Speak Out A 03/15/03

Propping up the U.N.

I AM embarrassed by the way that George Bush has allowed the United Nations to conduct an assault on our ability to defend our freedom without retribution. The United States should immediately withdraw from the United Nations. Without the United States, the United Nations would collapse like a house of cards. Our men and women in the armed forces wear red, white and blue, not U.N. blue.

Token gestures

FREEDOM FRIES? Freedom toast? That should teach the French a lesson. If the United States were interested in making a serious statement voicing our displeasure, we would halt the import of all French products, cut off any financial assistance that we may be giving them and expel all French diplomats from this country immediately. Token and symbolic gestures are cheap and meaningless. Let's make a real impression.

Old enough to drink

I AGREE with the individual who talked about lowering the drinking age. If these young men are old enough to fight for their country, they should be old enough to drink. I truly believe the underage drinking that goes on is more along the lines that we are all doing it. I seriously doubt if you were to ask any 21-year-old drinker is he waited until his 21st birthday to drink, he would probably laugh in your face. Eighteen-year-olds are responsible enough to do other things. Why not drink?

Unmitigated disaster

LOWERING THE legal drinking age would be an unmitigated disaster. The number of alcohol-related auto accidents would skyrocket. If you don't believe me, ask Illinois. We'd also lose money from the feds. It is a terrible idea whose time has long since come and gone.

Design facts

PLEASE STOP telling your readers that the initial federal courthouse design was for a building with no air conditioning and an atrium that would remain open in the summer. Here are the facts: There were three designs submitted. Only one had an atrium ceiling that could be opened, and the atrium surely would not have been left open in the summer heat. And it would have been air conditioned.

Support for troops

THE ANTI-WAR protesters have taken over Freedom Corner at West End Boulevard and Broadway on Thursday nights to protest the impending war in Iraq. At 6 p.m. every Thursday until our boys are home, I would like to see Freedom Corner filled with those who support our troops and understand that the United States was violently and viciously attacked Sept. 22, 2001, and that we must make an example of Saddam Hussein so that the world will know that we will never again sit idly by while terrorist nations plan their cowardly attacks.

Teaching advice

I TEACH at an area college and see the results of a dumbed-down secondary education system. Consider the results of an informal survey of my college freshmen: 50 percent did not know who the vice president is, 75 percent did not know who gave the Gettysburg Address, 50 percent could not write down the words to the Pledge of Allegiance, 75 percent did not know what made up the Bill of Rights and 25 percent did not know which country the United States is considering going to war with. Many of these students were in the top 10 percent of their high school classes. High school teachers should teach. Pull the plug on the computer lab and make the students read, write and think.

It's only a name

I FIND it stupid that Congress would change the name of french fries. They are leaving one thing out: French fries were made by Americans who wanted to give them a classy name.