GOVERNANCE
Ideology took a hit, not
conservative principles
As an independent voter, I was thunderstruck by Kyle Wingfield’s conclusion (“Biggest casualty of GOP’s tactics? Conservatism,” Opinion, Oct. 17) that conservatism was the biggest casualty of the GOP’s tactics during the government shutdown. I would disagree.
There should always be room for a conservative approach to governance, especially when it is rooted in pragmatic solutions offered with passion, reason and persuasion. To me, the biggest casualties occurred among Republicans who were overwhelmingly ideologically based in their thinking. They not only cost the country millions of dollars of irretrievably lost productivity, but they wound up with precious little to show for their efforts. That type of conservatism is counter-productive, and part of the problem — not the solution.
RICH LAPIN, DUNWOODY
Term limits can make
politicians think twice
Particularly because of the recent chaos in Washington, perhaps it is time to think about term limits for members of Congress. That way, they will think about what is best for their constituents — instead of focusing on their re-elections.
JEANNE BUMP, ATLANTA
PREJUDICE
This history not worth
observing with statues
Opponents of the removal of the statue of the arch-racist, anti-Semitic, Catholic-bashing demagogue Tom Watson from in front of Georgia’s Capitol argue that he is “part of history.” Sure, he is — and it’s a shameful history of slavery, segregation, lynching, bigotry and violence.
Stalin also was “a part of history,” but they’ve taken down most of his statues in the former Soviet Union, and for good reason. Let’s celebrate those who fought against prejudice, not those who exemplified it.
JEFFREY SOKOLOW, ATLANTA
UNEMPLOYMENT
Schools must do better
with career education
The article in a recent AJC regarding the alarming and growing numbers of unemployed youth points to the fact that members of this population have suffered from the global economy as much as, if not more than, their parents (“Study: High rate of young out of work,” Business, Oct. 22).
Unemployed youth are typically uneducated or under-educated, and thus are totally unqualified and unprepared for the needs of the new economy and its employers. Training these people after they have left high school, although commendable, is a case of too little, too late. This country has a moral duty to put in place a public education system that provides relevant training for future employment, and gives all young people a chance to find a career and have a successful and productive life.
IAN SHAW, CUMMING
