Dear Source:
I am not surprised at the unpleasant treatment that Ms. Spampinato received at the hands of the Senate hearing. This community has long (and sometimes justifiably) rejected the potential influence of 'OUTSIDERS' while welcoming other questionable persons.
Case in point, the hiring of the ex- Mayor of Washington DC, Marion Barry, as an 'adviser'. The ex-mayor was a person trapped with a drug sting a few years ago. He was to advise the Government in managerial processes. (See the article from Wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marion_Barry.) Mayor Barry was paid a handsome stipend for services that provided little, if any, benefit to our people. Ms. Spampinato was attacked with ALLUSIONS of wrong-doing and possible incompetance. Might it be that the incompetence of the educational system here in the islands might be embarrassingly revealed by her 'taking the reins' of our school system and that is what the furor is all about?
Given the mediocre educational benefits that children now receive might not a new direction be beneficial? I suspect that we could do much worse.
Merv Baer
St. Croix
Editor's note: We welcome and encourage readers to keep the dialogue going by responding to Source commentary. Letters should be e-mailed with name and place of residence to source@viaccess.net.
