Mostly Cloudy and Breezy ~ 26°F   River stage: 23.46 Falling Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2010

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Editorials Read on (02/09/10) In an age when there are so many demands for our attention, reading sometimes gets a low priority. But visit the Cape Girardeau Public Library and see how many adults and children are checking out books. Reading also is getting a boost this month from two well-organized community events: the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Read-a-Thon that is a part of Black History Month, and the ninth annual United We Read events... High school art (02/08/10) There are many ways Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus for the visual and performing arts has drawn in the wider community through performances and exhibits. The current high school art exhibition featuring the work of artists from 17 school districts throughout Southeast Missouri is a wonderful example... Higher ed's future (02/07/10) No one has a completely reliable crystal ball to see the future of higher education in Missouri, but one person has a vantage point that gives him a better view of things to come than anyone else: Dr. Robert Stein, the state's commissioner of higher education. ... Welfare and drugs (02/05/10) Many taxpaying Missourians will applaud current legislative efforts to restrict or cut off welfare payments to recipients who use illegal drugs. Why, they ask, should taxpayers foot the bill for addictions? The simple answer: They shouldn't. But the issue is more complex than requiring drug tests for the more than 40,000 Missouri families who receive payments from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program... Cape Air (02/04/10) Two months after it began flights between Cape Girardeau Regional Airport and Lambert-St. Louis International Airport, Cape Air was officially welcomed as the latest provider of commercial air service under the federal Essential Air Service program that subsidizes flights to smaller markets... School funding (02/03/10) Weathering the recession has become a major part of managing everything from household budgets to government spending. In Missouri, public schools have received most of the funding anticipated under the state's school-funding formula -- until this year. The prospects for funding in the next school year are cause for worry among administrators and school boards... Fewer dropouts (02/02/10) A group of education and community leaders in Cape Girardeau has been meeting for the past year to identify ways to improve Central High School's graduation rate (it was 72.3 percent in 2009). The United Way of Southeast Missouri-sponsored Education Solutions Team is ready to take its findings and its proposals to a wider audience. ... Casino gambling (02/01/10) When Missouri voters were asked in 2008 to eliminate casino loss limits, remove other gambling restrictions and cap the number of casino licenses, the inducement was a promise of at least $100 million more each year for the state's public schools. Perhaps due to the recession, the 12 operating casinos (one is under construction) took $1.73 billion from gamblers last year, resulting in an addition $22 million for schools... A special center (01/31/10) In recent years, one shining beacon in south Cape Girardeau has been the Cape Area Family Resource Center on South Sprigg Street. The center has, with limited resources and considerable reliance on volunteers, provided a safe haven for the area's children along with after-school activities that include homework help. Now the center faces an uncertain future because its state funding -- $50,000 in seed money from the Missouri Department of Social Services -- is about to end... Trash deadline (01/29/10) The Cape Girardeau Public Works Department is preparing for a new trash and recycling system. Even though the new services aren't scheduled to begin until May 1, city residents need to learn about the new system. And if they want smaller trash containers, today is the deadline for contacting the city (339-6351)... New business (01/28/10) We are accustomed, after months of recession, to hearing every bit of positive economic news hedged by cautionary statements that allow for even more bad news. Unemployment claims dipped -- but it will take years to replace lost jobs. Housing prices show signs of recovery -- but thousands of homeowners still face foreclosure. Stock markets have risen more than 60 percent since last year's bottom -- but this bubble may burst... A better Jackson (01/27/10) Jack Litzelfelner has left his mark on Jackson in positive ways for many years. This year, at the Jackson Chamber of Commerce/Jackson Industrial Development Authority banquet, Litzelfelner was honored with the R.A. Fulenwider Meritorious Community Service Award in recognition of his many accomplishments that have helped make Jackson a better place to live, work and play... Generous donors (01/26/10) When disasters like the earthquake in Haiti occur, millions of people respond with contributions to relief efforts. But the needs of countless other efforts to provide help around the world continue unabated. A Cape Girardeau group, Celebrate Hope, is trying to raise $100,000 for an orphanage in Swaziland in Africa. ... School bond issue (01/25/10) Now that the Cape Girardeau School District has decided to ask voters to approve a $40 million bond issue for a new elementary school, a performance center at Central High School and an event stadium, plus upgrades to existing facilities, officials must make a convincing case by the time the April 6 election rolls around... Helping Haiti (01/24/10) A good many Southeast Missouri residents have connections to poverty-stricken Haiti, some through church organizations, some through their work with relief organizations and others who either have or have had family members living and working there... Safer highways (01/22/10) Several teenagers have died in recent years in highway accidents on the winding roads around the Bollinger County seat of Marble Hill, Mo. Relatives and friends have mourned these losses. One 15-year-old Woodland High School student believes highway safety can be improved. ... Cutting taxes (01/21/10) Cutting taxes to fuel the economy is a proven economic policy. Done right, tax cuts can spur business investment and create jobs, which in turn can generate more revenue than before the tax cuts. But when the economy is struggling and governments face huge shortfalls in revenue, cutting taxes becomes a more complex issue... Mentoring month (01/20/10) January is National Mentoring Month, an occasion to salute all those individuals and organizations that find ways to befriend and encourage others to have fun, study hard and make every effort to succeed. For hundreds of boys and girls, young men and women throughout Southeast Missouri, mentors provide the only positive role models in their lives. ... Choking off meth (01/19/10) Efforts to restrict access to a key ingredient in methamphetamine, a viciously addictive drug manufactured in makeshift labs from chemicals obtained from other products, are widening. In recent months several Missouri cities have adopted ordinances requiring prescriptions for over-the-counter cold and allergy medications containing pseudoephedrine. ... MLK: The dream (01/18/10) Today is the official federal holiday honoring the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This year the civil rights leader would have turned 81 years old. A week of special events have been scheduled. Events organized by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. City-Wide Celebration Committee, headed by the indefatigable Debra Mitchell-Braxton, began with last Thursday's birthday extravaganza. ... Eminent domain (01/17/10) Eminent domain is the process by which governments acquire private property for public use. The aim of eminent domain is to make sure property owners receive a fair price and that government doesn't have to pay more than a fair price. In recent years, however, eminent domain has been clouded by what many individuals see as abuses of the process... Costly choices (01/15/10) As the U.S. enters an election year that includes every seat in the U.S. House of Representatives and many other key races, two special elections -- in Hawaii and Massachusetts -- are grabbing considerable attention. In Hawaii, U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie, a Democrat, plans to resign at the end of February so he can campaign full time in his bid to become the state's next governor. ... 2010 census (01/14/10) 2010 is a census year. Efforts are well afoot to improve the every-10-year count nationwide. And in Southeast Missouri, a special push is being made to improve responses to surveys that will be mailed to households in March. The U.S. Census Bureau has set up a field office in Cape Girardeau that will oversee the count in a 31-county area. Government, business and civic leaders recently emphasized the importance of this year's census for Missouri... Warm and safe (01/13/10) Fire safety is a year-round concern, but during wintry blasts there are good reasons to be even more cautious. Recent residential fires remind us that using common sense while trying to keep warm is a good way to stay safe. Fireplaces, space heaters, kitchen oven and even stovetop burners to produce heat all have their perils... Missouri's gap (01/12/10) Missouri's budgeting process is a mixture of financial prudence and political policy. Early revenue estimates indicate this year's budget process will be brutal. To start with, the governor's office and legislative leaders have agreed on a consensus revenue estimate, which serves as something of a starting point. It is a guesstimate of how much revenue the state will take in. The CRE for fiscal year 2011, which starts July 1 of this year, shows just how difficult the budgeting process will be... AT&T's UW grant (01/11/10) One of the focus areas of United Way of Southeast Missouri programs is improving the success of students in our public schools. This effort got a boost last month with a $50,000 grant from AT&T through United Way Worldwide. Overall, AT&T has contributed $2 million to the program through AT&T Aspire, a $100 million initiative focused specifically on high school success and workforce readiness...