Readers Write: Dec. 7

Not enough U.S. students in grad programs

I was shocked to read that the U.S. immigrant population, legal and illegal, in 2016 was 43.7 million, up 12.6 million since 2000. It was also shocking to read recently that New York University has a graduate program for engineers that has 80 percent foreign students. Our universities are working hard to enroll diverse students, not just in the United States, but from all over the world.

How many foreigners does it take for American students to get a taste of diversity? Or is that what this is really about — liberalism/globalism — or universities, businesses and farmers wanting more and more cheap labor and foreign students bringing cash to boost their profits? Both motives stink, and our children get outnumbered and shoved aside.

ROBERT REDMOND SR., CANTON

Selling arms contributes to ethnic-cleansing

A recent headline in a recent Times of India on Nov. 7 declared "Israel helping Myanmar army against Rohingya." Pope Francis attempted to diffuse Myanmar's crisis during his recent visit. Amidst reports of massacres, burned villages, rapes and pillage, over 650,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled to Bangladesh; and Buddhist extremists suggest all non-Buddhists as dispensable "non-humans." Recently, the U.S. joined the U.N. and European Union in condemning the "ethnic-cleansing" of Rohingyans. Further, the U.S./EU have banned the sale of arms to Myanmar.

Yet, ironically, Israel (under joint agreements) is contributing to ethnic-cleansing by selling arms to Myanmar. It is heartening, however, that groups of U.S./Israeli rabbis and human-rights activists have been urging Israel to suspend arms sales. Further, they suggest that the Israel-Myanmar relationship is linked to the occupation of Palestinian territories, and “field-tested” weapons used against the Palestinians are being sold to “the worst regimes on the planet.”

S.M. GHAZANFAR, ACWORTH