Sir, - Paddy Healy (October 9th) suggests that teachers are being driven to take action "in defence of the education system". What a load of claptrap! They want a bigger slice of the pie, and couch their claim in self-serving language. Let them speak honestly.
His proprietorial claim over children's lives is nauseating. Our young people were always in great demand the world over, thanks in no small part to their home and church environment, their own resourcefulness and an often rudimentary education to primary level. They owe the world, or the Paddy Healys of this world, nothing.
It is dangerous to view children as our property, our human reources, as it were, a cog in the world of business, or a bartering chip on budget day. Get real. Give credit where it is due, but don't make the saleability of our children an issue. - Yours, etc.,
Richard Dowling, Patrick Street, Mountrath, Co Laois.