I am shocked by many of the reactions to Stephen King’s remarks that the Army is one alternative for students who cannot read.

In the 1920s, I was taught that if I obeyed the laws and told the truth, my freedom of speech would be protected. In my many years of teaching school, I had some students who couldn’t read well enough to have many job options. Always I told them that the Army was a choice available to them. I knew that was true and I never once thought that anyone would question my right to say it. Some of those young men learned skills in the Army that helped them later in life; some didn’t. A few were wounded or killed in action.

What happened to Stephen King’s freedom of speech? King, world-famous and world-respected author, cannot be allowed to make a statement about literacy, choosing his own words? If he must put up with this spinning of propaganda, then God help us all.

I believe that Stephen and Tabitha King deserve our thanks many times over. I wonder if those who removed the King display from the airport have heard of the many projects instigated by the Kings, projects for the good of Maine and the nation, projects often involved with education? And have those people heard of the Bill of Rights?

I am not always proud of what we humans do. Perhaps I’ve just lived too long.

Glenna Johnson Smith

Presque Isle