As Jamie O’Brien has irresponsibly implied that COVID-19 vaccines do not work (Letters, Jan. 20), I’ll get straight to the point by quoting a recent statement from Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: “Unvaccinated people are about six times more likely to test positive than vaccinated people, nine times more likely to be hospitalized, and 14 times more likely to die from COVID-related complications.” Given those statistics, I’d say the vaccines work.

Chris VandenBossche

South Bend

Pay attention

Reviewing Sandy Washburn’s Viewpoint (Jan. 5) on social emotional learning, I was disappointed by the lack of objective data regarding this “new” philosophy.

Initially SEL was introduced to teach self-awareness, self-management of emotions, goal-setting and relationship skills. A closer analysis of SEL and its funding sources supports Attorney General Rokita’s summation that SEL is a vehicle for teaching critical race theory.

The American Rescue Plan distributed a massive $1.9 billion of federal money to Indiana schools as ESSER funds. This plan stipulates that 20% of the funds must be used to provide ‘evidence-based’ interventions that ‘respond to student’s academic, social and emotional needs’. These funds must address the disproportionate impact of COVID on numerous underrepresented populations.

As a related guide, President Biden’s Department of Education has published a handbook “Roadmap to Reopening Safely and Meeting All Student’s Needs” to suggest that schools use SEL to “help all students feel seen and valued.” This handbook includes links to Abolitionist Teaching Network’s “Guide for Racial Justice & Abolitionist Social and Emotional Learning.” The guide teaches that “SEL can be a covert form of policing used to punish, criminalize, and control Black, Brown and Indigenous children to adhere to White norms.”

As a parent and concerned citizen, we should all pay attention to exactly what our children are learning in SEL.

Story continues

Susan Bartush

Granger

Which is worse?

I’m trying to decide which is worse.

Would it be worse if the person we elected to Congress was included in discussions that led to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and attempts to overrule Arizona and Pennsylvania electors for the 2020 presidential election?

Or is it worse if our representative is such a reliable supporter of cockamamie partisan schemes that leaders could just count on his or her vote against legitimate electors, informed or not?

Either way, it would be nice to know.

Ken Bradford

South Bend

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: The unvaccinated are six times more likely to test positive than vaccinated.