Speak Out 11/22/03

Thinking ahead

IT IS all good and well that Councilman Jay Purcell worked as a garbage collector for one day. But until you do a job every day, you don't have a clue as to what goes on. I just bet Purcell will be running for mayor in the future. What do you bet?

A sense of humor

I CHUCKLED when I saw the sign in front of Immaculate Conception School in Jackson. It just goes to show that, despite all the tornado devastation on May 6, we still have our sense of humor and thank God every day that no one was hurt.

Give students a choice

I THINK high school students should decide whether they want to go to an assembly to honor veterans. If the majority of students want to stay in the classroom, that's how it should be. Or perhaps they could be trusted to go to the assembly, behave and then get back for the next class. There will always be parents who bellyache. You can't make everybody happy.

Drive-up drug dealing

OVER ON Hanover Street, we have a lot of drug activity. I'd like to know who owns the building at the corner of Hanover and Bloomfield. There's a lot of drug dealing there. It's like driving up to a service window. I wish that would come to a halt.

Loyal support

IN ANSWER to the "Other consideration" comment: If the war on terrorism isn't won, you won't have to worry about health care and wages. The United States was attacked, and we have a loyal president who answered that challenge. Support loyal efforts for our country and our brave soldiers, and don't be a wimp and shirk your responsibility.

Fairer drug prices

I AGREE with U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson that the price of drugs are too high in this country. My answer would be to require members of Congress to get enough backbone to pass a law that would force drug companies to adopt a fair pricing policy. There's no good reason for our drug companies to charge all of the cost of product development to U.S. drug users and sell at much lower prices throughout the rest of the world.

Sleeping giant

EVIDENTLY OUR school superintendent, Mark Bowles, has never heard of a Pyrrhic victory when you win the battle but lose the war. He irritated the Southeast Missourian by not letting its reporter into a meeting, but he let in a citizen who wasn't on the task force, which makes no sense at all. Hasn't Bowles learned that sometimes you don't want to wake a sleeping giant? The newspaper has been very supportive of the Cape Girardeau School District in recent years, and he may have ruined that. Parents know what Bowles is like, and we're glad the Southeast Missourian is finally looking at him with closer scrutiny. Citizens of this community need to know what's really going on.

Combine duties

THE CAPE Girardeau School District needs to cut the junior high school athletic director position. Activities directors in St. Louis not only cover athletics but all activities at their school including band, clubs, fund raising, orchestra, plays and much more. Why is Cape paying two people to do less work? Why isn't the administration not looking into these things?

Instilling respect

THIS IS in response to the "Bring paddles back" comment. Kids don't have the least bit of fear in adults these days. When I was a child, rarely did I ever get a spanking because I knew better. I knew I would get into trouble, and I didn't want to get a spanking. I also had this thing called respect, which is something children these days don't know the meaning of. There is a right way and a wrong way to discipline children. Like the old mother's curse, your child will do you the way you did me -- only worse. This world will need some serious help with future generations.