Speak Out 1/15/06

Saving gasoline

ACCORDING TO the Department of Energy, you save 10 percent for each 5 miles per hour you reduce your speed over 60 mph. That might be something to make speeders think a little bit.

Women's rights

WHAT I can't understand is these women's groups screaming for equality for women but never endorsing freedom for Arab women who can't go to school, show their face, work or even speak in public. They denounce any action to free these women except for a whimpering statement to the U.N. about how poorly they've been treated. The president, who is responsible for Iraq's and Afghanistan's freedom, is attacked daily by these women. What can you expect from those who think a woman's rights includes killing her children with abortion because it's her body?

Highway cleanup

WHOEVER IS cleaning up Route K: It looks terrific. I can't wait to see it this summer.

Reward in heaven

HOW PROUD I am to be the mother of Dr. Robert Perry and the mother-in-law of Jane Perry. These two deserve great respect and a great reward, not here on earth, but in heaven. They do so many things for people. It's amazing. We'll never know the extent of the things they have done. I hear people say, "Your son gave me this" or "Your son did that." They take people into their home and feed them and never complain about the extra work. This has to be a God thing. The Bible says to love your neighbor as yourself, and it also says, "I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was naked and you clothed me and I was in prison and you came to visit me." How much more will God feed them, clothe them and visit them in their time of spiritual imprisonment because of all they do? Thank God for a family that loves the Lord.

Construction zones

IF YOU exceed the speed limit in a construction zone, your fine will be higher. This is great. I agree with that. But it should apply only in the construction zones where there are workers. Up and down Interstate 55 you see signs about a construction zone for the next 50-plus miles, but you only see two or three places where crews are working.

Pictures show shut-ins

SINCERE THANKS to Sunday's Missourian for the article and pictures showing the condition of rock formations at Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park. Those of us who've known the shut-ins for many years wanted to know what the torrents of water from the reservoir break had done to that area. Thanks to the pictures and article in the Missourian, we now know the condition of the shut-ins and are relieved to know the rocks are unharmed. The state park should remain closed this summer so that nature and workmen can clean up and restore as much as possible.

Costly council members

IT IS astounding to see what Cairo, Ill., council members are paid for their part-time jobs. One wonders what governmental agencies are thinking, especially in an area as depressed as Cairo.