The sex-ed light
In response to "Texas' youth left in the dark" (The Firing Line, April 24): Not only does Texas have the highest rate of teen pregnancy, but it is likely to stay that way. The State Board of Education, the elected body that sets education standards, is expected to continue allowing Texas schools to use abstinence-only instead of comprehensive sexual education. In fact, Don McLeroy, the Rick Perry-appointed chairman of the board, believes there should be two tracks of sexual education: one that is comprehensive and one that caters to "moral" parents who wish not to have their values "undermined" at school and teaches that contraceptives can only be used after marriage to prevent pregnancy and STDs. This creates a group of kids who will become disadvantaged because they won't have the information they need. John McCain also supports abstinence-based sex-education. The Texas Freedom Network UT Student Chapter firmly believes that children need to know all the facts about sex, contraceptives and STDs in order to make smart, healthy decisions. We're hosting a free screening of "The Education of Shelby Knox," a movie about a UT grad who was raised as a conservative in Lubbock but, when she discovered that the high pregnancy and STD rates in her school were being caused by abstinence-only education, she began a brave battle to get comprehensive sex-ed taught in her school. Knox will be at the screening with free pizza and will answer any questions on this most pressing of issues. Help us fight the religious right on April 29 in the Union Theater from 4-6 p.m.
Garrett Mize UT Texas Freedom Network Student Chapter president Government sophomore
Questionable text messages
I am extremely surprised and disappointed that The Daily Texan ran a picture of the projections that were shown last night on the north side of the Communications Building ("The Writing's on the Wall," April 25). Maybe the photographer did not stay long enough to see all of the "text messages" that were projected, but maybe she should have stayed to get more of the substance and story - which would make the Texan question whether or not to run the picture. Among many offensive phrases and words, there were several racial slurs projected in giant bubble letters. I cannot believe that this "artist" did not have or did not use a filter for the text messages that people were sending, and I really cannot believe that the Texan photographer did not see it or write about it.
Joanna Thaler English and journalism junior
Checking the facts
I note with interest your OpEd piece labeled, "Viewpoint: Oh, Dannenbaum," (April 22). While the first paragraph would seem to indicate that I have performed some useful service on this earth, the balance of the article is entirely false. When I was a student member of the Texas Student Publications Board of Directors, we had as our policy and guidelines that writers and reporters should check their facts and do a reasonable amount of due diligence such as the minor courtesy of a telephone inquiry to ask if statements about to be published were accurate or were utterly false.
With some distress, I notice that the second paragraph regarding our assignment for Brownsville is completely incorrect. Our firm was engaged as a design engineering firm to design a bridge for the Brownsville Navigation District and was never, ever, under any of the subsequent expansions of our contract, given the responsibility to build a bridge.
The third paragraph is equally inaccurate. The bridge's delay was because the Brownsville Navigation District, under the leadership of a former officer, did not pursue the necessary steps to secure a concession from the Mexican government. The Brownsville Herald consistently published incorrect articles over a four-year period. Unfortunately, during this period of attack, our lawyers, the best in the state, advised that we could not and should not try the controversy in the press. The granting of a concession to any Mexican company is and will remain contingent upon a satisfactory agreement with the Port of Brownsville for revenue sharing that will make the sponsorship of the project financially feasible for both parties, and this has been explained in detail on numerous occasions to the Port.
The next paragraph is again 100 percent false. The Mexican company, Grupo Respira, has absolutely no ties to me and my firm other than cooperating in the efforts that the Brownsville Navigation District requested both of us to undertake. To the best of my knowledge, Grupo Respira stands ready to proceed when and if the Port wants them to continue their assistance. The consulting fees that were paid by the Port through our firm as their conduit were all authorized by both the Port Director and the Board of Directors in recognition of the performance of the specific tasks that they had been asked to perform on behalf of the Port to satisfy the requirements of the Mexican government for both design engineering and processing of the many interagency approvals required to obtain approval in Mexico for the Mexican side of the project. Louis Jones of our firm has no financial interest of any type in any of the Mexican companies that were engaged by the Port to help them. I have no information as to the holdings, if any, of Grupo Respira. I have no reason to believe that the Herald's articles on the activities of these companies or their plans are any more reliable than any of the other disinformation that they published regarding this controversy.
In the process of the settlement of the litigation between our firm and the Port of Brownsville, which was dismissed with prejudice by the Courts of Cameron County and Harris County, we did agree to complete the engineering for the project in furtherance of our commitment to the citizens of Cameron County and to try to help them accomplish this major generator of economic activity for the jobs so desperately needed in Brownsville.
A simple inquiry would have let you know that the fantasy lawsuit cited in your last paragraph was dismissed with prejudice and had no basis in law or in fact.
I seek no recognition for my accomplishments, if any, but I might have thought in view of the fact that as an alumnus I have served as a member of the Civil Engineering Visiting Committee, member and chairman of the Natural Sciences Foundation, member of the Centennial Commission, and member of the Commission of 125 at UT-Austin in addition to the other UT-affiliated relationships outlined in the first paragraph of your article, I would have thought the simple courtesy of a phone call to inquire as to the accuracy of the outrageous distortions and untruthful statements in your article might have been in order. I hope that my unfortunate experience at your hands may serve as a guidepost and learning experience for present and future generations of student reporters to check their facts before publishing things that are incorrect.
James D. Dannenbaum UT regent
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