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Show The Salt LakeTribune OPINION TUESDAY, FEBRUARY19, 2002 OUR VIEW Empty Tank by all the players, but to implement an idea like competency-based certification, educators, parents, potential whateducators havesaid for a num: educators andlegislators must all ber of years. Teachers, and parents, agree to sacrifice someself interest. It fession. The idea of focusing on read ing and writing has been similarly suggested by educators and school patrons. The problem that remains unsolved, and unaddressed by the think tank, is how to accomplish these goals given the disparate interests of educators, legislators and par- ents of school children. may soundlike a common-sense proposal, but it’s not as simple as the think tank suggests, as illustrated by yearly legislative attempts to render certification meaningless in order to satisfy limited special interests. All the players similarly support the idea of emphasizing reading and writing, but that raises the question of teaching students with limited English, a question many in thefray have yet to fully comprehend. Participants in the governor's recent forum may feel they accom- Though Lt. Gov. Olene Walker suggested the education community is unwilling or unable toreform itself, educators have tried to implement many of the proposals reiterated by plished something through the sheer act of discussing the issues. But tween the education community and the think tank is that the community egos and interests over the means. the think tank. The difference beis very aware of the difficulties of practical application. A great theory does not immediately translate into agreement on the methods to use. Blaming the educators for a lack of reform ignores recent debates between educators andlegislators regarding the best way to establish mentor programs. Or national debates on how to improverecruitment andretention of teachers. The sheer number of interested parties in education makes teachers, parents and legislators have regularly supported the same ends, Reading and writing maybe the goal, but legislators and educators end up President Jacques Rogge would be » different than his sometimes imperi- ous predecessor, Juan Antonio * Samaranch, it has been dispelled by his quick action during the 2002 Win- ter Gamesto effect a resolution to the flap over the judging of the mixed ees figure skating competition Feb. Although theusual court punctilio of the “Olympic Family” seemingly would have called for a lengthy investigation and no likely effort ever to rectify the judges’ decision, Rogge worked with the International Skat. ing Union to quickly resolve the “problem: Canadian figure skaters Jamie Sale and David Pelletier would receive gold medals, too, just as Rus: sian skaters Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze did, and the French judge, Marie Reine Le Gougne, who admitted she was pressured to vote for the Russians, was indefinitely suspended. The scandal over the mixed pairs judging looked to all the world like it THE PUBLIC FORUM debating more specious issues like Mandarin Chinese and mandatory gun safety classes in schools. How to improve education in theory is the easyquestion. Putting reforms into practice is the much more difficult problem. Rather than restat- ing the obvious,the think tank should have focused on the much more difficult issue of building a consensus on the methodsof implementation. Gold-Medal Decision If there was any doubt that new International Olympic Committee P.FARLEY VENTURES IN Spo ee wirh FAMILY PRAYINGTHAT NO HARMORACCIDENT W MOE only to find themselves in a clash of would fester and grow, casting a shadow overthe entire 2002 Winter Games, making the bid scandal pale into an insignificant memory. Not only the Canadian skaters and the vast majority of fans watching the event in personor ontelevision were upset; the Russian skaters too were becoming adversely affected by the scandal’s corrosive questions about the legitimacy of their achievement. However, Rogge, who had cast The Extra Mile tary, Tribune, Feb. 3). As an active Catholic, 1 am always saddened to hear that someone feels they have beenslighted by the church. I know from firsthand experience of manystories of Catholic priests, confidential. @ Keep it short. Concise letters developing a single theme are more deacons andlaity who have gone the likelyto be published. extra mile in ministering to the sick anddying. | am reminded of the biblical verse whichstates that the harvest is great and the workers are few. The Catholic Church is indeed growing in the state of Utah. As Catholics we need to pray for and encovrage vocationsto the priesthood. CECE ee HOLT , Mont. Qo his word. Just as his earlier decision to stay with the athletes in the Olympic Village rather than in a plush downtownhotel represented a departure from past IOC practice, his celerity in pushingthe ISUto a resolu- tion it earlier had indicated it would not be rushed is indicative of a new and positive trend in the OlympicFamily. Jacques Rogge’s heart as IOC presidentclearly is upon the athletes and the Games.As the IOC boss,he'll do. Doctors and Drug Companies Whata greatfeeling it has been to watch the coming together of many nations right here in our own backyard. The athleticism and sportsmanship havebeen top notch and the performance at the opening and awards ceremonies was incredible. I just have one complaint: NBC’s Bob Costas. Isitjust me, or does it seem like the poor guy doesn’t even want to be here? Heis a very skilled commenta- tor, but his attitude throughout the coverage is completely contrary to what the Olympic spirit embodies. NBC needs to replace him immedi- ately with someone who at least apare. SHELDON FOSTER Kearns Q Olympic Headache * toa study just published in The Journal of the American Medical Associa‘ tion, an overwhelming majority of this would be called bribery. The cozy financial relationship The luster of Olympic gold,silver and bronze is fading fast. My excite- ! doctors who write treatment guide- makers is not easily abolished. But disclosure would do much to keep things above board, and to help guarantee the integrity of scientific ‘ those companies’ drugs find their ‘ way into the guidelines as recom- ; mended treatment. To those in the medical profession, ‘ noneofthis is news. The potential for ‘ financial conflict is widely recog‘nized, and the source of much : discussion. ‘One of the troubling aspects of the ‘ new studyis its finding that ties be- makers.If this involved politicians, between physicians and the drug research. According to a recent New York Timesreport, several prominent doctors and researchers have signed a letter urging scientific journals to adopt stricter disclosure rules. The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers Association, which represents the industry, has no problem tween doctors and drug makers are with the idea. Scientific publications + rarely disclosed. That meansthat the can only gain byputting it to use. It would also be nice if physicians would tell patients what the drug companies whose products the phy- * public not to mention peer physi cians are generally left in the dark when it comes to trying to fully ap- * praise recommended treatments. ‘Drug companies often pay doctors for research, speaking and consult ‘ing. And many doctors frequently take junkets to fancy resorts, all sicians are enthusiastically recom mending had done for the doctors lately, but we dream on. The Providence Journal TheSalt LakeTribune UTAH’S INDEPENDENT VOICESINCE 1871 PAST PUBLISHERS PUBLISHER Dominic Welch John F. Fitzpatrick (1924-1960) John W. Gallivan (1960-1983) Jerry O'Brien (1983-1994) THE SALT LAKE TRIBU pic composition, “Call of the Champions,” sung to 3.5 billion people by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, did it send chills up your spine?It certainly did mine. Big time. Did you hear those angelic voices float above the lower voices in an ethereal descant? I did. And let metell you, those were 1 Please type and doublespace. @ Letters are condensed and edited. @ Because of the volume of mail received, not all submissions are not the voices of middle-aged angels. They were the choristers of the Madeleine Choir School who had recorded the song earlier with the Tabernacle Choir and the Utah Sympho- published @ Mail to Public Forum, The Salt Lake Tribune, P.O. Box 867, Salt Lake City, Utah 84110 @ Our fax numberis (801) 257-8950. ny. Why were only the disembodied voices of this talented choir present at Rice-Eccles Olympic Stadium? Don’t ask me. Ask Mitt Romney. Thesaying goes, “Children should be seen and not heard”but Mitt gotit @ Our e-mail address is letters@ sitrib.com. backwards. He thinks children should be heard and not seen. As I bought and paid for the drug companies. Some of these junkets last a weekend, many muchlonger.A lot of greens fees are being paid for by drug * lines for diseases have ties to the » pharmaceutical industry. And often, youlistened to John Williams’ Olym- Reluctant Commentator preciates the Games for what they ‘ world of medicine as well. According Weren't those opening ceremonies almost perfect? Yes, they were. When Public Forum, please inciude your full name, signature, address and daytime telephone numbers. Information other than your name and the city in which you live are kept himself as a reformer when he was elected IOC bosslast year, was true to ANOTHERVIEW The Enron scandal has shown what can happen when conflicts of » interest go unchecked in the business ‘ world. But such conflicts pervade the Anonymous Voices We Welcome Letters @ When submitting letters to the l extend my sympathy to the family of Sam Lucero (Op-ed commen- EDITOR James E. Shelledy EDITORIALPAGE EDITOR Randy C.Frisch E, 1438. MAIN ST. SALT LAKECITY, UTAH 84111 ment over the Salt Lake Olympics teok a huge nosedive on Feb. 11, and I'm not even there yet to experience the sights, the sounds and the Olympic spirit. Proud Values Living near Augusta, Ga., the extent of my contact and knowledge of Utah comes generally through the medium ofNational Public Radio. On a recent broadcast concerning the Olympic Games and thearrival of visitors to your state, the question of alcoholavailability arose. It puzzles methat when your people are asked if someone can get a drink, you seem to answer apologetically for the strictness of your laws concerning liquor. understand it, Mitt decided the program would be too long for the kids. But he doesn’t know this disciplined group. Too long? Mitt didn’t hear this choir sing the world concert premiere of the Alfonso Tenreiro Requiem. Whenyoulook up the word “Jong” in the dictionary it shows a picture of the choristers singing this Mass. Maybe Mitt is tone-deaf. He didn’t even listen to other voices in the community urging him to include this choir. Unfortunately, that is the way things often work in the daddy- knows-best culture ofUtah. Maybe,if the Mormon Tabernacle Choir had As an outsider looking in, you should understand that you have a unique culture and approach to family and you should trumpet your differences rather than apologize for them. If people are primarily concerned about getting a drink, there are many stood up for these younger colleagues destinations for visitors such as Las Vegas just south of you. People like pics, Sunday Mass at the Cathedral of the Madeleine begins at 10 a.m. and noon. They deserve to be seen and myself seek for wholesome environ- ments avoid drugs, would to take our families and to problems associated with alcohol, gangs, and such. I suggest that the next time it would have made the difference. These kids were ready for the world. It was bad form to use their voices without acknowledgement. But don’t take my word forit. Come see them on their home turf. During the Olym- heard. ae when I now hear that stirring hymn promote the Olympic ideals of “Citius, Altius, someone asks if somebody can get a Fortius” all 1 can visualize is “older, “I certainly hope not.” fatter, meaner.” I should ask my boy, Phinehas, what those words really drink in Utah, your answershould be, D. JAMES BLAKE Evans, Ga. mean. He could tell me. Not only can those choristers sing, they know Latin. Et tu, Mitt? Q BILL BYNUM Salt Lake City What's an out of town guest to do whenthe Mountain Venue Express is the only game in town whenit comes to reaching Olympic venues outside ofdowntownSalt Lake? Guess] could pay what wehear in Texas and a few attorneys I know would certainly call price gouging on economysize rental cars. Or, perhaps I'll pay the additional cab fares (surely you could at least provide mass transit to the airport) just to catch an even more in- flated bus or car service ride to Park City. Horrendoustraffic I can deal with, but I can't even get on the roads to experience it. T've got eventtickets, but even our best made attempts at lining up transportation in advance, before my friend and | arrive later this week, has failed So much for the joke of a ride sharing message board on the as Website site or for the crazy, high-priced suggestions = polite Visitors Bureau suggests — tions, I might add, that even the staff that work the phones acknowledge are disappointing at best and ridiculous at worst. Thanks Salt Lake Olympic orga- Made America Proud Biased Church Critics Hats off to the Olympicorganizing committee and the people ofSalt Lake City. If the Opening Ceremonyis any indication of what is to come in the next two weeks, the worldis in for a wonderful (and much needed) treat with these Olympic Games. Congrat- ulations,Salt Lake City, forsa well done. You made America Excuse me if I express little aggravation at The Tribune for strategically publishingletters from people who were once nominal “temple attending” or “fifth-generation” Mormons, but who obviouslyknew little about the beliefs of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints LESLIE LONIDIER a Ennis, Texas Promiscuous Utah Applause for Gayle Ruzicka, she must have struck a nerve. Utah should be embarrassed promoting nizers.I'm not even there yet, and I'm coping with an Olympic-size headache. pregnancy will not result nor prevent disease, but it does send a message that promotes promiscuity. JENNIFER WAISATH Austin, Texas MARGARET TOWNSEND Logan B knew before the think tank's articu lations that competitive salaries, smallerclasses and mentor programs could improve schools and thepro- pe parroted 2 suri fH ate! B gers altel ie participants dete debate. Instead, pragmaticchange difficult. The theories of the think tank are supported BSEREE Leavitt's newthinktank offered little innovative thought to the education aFeeg Thefirst program of Gov. Mike |