Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D.

Here.

I’m shocked to see the United States bomb and send troops into a sovereign country, Syria, in violation of international law and our Constitution.

We would think it shocking if an individual watched a rape or brutal assault happening without trying to help. Aren’t we doing the same thing, and are thereby complicit? Has the sense of right and wrong been completely lost?

Don Turner, Seattle

All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes (1982).

Here are highlights from today's Amstel Gold Race in the Netherlands.

Someone should look into who paid for the small organized rallies yesterday. The election is over!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 16, 2017

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Here.

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To the editor:

As a high school English teacher with 10 years of experience in the classroom, I want to adamantly stress [sic] that there is only one overriding reason teachers quit: the steady erosion of authority and respect. (“If teachers didn't pay income tax, would they be less likely to quit?” editorial, April 8)

Too many students are out of control, and there are zero standards of behavior for them. Take any large high school in Los Angeles and look at the manner in which officials address discipline. You’ll find that teachers are on their own once they close that classroom door.

Students can do anything with impunity. Many parents don’t care about their children’s behavior, and principals often treat disruptive students like high-powered clients due to the litigious nature of our society.

The truth is, effective teachers aren’t too concerned about earning a higher salary. This fight is for our survival and, I would argue, that of society itself.

Alejandro Escudé, Los Angeles

Here are two things that many journalists (for example, those at CNN) do not understand:

• Negotiation
• Delegation

Donald Trump is a negotiator. If he asserts proposition p at time t₁, this is not to be taken as a commitment to p; it is the first move in a negotiation. If at time t₂ he asserts some contrary proposition, he has made a second move in the negotiating process. What accounts for this lack of understanding by journalists? I submit that it's because they lack experience in business. They think of politics as commitment to the truth of propositions (resulting in occasional "flip-flops" or "reversals") rather than as a negotiation designed to accomplish a goal. Donald Trump is a master negotiator. He is not a politician. Applying standard political concepts to him shows lack of understanding.

As for delegation, Donald Trump delegates authority to his military inferiors. Lincoln did this; Roosevelt did this; most presidents do it. That Barack Obama didn't do it says more about his distrust of the military (dare I say "incompetence"?) than it does about the presidency. What accounts for this lack of understanding by journalists? I submit that it's because they lack experience in management. They've never been in a position to delegate authority to anyone (except to fetch coffee) and so do not understand its point. They also believe that humans must be micromanaged. This, I think, is an aspect of their progressive ideology. Donald Trump believes in hiring competent people and delegating authority to them. If they misuse this authority, they get fired and replaced.