Letters to the Editor (Dec. 10)

Important holiday blood drive

Every day, the No. 1 priority of Wichita and Sedgwick County’s first responders is to help others and help save lives.

You have an opportunity to be a lifesaver, too, by donating blood or platelets during the 23rd annual American Red Cross Wichita, Sedgwick County Battle of the Badges Blood Drive. This year, the blood drive takes place Dec. 11-31 at the Wichita Blood Donation Center, 707 N. Main Street.

By making a blood or platelet donation during this year’s battle, you will be helping a patient in need, and helping one of our agencies win bragging rights for the year. When you come to donate, don’t forget to vote for one of your favorite sponsoring agencies – Sedgwick County EMS, Sedgwick County Fire Department, Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office, Wichita Fire Department or Wichita Police Department.

To thank all those who make time to give during the busy holiday season, everyone coming to donate during the Battle of the Badges will receive a commemorative T-shirt. We urge you to make an appointment to give blood during this year’s blood drive by downloading the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting redcrossblood.org or calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).

We are excited, that with your help, our friendly competition will help patients in need during the hard-to-collect, holiday season.

Shameful treatment of national parks

I have gotten bored over the past 10 months with the constant news of Donald Trump trying to undo everything the Democrats have done in the past several years. I am Republican by nature, but I did not vote for Mr. Trump.

He has now done something that hits pretty close to home for me and many Americans. He is scaling back two of our national monuments in the state of Utah. I have personally been to over half of our national parks and to many of our national monuments, including almost all of them in Utah. This is preposterous and shameful and in a way done by somebody who apparently thinks that he is greater than God, who created all this natural beauty.

I have taken my sons to many of these places and I’m trying to pass down the heritage of our parks to them. We are allowing Trump to start something much like gun control, birth control, terrorism and illegal immigration have shown. Once we let these things go too far to be reversed, as Americans always do, there is hell to pay later.

Solutions better than swipes

In the Dec. 6 Opinion Line, a contributor wrote, “Reading the article about Southeast High School has hardened my resolve even more that my kids will never attend public school.” Rather than reiterating how bad he/she thinks public schools are failing, I would prefer to see solutions the writer would propose.

They should keep in mind that the individual schools are constrained by the school district policies, and the district must comply with State Board of Education policies. In turn, the state board must adhere to federal regulations, subject to Congressional oversight.

Unlike the old days, school principals cannot use corporal punishment (ineffective for high schoolers) and cannot expel students without just cause.

It would be nice if public schools could operate under the same rules as private schools, but of course they cannot. So again, instead of more criticism, wouldn’t it be better to propose solutions that would benefit all students and schools?

This story was originally published December 10, 2017 at 4:01 AM with the headline "Letters to the Editor (Dec. 10)."