Speak Out 11/28/11

Great reporting

I want to thank the Southeast Missourian for some bang-up reporting. Too often I think that I and others take what you do for granted. Your opinion about Cape Girardeau County officials' salaries was important. Hopefully it sparks better thinking about this issue. And the city council discussion about the CVB one-time funds indicates that without the newspaper, even city council members might not know what is going on some of the time. Few people say it, but I will: Thanks for what you do.

Women in business

THE business 2011 reporting about Sandy Hastings was well written and explained the professional cleaning service extremely well. It's always good to learn the success of small, locally owned businesses in our area.

Neighborhood hero

REGARDING the Southeast Missourian's front page "Neighborhood hero" article, let me get this straight. If I were a 20-year-old college student with an entry-level waitressing job, a live-in boyfriend, a mom and five pets and I bought a house I knew was in need of repair, I could get $20,000 from the Hero Grant Program and have my house fixed -- including cosmetic repairs such as painting and light fixtures. I'd be smiling like a Cheshire cat, too. I don't have a problem with the program's intent, just with those who qualify. And we wonder why the government is going bankrupt.

School taxes

I agree with the school taxes comment. I think when you do not have children and you've never had children and you're older, it really is silly to have to pay school taxes. We have money that needs to go to other places, especially if you are on a fixed income.

Home program

I'M so glad I got to help pay for repairs to your home while you enjoy your two dogs and three cats. At the same time, my wife and I work our tails off, yet we can only afford one dog and one cat. Does it ever end?

Salaries editorial

IF you took the time to dissect the propagandistic diatribes appearing on the opinion page of the Southeast Missourian the way you did with "the spin" and "untangled" assault on county government salaries, then each issue of the paper would be on average -- according to my calculations -- 1,112 pages long.

County officials, CEOs

TO refer to relatively meager salary increases for county officials as "insensitive during this economy" and to have never (as far as I know) editorially railed against the many outrageous CEO salaries and bonuses often reported in the news at least allows us to realize that the Southeast Missourian has shown its true colors and firmly sided with Wall Street over Main Street.

Balance budget

SO the supercommittee could not cut $1.2 trillion over 10 years when we owe more than $15 trillion. What does this mean? Were they trying to cut $120 billion each year for 10 years? Was this a real cut from the level of spending of 2010 or was this just a cut in the level of projected increases? You know in Washington we can increase spending by 5 percent and say that it is a 3 percent cut because we were planning to increase spending by 8 percent. We must balance the budget now.

Dress code

WHEN it comes to formulating a dress code for the Cape Girardeau public schools, I think the parental committee whose task it is to make recommendations should consist of members of the 99 percent instead of the Wall Street connected. Students simply will not be able to afford $2,000 pairs of pants and a plutocratic $4,500 polo.

Limbaugh column

WHEN you think of David Limbaugh you think of hyperbole, exaggeration, excess, etc. However, he has now thrust himself squarely into the running for journalists' prestigious understatement of the year award with his recent comment that "conservatives often concede the weaknesses of [Newt Gingrich, Herman Cain, etc.]."

School's assumptions

EXCUSE me, but I think the upper hierarchy in the Jackson School District has adopted some egregiously, erroneous, epistemological assumptions that are leading to some patently outrageous, pedagogical outcomes.