Emerson cared for his students
The tri-state area lost a gentle giant with the passing of Mr. William Kenneth Emerson.
My family was privileged to know him as principal of Mountain View Elementary/Junior High School in Rossville, Ga., where my children attended first-eighth grades.
Although Mr. Emerson and his lovely wife Mary did not have children of their own, he had hundreds of footprints across his heart from the pupils whom he loved and who loved him.
He was not there to appease faculty or parents; he was there to educate the whole child -- mentally, emotionally and physically. He developed a physical/education program that was second to none.
If a student was sent to "the office," if punishment was needed, it was delivered, but they knew when they left there was someone who loved and cared for them.
The last time we spent time with Mr. Bill was Labor Day.
The day was spent with much laughter, stories and tales told. My children were thrilled, and he got to meet their children. This was shortly before he left his home in Trenton, Ga., to live with family in South Carolina.
He is sorely missed.
NANCY LEDFORD
Dunlap, Tenn.
Buying imported goods cuts jobs
Are small businesses creating long-term jobs?
Small businesses have something to sell and are necessary for providing jobs and a "dream" for people who want to own their business.
These small businesses are in competition with other businesses, large and small, for selling a service or goods.
Our nation is in a deep recession, possibly caused by the "global corporations" investing and "racing" into the lower wage countries to get their goods manufactured. These conditions are affecting the jobs and the amount of money consumers have for supporting small businesses.
The small businesses are supposed to create 40 percent-50 percent of the private sector jobs. This would help our economy, especially if they sold American-made goods. Right now, small businesses are closing by the hundreds of thousands due to consumers buying imported goods.
CARL BRACKIN
Georgetown, Tenn.
Larger fee should make water great
Ouch! I received the property tax bill for 2009 to find out that water fee has increased 400 percent. I have no idea how much money the fee will create, but our water quality should be great (providing that the money is not wasted on some hair-brained idea).
ED KYLE
Animal abusers need punishment
What to do to animal abusers? Judges, please clear your mind and heart when an animal abuser comes before you.
I think we need a public hanging every Saturday morning at 11 o'clock for animal abusers.
The dog fights and cock fights that are awful are handled so lightly in court.
Please be alert of animal abuse -- report it quickly.
I do appreciate the Humane Society and McKamey shelter.
DOT GUINN
Coolidge's actions during war recalled
I recently had the honor and privilege of Introducing Medal of Honor winner Charles Coolidge as the Chattanooga High School Alumnus of the Year and the first person inducted into the Hall of Fame.
While doing my research for the introduction, I found that Oct. 24-27 of this year will be the 65th anniversary of Mr. Coolidge's heroic actions in France that resulted in his receiving the Medal of Honor. Like most everyone in Chattanooga, I was aware of who Mr. Coolidge was, but I had no idea what he did to merit the award. I thought on this 65th anniversary it would be appropriate to share his Citation from President Truman.
(See nearby editorial, or see
www.chattprint.com/moh.htm.)
After I read the citation Mr. Coolidge received a well-deserved standing ovation. Let's all take a moment to remember the heroic actions of our native son in the woods of France 65 years ago.
DOUGLAS JONES
North Chattanooga
King does what's best for Erlanger
Recently, there's been several articles in the newspaper concerning Erlanger Trustee Russell King. Having served on the Erlanger Board with Trustee King, I know him to be a hard-working board member who only has the interest of Erlanger hospital and its employees at heart.
He has been vilified because he cares enough about Erlanger to try to get to the causes of some of the problems that Erlanger North was experiencing last spring.
Those north of the river need Erlanger North Hospital, and as a good trustee he was attempting to find out first-hand what was needed to be done for the betterment of the hospital.
Erlanger Medical Center is fortunate to have Russell King on its board.
C. WAYNE SHEARER,
O.D.
Ex-Erlanger Board
Trustee
Questions need some answers
With three college degrees, I consider myself of above average intelligence; however, there are questions that baffle me. Maybe someone can answer the following questions with some good common sense:
1. Why do most liberals criticize the Republicans and President Bush for wastefully spending billions but are silent while the Democrats and President Obama continue to wastefully spend trillions?
2. Why is the religion of secular humanism allowed to promote its origin of life, evolution, in our public schools but the teaching of creationism and intelligent design is unconstitutional?
3. Why can a person who shoots a mother, killing her unborn baby, be convicted for murder but the same mother can choose abortion and both she and the abortionist doctor have constitutional protection against prosecution?
4. Why is a person labeled a racist for voting against Barack Obama just because he is of African descent but not considered a racist for voting for Barack Obama just because he is of African descent?
5. Why do some liberal elitists like Gore and Pelosi give support to environmental laws that will harm our economy while living in energy inefficient homes, flying private jets, and riding in limousines?
JOEL W. SELF
Ringgold, Ga.
Riverpark offers valuable education
The city fathers continue to do an outstanding job with the Riverpark, Chattanooga's single greatest resource for its citizens. The new modern art is nice, but for many of us modern art takes some time to appreciate.
The Riverpark touts Tennessee history and native heritage in all it represents. The educational value in so doing is considerable for our children, visitors and citizens. Why not commission art depicting Tennessee history and that of native Americans who influenced our local heritage?
RANDY CAMERON
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Mr. Self, your three degrees are clearly not in science. Evolution is one of the best supported theories in science. Creationism is religious belief, and Intelligent Design is a vacuous, discredited and dishonest movement to inject religion into science classes. Neither should be taught as science.
I'll let others with more expertise than me answer your other claims. If you have put as much thought and research into them, I'm sure they are faulty.
ikeithlu. Excellent response.
The word "evolution" is the name given to the natural, non-linear, relentless process by which all plant and animal species originate, exist, and become extinct. It's been going on for several billion years and will continue for several more billion years until the sun expands as it decays and engulfs and destroys our earth, forever.
Evolution can't answer where the matter came from and what started the evolutionary process. If evolution was the sole answer, wouldn't we be seeing other species of humans evolve? And did it ever occur to the intolerant secular left that describing something that creates the very soul of our existence as "vacuous, discredited and dishonest" might be a tad insulting itself?
Evolution does not try to answer where matter came from or what started life. That is another area of science entirely. Other species of homo have evolved; it just happens that right now we are the only representative of that genus-the rest are extinct. Finally, I have followed closely the Intelligent Design movement, its growth and evolution and the main players, its methods and its claims. It is a dishonest attempt to bypass the Establishment Clause and get religion into science classes. There is no, I repeat no evidence to support it, no research programs studying it, no peer-reviewed publications reporting it. It is a public relations scam meant to fool people who know little about science, and has been exposed for its dishonesty in a court case.
I will defend the teaching of sound science against such foolishness as long as I am able. If a group or idea is dishonest and discredited, it deserves to be insulted and exposed. If that makes me intolerant and secular, so be it. You want religion, go to church.
Religion is not above reproach CarolinaGal no matter how dear it is to your heart. For too long religion has been "off limits" and I think it's time that we scrutinize the bible and really examine whats in it. Think about it, the bible claims the world was created in 6 days and has no proof to back it up. Yet, you're insulted because non-fundamentalists questions that idea and think it's far fetched? Burning bushes, virgin births, giant boats with two or seven of every kind (minus the dino's of course, still no explanation for them) and you're insulted because we think it sounds like a fairytale? Time for some thicker skin...
Questions need some answers JOEL W. SELF
1. Why do most liberals criticize the Republicans and President Bush for wastefully spending billions but are silent while the Democrats and President Obama continue to wastefully spend trillions?
JOEL W. SELF
----------------------------------------When a person asks a question in the manner that you ask this one, I just assume that you are trying to point out what you think is a negative against Obama and his administration? Incase I am mistaken, I will give you my opinion of why the money is being spent. First, the Cheney/Bush administration increased the budget deficit from $5 trillion to $12 TRILLION DOLLARS during their two terms in office.
Why did you not talk about what had changed to our Nation's economy and the financial institutions during the last administration? The Nation was in a deep recession, starting in 2007. But Bush did admit it and not anything was done to correct the fraud occurring in the financial systems until September 2008. Then, if the wasteful spending you are talking about is the $460 billion dollars you say was "wasteful spending," it was in part because there were not any restrictions on the use of the money when bailing out those fraudulent financial systems.
Now why was there "panic" occurring in the last administration during the start of the baling out process? It was because Bush wanted to get out of office before another "great depression" fell upon this Nation. It was "kick the can" down the road time for Cheney and Bush.
I doubt if you will be glad that Obama's spending the Trillion dollars or so, to correct our financial situation that the country was in and is still in because there is not enough money available to instantly correct something which took years for the country to get into. SO, Obama had the choice of trying to save the country from falling into a deep depression or doing "nothing" since we were already in a $12 Trillion dollar budget deficit. Which would be worse for our Nation, to owe another $2 Trillion dollars or a deep depression?
5. Why do some liberal elitists like Gore and Pelosi give support to environmental laws that will harm our economy while living in energy inefficient homes, flying private jets, and riding in limousines?
JOEL W. SELF
---------------------Can I assume that live in a house which is designed with an efficiency of 100%? Do you travel?