Conscious Choice: Less Education, More Military Recruits

July 2006 | Choice Feedback

Less Education, More Military Recruits

I am a Chicago public high school teacher and I see recruiters in our school all the time, pulling kids out of their classes and pressuring them. My daughter, a freshman, was also pressured by recruiters who promised her anything she wanted to hear. She rides horses and they said, “Oh yes, we need people to take care of our horses.” Ha ha, very funny. But when you are an easily influenced teen, this is dangerous!

I don’t say much at school about the recruiters because I know we have to let them into the school because most of our kids receive free lunches. Thank you for your article (May Editor’s Notes, entitled “Less Education Funds Equals More Military Recruits.”) It makes so much sense.

— Name Withheld Upon Request

Save Your Right to Know What’s Toxic Next Door

Thank you for your help protecting the Toxic Release Inventory program (January 2006 Editor’s Notes, “Save Your Right to Know What’s Toxic Next Door.”)

Here’s an update. On May 18, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from rolling back reporting requirements for our nation’s worst polluters. By passing the Pallone-Solis Toxic Right-To-Know Amendment to the Interior Appropriations Bill, the House took an important step to preserve EPA’s Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) program by prohibiting the agency from spending any money to finalize its plans to cut toxic chemical reporting requirements.

In September 2005, the EPA proposed changes to the TRI (ombwatch.org/article/articleview/3117/1/241?TopicID=1) that would let thousands of large industrial facilities stop reporting their pollution emissions. The proposals would cut off public access to vital health and safety data that are used by emergency planners, community groups, researchers, and medical professionals.

Now the fight to save the TRI will move to the Senate.

We are working to make sure a similar right-to-know amendment is attached to the Senate Interior Appropriations bill, to preserve the Toxic Release Inventory program. Visit ombwatch.org.

— Clayton Northouse, Information Policy Analyst, OMB Watch

Recommend this page to a friend

Top Ten pages recommended to friends: