Zero Tolerance

Re “Kids Get Tough Love Without the Love,” Commentary, Jan. 4: Please. I am a teacher in an inner-city school. Zero tolerance is an absolute necessity when you have 35 students in a class, 30 of whom want to learn and five of whom want to be gang members. Where is the love for the 30 whose time in class is spent avoiding future felons while the instructor is dealing with these discipline problems? Hours of these 30 students’ education are wasted as teachers plead for cooperation from these five, often at the risk of their own lives.

I’m tired of people who don’t work with these individuals saying zero tolerance is cruel. Most parents are still accusing our schools of being too lenient, and often they are. I agree with Texas for trying 14-year-olds as adults. Maybe it will cause some of these individuals to start considering their actions and futures before some very bad habits are formed.

M.L. BETHUNE

Rancho Palos Verdes