Letters to the Editor

A true leader

I want to compliment The Post and Courier for the excellent article titled 'DUI's worst enemy' written by David MacDougall. I also want to compliment Police Chief Greg Mullen for taking his leadership position seriously and promoting DUI enforcement.

I especially want to thank Officer Matthew Wojslawowicz. He's obviously a bright young person who could be successful in any career. He chose law enforcement, and then chose Charleston as a home base. Instead of staying in the normal groove, he's taken an unbeaten path toward making our roads safer by proactively enforcing DUI laws and by leading police programs for identifying DUI offenders.

My own son at a very early age chose law enforcement, which he has pursued with passion through his adult life since graduating from Erskine College with a history degree. My Michael (Jr) is now in the NCIS serving a tour-of-duty in Iraq.

We are extremely fortunate to have young people like Officer Wojslawowicz enforcing our laws and stepping beyond the regular call-of-duty.

I'm glad he chose Charleston as a place to work and live.

MICHAEL A. LAKE
Serotina Point
Mount Pleasant

No quotas

I read the Nov 10 article 'Group probes Boeing.' Are we going to start giving Boeing reasons to have second thoughts about coming to Charleston or, worse, putting the brakes on any plans for future expansion? The ink hasn't dried yet on the signed agreements, and the Black Caucus is gearing up to act like a union and demand Boeing do as they say, or else.

The Black Caucus seemingly would set the hiring practices for Boeing by stating that in the general area blacks make up 55 percent of the population. The article also talks about hiring minority contractors. They don't seem to be concerned with the most qualified person or the lowest qualified bidder, only one race of people.

Whatever happened to hiring the most qualified? If I knew I was hired for a job just because of my race or gender, not only would I be embarrassed but I would also be angry. Angry because someone thought I was not capable of getting a job based on my qualifications.

I support Robert Ford in making sure that everyone gets a fair chance to compete for jobs and contracts. But I don't support hiring lesser qualified employees or awarding contracts at a higher price just to meet a quota.

BOBBY COMPTON
Redeemer Drive
Hanahan

Flu vaccine

Regarding the Nov. 9 letter to the editor accusing the government of 'ageism' related to the administration of the H1N1 flu vaccine, I would refer the letter writer and any other interested parties to the flu.gov Web site, particularly the page http://www.flu.gov/individualfamily/seniors/index.html.

There it explains that the reasons age 65-and-older population is not targeted as high risk for the H1N1 strain of the flu is because older adults as a population have been shown to have greater immunity to the H1N1 strain than younger adults.

Those older adults with chronic health conditions, especially arthritis (like the letter writer), are still urged to get the H1N1 vaccine when it becomes available.

It is important to note, however, that unless another indicator puts that person in a high-risk category, she is still at less risk for developing complications from H1N1 than those in the high risk/target groups. I would ask anyone with questions to discuss the H1N1 flu shot with their health care provider or read the information available at flu.gov.

SHARON YOUNG
Ashley River Road
Charleston

Lessons learned

Recently you ran a well-reasoned editorial hoping that people would not rush to judgment over the mass murders at Fort Hood. Much has been learned since then, and even more revoltingly, it appears that much of what has come to light was already known.

A commentary by Clifford D. May (Nov. 13) exposes in part the mainstream media's absolute refusal to cover this story in a realistic light. Those of us who have been patient and harbor no religious hatred are entitled to an honest anaylsis and an equally open editorial response.

LARRY WIESSMANN
Seabrook Island Road
Johns Island

Be responsible

Extending the school day by hours, weeks or months; wearing uniforms or not; patterning ourselves after Asian schools — none is going to work until our students accept responsibility for their own education.

ELAINE MARTIN
Battalion Drive
Charleston