Letters to the Editor
Disrespectful
Your publication Nov. 3, 2016, had a story note on the front page, byline, “KSU Geauga Interim Dean xxxx-xxxx for Experiment.” (Note: I did not repeat those words because they are disrespectful of the individual, the position of Interim Dean Stocker, the administrative staff, the faculty, Kent State University and Geauga County.)
Both words used alone, yet together, do not recognize the importance of Kent’s contributions to Geauga County since their start in 1964, at West Geauga High School and the Burton campus in 1965.
In fact, in the spring of 2010 report on Kent State Geauga, “The service area econ- omy received roughly $29.2 million in added regional income, including $4.3 million from campus operations. Saved social costs of $839,000, and alumni productivity is $24.9 million.” (Spring 2010- Kent State Magazine)
Today, that would be significantly high- er.
Those words also demean Interim Dean Stocker’s educational and profession- al experience. Many counties in our state would wish to have a regional educational campus of Kent University’s stature that provided near-by economical access for stu- dents, non-traditional educational degrees, courses and informational events.
Certainly the byline would have been better if it noted that Interim Dean Stocker is participating in a feasibility evaluation of the administrative needs of seven regional Kent University campuses. Your article on page 5 more clearly represents her assign- ment.
Certainly, today all educational providers are challenged. Higher educa- tional universities are needed for commu- nity educational and economic leadership, outreach relationships with the K-12 cen- ters of learning, while being the center of effective teaching and learning excellence. These alone place significant time burdens on any regional dean administrator, in addi- tion to the economic costs of operating a regional campus.
A Maple Leaf retraction and an apology to Interim Dean Stocker would be proper as a welcome from our Geauga County community.
Ray T. Warner
Auburn Township
‘What You Permit, You Promote’
Is anyone really surprised at the protests over the election results?
For the last eight years, we’ve seen repeatedly mobs taking to the streets with irrational righteous indignation whenever there’s a perceived injustice, followed, begrudgingly, by only a weak and empa- thetic message from President Obama call- ing for peace.
Why? It served and continues to serve the political agenda of keeping some groups hooked for votes. What you permit, you promote.
Now Mr. Trump gets elected through the mechanism outlined in Article II of the U.S Constitution, but that’s unacceptable to some. I guess we should just suspend the rule of law and carry Secretary Clinton into the White House as “Our President.” After all, “the people” have rioted — I mean spoken — never mind the Constitution, which, according to many, is just some old parchment without relevance in today’s modern enlightened society, right?
Wrong. Human nature will never change. It is a mixture of good and evil, not perfectible during life on earth. I put my faith in the safeguards the Constitution provides, not in man’s capri- cious, ambitious, vindictive and rapa- cious ways.
That’s why America was designed as a Republic, not a Democracy. A Republic is a constitutionally limited government of the representative type. It protects every individual’s unalienable rights, with three branches providing checks and balances. In a Democracy, however, the majority rules, and the minority has no meaningful voice.
Our Constitution provides a framework that purposefully gives protection and rep- resentation to all. So, for all those who would advocate to selectively disregard cer- tain inconvenient clauses: The Constitution protects you, too.
Anarchists usually suffer from and fall victim to the very lawlessness they pro- mote.
Benito Alvarez, MD
Chester Township
