Young columnist to be commended

Congratulations to Michael Carroll, sixth-grader at J.C. Booth Middle School, for his outstanding essay (“Serving homeless people gives new perspective on our comforts,” published in the May 5 issue of The Citizen.) I’d give him an A-plus for content as well as quality of writing.

This newspaper publishes many opinion pieces that are technically well-written but sadly deficient in substance. Distinguished titles (Distinguished Professor at Such-and-Such University, or Senior Fellow at Blah-Blah Institute) might sound impressive but do nothing to guarantee sound reasoning or factual information. Too often these rants are nothing but political propaganda that serves to further divide our polarized society.

In the current climate of blame and ingratitude and hypocrisy, echoed by our media, I found this young student’s essay to be very refreshing. I hope he — and many future leaders — will hold onto a sense of compassion. I hope they will work toward creating a more equitable society. Our future as a nation will depend upon it.

Sara DeLuca

Peachtree City, Ga.