THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 12, 1996 TAG: 9607120005
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A18 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Opinion
LENGTH: 30 lines
Your newspaper's commentary on ``The gap between the haves and the have-nots'' was an inadequate attempt within a small space to spotlight an issue that needs real in-depth coverage. Inadequacy of your reporting is highlighted by two-thirds of the lead page being dressed with graphics of money, line charts and a small pie chart - all missing what should be the real ``Election Coverage '96 Discussion'' on this issue.
The issue is not ``The growing income gap.'' It is not ``whether we will be able to go forward together as a unified society.'' And it is not that ``some disparity is good because it provides an incentive.'' The issue that should have been explored is: ``What corporate America should be doing about it.''
Sixty-billion dollars is spent by corporations to train workers - note I typed ``workers.'' However, the money spent to improve nonworkers' skills by corporations, for positions/jobs therein, is almost unregisterable. Your article should have included corporate America's thoughts about the have-nots.
Please do not define corporate America as the stockholder. Unless you can document a stockholders' meeting is the past five years that dismissed a company's CEO and board of directors, corporate America is the decision maker of corporations.
HOWARD McDONALD
Virginia Beach, June 23, 1996 by CNB