Maybe parents should sacrifice?
I have been a Daily Herald subscriber for over 20 years, and sometimes I think your choice for front page news is not worth front page news, but Aug. 7 takes the cake.
I started to read the story because it looked interesting, but as I read on and learned that the parents were trying to raise the money it will cost to send their son to a choice tennis academy I started to fume. They say they can't afford the $650,000 and are asking strangers to pay.
I'm appalled. If they can afford to live in Kildeer and the dad can run his own software company, I do not have sympathy for them. We have four children -- our two oldest in college -- and we have parent loans with no light at the end of the tunnel.
We live in a modest home and work hard to keep our heads above the water. My children can't practice at the Farmington Bath and Tennis Club, or at any club for that matter. I guess I would have more compassion if the family really needed the money, but the article makes you think that they don't seem to be suffering financially.
Maybe they should sell their home and downsize a bit. They don't want to crush their son's dream, but it seems they also don't want to sacrifice their own lifestyle. I'm disappointed that the Daily Herald thought that this article should be front page news. I'm sure that it won't hurt the Wolfs in getting the word out, but I for one will not be any part of it.
Marcia Reuther
Streamwood
Good health care begins at home
Do you really want a state or national health care system for all? Be careful what you wish. Heart disease is the number one killer, then cancer. But do you know that health care is No. 3?
Yes, all those adverse drug effects, hospital-borne infections, unnecessary surgeries and medication errors kill over 225,000 people annually (JAMA, July 26, 2000).
The average doctor's visit is seven minutes, during which you're given a prescription. If that doesn't work, you come back and you get another seven minutes and a different prescription. Is that what you want for your increased tax dollars?
Leave doctors and hospitals for truly emergency situations or persistent conditions. You can prevent and even reverse most illnesses if you choose to eat healthier. Follow the diet of the American Institute for Cancer Research (www.aicr.org), which advocates a plant-based diet with more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
Don't just take my word for it, read books by T. Colin Campbell, Caldwell Esselstyn, Joel Fuhrman, Paul Stitt, and others who researched the cause of illnesses.
Doctors are well educated in pharmaceuticals and procedures, but many have had little training in nutrition. They often just treat symptoms, but not the cause. A state or national health care system will insure a continuation of profits by the drug companies, not healthier Americans.
When you read press releases denying the benefits of healthy eating, question who funded the study. Often, studies are designed to get the results that food and drug companies want. A flawed study can do far more harm than no study at all.
Take health into your own hands; read books, do a computer search for natural cures for common ailments, and consider eating less meat, dairy products, and processed foods. The best health care should be prevention. It's affordable and begins at home.
Diane Crawford
Arlington Heights