smug, self-congratulating letters.
Perhaps the time will soon come when absolutely all those letters will have been printed. Then we will no longer need to be reminded that there is hardly anything more offensive than a poor winner.
PowerPoint isn't an effective teacher
Are college students really being prepared for the work force? "PowerPoint, the future of learning." That's a quote you won't find in George Orwell's book "1984."
I am an advertising major at Radford University, and last semester, four out of five of my professors used PowerPoint as their primary teaching method. How are we being prepared for the work force? In a class that primarily uses PowerPoint, we barely have enough time to take notes, let alone listen to the professor. We're paying thousands of dollars for college, yet we could learn the same things scouring through the infinite amount of free information on the Internet.
Why do professors teach like this? It's easy for them to create a PowerPoint and use it every semester. But how is this preparing us for life? We're not going to be stuck on a project at work one day and say, "Hey, I remember going over this on a PowerPoint." We're going to remember the things we learned while doing something more interactive.
For those about to attend college or to send your children off to school, look into this before choosing your school; ask current students how their professors administer class.
