Airline attack shows need for vigilanceWake up, America. Attacks on our land are not over. Just look at the flight from Nigeria to Amsterdam to Detroit. Northwest Flight 253, with 278 passengers, could be gone today.
We look at airport security as an inconvenience. But I just traveled to New Hampshire and could not believe the security we went through. I was glad and thankful. They took my partially consumed bottle of water, which I didn’t mind. But when we walked through the detector, I had to remove belt, shoes, purse, earrings ó and anything else that set the alarm off. Thank you to Charlotte Douglas International Airport for making me feel safer.
How did this guy (on Flight 253) get through security? Maybe other lands are not requiring the security the United States requires today.
The White House said it believed it was an attempted act of terrorism, and stricter security measures were quickly imposed on airline travel, but those measures were not specified.
When do we relax, and when do we continue strict security for our homeland?
We use many modes of travel today, and the airlines are not the only mode that should be secure. Look around and see where you are today. Many people are targeted on roadways, with shots going astray, even when we are walking in a parking lot here in our hometown of Salisbury. Look around you and report anything suspicious.
I am thankful for all police officers, firefighters, emergency personnel and anyone who responds to dangerous situations, not knowing what they might be coming into. They put their lives on the line for you and me.
ó Shirley Alexander
Salisbury
Equal funding for schools
With the recession and redistricting coming in together, a rare and unique opportunity has been presented. Although counties are believed to follow standards in learning, schools struggle with standards in funding. It could be said that redistricting may be well received in more frequency with the knowledge or evidence that each dollar earned in fundraising is always divided equally among all schools in that county.
The economic strain may someday demand this paradigm shift in providing equal access to public education across the state, but Rowan County may consider leading the state in this area, as in others, bringing renewed confidence that shared values flow from equal and shared funding in every school.
By setting 22nd century standards of thinking for funding we may see standards reached in other areas.
ó Rex White
Salisbury