Letter: Spend airplane recovery money on children instead

Of course our hearts go out to the families and friends of those passengers on the Malaysian Airline flight who must now be considered tragically and permanently separated from us ("Did missing Malaysia plane keep flying after last contact? Tribune, March 13).

While we grieve for those lost, for their families and friends and indeed for mankind, would it not be a more fitting tribute to the human species to take the time, energy and hundreds of millions of dollars spent searching for them and instead spend it on early education for children; on those million-plus children from Syria who are now living in poverty, disease and hunger in displaced refuge camps; on the other millions of children who are suffering from lack of food, potable water, medical attention, clothing and shelter, not only in Third World countries, but also in our own vaunted country of the "most"?

Perhaps we owe it to our race and to its survival to quickly re-order our priorities.

James P. Cowley

Salt Lake City