Bishop Finn training

In response to the punishment received by Bishop Robert Finn concerning his knowledge in the case of child pornography, I was surprised that the bishop must develop a plan that will better educate diocesan employees on what child pornography is.

As a former parent and teacher in the Kansas City diocese, I would like to assure the public that teachers in our Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph undergo monthly and yearly training concerning child pornography and sexual abuse by participating in the Virtus program, Protecting God’s Children.

In addition, all parents wishing to volunteer in any capacity with their child’s school must participate in this program.

I assumed that everyone associated with the Kansas City diocese participated in the Protecting God’s Children training.

As teachers, we are liable if we fail to report suspicions of child pornography and abuse.

To become aware that our diocesan office has found itself exempt from the guidelines expected for teachers and parents is just another addition to the list of disappointments the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph has displayed in the last few years.

Katy O’Dowd

Kansas City

Bishop Finn must go

If a wolf enters a flock, injures a lamb and is moved to another pasture where he injures another lamb, is the shepherd culpable?

Bishop Robert Finn’s defense was shameful. You can parse the words or present the evidence any way you want, but in the end the shepherd failed to protect the lambs.

Even the Todd Graves report commissioned by the bishop found that Finn failed to protect the children by ignoring his own policies.

Now a judge has come to a similar decision.

But there is no good end to this spectacle.

I pray that some day these out-of-touch prelates will step aside, and we can start to write a new chapter in the history of a church that is so much more than this.

Ultimately, this comes down to the responsibility of a shepherd to protect the flock. He failed more than once.

The flock deserves a new shepherd.

Daniel Frank

Lenexa

Romney superhuman?

There are many reasons not to vote for Republican presidential nominee Willard Mitt Romney.

He has no ethical core.

He’s so wealthy that he can’t relate to people in Mission Hills, much less the middle class.

He never seems to age, and his five sons appear to be clones.

But it hit me recently. Listening to a discussion of Romney’s wealth, one of the reporters wondered how he was able to amass $110 million in his IRA when the maximum yearly contribution is $17,000.

After allowing for inflation and a growth rate of 8 percent for good investing, to accumulate $110 million, he would have to be 3,236 years old.

Ladies and gentlemen, I submit to you that the main reason not to vote for Willard Mitt Romney is that he is a vampire.

Pete Henderson

Basehor

Obama falls short

I really enjoyed listening to Bill Clinton’s Democratic National Convention speech Wednesday night. He has a quality similar to Mark Twain and Will Rogers. However, when you have time to digest that speech, you can see it is not very funny.

For example, he said that the plan of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan to lower everyone’s taxes by 20 percent just didn’t add up. He explained that in Arkansas they know that two plus two equals four. Well, I know that two minus two equals zero.

I didn’t get an accounting degree from an Ivy League school, but I’ll bet I could take the statistics from the Internal Revenue Service and a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and do “what if” analysis and come up with enough money to offset the loss of revenue from reducing taxes by eliminating loopholes in the tax code. And reduce the tax code by about half the 10,000 pages.

Clinton really laid out the case that President Barack Obama will continue to fail to lead and solve problems that can no longer be ignored. Thanks for the heads-up.

Robert Merritt

Blue Springs

Organic food debate

The article, “Going organic could lead to letdown,” so prominently displayed on the front page of The Star on Sept. 5 provides a misleading picture in the first few lines. It takes going to the second page to get a more nuanced view.

By saying the researchers combed through reams of data, the implication is that those reams of data support the contention that organics are no better for you than conventionally gown foods. However, in delving further into the article as well as other sources of this story, it appears only 17 primarily short-term studies actually examined this comparison.

In fact, the conclusion should be that there really isn’t enough information to make a definitive judgment. Also mentioned is that many consumers buy organic out of concern for the environment.

But the discussion overlooked the growing concern about pesticides and their effect on natural populations, including honeybees, as well as the development of superweeds when exposed to some herbicides, resulting in the use of even more chemicals.

Further, many people who buy organic do so to avoid genetically modified foods.

The decision to buy organic is much more complicated than comparative nutritional value.

Julie Elfving

Olathe

Organic foods are said to have fewer pesticides and fertilizers than non-organic foods, and they are said to be healthier for you.

As the organic foods may have fewer chemicals in them, they are actually no better for your health than non-organic foods (9-5, A1, “Going organic could lead to letdown”).

My household is a big believer in buying the healthier organic foods, but in reality these foods are no different than non-organic foods. The prices associated with organic foods are ridiculous.

While the organics may taste a little bit better or make you think they are healthier for you, the prices for these organic items are simply too high.

Nicholas Betts

Kansas City

Tax and spend

It’s time we all ask why the Democrats want to raise taxes. We see in the news that government agencies waste millions and millions of our tax dollars on trips and with high-priced accommodations and treat themselves like royalty.

At the same time, government workers are getting rewarded with higher wages and better benefits while the taxpayers are losing their jobs and benefits, and then rub our noses in the dirt as they laugh and board their planes to the next expensive retreat. Again at the taxpayers’ expense.

It looks to me that all levels of government have way too much money to spend, and it’s time to stop taxing us and give us our money back.

Jerre N. Fischer

Shawnee

Forgiving Americans

On politics and candidates like Todd Akin, Will Rogers may have said it best: The American people are a very generous people; they will forgive almost any weakness, with the possible exception of stupidity.

Charley Green

Overland Park

Embattled women

Republicans don’t get women.

A GOP committee woman from Missouri said, “God chose to bless a woman with a child from the rape.”

Mike Huckabee’s gem was “Some extraordinary people have been created through rape.”

Nowhere do I hear real compassion and the view from the victim of rape.

Do they consider the trauma for a woman carrying a child and raising a child conceived by violence or if she could give that child nurturing and love or would it be a constant reminder of the horrific act?

We have a potential vice president wanting to make the IUD, a common form of contraception, illegal. Others want to curtail women’s choices for personal health care.

Where does it stop?

Do they want to take us back to times when women had no rights, no choices? I for one, refuse to go.

We women have fought long and hard to be treated fairly, yet we are confronted with sexism in the military, on the floor of Congress and by our so-called state representatives.

I am reminded of the words to an old Helen Reddy song, “I am woman, hear me roar.”

I guess we’d better start roaring again, gals.

Camille Buccero

Independence

Forgiving Akin at polls

Everyone appreciates Republican U.S. Senate candidate Todd Akin asking for forgiveness for the misspoken words regarding “legitimate” rape and abortion.

I would respectfully ask and suggest all Missourians to forgive Congressman Akin now and on Nov. 6 vote to re-elect Claire McCaskill for the U.S. Senate seat, and let Missouri move forward.

This is a very simple solution.

Sam Hossain

Kansas City