Monday, April 8, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
MIKE O'CALLAGHAN, a former two-term governor of Nevada, is executive editor of the Las Vegas SUN.
IF COLUMNISTS and editorial writers can identify a problem and harp on it long enough, the public eventually demands some action.
A year ago, Lynne Cheney wrote an article in the Wall Street Journal which was reprinted in Reader's Digest. It was an eye-opener for all of us who are interested in the education of our youth. Therefore, I used some of Cheney's "Hijacking America's History" in this column last April.
Her opening paragraphs were:
"Imagine a version of American history in which George Washington makes only a fleeting appearance and is never described as our first president. Or in which the foundings of the Sierra Club and the National Organization for Women are considered noteworthy events, but the first gathering of the U.S. Congress is not. ..."
After that it was all downhill and included the number of times certain historical subjects are cited in the text of "National Standards for U.S. History."
Paul Revere, Thomas Edison, the Wright brothers and Robert E. Lee failed to even be mentioned. Sen. Joe McCarthy and the Ku Klux Klan are mentioned 19 and 17 times, respectively.
The response from readers was exciting and I again wrote about this problem in November. Last week, Cheney's attack and the resulting national publicity paid dividends. A new set of standards for teaching American and world history was released. The new guidelines make more sense to a former history teacher like me. Old values and important people aren't cast aside and there is far less biased language used in describing happenings in the history of our country.
Lynne Cheney has helped make a difference and shown all of us the need to speak up when we see things going awry. Thanks, Lynne.
To be fair, members of the Las Vegas City Council should take a deep breath and then modify their proposed redistricting plan. Certainly Councilmen Gary Reese and Michael McDonald know by now that their plan isn't based on fairness. Bringing in a hired gun like Frederick Kessler to give their plan his paid-for blessing isn't good or fair government. Creating one large district of poor people is disgusting when it's so simple to do what is right and just. The Rev. James Rogers, Beatrice Turner and the Rev. Chester Richardson have given them some reasonable alternatives which aren't based on race, but rather on economics. Our elected officials should listen to them before leaping. The poor, even under the best circumstances, have a hard time having their voices heard. ... SUN reader June Farr wants people to know that 731-2990 is the telephone number for Suicide Prevention of Clark County. If you don't need their help, they need yours as a trained volunteer. It's a great service for your fellow Nevadans. ... Visiting with retired professionals like Hershel Weinrott is one of the benefits of being a newspaper editor. ... Bud Wheeler passed on to dog heaven last week. The big Airedale will be missed around Andy Wheeler's Las Vegas RV dealership. Also large numbers of television viewers will miss him in RV commercials. ... The North Las Vegas Democratic Club will be honoring former state Sen. Tom Hickey on May 20 at the IBEW Union Hall. It will be a $5 chicken dinner for a man who served his constituents and state well for many years. ... Mary Scherkenbach and the Clark County Association of Educational Office Professionals are a lively bunch. I joined them for lunch last week and enjoyed every minute of my visit and also learned several things by listening to the professionals. ... Can you believe that there's a move on to have nursing assistants play a bigger role in health-care delivery? This may sound OK, but Cynthia Bunch, RN, writes, "This issue may appear on the surface to be insignificant, but in states across the country where this change has occurred, the health care system has been turned 'upside down.' This change would allow health care corporations and hospitals to replace licensed, formally educated RNs, LPNs, lab and respiratory technicians with 'aides' whose training can be as minimal as 40 hours. This change poses a serious risk to the health and safety of the public." There will be a hearing on this problem at 1 p.m. April 19 in Room 4401 of the Sawyer State Office Building, 555 E. Washington Ave. If you have any medical problems or foresee any for yourself and family members, then you have a dog in this fight and should attend. ... SUN reader Knight Allen agrees that Congress has ducked its responsibility by giving line-item veto power to the president and he also sees similar problems closer to home. Then he points out, "Public employees sitting in the Legislature. Frightened refusal to deal with a legislative compensation everyone knows is too low. The total abdication by the Legislature and the governor of budgetary authority to an unelected 'Economic Forum.' ... We seem to have developed a political leadership made up of nice people who want to do good, but who know next to zero about the basic rules of the Constitution and responsibilities of the office. I can't help thinking that at this moment in history it is reasonable to ask how many more years the document, as great as it is, can withstand this kind of attack."
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