Speak Out 2/28/06

Liberal Bush

DAVID LIMBAUGH'S failed efforts to go to the well one more time to try to convince us that President Bush is OK because he's no worse than President Clinton is puzzling. It is a pitiful attempt to save the increasingly sinking presidency of the liberal (that's right, liberal) George W. Bush.

Cut the bias

IT IS impossible to read the Missourian and not clearly read that it has such a bias toward support for the River Campus regardless of how much taxpayer money is spent or if it is done legally. The recent article charging House Speaker Rod Jetton with taking money for services provided -- come on, that is so obvious a biased article. Report the news as it is and cut out the bias.

Golf and catfish

JOE SULLIVAN has come clean about his fantasy of a downtown golf course. It is obviously a farce. Why would anyone even consider such a preposterous suggestion? Yet it makes more sense than spending $50 million on a school to teach singing, dancing and acting. So maybe it is true. Bring on the golf and catfish.

Doesn't make sense

IF ISLAM is a religion of peace and its followers think their holy book is truly holy, why would one group of Muslims blow up the mosque of another group of Muslims when they know that there are plenty of holy books inside that mosque, and then that group of Muslims retaliates by blowing up other mosques that belong to the other group of Muslims? This religion certainly is not peaceful. The whole thing doesn't make any sense.

Complex understanding

WE HAVE known for years that the public schools have been graduating kids who can't read and write. But I read recently in the paper something that's even more astounding. Fifty percent of the students at four-year colleges and more than 75 percent at two-year colleges lack the skills to perform complex tasks such as understand the arguments of a newspaper editorial, comparing credit-card offers with different interest rates and annual fees or summarize the results of a survey about parental involvement in school. Schools are getting worse.

Crisis issue

I JUST finished reading the article about the findings of the steering committees for the Cape Girardeau School District. I applaud and agree with all issues that were raised by the committees. However, the most pressing issue raised is the problem of at-risk students. As an employee of the district, I believe this problem must be addressed and quickly. If we do not identify and help these students early on, they are lost. I hope the school board will move quickly to expand the alternative school to include fifth and sixth grade. The issue of at-risk students, in my opinion, is at a crisis level.

Driving oddities

IT WAS amusing to read Bob and Callie Miller lamenting ("He said/she said") the woes of driving in Chicago. An even funnier column would be "Getting across Cape Girardeau between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m." I've taken to calling this area the "Land of Nobody Uses His Turn Signal, and Interstate On Ramps Are for Slowing Down."

Out of touch

REGARDLESS OF the bond structure for Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus, I have always been irate that the state helped fund Mizzou Arena while the state was in such dire financial circumstances, but it left other important initiatives and projects out in the cold. State Rep. Carl Bearden, state Sen. Jason Crowell, House Speaker Rod Jetton and the rest of the legislature need to get their funding priorities straight. This recent squabble shows just how out of touch they are with their constituents.

A better city

WE AREN'T all stupid in Scott City. Some of us enjoy a city looking out for decent folks and its children.

Military heroes

I AM proud of any man or woman serving in our nation's military. For those Americans who are not supporting our troops, think about the things you are allowed to do because you are free. My husband is serving in Iraq, and he has seen his friends hurt and killed. He is missing out on seeing his children because he is fighting for his country. He chose this life. You should be glad my husband and others have chosen that life. I will never again take for granted the freedoms we have in America. And though I do not want my husband over there, I am proud of him and hope and pray that when he comes home he will be greeted with nothing but cheers. He is a hero, and so are all the others serving our country.

Mardi Gras revenue

I DON'T agree with all the decisions that were made in New Orleans, but holding Mardi Gras this year was a good call based on economics alone. A 2003 study showed that the city spends $4.6 million on Mardi Gras, but it takes in $20.5 million in extra tax revenue. The city needs it now more than ever.

Fattening the coffers

NO DOUBT House Speaker Rod Jetton made sure his political consulting corporation was legal before setting it up in order to receive funds from state Sen. Jason Crowell's campaign treasury. That it appears unethical in many ways is a moot point. It seems to some of us that, at the salaries and benefits we give our politicians, they should be considered full-time employees, which doesn't appear to have been the intent in the beginnings of our government. Many of them, like Jetton, are using their political powers and ties to fatten their coffers. That these people take such advantage of what we, in voting, have given them is rather disgusting.

Speeding in Chaffee

I WOULD like to know why Chaffee police won't patrol our streets like they used to. Every time I go to the store I see someone traveling fast on Highway 77 and not stopping at stop sign.

Gentle bull terriers

BULL TERRIERS make intelligent and loyal family pets. Welsh corgis are skittish and hyperactive. They have been known to bite their own masters with very little provocation. There is a far greater chance a Welsh corgi would attack you before a playful and even-tempered bull terrier would.

Political feedback

SECRETARY OF State Robin Carnahan believes that requiring a photo ID to vote would be too much of a hardship on seniors. It couldn't be that her statements are mainly political, could it? In this country, if one party suggests something, the other party absolutely must find a way to appeal to our uncommon sense as to why we should not have such a rule, right?