MAILBAG - March 7, 2006

Lacrosse approval more of rich getting richer

The addition of lacrosse is great for those two schools but it is unfortunate that it is not offered at the Costa Mesa and Estancia High Schools (“High school lacrosse given CIF status,” Wednesday).

At those schools you don’t even have money for the CIF sports they already have. Water polo and basketball have hardly any money to go to tournaments. It is unfortunate that the school district isn’t behind those schools and that they’re only behind Newport Harbor and Corona del Mar high schools when those schools can afford to pay for those sports. That is a very affluent area. The parents should be funding the sport. Some Costa Mesa kids need food stamps. The district wants to favor the affluent areas, and not the areas that need it.

DEBBIE SERRANO

Costa Mesa

Time to bring back neighborhood schools

Re: Tom Egan’s “Politically Correct” in Thursday’s Daily Pilot.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is right on target. We have to bring back neighborhood schools.

I read recently that they are cutting back on buses, and children have to walk for miles to school.

We have to stop pushing college on all students. We are paying state colleges $10,000 for each student they help with entrance exams. Many drop out the first year.

That $10,000 should be given to students that complete training at hospitals and military bases to earn a diploma in nursing or other trades while they are still in high school.

I question why we allow wealthy families to take out student loans in their children’s name. President Bush is threatening to seize their Social Security if the loan isn’t paid off.

Recently I read about a student that has outstanding loans for $190,000.

Do some research on what we pay volunteers in the Peace Corps and Americorp. That money should be spent in the United States, not some remote area overseas, and left alone.

MARY J. MCLAUGHLIN

Newport Beach

Smith column right on, except for one point

Great article by Steve Smith on Feb. 25 (“On the town”). He did a good job. It brings the issue of online safety close enough to home to make people recognize that these things are close to us. The only thing I would say is about the very beginning when he says you can’t draw conclusions about the girl because she is a straight-”A” student and her parents are not divorced. I am terribly offended by that entire paragraph.

I am terribly involved in my kids’ lives and I don’t think that you can assume because someone is divorced that these things can happen. It gives me a new perspective on Smith’s writing.

KATHY CLARK

Newport Beach

Good relationship with kids is key

I really don’t monitor my teens on the Internet. I have talked to them about it and they do have Myspace.com accounts, and so do I so I can check their accounts and see who is on their friends list.

My daughter graduated from Estancia and my youngest is a senior at Estancia. The people they chat with are friends from school and their cousins. They don’t put too much information on their profiles.

One thing that made them realize not to put information on their profile is my daughter’s friend had her place of work posted and she chatted with a person on Myspace and he showed up to her work place and her picture was there so he knew what she looked like. Well that scared her; she called her parents to come meet her after work so she wasn’t alone when leaving and she told the young man never to bother her again or she would call the police. Thank God all turned out fine.

Well she told all her friends about it and they all learned a lesson from it. But you have to trust in your kids and having a good relationship with them helps. I am a single mom with two teens and a 21-year-old. They know they can come to me about anything without fear of being judged.

I am their friend as well as their mom. I am proud of all of them.

SANDRA WINCHESTER

Santa Ana

Councilwoman wants to set record straight

I was surprised to read Mayor Mansoor’s misleading statements of my position on moving utilities underground (“Politically Correct,” Feb. 23). I support moving utilities underground. I don’t support new utility taxes on residents to pay for it.

KATRINA FOLEY

Costa Mesa