Letters: Media do not reveal all sides of teacher health insurance debate

Media do not reveal all sides of teacher health insurance debate
You continue to include coverage of Alabama Education Superintendent Joe Morton’s ‘plan’ to penalize education employees in an attempt to create new funding for Alabama’s public schools. You also continue to run guest editorials from around the state in support of Dr. Morton’s ridiculous plan.
As with all poor journalism, you choose to take a one-sided approach to your news reporting. Your coverage continues to point out that education employees’ individual insurance cost is $2.

You fail to report the number of employees who actually qualify and take advantage of the individual insurance coverage.

You fail to report the number of employees who pay 90 times that amount for family coverage.

You fail to report that year after year education employees have gone without raises and cost of living adjustments in exchange for level insurance premiums.

You fail to report that teachers already fund their own retirement.

Teachers receive a ridiculously low salary, compared to other professionals, and then are required to relinquish 5 percent of that salary to fund their own retirement.

Does Morton’s plan include increased retirement payments? Morton suggests teachers should be required to have 30 years “experience” teaching prior to retiring. Does Morton think all teachers begin teaching at the same age?

Is Morton aware that a teacher’s retirement benefits are based on a formula that includes years of service?

Morton should be ashamed of his poor representation of the people he serves. The writer from a Mobile Press-Register editorial suggested merit pay as an alternative to health insurance for teachers. Great idea. Just hire uneducated morons to teach our children, and pay them minimum wage.

Stop wasting taxpayers’ money compensating highly qualified individuals to do the job. Let’s try contracting the job. That is the approach our prison system is using to compensate for funding shortages.

Michael Miller
Tallassee

Auburn should have honored fallen Fort Hood soldiers at Furman game

I am an alumnus of Auburn University and have always been proud of that achievement.
However, today I was ashamed of my alma mater by the lack of respect shown for those brave soldiers who died and were injured at Fort Hood.

I attended the Furman game expecting to see the American flag being flown at half staff and expecting a moment of silence to be observed for those victims of this latest act of terrorism on America. I was appalled when I saw the flag flying high and the pre-game festivities carried out as usual.

While Jordan-Hare Stadium is not a government building, it is part of a state university.

The lowering of the flag to half-staff should have been an obvious action to take regardless of any political directive. I was so distraught by this lack of respect that I questioned a security guard and eventually contacted facilities personnel via text message when I couldn’t locate an actual person.

The response I received stated that they had not received “any official notification” and that they would investigate.

Needless to say the flag was not lowered during the game today. “Official notification” should not have been necessary for an action that is simple common sense. Whatever the reason for the lack of attention to this matter, today Auburn University lost some of its glorious reputation.

Before the game, fans stopped where they stood and applauded the ROTC color guard as they marched down Donahue Drive.

These fans were not given “official notification” to show respect for our military.

These members of the Auburn Family knew to whom they owe their gratitude and respect!

I can only hope that the leadership at Auburn University can learn from this outrageous lack of consideration and improve the university’s actions in the future.

Ramona Delicia Northcutt
Montgomery