Opinions from past add perspective

Editor’s note: Looking Back reviews opinions published in The Spokesman-Review during this week in history.

Loyalty pledge: April 27, 1916 – An S-R editorial praised a declaration of loyalty to President Woodrow Wilson delivered by F.B. Noyes, president of the Associated Press, which represented 900 newspapers. It noted:

“The response to the toast was unanimous. The Associated Press pledged its loyal support to the president of the United States. There can be no mistaking the meaning of this action. These men have their finger on the pulse of public opinion … They know what the American people think. They voice the judgment of the nation as the last word of the United States through its official head to the government of Germany.”

Branching out: April 22, 1946 – An editorial headlined “Idaho can’t afford two universities” bashed lawmakers who wanted to turn the two-year college in Pocatello into a four-year-university. It said:

“If the Moscow school (University of Idaho) has all the facilities it really needs, if the faculty members were amply paid, and if there was adequate evidence that the present overcrowding would continue beyond the next three or four years – when veteran attendance will be at its peak – there might be some justification developing the Pocatello branch.”

A year later, the University of Idaho-Southern Branch became Idaho State College, a four-year institution. In 1963, it became Idaho State University.

Homefront assault: April 24, 1966 – An editorial lamented reports that wives of two Spokane servicemen in Vietnam were the subject of harassment. It said:

“It is distressing to learn that the two women, mothers of small children, have been subjected to petty vandalism, anonymous telephone calls at odd hours and threatening prowlers, presumably because of their husbands’ service in the armed forces.”

It continued: “Those whose husbands, sons and fathers are bearing this nation’s military for all of us are also entitled to our gratitude for their own sacrifices of companionship and peace of mind.”

Teacher merit pay: April 29, 1986 – An editorial commented on a speech by “teacher of the year” Wendy Kelley Borton, a Seattle schoolteacher, to the Washington Education Association. She got a standing ovation when praising her colleagues for their service to “the most dedicated and altruistic of professions.” It noted:

“Nevertheless, Borton told the WEA gathering that merit pay is a poor idea for teachers. ‘Pay for product may work in the business world, but it doesn’t work in education,’ she said.

“Those words fell pleasantly on the ears of a union opposed to merit pay and prefers across-the-board raises for all teachers – the mediocre and outstanding ones alike. However, what’s best for a union, which remains strong if top workers must depend on it for a raise, is not necessarily best for education.”