Speak Out 1/12/03

Dealing with reality

A PRAGMATIST deals with reality. A dreamer buries his head in the sand, refusing to face reality. Sept. 11, 2001, was a wake-up call to reality and must be dealt with by supporting our president.

Cuts for those who pay

EVERY DEMOCRAT is howling about tax cuts for the rich. Who pays most taxes of all taxes? Shouldn't there be a tax cut for businesses and investors to help grow business and employ more people? How many jobs did you ever get from a poor person? Big Government is the real way to poverty and less freedom.

Drinking-age draft

I WOULD like to speak out about the draft. Let's not draft anybody under 21. After all, you have to be 21 and older to drink.

More jobs, more income

MISSOURI'S IN just a little bit of an economic problem right now. What we need is more jobs and more income. So how do you get more jobs and more income? You have lower taxes. Taxes discourage people from creating jobs and more income. But if you reduce taxes, you get more jobs and income.

Treaty inspectors

A NON-AGGRESSION treaty between the United States and North Korea would have to include inspectors stationed in North Korea. Otherwise, the treaty would be a sham.

Burning trash

I LIVE on Spanish Street near a vacant lot there all kinds of trash is being burned. I wish the city would do something about it, because it's really a problem.

Not such a big sin

IF YOU buy a lottery ticket, it's not as though you're committing a major sin, It's not like you've robbed a business to get the money. A church getting a tithe of lottery winnings might look the other way. Apparently the Lord meant this man to have all this money. I think it's a good thing that he's willing to give some money to churches that can reach out and help people.

Good destination

ST. LOUIS doesn't have much to offer? St. Louis is a mecca of things to do. Anytime I have the extra cash, I go to St. Louis. And now I've discovered Memphis. Being a transplant to this area, it's taken me a little while to discover Memphis, but I think St. Louis is an absolutely wonderful town. St. Louis has the zoo, the arch and museums.

Beautiful plans

CONGRATULATIONS TO Paula Kempe who wrote a letter about the River Campus. I too have had the pleasure of seeing the new conceptual drawings, and I agree that they are both beautiful and much more practical than the original renderings implied. The new design accentuates the beautiful seminary structure, and the university is obviously going out of its way to retain the quality of those architectural cues. The remainder of the new construction blends beautifully with the rolling hill of the seminary and coordinates with the river setting. I would like to add my congratulations to the architectural design team and the university and the city, which have obviously worked closely together to make sure that this is a beautiful and very practical and functional facility. I cannot wait to see this completed.

Parental guidance

I'M CALLING about the Speak Out caller who said she visited an out-of-control class. The responsibility comes down to parents. If parents were teaching their children properly, their children wouldn't be acting like that. Since teachers are not allowed to spank children and discipline them, it's no wonder why 9-year-olds are killing each other. It's ridiculous to blame it on the teachers. The teachers have no control over the child's learning before they start school, and that's when children learn how to behave. We need to realize that this is a self-responsibility issue. Everybody else is not responsible for you or your children.

Low-score complaints

UNDERSTANDABLY, those who complain the loudest about ACT and SAT scores are those who, like me, made a low score.

Cut academics first

CAN WE be truthful? Schools exist for the purpose of socialization and providing opportunities for athletic competition and other extracurricular activities. If we want to make spending cuts, we should start in the area with which society is least concerned: academics.

Purse is returned

I WANT to give my heartfelt thanks to the person who found and returned a purse at Wal-Mart on Saturday. May God's blessings shine upon that person.

Getting rid of fluff

WHAT IS fluff? Take a look at the new Central High School library and the expensive and unnecessary sound system or the coffee area or all the unused computers there that remain on all the time. This is fluff that could be used to pay for better teachers. Or how about the outrageous salaries to administrators? This is what I propose to cut. Send some of these assistants back into the classroom to offset overcrowded class sizes.