Chuck Dicus termination undeserved
As Peter Finch famously said in the 1976 movie, “Network,” I’m mad as hell and I’m not gonna take it anymore.
In case you haven’t noticed, we are experiencing a meltdown within the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville athletic department and its controlling entities. Chuck Dicus was recently fired as president of the Razorback Foundation, the nonprofit financial arm of the department. He is the latest casualty in a string of firings, forced resignations and retirements, demotions, and employee humiliations.
Chuck has been betrayed by a few ego-driven newcomers who have garnered the support and silent backing of key administration elite. This ongoing power play has decimated the ranks of many faithful employees who have dedicated their lives for the betterment of their beloved university. Chuck has been a true, loyal stalwart of the Razorback Foundation for the past 17 years. He has overseen and protected the financial interests of all Razorback donors and ticket-holders during his tenure. He has always been a solid rock of integrity for his university and its athletic programs. What did Chuck receive for his years of undying service ? He received a slap in the face, a swift kick in the butt and a shove out the door. Please. Do those university few who are responsible for this public assassination really believe that we the Razorback faithful are naïve enough to fall for their half-baked truths and unholy spin ? Why can’t we be told the honest truth ?
PAT MORRISON / Rogers
Action is a decade late
Frustrated is only one word that can describe parents of students at the Crystal Hill and Clinton elementary schools in the Pulaski County Special School District. We are much more than that.
While we don’t yet know how long our children and their wonderful teachers and staff will be displaced from their relatively new buildings, we do know that closing these schools in the middle of the year certainly could have been avoided.
Two reports provided to the school district in 1998 and again in 2003 by an independent Michigan engineering firm indicated structural integrity issues with the roof that needed to be addressed before becoming an immediate safety issue. Oops. Only after a third report provided to the district in September indicated that there is now a serious safety concern is something being done about it. The district has now indicated that it can brace the faulty roof trusses that will provide five years’ time to get the roof trusses properly replaced. Why should we have any confidence that the district will fix the problem in the next five years when it has had the last 10 years to get the repairs made and never made one move to do so ? This is just an observation, but they should have taken action 10 years ago. After attending two school board meetings recently, I can tell you that accountability is nowhere to be found. And the district wonders why student retention is a problem.
DAVID B. GATLING / Maumelle
Sirens are a better idea
It seems to me that, in light of the recent shooting at the University of Central Arkansas and some other schools, the educated administration of those institutions has a preconceived solution as to how to notify the students and others during an emergency situation.
All they want to talk about or consider is e-mail or text messaging to notify the affected persons in the event of a major problem. Is it a fact that every person has a computer turned on and ready to receive e-mail ? Perhaps they are asleep or even indisposed. Perhaps they couldn’t afford to pay for the service. Yes, there is an extra charge. Some classes don’t allow the students to have cell phones or computers turned on during class.
What is wrong with installing Klaxon horns or sirens or loudspeakers on every building to notify everyone in the event of a lockdown ? When they go off, it’s lockdown until notified otherwise. What would be so difficult or expensive about that ? My gosh, why make a mountain out of a molehill ? You hear the noise, lock the door and stay put, turn on the computer, the radio or TV, or wait for the phone to ring. We taxpayers actually pay these administrators to come up with a solution that is as simple a falling off a log and that any fifth-grader could figure out. They appear to believe that a high-tech solution is the only solution. It’s time that they slowed down and used common-sense solutions for a common-sense problem.
LARRY MARTIN / Cabot
Children are top priority
For too long we have failed to address the needs of our children. We do not provide them with adequate health care, the best education or protection from violence, and we do not address the special problems of the disadvantaged.
We need bold reform to help all our children reach their potential. We need to fully fund Head Start programs. We need tougher standards and a national examination system in core subjects. We need to reduce the class sizes or grant more money for two teachers in each classroom. The parents should have the right to choose the public school their children attend.
A plan needs to be chosen that gives teen-agers who drop out of school a second chance. We need [more ] schoolbased clinics and drug education. Launch a safe-school initiative so kids can focus on learning again. We need federal assistance to pay for metal detectors and security. Crack down on violence against women and children. We need to give every American the opportunity to borrow money for college. We need to work to ban assault rifles. We need to fight crime by putting 150, 000 new police officers on the streets. We need to set standards for crime emergency areas by making communities hit hardest by crime eligible for federal matching funds to assist in the war on crime. I believe the children are the first priority in the United States of America.
BUDDY WILSON / Hot Springs
Explanation would help
I need somebody dumber than me to explain how a one-way street can go in both directions at the same time. If I don’t vote for a black man because I don’t agree with anything he stands for, I’m racist. Not so. But if 98 percent of black people vote for a black man, that’s not racist.
CHARLES A. FOWLER / Little Rock
Felony charge more just
I am the proud owner of two greyhounds, Hawkeye and Big Jack. Both are ex-racers from the Southland Race Track in West Memphis, the only professional athletes in the family. Greyhounds are magnificent animals combining grace and power. They are the only breed of dog mentioned in the Bible. Yet only a few years ago in the largest greyhound racing state, Florida, greyhounds had to literally run for their lives. In short, in preliminary training, if the greyhound did not finish first, second, third or fourth, he or she was put down, killed.... History has proved that any civilization is judged by how it treats its animals. Reason: They are vulnerable to humans. I love the Old Testament’s eye for eye, tooth for tooth. A misdemeanor for animal cruelty is a pat on the hand. Simple justice mandates a felony. The majority of states in the U. S. A. have felony statutes for cruelty. At present, the Arkansas law is weak and shameful.
DONALD P. HIGGINS / Hot Springs Village
Taxing rebate is wrong
We have a concern within our state that is stripping our citizens of their finances, which is very unfair.
At least part of our neighboring states do not do this. I have discussed this with our state lawmakers to no avail. We are paying sales tax on the reduction of overpriced autos and pickups called rebates. Rebates as such are only a reduced price of a vehicle that is overpriced anyway. When they offer a $ 4, 000 or $ 5, 000 rebate on a new vehicle, no sales tax should be paid on this amount. This is very unfair.
We purchased a new pickup and this happened again. Also, being a member of Farm Bureau, we received a $ 500 bonus and had to pay sales tax on this. The sales tax alone is very ample. This extra is too much.
Our state general fund is in great condition now with a balance of $ 200 million. We are thankful for the gas drilling industry in the Fayetteville Shale within our state, which has added tremendously and will continue to do so. I am asking our citizens to contact their state senators and representatives to correct this situation.
DON R. JOHNSON / Harrison
Vote discrepancies seen
I, too, am astounded that our aginner state passed all the amendments and proposals, but not very. As I reviewed my voting at the touchscreen computer, it informed me that I had voted against 1, 4 and 5, but for 2 and 3. Only after I left did I realize that I had nayed them all, although I did approve a local insurance initiative. Also, either every man, woman and child in Stone County voted or we’ve had a tremendous population increase.
HEATHER GIBSON / Mountain View
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