Engineers can’t say preventing Panther Island flooding is a sure thing?

No sure things but the expense

I found Tuesday’s front-page story, “Questions continue on Panther Island project in Fort Worth,” interesting and very troubling.

It states that a little more than $324 million has been spent by local taxpayers, including $88 million for land acquisition, $34 million for bridge work and $33 million for environmental cleanup.

But the most troubling part of this article is that the engineers say they only believe the project will accomplish flood control.

Really? We’re going to spend probably several billion dollars before this is over, and it might stop the flooding?

The city has many other needs without the water district wasting money on a maybe-this-might-work project.

Our most vital American values

With the greatest of respect, I must take issue with the letter writer who complained that “today there are people who want to change our values,” supposedly because they favor teaching foreign languages to primary school-age children. (March 5, 9A)

Yes, the Founding Fathers wrote our remarkable original documents in English. But many of them — including Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and Benjamin Franklin — were multilingual and steeped in the lessons of classical history.

Those documents enshrined the fundamental American principles of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, as well as equal justice for all. These values have inspired and sustained our citizenry for 232 years.

As a Texas-born and -reared linguist who has had the unique opportunity to live 25 years outside the United States, I say wake up.

The population of the United States is about 328 million, a little more than 4 percent of the world’s population. Texas accounts for more than 28 million, of which 10 million-plus are of Latino heritage.

Americans who know how to communicate in a second language besides English (and the younger, the better, because young brains are like sponges), including our immigrant brethren of all ethnic backgrounds, represent the bright future for “our American way of life and our values” in an ever more diverse, highly competitive, ever-shrinking world.

So it should be for all American kids today.

That page took a left turn

What a fascinating editorial page on March 5. (9A) The liberals of Tarrant County must have been thrilled.

One column accuses those of us who live in single-family homes of being elitist abusers of the ecology, stealing resources that could be more equitably distributed. (“A condo should be the new dream home”)

Another was an anti-President Donald Trump screed by never-Trumper Kathleen Parker. (“The president’s lying ears”)

Then the editorial cartoon by Tim Campbell showed a future parole board denying freedom to Trump and his inner circle.

There is no reason that wildly inflammatory cartoons (from either side) cannot be displayed side by side.

I know there are many more liberals living here than there used to be. But we conservatives are still here. Show some balance.

Counselors left out on money

I am disappointed in the Texas Senate’s decision to exclude certified school counselors from the $5,000 teacher pay raise it passed Monday. (March 5, 3A, “Texas Senate OKs $5,000 teacher hike, adds librarians”)

School counselors are required to teach for two years, just like librarians, who were added in an amendment. Counselors also must earn a masters degree and pass an additional certification exam beyond their teaching subject exam.

I taught three years while attending graduate school at Texas State University, and I work three weeks longer than the teachers’ contracts. Teachers, counselors and librarians all have roles in instruction and have traditionally been included together for raises.

I value my role supporting student needs, whether they be academic challenges, helping build resiliency and coping skills or responding to a student in crisis with suicidal ideation.

I respectfully ask the Texas House to value the critical role of school counselors and include us in this pay raise. Please do the right thing.