Coronavirus may resurface in fall. Reopen NC schools in mid-July to get a jump-start.

Reopen NC public schools in July

Regarding “Committee backs earlier start for NC public schools” (April 25):

Instead of starting school one week earlier for the new school year, they should be opened mid-July. Most likely COVID-19 will show up again in the fall and possibly next spring. If school started in mid-July classroom studies could be suspended for up to five weeks without impacting the school year.

Mark Mazzoni, Mount Holly

Haley’s right about bailing out states

“Nikki Haley’s short memory on COVID-19,” (April 27 Editorial) misses the mark. States like Illinois, California and Kentucky were in financial difficulty long before COVID-19, due to their fiscal irresponsibility with respect to state government pensions and state government retiree health care. Simply put, bailing the states out in such circumstance only leads to moral hazard - lack of any incentive to get their fiscal house in order as a result of being protected from the consequences of their financial irresponsibility.

Fred Becker, Mooresville

Save your energy, abortion protesters

Regarding David Benham’s “Arrests at Charlotte abortion clinic violated our rights,” (April 27 Opinion):

I think that folks have the right to protest, but during the pandemic the best thing is to stay home and social distance as the governor asks.

Some folks, such social workers, are exempt. The pro-life folks say they are performing “social service work” and counseling women who come to the clinic. I’ve never heard of a social service worker who screams, hollers’ and uses a bullhorn to counsel anyone from across the street.

Save your energy for a later time when you are not potentially spreading the virus.

Bill Lane, Polkville

Using language to distort the facts

David Benham says that “under the current shutdown rules in Charlotte, you can—with virtually no restrictions on crowd size—enjoy a family picnic in the park…swing by the liquor store…play golf or go jogging…join the weekend shoppers at Home Depot…or kill the baby in a woman’s womb.”

Let’s be clear, embryos and fetuses are aborted, babies are not.

Regardless of one’s position, language matters to avoid confusion, manipulation, and distortion of facts.

Stephen J. Gibbons, Davidson

This Boomer says go back to work

I am one of 73 million Baby Boomers in the U.S. We are reminded daily that with our underlying health conditions we are at high risk with COVID-19, but we seem to have little say in our future. If Wall Street fails and our retirement funds are decimated, then poverty offers a longer and more painful demise than COVID-19. And we become a larger burden on society as we are unable to afford to pay our health bills, taxes, and daily sustenance.

Boomers represent 22% of the population. Hear me now, I would prefer for the 42% of the population made up of Millennials and Gen-Xers to return to work and save our economy. I will wear my mask and avoid contact with those working to save my retirement income.

Mike Crews, Charlotte

President Trump isn’t up to this task

When you consistently have to make excuses for someone or claim “That’s not what they meant,” you have a problem. President Trump is not up to the task of dealing with this crisis. He says he has total control one minute, then puts all the responsibility for dealing with the pandemic on the states. He puts forth a plan to reopen the economy, then undermines it by “liberating” certain states for purely political purposes.

When we all should be of one mind dealing with this crisis, his leadership always falls along political lines. Trump’s supporters think their freedom tops the need for public safety. It’s one thing to gamble with your health or your family’s, but you also risk the health of the real American heroes, the first responders and health professionals on the front lines.

Timothy Weeks, Fort Mill

Stop scaring people, risk of death is low

The population of Mecklenburg County is about 1.1 million. So far, the death toll attributed to the coronavirus is 41, according to the Johns Hopkins Center for Systems Science and Engineering.

For all of North Carolina the corresponding figures are 324 deaths out of 10.5 million people. Most of the deaths are elderly or have other health issues.

Some in the media and some scientists are needlessly scaring people and the politicians are destroying our economy with restrictions that might be appropriate if the statistics were 100 times worse than they are.

Tell those at risk to take precautions, but give the rest of us our lives back before it is too late.

Richard Cornwell, Davidson

This story was originally published April 27, 2020 at 3:41 PM.