Speak Out 2/27/09

Thanks, Sheriff

CONGRATULATIONS to Sheriff Rick Walter. Thank goodness for him. Everybody else had given up on the case where Joshua Kezer was imprisoned wrongly. I want to thank Walter for the job he did.

Off to the White House

I will be the first to admit that I was skeptical when Joe Sullivan began writing columns about serious economic matters. "What does Joe know about this subject?" I asked myself, the recipient of a self-conferred Ph.D. in economics. But, as I (at first reluctantly) began to read his complex economic analyses of things he could put in language understandable to the average American, I changed my mind. In fact, I have written to President Obama and urged him to hurriedly make another seat available and then appoint Joe Sullivan to the White House Council of Economic Advisers.

Hulshof's stance

KUDOS to the Southeast Missourian editorial board for its courageous "Hulshof's stance in this case is legal arrogance" response to his outrageous condemnation of the judicial system for exonerating Josh Kezer. I think a grand jury needs to be convened to investigate this whole mess.

Lip-service justice

I want to commend the Southeast Missourian for the complete coverage of the Josh Kezer case. I also want to commend Sheriff Rick Walter, who is what law enforcement should be about: objective. He dug deep and realized that the facts didn't add up. This is what justice is about. Our justice system is built on a foundation that a guilty man set free is not worth an innocent man imprisoned. And if we are content that it's OK as long as there is a conviction, we do only lip service to what we call justice.

No mortgage bailout

PRESIDENT Obama is talking about bailing out the mortgages on houses where the loan is more than the value of the house. Something's wrong with this. These people have to learn a lesson by losing what they have. They're not going to learn by someone else taking care of the problem. It is ridiculous for taxpayers to support such actions.

Where's the change?

PRESIDENT Obama, in his campaign, said we're going to have change, yet about half of his Cabinet is recycled from the Clinton administration. Where's the change in that?

Sending troops

WHEN President Bush sent troops overseas, he was a warmonger. Now President Obama is sending more troops. Why people aren't talking about him? He's not bringing them home, as he promised.

Paying the price

I hope Joshua Kezer gets the justice he deserves. I hope everyone who was involved, from law enforcement to the prosecutor, gets what they deserve. I also hope the Lawless family gets justice. Money cannot make up for the 15 years that boy sat in jail and prison. But if he takes down the people were responsible, that's all that matters.

Thanks for help

I would like to thank the young man who helped me at Saint Francis Medical Center near the helicopter pad last week. I'm sorry I didn't get his name. I was so distraught, I made a wrong turn and got stuck in mud. They say angels come in all sizes. That young man was an angel. I cannot thank him enough. He stayed with me until I got the car out of the mud. There are a lot of good people left in the world. All we have to do is look a little bit.

Prodigal son

THE Speak Out section consists of whiners who claim to have gotten everything right in managing their finances by living within their means. Bashing of the Obama administration is the topic of the day. One comment states that all belief systems -- Christian, Jewish, Buddhist -- reward those who do good and punish those who are greedy and selfish. Read about the prodigal son in the Bible for a better understanding of the Scripture.