To the editor:

Around the 15:30 mark of an arrest body camera video of District 69 State Rep. Jim Lucas, he is talking with an officer. He is discussing how the officer must want to “help people.” He then begins telling the officer that there are easier careers and says, “If you want to take the easy way out, be a teacher.” Lucas has proven to be an expert at taking the easy way out.

Initially, these comments from the drunk man sitting on the side of the road were upsetting. Lucas is in the Indiana General Assembly, and he votes on laws regarding education. He also sits on the Education Committee, so there are few people who have his ability to shape education in Indiana over the past decade. It’s concerning that someone who wields such power has such a poor opinion of teachers.

However, after thinking about it, I realized that if anyone could recognize “taking the easy way out,” it would be Lucas. The night of his arrest, he got drunk and possibly high. He could have called someone to give him a ride, but instead, he took what he thought was the easy way out. He decided to drive himself home.

His decision did not turn out well. He drove down an embankment, crossed the interstate and took out a guardrail. Jim once again took what he thought was the easy way out. He fled the scene by driving the wrong way on the interstate and then drove his truck up the entrance ramp to get back on State Road 11.

After driving his truck until it could no longer go, he hid it behind a local business. This is a point of debate. A lot of people think he was hiding his truck. He says he was being considerate by not leaving an oil stain in a business parking lot. Either way, the police saw him walking down the road. When they asked him what he was doing, he lied and said that he was just out for a walk. In other words, he took the easy way out.

Who could blame him? The Republican Party and the “leaders” in the Indiana General Assembly have not disciplined him. They have, for the most part, encouraged him to take the easy way out.

Instead of being upset by having the way my wife and I feed our children demeaned by a man who makes laws regarding education, I’m embracing it. Lucas and the members of the General Assembly seem to enjoy taking the easy way out, so why shouldn’t I? The fact that Lucas and teachers have something in common should be celebrated.

I would like to propose a toast to all of the people who are proud to have taken the easy way out. These people include Lucas and all of the teachers. For this toast, let’s hope that Lucas chooses something nonalcoholic.

Clay Schepman, Brownstown