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Our Opinion: Vacation days too precious to pass up; take time off

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Inches from history: Mickelson just misses record round at British Open

<p>The shootings in Dallas, Texas, apparently were a misguided attempt at revenge for the shootings in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Falcon Heights, Minnesota. But weren&#8217;t those two shootings misguided as well?</p><p>Look, folks, a single shooting of a black, white, brown or green person by a police officer would be considered a tragedy. But the vast number of shootings of black boys and men by police officers, with painfully few consequences, reflects an unsolved problem with little attention being paid to the problem.</p><p>The shooting of 12 police officers in Dallas, with five dead, is a tragedy and an extremely serious problem. One of several outcomes is likely.</p><p>Either police officers around the country will become far more alert to the danger posed by certain black men and boys, resulting in ever more blacks being shot by police &#8211; and the real danger that more black avengers will act out their twisted approach to the problem.</p><p>Or police departments around the country will begin crash courses on how to defuse problems with black men and boys, and begin to build trust in their communities. This approach can, over time, result in the kind of police department Dallas has built, where police killings have dropped to nearly none. That&#8217;s not by accident. And trust in that community seems to be at an all-time high, despite this lone exception.</p><p>The alternative would wind up in all-out war between the races. How would that help anyone?</p><p>It&#8217;s not a political problem, but politicians must lead the assault on this problem. It&#8217;s not a religious problem, but religious leaders need to speak out against this distrust. It is a race problem, and everyone needs to tone it down. It&#8217;s not a Second Amendment problem, so the NRA needs to speak up for sanity for a change.</p><p>So what are you doing to help?</p><p><strong>Ed Cole</strong></p><p>Clarks Summit</p><style>
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Letter to the Editor: Pursue civil solutions to nation’s racial tensions