Protect the flag
Protect the flag
Page A5 of Sunday’s Tribune-Herald (Sept. 16) shows Muslims burning a “replica” of the U.S. flag (probably could not count the stars and stripes to make an accurate representation), and we do nothing about it.
Why is the U.S. just standing by and letting this radical religion and countries get away with this? I am not talking about our impotent government, which obviously does not have the backbone to take action, but we the people. Muslims are attacking our sovereign embassies and American businesses over a hypothetical fiction film that they are inflamed about.
Hello … this is one individual exercising his First Amendment rights — rights that these protesters do not have in their own country. Plus, he is not showing or distributing the film in their countries. They have to go out and find the film to get upset about it.
Perhaps we should be peacefully protesting at their embassies and businesses to show how we feel about them desecrating our national symbol. Even better yet, stop sending these countries the BILLIONS of dollars in aid.
It is time to stand up and take action America.
Glenn Engle
Papaikou
Be a pirate
Nicholas D. Kristof, in his column, “The real problems in schools” (Tribune-Herald, Sept. 14), is yet another rat jumping on the sinking ship of blame dumped on America’s teachers.
Toting his Pulitzer Prize in journalism, the most he could dig up in his stupid, unimaginative commentary is yet more derogatory support in the nationwide witch-burning of America’s teachers.
Oh, yes, continue to incessantly evaluate and “fail” more teachers! Then spend more money “training” them to conform to a system so corrupt, nepotistic and chaotic, by unabashedly undermining teachers’ sustained efforts to educate our nation’s needy children, despite all the hoop-jumping antics mandated by the district and state.
I speak as a teacher who continually “fails.” Why? I am creative, flexible and inquisitive. I expect the same of students. I use the union. I have a master’s degree. I focus on the process and not necessarily on a perfect product in English class. I am failing at a job that wants robotic teaching and cookie-cutter outcomes.
I am not sad. Why? I am a pirate.
Thanks for churning out more lies against teachers, Mr. Kristof. The ship you’re on has indeed sprung a leak. It is sailing into a horizon filled with continued and unimaginable hardship, sanctioned abuse, ignorance and inequality towards teachers.
How about joining the pirates, instead? They may not be as hot as Johnny Depp and his merry band, but they are tired of striving below deck as slaves, dying in silence.
Their crime: demanding better conditions on the job and showing children that they will be able to do this in the upcoming decades, as well.
Susan Kay Anderson
Keaau