Letters: Readers discuss empathy, presidential payback, the school week and safety pins
Empathize always
You can tell all the stories and theories about the universe you want. You can even say God doesn’t exist. But don’t repeat a story about another man unless you know it is fact, absolute, irrevocable.
Even then you may not want to utter it. The universe will continue quite well without your words.
Always love and hold dear to your heart your neighbor. You do not know what perilous paths he may have traveled and crossed.
Frank Berry
Kansas City
Payback time?
Now that the most divisive candidate for president in U.S. history has managed to stumble into the Oval Office, some are calling for unity.
That may not be possible, given the ugly nature of this campaign and that Republicans were not conciliatory toward President Barack Obama when he was elected in 2008. Nor is it going to help much that Congressional and Senate Republicans were boisterously defiant about working with the president and the Democrats for eight long years.
Adding to that their refusal even to consider the president’s nominee to the Supreme Court, it would be hard to imagine the Democrats in any sort of forgiving mood.
So it is likely that the Democrats, stinging from this experience, will follow a newer version of the Golden Rule by holding up President Donald Trump’s appointees in the Senate as well as filibustering any legislation sent their way from the House — copying, in many ways, the very effective game plan of their opponents.
And looking back at Republican obstructionism and talk of impeachment, you really can’t blame them.
Michal Betz
Wichita
School week
I want to bring up the idea of changing the school week to Monday through Thursday. Studies have shown a four-day week produces an overall increase in students’ academic performance.
Not only does this system help students, but it can help the school lower the budget from the savings on staff and things like electricity bills.
With another day off, students and teachers have more time to get caught up on work, which allows them to be more organized.
Both students and teachers can benefit from this system, which can help for better concentration.
Sophia Donnici
Kansas City
‘Darkness’ is bad
President-elect Donald Trump has appointed as his chief strategist a man who, in a recent interview, aligned himself with the power of darkness and Satan, saying, “Darkness is good.”
Steve Bannon, who would be at the right hand of the president, has also declared himself a “Leninist.” This would be perfect material for a primetime network or cable drama, except that this will be the real world White House.
Bannon is also long associated with the white nationalist movement.
We in the Kansas City area learned barely two years ago from the shootings at the Jewish Community Center what tragic violence can come from this movement. Someone supporting, representing and empowering it must not be in the White House.
Representative Emanuel Cleaver has already made a strong statement against Bannon. I am now calling on our members of Congress — including Rep. Sam Graves and Sens. Roy Blunt and Claire McCaskill — to do the same and denounce the appointment of Bannon as Trump’s chief strategist.
The powers of darkness are not welcome in the White House.
Rachelle Norman
Kansas City
Budget silver lining
I read the Nov. 11 headline regarding the $350 million shortfall for the state of Kansas as a $350 million windfall for the working people of Kansas.
The shortfall works out to almost 6 percent of Kansas’ $6.3 billion budget.
A 6 percent reduction in government sounds like a good start toward smaller government. I will take whatever I can get.
Ed Geither
Overland Park
Learn from others
Mr. Trump, I’m taking you at your word. You do, in fact, love America and seek to make things better. You’ve been given the wonderful gift of a tabula rasa — a blank slate.
Your avowed tax plan is a tired replay of the theory of trickle-down economics. Unfortunately, theories are shadows dancing on the hard wall of reality. And reality has proved over and over this does not work.
I assume you hope your administration will be more than a blip in the ash bin of history. Therefore, I urge you to study the effects of this theory now being practiced in Kansas.
Alas, it did not work, again. Revenues have crashed. Recipients of the tax breaks are not creating jobs, and businesses are not being lured to the state to take advantage. Please check it out.
In an effort to bring about a small change in income inequality, you should tax the wealthy and use the increased revenues for infrastructure improvements. You will have created jobs without raising the national debt.
A good idea is a good idea, no matter where it comes from.
Kip Harris
Kansas City
Safety pins
Officials in the Shawnee Mission School District should know that a safety pin as symbolic speech is protected by the 1969 Tinker v. Des Moines School District decision — black arm bands then, safety pins today.
One is against a war and the bombing of civilians, the other for safety of fellow human beings in school or out. It is clear and kind symbolic speech.
Bill Hankins
Platte City
This story was originally published November 22, 2016 at 6:46 PM with the headline "Letters: Readers discuss empathy, presidential payback, the school week and safety pins."