Letter: They should be students of democracy, too

Monday, Oct. 19, 1998 | 10 a.m.

Many politicians, despite their rhetoric and claims of service to America, do not have the respect of the Constitution necessary to maintain and protect our freedoms. Political expediency takes precedence over patriotic ideology when politicians' careers are considered more important than our rights or service to America.

Our public-school system has contributed to the general apathy of our citizens by de-emphasizing civics. Does your public-school student know that the 211th anniversary of the Constitution was last week?

When was the last time students studied the Constitution? Is our public-school system promoting the concepts of a representative democracy and peoples' responsibilities as citizens to select politicians, by voting, who will protect our freedoms?

If the school doesn't provide it, visit Sen. Harry Reid, Sen. Richard Bryan, Rep. John Ensign and Rep. Jim Gibbons' offices to get a copy.

Only 25 percent of eligible voters decide our elections. Maybe these students will be better citizens when they are eligible to vote!

Frank Perna

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