Although I didn't serve in the Peace Corps, I was very disturbedthat the series on the dangers of the Peace Corps seemed to highlightthe negative side of this wonderful program. Making peace in thishostile, violent world has its risks, and I'm sure these volunteersaccepted that fact when signing on.
We never hesitate to pump more and more money into weapons thatdestroy. I wonder what would happen if we put the billions of dollarswe spend on killing other people, and destroying their countries,into training programs for volunteers who choose to work towardpeaceful methods of resolving conflicts?
All programs that put people at risk should be researched as tohow they can be improved and made safer, but, at the same time, it'stime to publish the good things that organizations such as theChristian Peacemaking Teams, the American Friends Service Committee,the Brethren Volunteer Service and the Peace Corps are doing in ourworld. People in these groups choose to lay their lives on the linefor something they firmly believe in, so this world can be a betterplace.
Our country and the world are not safer because of the 'war onterror.' The peace that comes from defeating our enemies is a falsepeace that will eventually fail.
True peace comes when we seek to build relationships with others,like the brave volunteers of the Peace Corps are doing.
Joy Beery Pleasant Hill
Number of volunteers problematic
I am a recently returned Peace Corps community health volunteer inLesotho. I worked on a number of HIV/AIDS program initiatives in thecountry.
In Lesotho, we had close to 100 volunteers in a country the sizeof Maryland. I believe this has led to greater threats to individualvolunteers, while at the same time having a negative impact on site/job criteria.
Initially, I held the stereotypical view that I would be in themiddle of nowhere, with no other volunteers nearby. But in Lesotho,except for a small minority of volunteers, we were clumped togethernear camp towns, sometimes in groups of as many as 12 or 13volunteers. Instead of this offering security, it created a largegroup of potential targets. It also proved more difficult to becomepart of the local communities, as volunteers traveled and socializedin these groups.
In addition, because of the large number of volunteers, the PeaceCorps staff has a difficult time acquiring appropriate sites andtangible jobs for the incoming volunteers. For many new volunteers,their jobs and sites are ill-defined and there is constant turnover,every two years or less.
Since volunteers are placed close to town centers, the securitysituation is actually worse than if they were placed in more ruralenvironments.
Yet, in my two-year service, I had only one security issue andtruly loved my time in Lesotho.
I hope you would in the future balance the negatives within thePeace Corps with many of its benefits, both for country nationals andvolunteers.
Brett Utian Beachwood
Stories not placed in context
I served in the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic from 1997through 1999. I found the Dayton Daily News series 'Casualties ofPeace' interesting and I feel it raised some important issues.
But I believe that the one-sided nature of the reporting raisedfears much more than needed and was unfair to the Peace Corps.Service in the Peace Corps is tough and is perhaps more dangerousthan living in the United States, but most volunteers understand thiswhen they apply.
The thing that disappointed me the most in the articles was thelack of any real attempt to place the sad and terrible stories ofrape and murder in context. There are terrible stories of rape andmurder everywhere.
Connecting the stories reported in this series to the Peace Corpswithout proper context is sensational journalism and is unfair.
David Wortman Mattoon, Ill.
Children shouldn't be taught to kill
Seeing photographs of Miami Valley children aiming rifles andreading a positive story about it are not what I expected when Iopened the Dayton Daily News sports section on Oct. 29.
The DDN article, 'Taking their shot: Program introduces youths topheasant hunting,' was a disturbing tribute to a program thatencourages young children to aim and kill. Showing kids killinganything is not acceptable in this day and age.
We hear about young children who are soldiers in Uganda, and we'resickened. We learn that one of those on trial in the Washington, D.C.-area sniper killings was only 17, and we're shocked. And then, the DDN shows pictures of a 13- and a 14-year-old with rifles cocked, andit's glorified.
Using words like 'hunting' and 'sport' are misleading. Hunting iskilling, pure and simple. And, it's not a sport, as defined byWebster's. It's an outdated, unnecessary practice that celebratespain, suffering and death. Congra- tulating children for accom-plishing it sends the wrong message.
According to the Children's Defense Fund, juveniles account for anappallingly high, and rapidly growing, share of homicide offenders,as well as victims. Homicide is now the third-leading cause of deathfor children ages 5 to 14.
Teaching children respect for all living things is the realchallenge, not supplying them with their prey. As the leadingpublisher in this area, the DDN has an opportunity to promote peaceand understanding for the greater good of all, not a few.
