Lend your voice to support veteransWhen I woke up this morning on Veteran’s Day, I took a look at the American flag that was presented to my mother at my dad’s funeral. I thought about his service in the Navy during World War II and the sacrifices of millions of others of his generation. We can never repay them for what they did for us. We should remember those who served in the Korean and Vietnam conflicts as well as the Gulf War and now Iraq and Afghanistan. Many will carry scars, bullets, and shrapnel within their bodies to the grave. Also, we should not forget those who served in peacetime, who were willing to risk everything should they be called to go into battle.
It does not matter what we believe about the politics of these wars on this day. It is a time for us to recognize the service of these Veterans.
At a time when our national government has decided to spend close to a trillion dollars to bail out the banking system and now maybe the automotive industry, our local Veteran’s hospital has been told that the government will reduce services to our former military personnel.
Each year millions of dollars of foreign aid is taken out of the paychecks of workers in the United States and sent to nations all around the world. How can we possibly say to our veterans that they are less important?
We should all be saddened by this decision.
Please contact your members of Congress and ask them to treat our veterans with the care and respect they deserve. That would be something you can do to honor our veterans this week. Capitol switchboard: (202) 224-3121
ó Joe D. Teeter
Gold Hill
Enforcing the rules
In response to the recent letters concerning the Salisbury High School football student/athlete:
The student’s grades are not in question. He satisfied the requirements of passing the course to obtain credit. What is in question is the student’s attendance, or lack thereof. The student had too many absences, which made him ineligible. The transcript is correct in regard to the grades. The student/athlete went to summer school at SHS for the credits in question. SHS had his transcripts and could check the county computer system to obtain his absentee record.
It is up to the coaches and school administration to make sure students have met all requirements at the school they are playing for that year. That also means they are responsible for making sure the athletes live where they say they live. All too often in this county, coaches/administration are knowingly looking the other way in regard to residency requirements.
Here is the chief sticking point. The student in question should not have been eligible to play for one year since he transferred from another school based on state rules. This is a rule that this school board/administration chooses to overlook and does nothing to enforce. Have we learned nothing from the fiasco and lawsuits that took place in the Charlotte schools concerning football teams last year? Until we stop transfers for the sake of playing sports at another school and/or enforce the rules on the books, this situation will only get worse.
One last thought. At the center of this storm, who is at fault? Let us not forget that it was the athlete’s responsibility to go to class and do the work in the first place. The only apology that should be issued is by the athlete in question for not doing his job.
ó Kevin Gilland
Salisbury
A wake-up call
Are we ready for our nation to be destroyed because the ACLU God-haters and so many of our U.S. Congress and senators are advocates and supporters of abortion and homosexuality?
Wake up, America!
Galations 6:7 says: Be not deceived; God is not mocked, for whatsoever a man soweth; that shall he also reap. The gainsayers mocked and made fun when Noah built the ark, but the flood did come and swept them all into eternity without God. The alarm has been sounding and still is; voice the truth before the door of opportunity is closed.
Write and call your senators and congressional representatives. It is important that you are an informed citizen and not a puppet. The right shall prevail. It will be God’s mercy or his judgment.
ó Julia Thompson
China Grove
Just when you think there’s no good left in the world and everyone has gone crazy, God shows us there is still good in people and reminds us to show our goodness as often as possible.
This past Friday, I left work a little early for a weekend visit to my daughter in Raleigh. When I got home, I noticed that the Ab Lounger that I had for sale on my front sidewalk was gone. My first thought was “well, somebody stole it, and I hope they pull a muscle.” But when I looked in the mailbox, there was the sign we had on the Ab Lounger and a $20 bill. The buyer not only left the money but had knocked on my neighbor’s door to make sure it would be OK to go up on my porch with no one home!
The same day, while on my way to Raleigh with my younger daugher, my mother and sister, my car began to shake as if in a horrible wind storm. Thankfully, we were able to get to the next exit, where we stopped at the Kangaroo Express in Whitsett. My sister went in to ask where the air pump was and was directed to the side of the building. After we searched a few minutes for the pump, the cashier noticed and came to show us the pump’s location. Meanwhile, my tire had gone flat. The cashier immediately began to take my tire off and put my spare on. When he was done, I tried to hand him a $20 bill, but he refused to take it!
So just remember when you have a chance to do something nice for someone, you may have the chance to renew their faith in people like these two did for me.
ó Susan Matthews
Spencer