LETTERS: COUNTY ZONING OPENS DOOR TO GOVERNMENT

To the editor:

You April 29 editorial, "Zoning for county," deserves reply from rural Cape Girardeau County.

Is government not big enough -- or too big -- already? Must we now set in motion a zoning ordinance which, stretched to the extreme, would allow the county commission to decide what type fence post to use and where to place it for cow pastures? I intentionally used an extreme example to point out the basic: once government gets a foot in the door, government keeps opening that door wider and wider, controlling more and more.

True, the Cape Girardeau County Commission is seeking public input on this matter, unlike the proposal for the juvenile center which surprised residents bordering Klaus Park, the airport board and nearly the entire county.

May I submit that we need to use common sense, not mandated zoning, for future county development. Unfortunately, common sense cannot be legislated, so we must trust our neighbors. Such trust would provide strength and security unmatched anywhere in this great country.

I urge everyone to contact the county commission and voice disapproval for county zoning.

RON WOOLDRIDGE

Chaffee