Colleges brought unrest unto themselves

As the roiling on college campuses continues, it must be considered the most predictable of situations.

Consider: college admissions offices are suffused with the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion mindset. As a result, many if not most elite colleges, in evaluating their incoming applicant pool, actually select for social justice activism. These students come as ready-made revolutionaries, and are then almost exclusively fed Marxist/Socialist/Critical Theory pablum, with a generous dose of both subtle and overt antisemitism by overwhelmingly left-wing professors.

Worse, since this mindset infects both high schools and even elementary schools, they have had this nonsense rammed into their skulls practically from infancy. It is impossible to have any sympathy whatever for these college administrators. They asked for this.

The richest irony of course is that Joe Biden, despite government having driven college costs to stratospheric levels, wants the rest of us to pay these students’ loans. Perfect.

Robert A. Richer, Charlestown

Stay the course on pension reform

The front page of Tuesday’s Providence Journal tells the story of Rhode Island’s fiscal irresponsibility (“Mixed reviews on RI’s economy,” News, May 14).  44th in the nation in fiscal stability.  Once again shortsighted policies by the latest weak political leader, Gov. Dan McKee, takes the place of leadership and fails to make the difficult but necessary decisions to strengthen the state’s future fiscal picture.

Our governor proposes using federal pandemic money to fund current operations. One more false step in a series of shortsighted decisions most glaringly exemplified by the nonstop hue and cry of pensioners to reinstate COLAs in spite of the continued weight of the state’s unfunded pension liability on the long-term stability of our government.  Do people really think that a Democratic governor would make such an unpopular decision to halt COLAs, if it were not supported by responsible and thoughtful analysis of the economics?

Governor Raimondo had everything to lose and nothing personal to gain, other than being seen as an honest and smart leader who was trying to drag R.I. kicking and screaming into a healthy future, when she made the difficult but fiscally responsible decision to reduce the unfunded pension liability.  But no, now folks want to walk back that decision and once again kick the can down the road.

Let the next generation figure it out.  I for one would like the next generation to be able to look back and be thankful that we put the state’s long-term fiscal health above our own shortsighted concerns.  Do not undo pension reform.

Kathleen A. Carey, Providence

Time is running out

As the drafter and principal sponsor in the 1973 Constitutional Convention of present Article XIV of the Rhode Island Constitution that mandates periodic 10-year referenda to allow the voters to decide whether or not there exists a need to review or revise our state’s basic law, I strongly concur with the opinion essay by J.H. Snider and Gary Sasse (“Give priority to prep for constitutional convention,” Commentary, May 12) regarding not only the need but also the constitutional obligation for its General Assembly to create a non-partisan citizens preparatory commission with an expert research staff.

Time is running out for such a required commission to present a meaningful report to the voters ahead of this November’s periodic referendum. Semper Paratus.

Patrick T. Conley, Bristol

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Saturday letters: Turmoil on campuses; keep pension reform as is