Capital Vacation Ruined by Students

Regarding “Ivanhoe’s Capital Venture” (June 3), about schoolchildren visiting Washington, D.C.: My only two visits to the capital, in 1993 and April this year, were ruined by the hordes of students who ran amok throughout the city. I am still angry. To them it was a vacation away from parents. The “chaperons” we observed couldn’t be bothered to keep any kind of order. The older kids wandered around in groups on their own.

I doubt any learning took place. How do I know? In 1971, my high school government class took a field trip to the courthouse in downtown L.A. The highlight, and the only thing I remember, was seeing Charles Manson’s followers camped on the corner across from the courthouse.

I would add that I work at an amusement park, and I don’t hate children.

KAREN RAGAN

Huntington Beach