DATE: Saturday, November 29, 1997           TAG: 9711270013

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B8   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Letter 
                                            LENGTH:  134 lines

LETTERS TO EDITOR -- THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT

EDUCATION

Private schools not

elitist institution

I am tired of the letters characterizing private schools as elitist institutions. My family's income borders on the poverty level for a family of four, but there are seven of us. Regardless, I still send my children to a private school, which I pay out of my own pocket. In the schools my children have attended, there are far more children from middle-income and below families than from affluent families.

My family sacrifices a lot to send my children to a private school. Consequently, my children learn that to attain certain things, such as good grades, it is necessary to work hard and sacrifice their time.

Susan Marrero

Norfolk, Nov. 7, 1997

Charter schools,

vouchers not the answer

Virginians are deluding themselves if they believe that either charter schools or vouchers are the answer to the sad state of education in Virginia today.

It is a serious mistake to believe that ``competition'' will somehow improve the public schools. We saw what happened in the '50s and '60s, when white parents moved their children to private schools during the early days of integration in the South. Public schools suffered as affluent parents and motivated students went elsewhere, and the decades of ``politically correct'' social changes that followed diluted and homogenized the educational processes.

If all the money and energy required to establish charter schools or voucher systems were focused on improving the public school system, benefits to the students would be achieved faster and more efficiently. Who knows, we might even be able to do away with remedial classes in public universities!

Anne T. Denny

Virginia Beach, Nov. 19, 1997

WATER CONSERVATION

Some flushing advice

for Thomas Sowell

I am writing as a member of the Hampton Roads Water Efficiency Team (HR WET) in response to Thomas Sowell's Nov. 15 column, ``Riffraff return signals correctness decline.'' HR WET is a regional water conservation education coalition.

Mr. Sowell goes overboard in his zeal when he lumps diverse activist groups into the genre of ``environmental fascists.'' There are more people on Earth now, with the same water resources, than there were ``in the beginning.'' Water conservation is critical to sustaining our national health, wealth and prosperity. Water-saving devices (ultra-low-volume toilets and low-flow shower heads) are in city ordinances so that the water we have can go around. Newer models do not sacrifice an adequate flush or bracing shower.

You should try them, Mr. Sowell. You might just like them. And you know it's the right thing to do.

Jerry Hoddinott

Chesapeake, Nov. 21, 1997

ARTS FESTIVAL

Robert Cross, staff

deserve our thanks

My wife and I recently had the privilege of attending the Kirov Ballet at Chrysler Hall. Robert Cross, artistic director for The Virginia Waterfront International Arts Festival, also announced some of the features for the 1998 season.

Considering the truly fantastic 1997 season that Mr. Cross and his staff put together and the wonderful international lineup for 1998, the Hampton Roads community owes Mr. Cross and his staff a debt of gratitude. Not only have they brought positive international recognition to our community, they also have shown us that as a community, we are capable of pulling together where there is a common cause.

A. F. Seay Jr.

Virginia Beach, Nov. 20, 1997

DRUNKEN DRIVING

Join the vigil,

avoid more deaths

On Dec. 6, victims from across the country will light a candle in memory of their loved ones at Mothers Against Drunk Driving's International Candlelight Vigil of Remembrance and Hope at Washington National Cathedral, Washington, D.C., at 6 p.m. Joining me will be many other people throughout the country and Canada who have also experienced tragedy at the hands of a drunken driver. Together, we will mourn the loss of our loved ones.

I hope the ceremony will also help raise public awareness of the continuing tragedy of drinking and driving. Last year alone, 346 people were killed and 9,083 more were injured in Virginia in alcohol-related traffic crashes.

December is a time of celebration for most people as families join together to celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah and the New Year. But for me and millions of others who have been victimized by drunken driving, the holiday season is one of sadness. There will always be an empty place at our dinner table and in our hearts because of the reckless acts of someone who decided to drink and drive.

This December, think about how you're going to get home before you go out for an evening of celebration. Designate a nondrinking driver. If you're hosting a party, don't let guests drive if they've been drinking. Never serve alcohol to someone under the age of 21.

Help MADD pass tougher anti-drunken driving laws by writing to your elected officials and by contributing time or money to help further our efforts. And if you have young drivers in your household, bring them to our vigil. It's an educational experience that may save a life.

Brenda A. Altman

State Chair

MADD

Richmond, Nov. 19, 1997

``NOTHING SACRED''

This Catholic isn't

offended by TV show

I strenuously disagree with the Nov. 19 letter from Frances Loch, chairman of Catholics United for the Faith, regarding the television program ``Nothing Sacred.''

I am a Catholic who loves her church, who attended Catholic schools through college, who sent her only child to Catholic schools, who participates in the life and activities of her parish and who attends Mass every week. I am a mainstream, traditional Catholic - heck, I still miss hearing Mass celebrated in Latin.

And you know what? I look forward to watching that ``anti-Catholic'' program. How can that be? Perhaps the answer is that I have seen genuine anti-Catholicism: a bumper sticker on a car parked at a fundamentalist church that read, ``We don't eat Jesus''; a young relative who was asked if she was Christian or Catholic by a classmate.

``Nothing Sacred'' is a drama for commercial television. I don't find it offensive in the least. In fact, I was proud of my church, and its history, the night ``Father Ray'' prayed a portion of the ancient prayer, ``The Breastplate of St. Patrick.'' How else might a wide segment of the population have heard that magnificent prayer?

My church is strong and full of good humor, good sense and good people. The church will survive Disney, and I know it will survive Catholics United for the Faith.

Mary Margaret Heller

Norfolk, Nov. 21, 1997

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