Letters to the Editor 04-30-1999
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
- Colorado Aftermath - Colorado Tragedy - Colorado Horror - Mushroom Hunting - Athletic Code
Colorado Aftermath
Editor, Times-Union:In the wake of the shootings in Colorado come cries from all levels of government that something be done to stop the violence. Probably the most disturbing aspects of these attacks is they're coming so unexpectedly. As Saturday's editorial reminded us, we shouldn't be so surprised. Graphic violence and pornography have become protected forms of speech. The sanctity of human life has been implicitly, if not explicitly, denied by the entertainment industry, our universities and our courts. However, before we look too far for the causes of this great tragedy, we should look a littler closer to home.
As parents, we have the primary responsibility for the training of our children and we are the last line of defense. I am appalled by the trash that is on television and in the movies. So I don't let my kids watch that kind of stuff. Their parents don't either ("Practice what you preach" - Wow, what a concept!).
I'm not perfect by any means; just ask my kids. But my failures do not excuse my children from submitting to my authority. God has placed them under my authority and He commands them to obey me. My children know that we each share a common malady. We are sinners. They still try blame shifting just like I did: "I hit her because she stuck her tongue out at me." But we both know that there is no connecting ligament between the tongue of one child and the fist of another. Bad behavior comes from a bad heart. "Folly is bound up in the heart of a child" (Proverbs 22:15). Only God can change their hearts. But you don't light a match next to a bucket of gasoline. That's why I avoid and teach my children to avoid those things that would encourage us to sin.
It's not enough just to turn them from wrong, we need to direct them to the right path. The Bible says, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge" (Proverbs 1:7). It's up to us, as parents, to make sure that our children are being educated in the fear of the Lord. That might mean making sacrifices of time and money. That might mean forsaking a career in order to fulfill a calling. Personally, I wouldn't waste my time sending my kids to be taught in an environment where God has been banned. The point is: It is MY responsibility, not the state's.
The young assailants in Colorado were smart enough to build their own bombs. They were smart enough to plan and execute their assault. But they made a major miscalculation. In the end, they killed themselves, no doubt from fear of facing the consequences of their actions. They didn't realize that whatever punishment awaited them here is nothing compared to what awaited them beyond this life. If only they had known!
Tim Witte, Winona Lake
Colorado Tragedy
Editor, Times-Union:The violence that occurred at Littleton, Colo., is a terrible tragedy. Now we are trying to find somebody to blame and punish, but there is no one to punish - the killers committed suicide. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Now we can see things that might have given a warning of the event. However, these kinds of so-called signs are repeated thousands of times and they mean nothing. There is no way to completely eliminate them. They will happen again but hopefully without the terrible tragedy like this one. You can place all the metal detectors you want to at a school, or other place, and it would not stop any determined individuals from coming in. One act like this is too many but taken by the number of schools that we have in the U.S., the percentage of schools involved is almost zero. The chance of it happening at your school is almost zero, but it does happen sometimes.
Guns are not the problem, people are the problem - their attitudes, lack of morals or spiritual belief. It has taken 40 years or more to get to this place, and our own government has not been a help. The First Amendment says nothing about the separation of Church and State. It says we shall not institute a State Religion and we shall not make any law to restrict the free expression of religion. We have not instituted a State Religion but we have many laws restricting the free expression of religion. We can not have the Ten Commandments in the court room, state or national buildings, no prayer in schools, no Creche on our courthouse lawns, or other government property, etc. I understand that it is still legal for us to give Bibles to those in prison. The ACLU is doing all they can to make us a non-Christian or non-Religious nation. When are they going to sue Congress and eliminate the opening prayers which you have in Congress?
I have no respect, or confidence, in President Clinton, He is trying to use this tragedy to further his attempt to eliminate the 2nd Amendment in the Bill of Rights. With all this violent behavior which we are having in the U.S., now is the time when the citizens need to be armed. The 2nd amendment is for the protection of the people from our own government, if it should attempt as Hitler did, to eliminate our present form of government. Hitler knew this and he disarmed the German citizens. More gun laws will do nothing, we already have too many. The gun laws we have, and any new ones would not have kept this vicious action from happening. I feel sorry for the parents of these killers. It appears they were good families, what went wrong? I hope that they will cremate the remains of these killers so there will be no grave desecrated and continue to hurt those parents. It appears that the local people do not blame the parents.
The solution is working with people, but how do you do it? It has taken us 40 or more years to get to this place. It will take many years to change people, if it can be done. How many countries have been able to survive for the number of years that we have? I don't believe government can do it, but maybe it can discontinue working against us with so many restrictions. We need to encourage religions-Protestants, Catholic, Jews, Muslims and other religions, we need an anchor which can be supplied by our various beliefs. Without an anchor this saying applies, "Nothing is right or wrong, only thinking makes it so."
Check with the FBI, those places with the highest crime rates are those cities and states which have the strictest gun control laws. Those with right-to-carry laws have reduced crime rates. A criminal is generally a coward and does not like to go to a place where the person may be armed.
I am wondering what might have happened if the teacher who died at Littleton, while trying to save his students, would have had a concealed carry permit and had been armed?
Don't fall for President Clinton's attempt to pass more restrictive gun laws. It is not crime control, he only wants to disarm his citizens.
Wallace Huffman, Warsaw
Colorado Horror
Editor, Times-Union:I'm just as horrified as any true American over what took place in Littleton, Colorado, on April 20. My heavy heart aches for the grieving families and students of Columbine High. It should have NEVER happened. Those who want to abolish the NRA will make a field day of this, but they don't give the other side of the coin. What if some of the teachers had access to a gun, the outcome may have been different. Guns were just the vehicle but in this case it was bombs also. According to FBI statistics, 99.8 percent of registered guns ARE NOT used in crime. That leaves only .2 percent used in committing crimes. A very, very small percentage, wouldn't you say?
The media, movies, video games, arcade games, Internet, etc., I feel are partially responsible. They continue to spew out their vileness and the carnage continues and will continue. You can't legislate morality. Too many wimpy parents have failed to teach their children right from wrong. These youngsters came from affluent neighborhoods and, I understand, drove a BMW to school the day of the killings.
I find it interesting that the ACLU and our own government don't object to praying after such a horrendous tragedy but don't attempt a prayer at a high school graduation, if you don't want to be threatened with a lawsuit. Remember, who was "evicted" by the Supreme Court from our public schools in 1962? Think about it.
I'm gleaning more tidbits of information about the recent killings. Most if not all of these bizarre killings have happened within the last 10 years and after the Brady Bill. Also, they haven't occurred in charter schools, private schools, home schools, parochial or Christian schools but government based public schools. Food for thought.
Our President addressing this atrocity appealed to our young people to settle aggression with "words, not weapons." Please tell me, then, what are we doing to all the innocents in Kosovo?
Elaine Vandermark, Warsaw
Mushroom Hunting
Editor, Times-Union:I would like to thank John Davis and the Times-Union for putting the nice mushroom story in the paper about me and my family! However, there were a few misquotes that I would like to correct.
The large record mushroom find of 2,780 around several trees was actually a greater find than that because all of the 2,780 mushrooms were actually found under one tree by Garry (believed to be a world record)! Garry found the tree and mushrooms and then called to his family and all three of them came over and looked at them in wonder for a while, then we picked them and counted them. There were 2,780 under one tree, picked and witnessed by Garry and Jean Smiley, Sherry Benedict of Plymouth and Ron Galloway of Uniondale.
Also, my mother's age is 75, not 77 and my family has been hunting mushrooms for over 50 years!
I said that you should get permission before you hunt mushrooms and the way it stated in the paper it sounded like I said never give up and be persistent in getting permission which was not the case. If they don't give you permission to hunt, there is nothing else you can do except ask someone else to hunt.
I said that when hunting mushrooms, if you first don't succeed keep trying and never give up. Be persistent and you will usually succeed.
I wish all of you good mushroom hunting.
Garry L. Smiley, Mentone
Athletic Code
Editor, Times-Union:I am writing this letter to set the record straight. First of all, there is more than one Kay Kelly in this area. My son is a junior at Tippecanoe Valley High School and I currently work for Warsaw Community Schools at the North Central Indiana Special Education Cooperative.
Ever since the article appeared on the front page regarding Warsaw High School Athletic code revisions, I have been asked why I was against strict enforcement. The fact of the matter is that this Kay Kelly believes 100 percent that student athletes should be held to a higher standard. In my opinion, any student (athlete or not) that drinks alcohol or does drugs, should be punished. This is the law.
For the record, my son has been randomly drug tested and I fully support this practice. P.S. He did pass!
Kay L. Kelly, Claypool
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Colorado Aftermath
Editor, Times-Union:In the wake of the shootings in Colorado come cries from all levels of government that something be done to stop the violence. Probably the most disturbing aspects of these attacks is they're coming so unexpectedly. As Saturday's editorial reminded us, we shouldn't be so surprised. Graphic violence and pornography have become protected forms of speech. The sanctity of human life has been implicitly, if not explicitly, denied by the entertainment industry, our universities and our courts. However, before we look too far for the causes of this great tragedy, we should look a littler closer to home.
As parents, we have the primary responsibility for the training of our children and we are the last line of defense. I am appalled by the trash that is on television and in the movies. So I don't let my kids watch that kind of stuff. Their parents don't either ("Practice what you preach" - Wow, what a concept!).
I'm not perfect by any means; just ask my kids. But my failures do not excuse my children from submitting to my authority. God has placed them under my authority and He commands them to obey me. My children know that we each share a common malady. We are sinners. They still try blame shifting just like I did: "I hit her because she stuck her tongue out at me." But we both know that there is no connecting ligament between the tongue of one child and the fist of another. Bad behavior comes from a bad heart. "Folly is bound up in the heart of a child" (Proverbs 22:15). Only God can change their hearts. But you don't light a match next to a bucket of gasoline. That's why I avoid and teach my children to avoid those things that would encourage us to sin.
It's not enough just to turn them from wrong, we need to direct them to the right path. The Bible says, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge" (Proverbs 1:7). It's up to us, as parents, to make sure that our children are being educated in the fear of the Lord. That might mean making sacrifices of time and money. That might mean forsaking a career in order to fulfill a calling. Personally, I wouldn't waste my time sending my kids to be taught in an environment where God has been banned. The point is: It is MY responsibility, not the state's.
The young assailants in Colorado were smart enough to build their own bombs. They were smart enough to plan and execute their assault. But they made a major miscalculation. In the end, they killed themselves, no doubt from fear of facing the consequences of their actions. They didn't realize that whatever punishment awaited them here is nothing compared to what awaited them beyond this life. If only they had known!
Tim Witte, Winona Lake
Colorado Tragedy
Editor, Times-Union:The violence that occurred at Littleton, Colo., is a terrible tragedy. Now we are trying to find somebody to blame and punish, but there is no one to punish - the killers committed suicide. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Now we can see things that might have given a warning of the event. However, these kinds of so-called signs are repeated thousands of times and they mean nothing. There is no way to completely eliminate them. They will happen again but hopefully without the terrible tragedy like this one. You can place all the metal detectors you want to at a school, or other place, and it would not stop any determined individuals from coming in. One act like this is too many but taken by the number of schools that we have in the U.S., the percentage of schools involved is almost zero. The chance of it happening at your school is almost zero, but it does happen sometimes.
Guns are not the problem, people are the problem - their attitudes, lack of morals or spiritual belief. It has taken 40 years or more to get to this place, and our own government has not been a help. The First Amendment says nothing about the separation of Church and State. It says we shall not institute a State Religion and we shall not make any law to restrict the free expression of religion. We have not instituted a State Religion but we have many laws restricting the free expression of religion. We can not have the Ten Commandments in the court room, state or national buildings, no prayer in schools, no Creche on our courthouse lawns, or other government property, etc. I understand that it is still legal for us to give Bibles to those in prison. The ACLU is doing all they can to make us a non-Christian or non-Religious nation. When are they going to sue Congress and eliminate the opening prayers which you have in Congress?
I have no respect, or confidence, in President Clinton, He is trying to use this tragedy to further his attempt to eliminate the 2nd Amendment in the Bill of Rights. With all this violent behavior which we are having in the U.S., now is the time when the citizens need to be armed. The 2nd amendment is for the protection of the people from our own government, if it should attempt as Hitler did, to eliminate our present form of government. Hitler knew this and he disarmed the German citizens. More gun laws will do nothing, we already have too many. The gun laws we have, and any new ones would not have kept this vicious action from happening. I feel sorry for the parents of these killers. It appears they were good families, what went wrong? I hope that they will cremate the remains of these killers so there will be no grave desecrated and continue to hurt those parents. It appears that the local people do not blame the parents.
The solution is working with people, but how do you do it? It has taken us 40 or more years to get to this place. It will take many years to change people, if it can be done. How many countries have been able to survive for the number of years that we have? I don't believe government can do it, but maybe it can discontinue working against us with so many restrictions. We need to encourage religions-Protestants, Catholic, Jews, Muslims and other religions, we need an anchor which can be supplied by our various beliefs. Without an anchor this saying applies, "Nothing is right or wrong, only thinking makes it so."
Check with the FBI, those places with the highest crime rates are those cities and states which have the strictest gun control laws. Those with right-to-carry laws have reduced crime rates. A criminal is generally a coward and does not like to go to a place where the person may be armed.
I am wondering what might have happened if the teacher who died at Littleton, while trying to save his students, would have had a concealed carry permit and had been armed?
Don't fall for President Clinton's attempt to pass more restrictive gun laws. It is not crime control, he only wants to disarm his citizens.
Wallace Huffman, Warsaw
Colorado Horror
Editor, Times-Union:I'm just as horrified as any true American over what took place in Littleton, Colorado, on April 20. My heavy heart aches for the grieving families and students of Columbine High. It should have NEVER happened. Those who want to abolish the NRA will make a field day of this, but they don't give the other side of the coin. What if some of the teachers had access to a gun, the outcome may have been different. Guns were just the vehicle but in this case it was bombs also. According to FBI statistics, 99.8 percent of registered guns ARE NOT used in crime. That leaves only .2 percent used in committing crimes. A very, very small percentage, wouldn't you say?
The media, movies, video games, arcade games, Internet, etc., I feel are partially responsible. They continue to spew out their vileness and the carnage continues and will continue. You can't legislate morality. Too many wimpy parents have failed to teach their children right from wrong. These youngsters came from affluent neighborhoods and, I understand, drove a BMW to school the day of the killings.
I find it interesting that the ACLU and our own government don't object to praying after such a horrendous tragedy but don't attempt a prayer at a high school graduation, if you don't want to be threatened with a lawsuit. Remember, who was "evicted" by the Supreme Court from our public schools in 1962? Think about it.
I'm gleaning more tidbits of information about the recent killings. Most if not all of these bizarre killings have happened within the last 10 years and after the Brady Bill. Also, they haven't occurred in charter schools, private schools, home schools, parochial or Christian schools but government based public schools. Food for thought.
Our President addressing this atrocity appealed to our young people to settle aggression with "words, not weapons." Please tell me, then, what are we doing to all the innocents in Kosovo?
Elaine Vandermark, Warsaw
Mushroom Hunting
Editor, Times-Union:I would like to thank John Davis and the Times-Union for putting the nice mushroom story in the paper about me and my family! However, there were a few misquotes that I would like to correct.
The large record mushroom find of 2,780 around several trees was actually a greater find than that because all of the 2,780 mushrooms were actually found under one tree by Garry (believed to be a world record)! Garry found the tree and mushrooms and then called to his family and all three of them came over and looked at them in wonder for a while, then we picked them and counted them. There were 2,780 under one tree, picked and witnessed by Garry and Jean Smiley, Sherry Benedict of Plymouth and Ron Galloway of Uniondale.
Also, my mother's age is 75, not 77 and my family has been hunting mushrooms for over 50 years!
I said that you should get permission before you hunt mushrooms and the way it stated in the paper it sounded like I said never give up and be persistent in getting permission which was not the case. If they don't give you permission to hunt, there is nothing else you can do except ask someone else to hunt.
I said that when hunting mushrooms, if you first don't succeed keep trying and never give up. Be persistent and you will usually succeed.
I wish all of you good mushroom hunting.
Garry L. Smiley, Mentone
Athletic Code
Editor, Times-Union:I am writing this letter to set the record straight. First of all, there is more than one Kay Kelly in this area. My son is a junior at Tippecanoe Valley High School and I currently work for Warsaw Community Schools at the North Central Indiana Special Education Cooperative.
Ever since the article appeared on the front page regarding Warsaw High School Athletic code revisions, I have been asked why I was against strict enforcement. The fact of the matter is that this Kay Kelly believes 100 percent that student athletes should be held to a higher standard. In my opinion, any student (athlete or not) that drinks alcohol or does drugs, should be punished. This is the law.
For the record, my son has been randomly drug tested and I fully support this practice. P.S. He did pass!
Kay L. Kelly, Claypool
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