If Cole Beasley goes out without a vaccine or a mask, that’s just his opinion

Vaccines are just about opinions

Mac Engel apparently doesn’t agree with Cole Beasley’s opinion on COVID-19 vaccinations. (May 15, 1B, “WR Beasley’s position on COVID-19 vaccinations is a terrible example to set”)

Beasley says he’s not getting vaccinated. I’m fully vaccinated and am glad I am. But I firmly agree that Beasley has the right to his own stance.

Mac, we have to read your opinions every day, so please allow Beasley to have his, too.

- Lynn Miller, North Richland Hills

This is why we value journalism

Sunday’s opinion pages were a buffet of food for thought on public schools.

Home-schoolers want to enjoy the benefits of the districts they pay into by participating in extracurricular activities. (5C, “With ‘Tim Tebow’ bill, Texas can level field for home-schoolers in sports, activities”) A think tank says those who can afford their own shouldn’t enjoy publicly funded meals. (5C, “Why isn’t school meal program serving only those in need?”) Educators don’t want the Legislature telling them how to teach, and school boards should most certainly heed the U.S. history lesson in civil rights. (4C, “Texas educators, not the Legislature, should decide how to teach current events”)

Throughout it all, I kept thinking, “Thank goodness for a free press.” Whether you agree or disagree with what’s in print, it’s a huge job keeping us informed as we attempt to govern ourselves. Here’s to journalists everywhere.

- Caryl Sherman-Gonzalez, Fort Worth

This would be better than Wi-Fi

Sometimes the answer to a problem is to subtract, not add. The Star-Telegram reported on the Fort Worth school district’s consideration to build towers to provide public Wi-Fi to neighborhoods where students do not have access to high-speed internet. (May 15, 1A, “Schools delay wifi project meant to help underserved students”)

The district should consider another option that could reduce spending, encourage family time and protect the student’s time to pursue personal projects: Eliminate school-assigned homework.

- Kari Vanhoozer, Bedford

Suppressing the voters hurts

The final vote on Texas Republicans’ anti-voter bill, SB7, is upcoming.

It would suppress the vote and restrict the ability of counties to send mail-in ballots to voters, and it could allow poll watchers to record voters.

If this bill passes, some corporations will leave Texas, just as in Georgia. If our leaders are scared of the power of people such as Stacey Abrams, they should know there are hundreds of mini-versions of her in Texas who are ready to swing into action if the GOP overreaches. No one will be able to unring that bell.

I urge my elected officials to fight fair with us.

- Atinuke Abayomi-Paul, Arlington

I take issue with this headline

Your front-page headline Tuesday, “Voter restriction bills could cost Texas billions,” says it all. The headline could have said “election integrity bill” instead. There are two sides to a story, and you openly take one.

The story gives a fair description of both sides of the argument, but the headline is biased. Many of your Texas readers are not that progressive and don’t believe we are a systematically racist society trying to restrict minority votes.

Some of us believe that election integrity is important, and while experts say there is no widespread fraud, let’s make elections as fraud-free as we can.

- Ricardo O. Schulz, Fort Worth

This story was originally published May 20, 2021 at 5:00 AM with the headline "If Cole Beasley goes out without a vaccine or a mask, that’s just his opinion."