To the editor:

In her Aug. 25 letter, Barbara Paris describes as, “most appalling and obscene” the Journal-World’s article about the Kansas University Athletic Department selling 40 press row seats to the coming basketball season for $15,000 each. Her vehement opinion was that those $600,000 would have been better spent as a donation to the homeless and poor.

Perhaps those 40 well-seated KU fans also make substantial charitable contributions. They may derive satisfaction in contributing to their alma mater AND also getting a close-up view to probably the best college basketball team in America. In comparison to other sports teams, fans of the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team are more than willing to pay $3,000 to $4,000 per game to sit in the front row seats along each side of their court.

I would suggest to Barbara Paris that she not travel to the Hamptons in New York or to Palm Springs in California because she will find a great multitude of palatial, multimillion-dollar second homes. She may be surprised to learn that a great share of the endowment funds of American universities are from the estates of these same people.

President Obama’s proposed National Health Plan may include a specific taxation on the wealthiest citizens, but even this seems to be opposed by voters of all income levels. Americans are mostly united on the individual’s right to spend their own money as they see fit.