Wichita Eagle letters to the editor, May 12, 2018 | Wichita Eagle

The sad streets of home

My husband and I recently drove to Corpus Christi, Texas, and visited several other towns on our way there and back. I can honestly say we never encountered streets as bumpy and filled with potholes as the streets we drive on daily in Wichita.

Our vehicles take a beating every time we go anywhere here, and I imagine the only people in town who are happy with the roads are those who own alignment shops. Visitors to Wichita must drive home wondering why our streets are so horrible and why we don’t fix them.

Click to resize

How is this acceptable to our city and county officials who are responsible for making sure the streets are maintained? Artwork, city beautification and fun things to do are important, but decent streets are more important and should be given priority.

Furor over Friends departure

The efforts of individuals at the helm of Friends University, through their unceremonious and disrespectful departure of Stan Rogers from the ballet program, and by extension forced retirement of Sharon Rogers, is deplorable in the greatest sense.

Not only are they ruining a fine and nationally esteemed ballet program built over 30 years by the dedication of these two individuals, but they are also disenfranchising the current students and all the graduates of this esteemed program of their academic heritage.

Shame on all of you responsible for this fiasco. I assure you I will no longer recommend Friends University nor shout its praises. You have done nothing but diminish the stature of Friends. May the pain you have and continue to inflict on all the parties involved come back to rest squarely on your shoulders.

Appreciate teachers every day

Now that Teacher Appreciation Week is concluding, let’s continue to recognize teachers of all disciplines each day.

We are indeed fortunate to maintain a quality teaching force in Kansas public schools. The ability to maintain a dedicated faculty is frequently scrutinized by persons who routinely question salary levels, facility enhancements, student improvement, and the costs associated with educating over 450,000 students.

During a short summer break, many teachers will be honing their skills (many at their own expense) with professional development activities, continuing education and workshops. Come August, they will again step up to the challenge in preparing our youth.

Each day, thank a teacher. This gesture of respect and appreciation can never be overstated.

Sell to our friends

I am glad that aviation analysts agree that end of U.S. involvement in the Iran deal won’t really dent Boeing or Spirit’s markets much, since there are already other deals to take up the slack.

I actually support the administration’s decision. The temporary pinch in lost sales can eventually be met by other buyers, foreign and domestic. Given Iran’s past volatile nature of chanting “Death to the United States,” I am not too fond of selling any American-made products to them.

Too often over the past few decades, the United States has sadly sold equipment, products and even armaments to nations that eventually turn on us. I’d say the loss of the Iranian aircraft deal will only be a momentarily blip on the financial radar screen of America’s economy. Good riddance. Let’s find buyers who are amicable.