With all due respect to the Consul General of the People's Republic of China, Zhao Jian, he as a diplomat conveniently sidesteps some ignominious facts of his government's conduct, which must not remain unchallenged ("It's a mistake to see China as a U.S. adversary," Opinion Exchange, Aug. 28).

Zhao writes that the People's Republic has "never ... occupied a single inch of foreign territory," that "the people have the final say," and that forcing a country to change course against the will of its people "is in itself a grave violation of democracy and human rights." Tell that to the Uyghurs, Mr. Consul General, or to the Tibetans whose country was brutally invaded and remains occupied. What say did Tibetans have in determining their fate and the deliberate determination by the Chinese government to obliterate their religion and peace-loving, influential culture causing untold numbers, including the Dalai Lama, to flee across the perilous Himalayas?

We in this country have been suffering from a burden in terms of our treatment of nonwhite people. Nevertheless, increasing recognition and self-analysis with accompanying dissent may hopefully lead to a more perfect union with diversity — e pluribus unum.

Mr. Consul General, help China's long-standing cultural history, not subjugation and suppression by the People's Republic, shine.

Live and let live.

Richard Laybourn, Bloomington

There were 36 COVID cases in the first five days of school in Albert Lea, according to "Virus ambushes Albert Lea schools" (front page, Aug. 28).

This was no ambush! No mask mandate was in place. The people of Albert Lea and school officials walked their kids into this problem while being in denial about the reality of the situation. The response in Albert Lea is that kids in grades 6-12 only will be asked to mask. Why not all students? Currently the younger kids cannot be vaccinated.

It's tragic. People who allow decisions like this to be made are reckless with the health of students and the general public, and are willfully ignorant. This was not an ambush. It would be better to label it malfeasance, dereliction of duty or neglect.

Boyd Emmel, Buffalo, Minn.

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Hypothetical Albert Lea student: "I just had no idea that spelling would count." Hypothetical Albert Lea teacher: "I just had no idea so many students would have computer access problems." Real Albert Lea superintendent: "I just had no idea that [COVID] was going to take off like it did so fast."

I recently heard it said that the COVID-19 virus is outsmarting us and keeping the pandemic going. On the contrary, I believe that we are, in fact, outdumbing it. We make all kinds of absurd, even comical, excuses to not get one of several highly successful vaccines, even paying people (!) to get vaccinated with only limited success. We lead the world in throwing our children under the COVID bus in the name of "personal freedom." Instead of avoiding situations that are likely to be super-spreader events, we flock to them. Something as simple as wearing a mask to minimize transmission in close quarters is now political instead of common sense. We trust (sometimes anonymous) sociopathic talking heads spouting complete nonsense over doctors, scientists and other real experts.

The pandemic should have been in the rearview mirror months ago, but now we will be lucky if we are back to some sort of normal by next spring. I guess the virus is smarter than us after all. Maybe Tom Brokaw should be working on his next book: "The Useless Generation."

Michael Johnson, Brooklyn Center

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Walking through the grocery store, Target, Walmart, the county fair, etc., you see that the opportunity to receive the COVID vaccine is everywhere. You can receive a vaccine at the State Fair. But every opportunity I've seen is very public: Sit in the open and wait your turn, get the shot, then wait with others to see that there is no immediate adverse reaction.

Give unvaccinated folks a chance to get the best tool we have for avoiding the most serious consequences of COVID-19 while "saving face" with their friends. There's no need for anyone to know, but there's every reason to get vaccinated. Let's help make it possible.

David Hansen, Faribault

I finished reading Dick Schwartz's amazing commentary ("The tale of how I stopped switching majors," Opinion Exchange, Aug. 25) concerning his unexpected exposure to the poetry of Geoffrey Chaucer.

Especially poignant was Mr. Schwartz's description of his encounter with Prof. Kendahl and the professor's expectation that students recite from memory the first 34 lines of the Canterbury Tales in the original Middle English.

The reason that this scenario has heightened significance for me is that my journey in the University of Minnesota's English department took a similar direction. As a senior, I enrolled in Introduction to Chaucer, and we were required to perform the same ritual of reciting the lines of the "General Prologue" from memory. Chester Anderson, I believe, was the professor, and there was no armchair or bottle of water to ease the nervousness. We simply stood in front of his desk and "had at it." And the 20 or so students in Prof. Anderson's class took it seriously: probably, too, no A's, but we "let him totally have it" because he was so passionate about the poem.

We practiced the lines in class with me modeling the sounds of Middle English. We did large and small group work, plus one-on-one recitals. I even made dozens of prerecorded cassettes so students could listen at home or in their car driving into town. I even joked, "Hey, at Thanksgiving dinner when the whole family is gathered before eating the meal, say, 'I have a really cool poem I'd like to recite for you.'" Student response: "Huh?" But, it lightened the task up a bit and the students did exceedingly well on the assignment. I still see students 30 years later and they ask me, "Hey, Mr. Leathers, can I lay a bit of the prologue on you?" Funny how little things stick with a person.

So thank you, Mr. Schwartz, for sharing your Chaucer story with us readers. It was a good read, and it made this writer's day a joy. And most of all, thank you, Dick, for teaching high school English to Minnesota kids.

Don Leathers, Austin, Minn.