Teachers Deserve Respect
After reading “Teacher Wussdays” (by Quinn Cotton, Feb. 4), I was somewhat miffed at the lack of respect for teachers. I am not a teacher, but in my opinion teachers are underpaid for their work. Teachers don’t have the convenience of calling in sick, they cover their shifts with substitutes, and if they can’t, then too bad . . . they work. Yes, they do get time off in the summer, and yes, they do get to leave work (most of them) by 3:00 each day. Those perks seem great to a person who works 40+ hours a week with only two or three weeks vacation a year. But you forgot to mention that a number of teachers are required to attend workshops on weekends to continue certification, required to be at quarterly after-hours PTA meetings, attend any school function or meeting on or off campus (even if it falls on weekends), are usually at work by 7-7:30am, and are usually a child’s daycare provider, a surrogate parent to those who have lack of parental guidance, a role model, a counselor. Patience is a virtue that teachers are blessed with two-fold.
— Shannon Leonard, Charlotte
You Teach the Little Bastards
Cops have an easier job than teachers. When the hell was the last time you sat in on a class with the little bastards, Quinn Cotton? Teachers need the break from the students. But don’t take my word for it. Go and sit in on an inner-city class, ya smart-assed know-it-all. Hell, go and sit in on an Independence High School class! The teachers are threatened with bodily harm every single day! And what happens to these little gangbanging wanna-bes? Awww, they have to eat lunch by themselves. Poor little babies. If the parents weren’t such uncaring assholes, they’d be more concerned about the behavior of their spawn, and how that’s affecting the students’ classmates’ education, not breaks these teachers have earned.
— Justin Frey, Charlotte
Objectivity Is Key
Kevin Griffis’ “Dead in Dixie?” (Jan. 21) should be required reading for journalism students, because it illustrates perfectly the problem with editorial journalism. The writer begins with a premise — that poor rural Southerners would vote for Democrats if they only knew what was good for them — and is then frustrated when his subjects don’t see it his way. Did Mr. Griffis consider trying to understand why poor rural Southerners don’t recognize the economic value of voting for Democrats? The poor didn’t suddenly become poor three years ago when George Bush took office. Bill Clinton had eight years; what did he ever do for them? Or, more to the point, what has anyone done for them? When neither Republicans nor Democrats do anything to help poor rural Southerners economically, at least they can be sure that by voting for conservatives, they are voting for someone who shares their moral values. These values may not be mine, and they may not Mr. Griffis’, but that’s exactly the point: when the writer imposes his editorial subjectivity on a story, it ceases to be good reporting.
— Paul Reali, Charlotte
Where’s the Anger?
Just finished reading your cover story and wanted to say “thank you” for trying explain Bush’s popularity with the people he could care less about so comprehensibly.
I ask myself “where’s the anger” almost on a daily basis. Why aren’t these people in the streets screaming for a change in administration? And you offered a variety of explanations, each making complete sense. It’s ignorance, it’s the skewed dream of being “like Bush” one day, it’s selfishness, it’s right-wing talk media, it’s definitely religion and it’s a combination of homophobia and racism. Scary. Keep up the great work.
— Lisa Marzilli, Tampa, FL
Mrs. Richardson Is Super
In my opinion (and the opinion of many others), you got it wrong when you listed the #10 spot on the “Worst Things to Happen To The Panthers” list in the Jan. 28 issue. Mrs. Jerry Richardson is one of the best things that could happen to the Panthers and this entire region!
Mrs. Richardson has always been an excellent example of what a real woman, mother, and wife should be anywhere in the world. A woman who is supportive of her children and husband. Her family knows she is one of the main keys to their successes and how lucky they are that they have Mrs. Richardson behind them.
I can remember Mrs. Richardson driving in her brown Rolls-Royce (only one of two in Spartanburg, SC, at the time) and she would always wave and speak to people. She never acted like she was better than anyone, when a lot of people in her position forget where they came from, she embraces it and is proud of it (just like she should be)!
The South can only be proud to have an example of a Southern woman like we do in Mrs. Jerry Richardson. She has definitely “done right” by Florence, SC, and all of the South! The writer at Creative Loafing should realize it too.
— Carolyn Pratt Bennett, Charlotte
This article appears in Feb 11-17, 2004.
