Readers write: New perspectives – from diction to socializing
Letters to the editor from the August 7 issue. Readers examined pushes for social interaction, violence in the South, careful word choice, and more.
Accidents or crashes?
Thank you for the deep look at India’s challenges with its rail system in the June 9 Daily article “Why India lags behind in rail safety – and where it goes from here.”
Recently, I’ve seen billboards placed by my state’s Department of Transportation that make a point by crossing out the word “accidents” and replacing it with “crashes.” That point, of course, is that crashes are avoidable, as opposed to the sense of accidents just happening and not being preventable.
I think that the founder of the Monitor might agree that “accident” is not as useful as other, more specific terms that leave out the notion of chance. Perhaps the Monitor could consider this in future reporting.
Jerry McIntire
Elk Rapids, Michigan
Thriving with less, not more
It would have been thought-provoking if the article “One is the loneliest number: What will help people connect again?” from the July 10 & 17 Weekly issue had looked into how those who are not dependent on social interactions (some would label them “introverts”) actually thrived during the lockdowns.
This perspective can point to a new way of thinking! The whole current push seems to shout “social, social, social” without end. Maybe it’s time to think about this again, and the Monitor is just the vehicle to do that. Often, the world’s greatest works are done alone. There are many examples, and they are encouraging, and telling these stories strengthens and supports those who honestly do thrive with less, rather than more, societal contact. For the Monitor’s founder, that meant alone with God.
Please lead the way and consider balancing this out for a world that needs it.
Elena Toft
Falls Church, Virginia
An annual reminder
I agree that it would be nice to have an “Interdependence Day” as described in the recent piece “Happy Interdependence Day!” in the July 3 Weekly issue.
However, this should not be at the expense of our Fourth of July celebrating our country’s independence! The remarkable truths put forth in Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence established a standard that has called to the hearts and minds of people all over the world since 1776. In the United States, we are still working to live up to these standards.
To drop the annual reminder of those remarkable words and the standards they set – not just for the early Colonists, but as it has turned out, for the whole world – would be, in my opinion, a huge blunder.
Nancy Walden
Medford, Oregon
Holding the South together
As a somewhat child of the South (born in Louisville, Kentucky; grew up partially in Virginia), I, too, have wondered why the South seems so much more violent.
This question was amplified when close friends of mine moved to Atlanta and felt the need to carry concealed firearms, though they had never done so before – and these people are not gun enthusiasts.
Thank you for probing, in your June 5 cover story, “Exposing the roots of violence,” whether there is something truly unique about the South that makes it the way it is – beyond its very challenging legacy.
Can there perhaps be a follow-up story, or more of a focus on the need for better institutions to promote our togetherness, employment, health, and education? The need for better institutions and common glue is not limited to the South, but, for whatever reason, these have not taken root.
There’s more here, or rather, there’s more to the explanation for the lack of progress than poor alignment of the stars.
Stuart Page
New York