Vouchers
Schools not able to meet needs for all
Re Chip Brown letter, "Vouchers not the way to go," Sept. 7:
I am the parent of a 12-year-old son, who at one time had the distinction of being the only dyslexic child in Horry County public schools. How else to explain that school personnel were unable to target his specific educational needs? After five years in the Horry County school system we removed my son, who consistently made the A/B Honor Roll despite being unable to read or write at grade level.
Since receiving instruction targeted at his learning disability, he has begun to thrive. Thankfully, my husband and I were financially able to provide him with educational opportunities.
When your child has a learning difference, as 20 percent of our population does, you want educators to target their specific educational need. The public schools are not set up for that.
I should have the option to take my tax money and get my son the education he needs. The option to provide an education for a child should be available to all parents, not just those with financial means. Yes, it is about choice and it is about money.
Kelly Hanson Floyd
Murrells Inlet
The writer serves on the S.C. Commission for Disabilities and Special Needs, and is a former board member for the S.C. International Dyslexia Association.
suspicious
Peaceful Muslims mum on outrages
On Sept. 7 The Sun News published two contrasting articles. One was a short blurb, "Iran - Lawyer: Woman could be stoned soon" (which could take place after Ramadan), and the other a large article, "Ramadan means togetherness," about an Islamic family stating, "I want people to see that our life and children are full of light." Something is wrong here. If the American Muslims truly wanted us to see how wonderful and peaceful their religion is, they would come out loud and strong in the media and decry the barbaric practice of stoning, the Sharia, the awful way women are treated, the beheadings and roadside bombs, the way children are taught to hate all "infidels," the belief that theirs is the only religion and those who don't agree can be murdered, etc. Where is their outcry about the people who, in the name of the Islamic religion, use violence and hatred to further their beliefs? I don't see American Muslims stating their abhorrence of these practices, only fluff pieces about their so-called peaceful religion. I will continue to be suspicious of this religion until I see that they distance themselves from their barbaric fellow Muslims.
Marie Layman
Murrells Inlet
Preamble
'We, the people' surpass individual
"We, the people" is a very powerful statement. In my opinion, "we" is every single citizen of this country - black, white, yellow, red or pink polka dots ... all of us together. "We the people" also come with much responsibility, mainly to give up the "me" and "I," as they are not even present in the first three words of the Preamble of the Constitution of the United States. It means arriving at a table, a table of anything and anywhere, and with the wisdom and knowledge that compromise is the only way to rid ourselves of "me" and "I."
In my opinion, it also means to avoid the use of mob control, with the speaker's opinion that the end of the world is coming, for example. History has proven the mob and threat fever proved well for the likes of Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini and Josef Stalin to name a few who demanded destruction, hate and suspicion of their own countrymen, with visions of world power - followed by their downfall and taking with them their beautiful heritage of their countries. Why did they fall? I think it's because instead of using "we the people," they used "me" and "I."
In my opinion, maybe the tea party is doing the same thing, and supporting many politicians who also forgot the power of compromise toward anything, and also replacing "we" with "me" and "I."
Ann Ross
Conway
Native plant
Sadly, 'pine tree snobs' get their way
I laughed out loud reading the headline of Shawn Seddinger's Sept. 5 letter "Pine tree prejudice without basis" considering the face-off I and some neighbors had with some of those snob-types she references. In a community whose name once proudly proclaimed the presence of hundreds of majestic pine trees, Ocean Pines, a few "pine tree snobs" made the decision to remove many towering pines after the fire in North Myrtle Beach. The extent to which these people went to get their way included enough laughable material to create a reality show. From deals with some council members to hiring an attorney who admittedly knew nothing about fire prevention, these "snobs" have radically changed the landscape of my community.
Pine tree prejudice is alive and well in our neighborhood and in the neighborhood mentioned in Seddinger's letter. These "snobs" won't be satisfied until there isn't a pine tree in sight.
Cindy McLaughlin
Surfside Beach
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