Scouts’ Mic-O-Say, Marshall’s China blame and Sam Mellinger

Go Trogs!

Here is my suggestion for a new name for Kansas City’s football team: the Troglodytes. They can keep the Arrowhead Stadium name, because everyone used arrows and spears back then. And there are no troglodytes to insult anymore, unless you count everybody.

- Barbara Gatschet, Kansas City

From inside

I had these thoughts in response to your editorial saying the Tribe of Mic-O-Say demeans Native Americans: During my experience in the tribe in the 1950s, Native American traditions were honored, not demeaned. (Aug. 11, 7A, “Area Boy Scouts’ Tribe of Mic-O-Say program demeans Native Americans”)

I asked my grandson, a very recent Mic-O-Say member, for his thoughts, and the following was his reply, which I think is perfect: “I agree, but I also see how it’s being interpreted from an outsider looking in. During my time (just a couple of years ago) they had the utmost respect for Native American culture, and I had a positive experience. I think it’s a subject that is difficult to understand unless you have been a part of it.”

- Phil Carr, Overland Park

Different rituals

I would like for us to imagine if the Boy Scouts had decided to use the Catholic Mass for their leadership program — implementing aspects such as the prayers, the music and even the Eucharist as the culmination of the scouts’ leadership path.

I assume people would be very offended and would say it was a misuse of something sacred. Well?

- Evelyn Summers, Raytown

Not so clear

There is no question that homicide is an issue for Kansas City. However, do we fully understand the issues surrounding rape in our community? Not only is there a backlog of rape kits that are not fully funded to be processed, but the police department inflates rape clearance rates.

The FBI created its Unified Crime Reporting program to show a clearance rate, which is the number of cases closed divided by the number of total crimes. There is a category police can claim called “exceptional clearance,” which allows them to close a case when they have enough evidence to make an arrest but cannot for reasons beyond their control. This is supposed to be used sparingly. However, there has been a trend of agencies abusing this category to inflate their clearance rates.

Take 2016, for example. For the Kansas City Police Department, 438 rape cases were opened and 155, or 35%, were cleared. Seventy of those cleared cases (16%) led to arrests, while 85 (19%) were “exceptional clearance” cases.

I think our local government needs to be transparent in reporting success rates when it comes to crimes, especially sex crimes.

- Stefani Webb, Kansas City

Medical advice

I found Rep. Roger Marshall’s comment about “holding China accountable for giving us this virus” nativist, racist, xenophobic and (I hate to say this about a fellow physician) ignorant. (Aug. 11, 1A, “Marshall recovery plan uses same language as Georgia Republican”)

China didn’t “give” us this virus. The world did. There is an incomprehensible number of individual viruses on our planet — 10 nonillion, or 10 to the 31st power, according to National Geographic.

If Marshall is a Christian, as I am, then he must believe God made man on purpose, and therefore he must believe God made these viruses on purpose. And if you want to play the blame game, a physician — especially one from western Kansas — surely knows that the last worldwide flu pandemic, the 1918 Spanish flu, originated in Kansas, somewhere around Fort Riley.

We face the greatest threat to the American people since the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. More than 165,000 Americans have already died. (47,424 Americans died in Vietnam over 20 years.) We have never needed doctors, especially in government, more than we do now.

Rep. Marshall, you are a doctor. Be a doctor.

- Randall Jones, Lee’s Summit

Keeps me reading

I just wanted to drop you a note to let you know I subscribe to The Star online specifically for Sam Mellinger’s columns and his Mellinger Minutes. His level-headed approach to writing keeps me coming back and keeps me informed of sports from my hometown.

I live in California now. I’m not a “write to the editor” kind of guy, but I love his writing enough to let you know he is appreciated.

- Gregg Binkley, Valley Village, California