Flirting With Disaster
To the Editor:
You are right on target in your editorial "Cloning: The Pandora's Box," [March 13th issue]. The fact of the matter is that ethical issues are being neglected as biotechnology and our skills progress. The question of morality -- what is right and what is wrong -- is the central issue of our time.
Ethical issues have been neglected, often with tragic results in human life and welfare. Biotechnology, our fantastic techniques, skills and practiced know-how have been developing rapidly, while our ends and values are often confused and vague. To multiply means while we neglect the ends of living is to flirt with disaster.
Our appalling lack of moral insight may be one explanation of the disorders, the never-ending crises, and the deep-seated anxiety so prevalent in our troubled age.
Arthur Prince
Memphis
Shame on John Griffin! This letter is in regard to the mistakes found in Hot Properties [March 13th issue]. Having lived on Belleair Drive (which is the correct spelling, not Bellair Drive) [Editor's note: The mispelling was an editing error, not John Griffin's.] for 11 of my 15 years, I know a little about my small street of 26 houses. In the article, Belleair Drive was not only misspelled, but also had its geography and history incorrectly presented.
It was written that the older, original homes were only on the outside of the circle while the inside had been part of a park. As a matter of fact, the Williams, Kish, and Aaron homes were built during the 1920s and are located on the inside of the street. How could Mr. Griffin be so unaware to not realize that the big pink house on the inside of the circle was built by Phillip Belz, the developer of the entire street? This was the first house constructed on Belleair, and it is on the inside!! I suppose if he can misspell Belleair when the street sign is obvious, anything is possible. Please ask Mr. Griffin to not rely on a cockamamie realtor for his facts for future articles.
Aaron N. Aaron
Memphis
What great irony in the article "Stadium Forces Salvation Army Office to Move" [March 13th issue]. Ya'll missed the real story. I mean, really baseball stadium, smaseball stadium? Memphis history is replete with a culture to tear down to build up. In fact, now we're planning to dig up all the riverfront cobblestones that have been there for over 100 years so that they can be put back down correctly please!
Your article should have read "Salvation Army Forces Group of Free Spirits Camped at President's Island to Move." It seems it was a high-ranking officer of the Salvation Army who by last week had complained enough to warrant these volunteers getting a shutdown order, stopping the free distribution of hot food which had been taking place for six months. They were also evicted from their island campground. This is the same island that housed the Indians before they were forced across the Mississippi River. This group of men has now switched to giving out other "safe" foods to the needy of Memphis, until they make their premature exit from the Memphis bluffs to another city needing their beautiful contribution. Thanks, ya'll.
I guess they were out-Christianing the Salvation Army who's being pushed out by the Memphis elites in the name of progress. God Bless America.
Jon Fox
Memphis
In the Editor's Note [March 13th issue], you state that the 1972-73 Tiger team was the first to place the program on the national map. Evidently, you don't remember the 1957 team. They placed us on the national map. Playing in Madison Square Garden in the championship game was the proudest moment in Tiger sports history. In 1957, the NIT tournament was equal to today's NCAA tournament.
Harold Brooks
Memphis
Larry Finch has been blamed for a lot of things this year and until recently I had not heard other views of the story. I was surprised to find the Flyer come out so strongly and explain what else is going on. The last couple of weeks you have done an excellent job of that, and I am highly impressed. Thanks for giving us both sides of the story.
Elizabeth Brooks
Memphis
A few comments are in order regarding William Bradley's "To Save Liberalism" ["Viewpoint," February 20th issue]. In his analysis of the reasons for the decline of liberalism, the author misses the most significant ones. The loss of support for liberals in America is related to their adoption of radical positions on social issues that are contrary to the values of ordinary Americans: late-term abortions, same-sex marriages, feminism, cultural diversity, bilingualism, multiculturalism, group-ethnic consciousness instead of individualism, and an anti-Western orientation in many textbooks. In taking these radical positions, the liberal elite have driven away many blue-collar workers who were the mainstay of the Democratic Party during the days of Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman.
Liberalism began to lose ground during the late '60s when it took on a cultural rather than economic dimension. When the final history of the 20th century is written, it will be said that the left committed political suicide by selling its soul to the leadership of certain special-interest groups.
Arnold Lee Weiner
Memphis