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Show ; : ' . Page 4A North Edition Lakeside Review Wednesday, March 14, 1984 V: UN On the Street: Should Prayer Be Allowed in the Schools? The Lakside Review went on the street to find out what people felt about prayer in public schools. A bill has been introduced to the Senate which would make an amendment to the Constitution, allowing prayer. Sen. Orrin Hatch gave his comments during a telephone conversation with the press. 7 IMiT''' flu- towards Judeo-Christia- n Layton waste-to-en-er- n. Other cities in the county have until Thursday to decide whether to accept the county proposal or follow the lead of the countys two largest cities in hoping for a better alternative to landfill garbage dis- Layton, however, is betting that planners for the project are not serious in their warning that cities who decide not to join at the outset will not be allowed to change their minds. Thats a risky bet. Chances are reasonably good that other cities will decide to to along with the proposal. It may be too late to side with the winners after the battle is won. and Layton Bountiful are gambling that the project will never become a reality, or, if it is posal. Present landfill sites will, eventually, be filled to capacity. The fact that this may not occur for a con-- : siderable number of years does not change the inevitable: Diminishing availability of land and rising Commentary Bountiful, because of its size and the fact it owns landfill property, is in a better position than Lay-toBy. the time the BARD landfill is no longer useful, Bountiful may be able to build its own small burn plant. Maybe. prices make a plant a logical alternative. could find themselves in an awkward position down the road. built, that they will be able to change their minds at some future date if other alternate disposal systems dont . work. They may lose that gam- ble. Janet Wilson, Kaysville I dont think prayer should be imposed on those who don 't want it, but those who want it should be able to have it." , Layton, Bountiful Shortsighted Bountiful I Lane Lewis, Eight Grader at Virginia Ashton, Bountiful I agree with it. I think they South Davis Junior High, 7 think it would be nice to should have it. I had it when I was going to school and it didn t have it. It would help you do bethurt me any. ter in school. School Prayer Not Harmful Says Writer Review Editor: An article on your Editorial Page of March 7, 1984, School Not Place for Public Prayer, by Dan Carlsruh prompted me to i , write. My opinion is that a leader cannot please everyone no matter what stand they take, can they? Before the Supreme Court ruling on school prayer in 1962, prayers in the public schools that I attended were not said on a daily basis. But neither were they not allowed on some occasions if it was thought that they were needed. And, it was usually A dangerous complacency is developing among boards and councils who continually violate the Utah Open and Public Meetings Act of 1977. Boards such as the North Davis Refuse District are not sending agendas out to media representatives and are not posting written notice. Under state, law, a public body must give not less than 24 hours of public notice of the agenda, date, time and place of each of its meet- refu- ings. Violations of the ordinance ; j i ; ; ; can result in a board's action be-- ; ing overturned by a court of competent jurisdiction. But an equally unfortunate situation ex- ists in the public not being in- formed of a boards action concerning them because a re-- ; porter was not present to cover the meeting. The press is the public's eyes and ears in covering important meetings. The only way for most people to get local news affecting them is to read a newspaper that covers the news in their area. And thats why the statute of the Open Meetings Law act is so vital. Agendas qre a basic reporters tool of the trade. One cannot do a reporters job without them. In an average week, a reporter might receive up to 10 agendas for meetings in the area. And .all are scrutinized carefully for items that concern the public such as a proposed garbage increase fee hike for all county residents. A reporter can glance at an agenda and size up the importance of the meeting on the items listed. For example, any item concerning the proposed se-plant in Clearfield will draw several reporters to the meeting. And many more will call a board official or the secretary the next day to see if anything important happened. Agendas also give reporters a chance to write preview stories so residents can attend the meeting if theyre interested. A good example is the recent State Parks and Recreation Board meeting with the consideration of a ferry to transport motorists and their vehicles to Antelope Island. Suppose agendas were not sent out and none were posted? With no media attending the meeting, there would be no ferry story in your daily or weekly newspaper and none on the TV news that evening. Boards like NDRD cheat the public by not posting the agenda in a public place such as the . (G a . wr.ongly discriminating, under the circumstances? Some children might need to pray to a heavenly father during school hours and when religious freedom is a Constitutional right here in the United States, it is wrong to deny it to its citizens. Name On File & Ml tiTy Agendas Needed, Its the BARRY KAWA beginning of time? Which is more beneficial though, to be taught that we mortals evoluted from the apes when historical data has not proven that is so, or to be taught that a god who is more supreme may exist? I have read about other religious beliefs and heard other prayers besides my own and was not harmed by them. If our president, congressmen and other leaders allow public prayers, why are our children denied the same privilege? Wouldnt that be classified as done on a volunteer agreement between the child and teacher at the teachers request. Yet, the child could refuse to publicly pray if they didnt want to. Only God and us knows what is in our hearts when we pray inasmuch as some mortals sometimes do misunderstand our hidden meanings or our inadequacies. Atheists can shut out the sounds of a prayer just as quickly as most children ignore the teachers on some occasions. We, the people, can speak to our earthly parents or other fathers quite often. Why, then, are some denied their freedom to speak to a heavenly father if they want to or need to? True, there are many different belief that some might think may cause their confusing molding influences. Hasnt that been the dilemma ever since the . . Jay Stephens, West Point "I think it ought to be. You ought to have it if you feel you want it. I don 't think it ought to be required. It ought to be a personal choice. Lexers to the Editor Editorial and ; -,1; school prayer.. .Prayer in public school is a good thing, not a bad thing. Prayer in public school is not the same as establishing a national religion.. .It will reemphasvalues ize the which made this country the greatest country in the world. Officials in Layton and Bountiful may be suffering from a case of shortsightedness in their decisions to forego participation in a proposed resource recovery plant for Davis County. If county officials refuse to let these two cities nonparticipation spell the demise of the entire project, - VV: Orrin Hatch, U.S. Senator "The form of prayer is not really as important as the issue of getting rid of governments ho- stility --- Layton City Hall where they meet or at the Layton Post Office. Citizens often glance at an agenda to see if an item concerns them. And many will attend the meeting and offer helpful insights to a board or council that otherwise would go unmentioned. There are other violators of the 'ordinance besides the NDRD board. For example, the North Davis Sewer District posts an agenda in their offices at the sewer plant in .Syracuse but nowhere else. Agendas are not sent to the press and who goes out to a sewer plant other than the t HOT M: O . workers? Also, several of the smaller cities in the area do not send an agenda of their city council meetings to any representative of the press. The law says they must send an agenda to at least one although most county boards and city councils send notice to all reporters who cover the county. .The agenda ordinance of the Utah statutes is easily followed if board secretaries make the effort. And they should be making it otherwise a court could overturn all of a board or council's decisions. After all, it requires it in the law. nuDDODnEte? 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