Fact vs. opinion

I read with interest the Feb. 26 column “In actions, McCrory speaks on education” by Duke University freshman Mousa Alshanteer.

This cheerleading piece mistakenly lauds a governor who is contemptuous of liberal arts education. This same governor also displays his contempt for education by stripping state regulatory and oversight commissions of experts who actually know anything about the relevant topics and replacing them with cronies. Contempt for science is a theme of McCrory’s environmental policy. The delivery and application of education is clearly not a McCrory or Republican priority.

Alshanteer wrote that “the majority of taxpayer dollars allocated to community colleges and state universities go to remediation courses.” This is nonsense. According to the UNC system “Remedial/Developmental Activities Report, 2011-12,” taxpayer funded expenditures on system-wide (16 campuses) remedial developmental activities in 2011-2012 were $1.4 million. This amounts to a mere 0.04 percent of state funding for the UNC system. I am pretty sure that 0.04 percent is not a “majority.”

The UNC system serves the state, including a few who need a little extra help. Political partisans are entitled to their own opinions, but not to their own “facts.” Separating opinion from fact is an important aspect of critical thinking.

Henry Frey

Raleigh