Speak Out 06/13/04

Tax relief works

THE AMERICAN people have used their money far better than the federal government would have. I've read several publications recently that show the economy is strong and getting stronger. Last month America added 288,000 new jobs. Manufacturing jobs have increased for three months. Since August our economy has added more than 1.2 million new jobs. In the first quarter of 2004 the economy grew at a strong rate of 4.2 percent, and over the past year economic growth has been the fastest in two decades. Mortgage and interest rates are near historic lows. America's economy is the fastest growing of any major industrialized nation. Tax relief seems to be working rather well.

No summer off

YOU MIGHT get paid more as a waitress in St. Louis, but won't get the summer off like the teacher in Cape Girardeau does.

Enforce the ratings

THE R rating at movies needs to be enforced. Sometimes adults are out at movies and don't think a 16-year-old has any business at it. It's a sad parent who doesn't want to sit through a movie with the kids. If they don't, then the kid should stay home like the parents do.

Paving priorities

I READ that the Missouri Department of Transportation is going to repave I-55 from Benton to Sikeston. MoDOT ought to check on the road from New Madrid (Exit 44) down to Exit 40. It's in awful shape. It needs repaving worse than the highway north of Sikeston. There are other parts of I-55 that need it more.

Highway funding

WHERE'S ALL our tax money going from diesel fuel and gasoline? Around the big cities there's a lot of highway construction work. But the rural interstates are going all to pieces. And there's so much more traffic, four or five times as much as there was 20 years ago. Our legislators are not speaking up for us. They giving the money to the big cities.

Fill the potholes

I'D LIKE to send this message to the Missouri Department of Transportation to let the highway officials know there are some tremendous potholes in the northbound and southbound lanes on I-55 between Sikeston and Cape Girardeau. They're especially bad north of the Scott City interchange up to Cape Girardeau both north and southbound. We sure would appreciate it if MoDOT could get a crew out here and put some asphalt in these holes. It sure is rough on tires and front-end alignment. It probably wouldn't take more than half a day to do that. If you could fill these holes, we'd appreciate it.

No need for threats

I AM extremely happy that our fire tax passed. It's a shame that firefighters and police officers don't get paid what their worth. But I'm not a bit happy with the way our mayor went about getting these votes. Threatening the city with no more spring cleanup and other services that really help keep our town looking nice is not the way to win over voters.

Grabbing impulses

STEVE ROBERTSON has made some OK points in his columns. But his examples are weak. Research studies indicate that highway billboards are not particularly good at getting people to stop at a town unless the boards promote readily available brands. Even then, the stop remains largely an impulse decision dependent on just where in the trip the traveler is. As for promoting unique businesses, the rare time this is successful is when dozens and dozens of billboards are purchased. Still, that alone won't get someone to stop. Effective billboard campaigns are usually only a small part of larger media. Robertson is right about one item though. If specific gas stations would promote the cost of their gas and this gas was in fact much cheaper than elsewhere, then more people would be likely to stop. But I'm not sure it's the role of the CVB to do that.

Make them work

THERE SHOULD be a time frame on how long a family lives in a HUD house. These people qualify because they have low incomes. Maybe they have low incomes because they do not work. Make these people get out and get a job.