Opinionated and young? Tough

Re “At my school, the closing of the teenage mind is almost complete,” Opinion, Dec. 10

How is it that a senior in high school such as Zach Gottlieb understands the closing of minds better than some of The Times’ own columnists?

People like Gottlieb will soon be first-year students at universities across the country. And, many parents will give their kids this warning: Anything you say or do in class or on campus will be held against you.

If you don’t like the professor’s politics, parrot back his views on his tests, get your A or B, and get the hell out of his class.

The same thing goes for on-campus political discussions. Keep your mouth shut and you’ll survive.

I wish Gottlieb’s ideas on having a spirited conversation on ideas would come true, but it’s not likely in this climate.

Mark Walker

Yorba Linda

As thoughtful as Gottlieb’s opinion piece on closemindedness among his fellow high schoolers is, one important element is missing from his argument: historical perspective.

Today’s education system may be flawed, but it’s light-years ahead of what he had in decades past. It’s certainly much better than the junior high and high school education I received in Los Angeles during the racist, sexist, homophobic, McCarthyist 1950s and early 1960s.

However one-sided today’s school discussions are by Gottlieb’s reckoning, at least issues having to do with race, gender, sexual orientation and politics are on the table. In the past, we pretended as if they didn’t exist.

Vincent Brook

Los Angeles

Gottlieb is correct in his evaluation of the lack of critical thinking in our schools.

It is essential for each of us to be able to see other points of view, even when we may not agree with them or even accept them. We need to understand other people and how they view the world.

Without this ability, a person becomes dogmatic, unempathetic and overly critical. One cannot “see” with one’s intelligence and reasoning what might be worth considering in another point of view.

This is how we learn to compromise and work together.

Betty

Seidmon-Vidibor Los Angeles

My hopes for the future were given a refreshing boost when I read the piece by Gottlieb.

I only hope that more young people will embrace his ideas on having open, nonjudgmental discussions about current topics. It wouldn’t hurt for us old folks also to follow his advice.

Joel Jamison

Carpinteria