Opinion: What fragile humans can learn — or not — from watching the solar eclipse

To the editor: The solar eclipse on Monday should serve as a reminder to all of us of nature’s awesome power and beauty. It should encourage us to pause for a moment from our busy lives and reflect that the sun is the source of most of our energy, without which we would not be here. (“A total eclipse of the sun is a reason to unplug,” editorial, Aug. 20)

We should also realize that we live in a world dominated by science and natural laws. Yet, sadly, the vast majority of our political, social and business leaders are scientifically illiterate. Many of these leaders have no respect for nature and think it will bend to their will, and as a result, we are on a collision course with reality (read: climate change).

This does not bode well for the future of humanity, because nature will ultimately win.

Michael Pravica, Henderson, Nev.

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To the editor: By preventing children from viewing the eclipse, Los Angeles Unified School District leaders epitomize what is wrong with the district bureaucracy. While teachers on the ground just want to do their jobs, the district is constantly coming up with knee-jerk rules and mandates that make it increasingly difficult to do so. (“How L.A. students will — or won’t — experience Monday’s solar eclipse,” Aug. 18)

Diane Pappas, the district’s chief executive for operations and digital innovation, says, “We don’t want to quell the excitement around the event.” Um, what do you think you are doing by forcing hundreds of thousands of children to remain on lockdown Monday morning? It is insulting and demoralizing to assume that teachers, principals and students do not know how to take proper precautions.

Pappas further demonstrates the need for this kind of real-world (and classroom) science by ignorantly stating, “We may never see this again in our lifetime.” In fact, the next solar eclipse to be visible in Los Angeles is a mere seven years from now. It will be visible at a similar time of day and be of similar partiality as Monday’s.

Ron Mossler, Northridge

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