Letters: Readers discuss Camp Barnabus, learning, Trump, Pompeo and abortion

Camp a blessing

Over the last three summers, I was blessed to serve at an incredible camp for people with special needs: Camp Barnabas in Purdy, Mo.

Of all the things I have learned from Barnabas, the most important is that every person is a person. We all have wants, needs, desires, hopes and dreams. We’re all the same despite outward appearances.

Be intentional and try to see things from the other perspective. It will truly change your life.

The campers I have met at Barnabas have a wide variety of disabilities, from amputations to Down syndrome and autism. They are individuals who are stereotyped as “different” from the rest of the world and looked down upon.

However, these campers are some of the most genuinely happy and grateful individuals you will ever meet.

They have unique perspectives and passion for life that have completely changed and humbled me.

I challenge you to find a new perspective and get to know these beautiful people.

Hannah Berry

Liberty

School challenges

As children start school, they become excited to learn about new things and aren’t afraid to raise their hands even if they’re wrong. Their confidence level is high because the environment isn’t judgmental.

However, this changes in middle and high school, where we’re judged constantly on who we are and what we do.

Many people worry about test scores or GPAs. People constantly worry about passing classes or about choosing among good grades, extracurriculars and friends and family.

We should go to school because we love our classes and want to better our talents.

Even though it’s good to have tests and homework, the school system pressures students to get perfect grades, which is impossible.

There are people who try hard at school but aren’t book smart. So from the expectations of school, we start to get discouraged.

Some people just have stronger talents than others.

Kayla Hill

Liberty

Time to move on

The continuous rhetoric from protests, left-leaning media sources and sore losers is irrelevant to President-elect Donald Trump and his transition team.

He was legally elected and will continue to focus on forming his policies, which may or may not be approved by Congress.

When President Barack Obama was elected, I was very unhappy but soon got over it.

Why don’t the protestors channel their energy into something positive, like assisting handicapped veterans during the holiday season?

It is time to forge ahead so all Americans can prosper.

James Gorski

Kearney

Don’t talk tough

The appointment of a get-tough-on-terrorism guy such as U.S. Rep. Mike Pompeo at the CIA will do nothing to solve the fundamental problems between America and the Islamic world. It’s highly probable, in fact, that it will aggravate our problems in vast regions of geography and mind.

Getting tough is not a substitute for intelligent policy aimed at easing if not resolving the two big problems we have with Islam: our historic manipulation of regimes in the Islamic world, often to the detriment of their people, and our mindless support of Israel’s absurd effort to maintain absolute military supremacy over the Middle East and over the Palestinian populations she seeks to dominate and control.

Unless and until we deal with those problems, it is preposterous to talk about getting tough with anybody in the Middle East and the broader Islamic world.

David A. Lee

Ottawa

A comparison

This is an interesting comparison of two prominent men. One man was booed at a New York musical and responded by stating he was not offended and thought it was a great musical.

The other man was not booed and wasn’t at the musical, and he has demanded an apology and got all bent out of shape.

Tells you a lot about the quality of the two individuals.

Bill Grossnickle

Kansas City

Abortion rights

America’s new President-elect Donald Trump has many Americans terrified, with many citizens fearing their rights will be in jeopardy.

I personally object to abortion, but I think it should not be enforced by the government, especially a government filled mainly with males who could never possibly understand the complex process of pregnancy and childbirth.

There are too many what-ifs involved to make it illegal across the board: rape, incest and danger to the mother or child.

So while I think abortion is devastating, I don’t believe the government should have the right to enforce such a law on women. The sad truth is that even if it were illegal, women would seek abortions through illegal and unsafe methods. Pro-life standpoints usually are derived from religious beliefs, and religious ideology should not influence government policy, especially in a country that is considered a melting pot.

If you don’t like abortions, then don’t have one.

Hailey Smith

Kansas City

Kobach choice

I must concur with Steve Rose’s opinion piece on Trump’s possible Cabinet pick of Kris Kobach for immigration czar (“Brownback would be fine in Trump Cabinet, but Kobach is just mean,” 11-20, Opinion).

I too believe Kobach is really mean. He is so mean he would actually enforce our immigration laws and place the welfare of United States citizens above those who are not.

To paraphrase Rose, “Good God,” what an excellent choice.

Michael Kalny

Shawnee

No there there

I am getting tired of hearing the media detail how President-elect Donald Trump now is “breaking his promises” by modifying or abandoning positions made during the campaign.

When will people understand that Trump has absolutely no core values or beliefs? Therefore, his “promises” were merely suggestions that happened to appeal to him at that moment.

There is no there there, so whatever he ends up doing will reflect whatever strikes him at the time, not what he said to get himself elected.

Jim Albrecht

Lenexa