DATE: Saturday, August 16, 1997             TAG: 9708160002

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B8   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Letter 

                                            LENGTH:  124 lines

LETTERS TO EDITOR -- THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT

TAYLOR SCHOOL

``Well-connected''

means devoted, caring

Recently opponents of rebuilding Taylor School have referred to those in support of a new school as ``a few well-connected West Ghent parents.'' It is interesting that these people are considered ``well-connected.''

These are the parents who take the time to attend PTA meetings, vote on issues important to them or send in a proxy if unable to attend a meeting. (Any PTA member could do the same.) They attended public hearings and West Ghent Civic League meetings. These are the parents who accept positions on the PTA board because everyone else is ``too busy'' or uninterested.

These people are not wealthy. They do not have the funds to buy newspaper advertisements, bumper stickers or pay delivery services to distribute fliers. These are parents who support the public-school system. Are they not entitled to an opinion simply because they are involved?

Mary Margaret Lyons

Norfolk, Aug. 12, 1997

Dust buster

A thorough removal of the coal dust from the surfaces of Taylor Elementary would probably cause the building to collapse. Save the dust!

George Kello

Norfolk, Aug. 12, 1997

New Taylor design

keeps school's look

Norfolk has relatively few historic structures for a city its age. Wars did the most damage, urban renewal did the rest. Lost forever are beautiful or unique period buildings and homes. This is truly regrettable.

Schools, viewed pragmatically, are factories. They are used to produce educated people. Some facilities may be improved or expanded economically, but most are best replaced after a certain time. The time has come to replace W.H. Taylor Elementary.

Renovation of Taylor is a noble notion but a disservice to taxpayers and, more important, to current and future Taylor students. Renovation means paying and fixing forever. No aging building can be renovated to a point where it is like new.

The design accepted for the new Taylor is a state-of-the-art facility that externally resembles the original. Many salvagable components of the old school will be incorporated into the new one. This will help retain the tradition while providing students with the best tools we can offer them.

Louis C. Drake Jr.

Norfolk, Aug. 12, 1997

LABOR

Families, economy

hurt by UPS strike

The Teamsters strike against UPS is hurting a lot of people. My husband has been a UPS driver for 20 years, so my family depends on both of these organizations. The fear and uncertainty we face as the strike continues is overwhelming.

The issues that each side is arguing for or against will be settled only with a serious effort of commitment and compromise. This needs to be accomplished immediately before the situation worsens.

The bottom line is that my husband needs to return to work, and the economy needs the services of UPS and Teamsters to be strong.

Lynn Williford

Chesapeake, Aug. 7, 1997

UPS strike is

for the middle class

We have been watching the UPS strike with great interest. This struggle is for the heart and soul of America. Middle-class America, working for these huge corporate entities, is slowly but surely being ground down. Corporations, using such devices as the ``part-time,'' ``temporary'' or ``limited-duration'' worker, are reaping huge profits at the expense of the middle class.

The large corporations that buy into the erosion of income integrity, like UPS has, are historically myopic. How will UPS continue to prosper if people can't afford to purchase the goods it expects to ship?

We know that many businesses are suffering from lack of access to quick shipping, but those companies should remember whom they depend upon in the long run for their commerce. Without a strong and expanding middle class, America will continue on the downward trend toward thankless, low-paying jobs with no futures. This is the trend that the Teamsters are endeavoring to halt.

Tom Van Pelt

Virginia Beach, Aug. 11, 1997

REHABILITATON

Why should young

offender be rewarded?

Concerning your Aug. 8 story, ``7 youthful offenders graduate from Norfolk's landscape course'':

What kind of mixed message is the city of Norfolk sending to its youthful offenders? Kids who have had a brush with the law (``be it an assault, a trespassing conviction or family conflict too serious to handle in the home'') and placed on probation have the option of ``getting off faster'' by doing community work. Not only that, the seven youths in this program were monetarily rewarded!

What about all the other youths on probation and doing community service in the city? Should offenders be rewarded for community service? Like Probation Officer Edward L. Bradley said, ``Doing community service here by working in the garden is a form of payback.''

Wouldn't the money have been better used if it went to a charity?

Deborah Suter

Chesapeake, Aug. 12, 1997

POLITICS

Watch Democrats, they're

masters of maneuvering

In her Aug. 9 letter to the editor, Lori Wright suggests that ``it is time to recognize the maneuvers of the Republican Party.'' Fine, and while we watch the GOP, let's recognize the maneuvers of the Democratic Party as well.

Who was it that took office and then fired all the federal prosecutors in the country? And why did the secret outside phone lines need to be installed? Who was in charge when all the FBI files materialized in the White House? And who keeps stonewalling investigations, and then complains because they are taking too long?

Let's talk about maneuvers. Who first blasted his opponent's proposal to do something about personal property taxes, only to turn around and make that very same proposal part of his own platform?

The list could go on and on. If you want to recognize maneuvers, look first at the Democratic Party. It seems to have maneuvering down to a science.

S. M. Garringer

Virginia Beach, Aug. 9, 1997

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