Speak Out 10/14/04

Making problems

IF ONLY religion would keep it's nose out of government then we would not have such a problem as we do today in the world. This country was not founded on religious principles. It was founded by our forefathers who wanted to steer away from religion in government. They established the first and current Constitution on common-sense morals. They did all they could to leave their home countries where religion was government. Why do you think we fought so hard during the Revolutionary War? It sure wasn't for Christianity! It seems to me that religion has made most of the problems in the United States.

Policing the world

IN RESPONSE to "Attack the Enemy," I hear you! People, both military and civilian alike, are having their lives terminated because someone wants to police the world. Has anyone ever thought of why a lot of the world hates the U.S.? They hate our country because our government goes around and forces our ways on them.

Bond issue math

Can anyone tell me why things are so hush hush about the Jackson bond issue? I'm still hearing that, in terms of actual classroom space, the new addition will not add more classroom space. Also, can anyone tell me why the junior high addition was 10 cents for a $7 million dollar addition and the high school is a $27 million dollar addition at the cost of around $70 million? Something doesn't add up.

School spending rises

RESPONDINGTO "Taxes Aren't the Answer": Cape's public schools spent $7,205 for each child attending last year (2003), which was up from $5,954 in 2001, and up 21 percent in two years. With inflation running at a lifetime low 2 percent, this 10 percent yearly increasing pace is five times inflation, and the truth is in 10 years each student will cost us $17,000 per year -- half what we pay each teacher today. As homeowners, what on earth can we expect our school taxes will be when inflation starts rising again? On this road unless this mismanagement is reined in, school taxes will double every five years!

Government we deserve

TAXES, TAXES, everybody hates to pay them, but nobody wants their favorite programs cut. Don't cut my bridge, my bike path, my museum, my study of teenage Goth culture. I had faith that the Republicans would cut spending when they finally won a majority in Congress and the White House. They talked so tough, but they only spent more and burdened us with more huge entitlements. We have to pay our debts and make the hard cuts. Will anybody ever do it? No, because the voters will defeat them at the polls. We get the government we deserve.

Ranchito drag strip

IF I were a Ranchito resident, I would have acted long ago to get one end of the street closed and put an end to the shameless short-cutting. It's done all the time in other places. Ranchito homeowners arise! Raise your property values! Make those people go around, like they should.

Power outage conspiracy

I THINK the shut down of SEMO's electricity was intentional and a conspiracy to keep students from watching the VP debates so that they would lose interest in the upcoming election. There is a concerted effort to suppress voting among 18- to 24-year olds.

Stronger punishment

THIS IS in response to the caller that suggested stronger punishment for meth users. I've got a good idea. Why don't we just decriminalize it and then we wouldn't have to worry about it.

Poor teaching

AFTER BEING told by school officials for years and listening to their propaganda that math is so important, I have to wonder then why so little attention is being paid to the math departments at Cape Central and Cape Junior High schools. We have teachers who never grade the homework. My daughter turns in all of her homework and gets a perfect score on everything because the teacher allows them to correct it from an overhead before they turn it in. She has all the corrected answers up on the overhead projector. The kids correct it all and turn in perfectly done problems. They may have missed every one originally but the teacher never knows that because she never sees their original work, she sees only their corrected work and so they get all these perfect scores until it's time for the test. I asked the teacher how she knows that the kids are having problems and she said that by correcting their own work, they should see where their problems are. Now, I'm not a math teacher and I don't know everything but none of this makes sense to me.

Changing values

GARY RUST'S focus on John Kerry's core values is unreal. Everyone has core values. Our life experiences and what we were taught shape what we believe. John Kerry was elected to represent the views of a group of people and he is open to doing that. It looks clear when he testified following the Vietnam War he was representing a group of soldiers. I admire John Kerry for being able to change the views he is representing when it is necessary. George Bush has changed his position on the war in Iraq. First it was weapons of mass destruction. Now it's to keep the terrorists away from this country.

Too many assaults

I LIVED in St. Louis for years and I've never heard of as many assaults on police officers as seems to happen in Cape. I think there needs to be an investigation into Cape Girardeau's arrest procedures. Maybe it's something they're doing wrong.

More liars

I JUST read in the paper about Martha Stewart. Why would they arrest her for lying when look how the president, the governor, all of the big people tell lies and they don't do anything about them.