Reader Feedback: Patriotism, Church, College, Swine Flu and More

(April 22) -- Editor's note: Below is a sampling of reader feedback we received to op-eds published on AOL News over the past week. The comments have been edited for length and clarity.

A Modest Proposal for Anti-Government Crowd -- By Alan Colmes

Alan seems to be under the false impression that tea party members in general are, as he refers to them, "anti-government" and should secede from participating in anything that requires federal funding. I can assure Mr. Colmes that tea party members are NOT anti-government. We believe an effective government should be limited in power, and reminded that it answers to US!

Interesting comment about anti-government people by Colmes. I have noted many of the same questions. There are more, such as: How did the protesters get to their rally? On "socialist" roads? How well would the U.S. have done in WWII depending on strong states and a weak federal government? The West Coast would be speaking Japanese, and the East Coast German. Maybe those who protest would like to give up their toilets that go to sewage treatment plants and instead use the bushes or the rivers. Oops -- "socialist" project again!
Alan Colmes' "Modest Proposal for Anti-Government Crowd" fills me with incredible hope for the future. The banal emptiness of it shows that the intellectual standing of the defenders of today's government have little to stand on.

He must be joking if he believes that people are protesting roads, fire protection and the police. These more necessary parts of government are but a tiny bit of the picture.

So, Mr. Colmes, as you sneer at us about our protests, might I offer a modest proposal to you? If all government were doing was taking care of schools, roads, fire, police and military protection, I'll fold up my handmade sign and go home content.

Paying taxes is not "patriotic," as you claim it to be. Paying taxes is a civic duty, and not one that Republicans are opposed to. It is the graduated tax rate, the fact that the top 5 percent of wage earners pay 50 percent of the total tax revenue while the bottom 50 percent of wage earners pay less than 5 percent, with too many people paying nothing at all, and the fact that anyone making over $200,000 is seen as a "corporate fat cat" instead of a hardworking individual living the American dream.

In case you are still unclear on the meaning of patriotism, here are a few sayings our president could use to hear. "A government big enough to supply you with everything you want is big enough to take everything you have." -- Thomas Jefferson; "It is the duty of the patriot to protect his country from its government." -- Thomas Paine
Catholic Church Debate:
4 Things the Pope Needs to Do -- By Frank K. Flinn

Your article is based on outdated material and half-truths, which is not unlike the other anti-clerical and anti-church, editorialized news that has emerged in the last decade in the United States. However, I have lived in Eastern Europe, am presently working for the church in Africa and in the future will travel to the Philippines where I have several dear Catholic friends. You have no idea how Catholic priests, bishops, and especially our dear Holy Father Benedict are loved and revered by the vast majority of Catholics in the world. As indispensable as we American Catholics like to think we are, we are just one small part of the Body of Christ. The Holy Roman Catholic Church has survived scandal and attack for 2,000 years, often far worse than today's ... because, my brother Frank, it is Jesus Christ Himself who builds His Church and not even the gates of hell shall prevail against Her (Matthew 16:18).
Finally, an educated and compassionate solution to help the Catholic Church address its history of the sexual molestation of children. Mr Flinn's action plan to get the church back on track is right on all counts; however, one item is not mentioned and it is possibly the most important: What specific procedures are in place to prevent a child from being molested by a priest in the future?

If they can't take this issue seriously and address it aggressively with Mr. Flinn's action plan and more specific procedures on the interaction of priests with children and teenagers, the Catholic faith and its institutions will have no future. Catholic Church Debate:
For Catholic Church Critics, Nothing Will Ever Be Enough -- By Bill Donohue

There is one obvious solution to the problem the Vatican is facing regarding the public perception of its concern about child abuse at the hands of priests. What would prevent the pope from simply instructing Catholic children and their parents to report cases of priestly abuse directly to legal authorities? To show good faith, the Vatican should take that approach. This is the only way to demonstrate that the church is willing to be treated like an organization of people who are bound by the same laws as the rest of us.
A Weighty Question About Politics -- By Michael Medved

Regarding Michael Medved's article on why we used to have overweight presidents. The reason ... it was fashionable in the late 1800s and early 1900s to be overweight as it represented being fit and healthy. It was during the time when people were dying of consumption and would lose significant weight, not as a symbol of being fit, but as a result of being sick. Woman were considered beautiful when they were robust and Rubenesque for the same reason. Once a cure or better living conditions eliminated the cause of consumption, being thin became in vogue.

Wingnuts Are Hijacking Politics -- John Avlon

"Wingnuts Are Hijacking Politics" by John Avlon was a refreshing piece of truth. I'm so tired of reading e-mails and headlines that are full of the most ridiculous accusations. The Rushes, Becks, and the rest make me sick. The issues are
too important to all Americans and we need to take them seriously. Bill Clinton was right: It is time to stop the demonization for obvious reasons.

Thanks for writing the article.

Did WHO Knowingly Hype Swine Flu? -- By Michael Fumento

Sadly, most physicians could have told you (and, I should point out, many did point out to the mainstream media) that the hysteria over swine flu was merely that. The entire frenzy was simply Y2K in the form of a biologic, rather than computer, virus. And as irrelevant.

I live in northern Georgia. A friend's uncle who lives an hour away died of swine flu last week. He was only 52 years old and in reasonably good health. He was in the hospital on life support for three days before his death. I was shocked to hear that he died from swine flu, as it is rarely mentioned in the news anymore. The hospital said the number of incidents are on the rise again.

Bullied to Death -- A National Fix Needed -- By Michael Arceneaux

It saddens and sickens me to read and hear what seems like a new story every day of some poor child killing themselves because they were so brutally attacked mentally. The only thing I can think of is if it were my child in an awful situation like this, I would have to let them stay home and be home-schooled or find a charter school.

Career Colleges Debate:
Why Is Obama Administration Targeting Career Colleges? -- By Larry Edward Penley

For the first time I have to agree with Mr. Obama.

Congress has given these online schools a "license to steal." My understanding that the ability to have students eligible for these federal loans and grants were granted by Congress on a temporary basis. It is now time to stop these thieves masquerading as higher levels of education.
Career Colleges Debate:
We Only Want to Make Sure Schools Deliver Results -- by Education Secretary Arne Duncan

Does the Obama administration, and thereby Obama himself, feel that career colleges are not "real" colleges? I seriously take offense to this line of thinking.

I am a 41-year-old married mother of three with a wonderful husband. However, back in 1996 this was not the case. I was then a 27-year-old single mother of one. I needed to drop out of college to support the child I chose to have. Without a degree, though, I could see our future was bleak, at best.

I knew what I wanted to do. There were only two colleges in town that provided the medical program I was interested in. One was a career college, the other a junior college. The junior college had a significant wait list and limited class times and days, and a longer program duration. The career college was accelerated, no wait time, class days and times not limited. I got in, got my education, graduated and got a job in 18 months vs. four years.

Had I not attended a career college, life would be very different today. Less rewarding, less fulfilling, less money, less stability. A career college provided me with the opportunity to obtain a degree and thereby work.