Despite President Trump’s promise to “make America great again,” I find myself pessimistically believing that America is regressing on many fronts. This is an awkward sentiment to have in a culture that has always espoused an optimistic vision of tomorrow. (This is said with a full remembrance of the horror of 9/11 and its aftermath along with the recent events in New York and Texas!) America is under attack and I’m not referring to North Korea’s nuclear threat, the Russian meddling in our election or the frequency of mass shootings, although these are certainly significant events that demand attention. It is Abraham Lincoln’s words that come to mind during these perilous times: “America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.”

Critical thinking skills must be sharpened where students are taught to ask the right questions, to see issues from diverse perspectives and to distinguish credible information from biased propaganda amid the plethora of misinformation being delivered through social media. The overriding goal of education must be to encourage students to see that democracy functions only if its citizens make it work.
Larry Hoffner, retired

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The following is an excerpt from a letter sent to Retired Teachers Chapter Leader Tom Murphy:

President Obama destroyed our medical care as he also destroyed Europe. Thank God for President Trump, who saved us from Hillary Clinton and tyranny! The Affordable Care Act is a misnomer; it should be called the Nonaffordable Care Act. The only ones who benefited or profited from this act are pharmaceutical companies, health insurance companies and the politicians.
Stephen Honig, retired