Importance of Literacy---Irony of Ironies

There was a lengthy letter published in the "Pulse of the People" section of today's Record. I was tempted to pass over it, but then wondered why anyone would write such a long article, and why the publisher would print it. I read it and found it had apparently been an assignment of some sort written by a student at Tech Valley High School, whose student body comprises the best and brightest of the area. I hope the students are technologically gifted because the letter is a distinctly horrible literary example. I don't want to criticize the student who wrote it, but I question why, if she had submitted it to her mentor for a class assignment, as it seems, why that mentor would not have addressed some of the glaring issues that make the work a nonsensical exercise in redundancy, circular reasoning, and poor writing. Some of the language is distorted: "This just comes to show how necessary is in everyday life so that people can hold up a job..." Goes to show and hold down a job are accepted idioms. "It is very important for men, women and children to be literate because it helps them an immense amount in the 21st century just to take control of their life and make other things much simpler." That immense amount is sure to help all, and after control of life is established, what other things are to be made simpler? "Along with slavery being very unconstitutional (For shame!) and most of the time a cruel act, (so they say) it impacted the voting rights that slaves had because that, along with most if not all of their other rights were taken away from them." This sentence is a grammatical monstrosity, and does not parse. "Adults at the lowest levels of literacy earn about $230 to $240 per week, work only 18 to 19 hours each year..." The writer has used a number of inserted footnotes, but the effect is muddied. "Many struggles are made in society for those who cannot read for apparent reasons and the ones stated with the above statistics." WHAT? "The shocking facts, statements, and statistics stated here are more than enough information ...." The reader should be the judge of that. "Relating this to the past with unfortunate actions taken place during the time of slavery can help us to appreciate how lucky those of us who can read and write (though not very well) should be. " (Those unfortunate time of slavery actions!) Saving the best for last, "With the fast paced changes that occur in literacy in the times we live in, (What are these fast changes and we do live in the times) it is hard to predict what literacy requirements will be later on in the mid-21st century." Yes, my child, you do need a concluding sentence for your essay, but it should tie in with your thesis: you addressed neither fast paced changes nor predictions. But your final point is well taken, and unfortunately I think I can predict what the literacy requirements are fated to be, and yes, the mid-21st century is "later on." ******* If Ms Brandenberg received an A on this paper, as she is evidently proud of it, she and others may have been dealt a grave injustice.