Speak Out 4/13/07

Waste of tax dollars

THE NEW interchange connecting Interstate 55 to East Main Street in Jackson is wasting our precious tax dollars. There is no need for an interchange in the middle of farmland and cow pastures. Interstate travelers already have enough options for exits (Fruitland and Jackson/Cape Girardeau). We should be putting this money toward something that will really pay off in the long run, like education, Medicare or Social Security. This interchange will not bring about an increase in tourism or benefit the surrounding cities and towns.

Goings-on at the jail

I SPENT time in the county jail, and I saw a lot of things going on there like smoking in the showers, passing notes under the door to the other cell block and even inmates trading food for prescription drugs. Wake up, people. The doors between the pods are under the stairs. The deputy can't watch all of them at once, even with cameras.

Walter Reed info

PRIOR TO the start of the war in Iraq, Walter Reed Army Medical Center was on the chopping block and was to be demolished. It was so outdated that renovation was not feasible. There was no funding to replace the facility. Those outraged members of Congress for most of two decades have done almost nothing to fund updated medical facilities for our military personnel and, in fact, authorized little funding for Walter Reed when it was kept open because of the war.

Placing blame

IS THE person lambasting the Democrats for higher gas prices so out of touch to think the Democrats can repair in four months what it took the Republicans six years to create? At least I hear the Democrats talking about topics which affect the American worker, not just those in the upper income brackets. Let's put the blame where it belongs.

Overloaded system

DOES ANYONE find it appalling that during 2006 over 560 children from nine Southeast Missouri counties were evaluated for reported sexual or physical abuse at the SEMO Network Against Sexual Violence office? Isn't it time our local prosecutors and judges get a grip on this outrage? When something gets as prevalent as child molestation has become, the system becomes overloaded and unable to function as it should.

Cape's drug problem

THE WELL-KNOWN drug problem in Cape Girardeau will never end until we get a no-nonsense police chief who will be more proactive with the fight against drugs. Look at all our recent robberies, all drug-related. It's time for a leadership change.

Support for Imus

FOR YEARS I have watched the Don Imus show. I like Imus. This is a man who has done a lot for children on his ranch in New Mexico. I think it is wrong that Imus has been suspended from NBC and CBS radio for two weeks. Imus hasn't done anything worse than what Limbaugh, Hannity and the rappers do or say everyday. There are some who have made this a political football. Imus has apologized repeatedly for his comments. Lift the suspension, stop playing the race card and put him back on the air.

University's pool

LIKE A previous caller, I'm getting tired of Southeast Missouri State University making stupid decisions and then trying to pass off the expenses of those decisions to either Cape Girardeau taxpayers or students. SEMO is building a pool? What about the two pools it closed due to lack of use? I have a better idea. Let's eliminate two administrative jobs and later, if it appears the jobs were actually needed, let's hire one person to replace those two.

Calming message

ALL YOU global warming handwringers should read a Newsweek article by Richard S. Lindzen, a professor of meteorology at MIT. His basic message is calm down. Temperatures have always fluctuated, and predictions of doom are premature.

Crime in Cape

THEFT IS on the rise in Cape Girardeau as well as vandalism and sexual assaults. The near south side is filled with drugs and prostitution. The near west section of town suffers from vandalism on a regular basis. I have seldom seen a patrol car on my street or in my neighborhood. Instead they are in the downtown area or following some children or young adults who may have a large pocketbook to see if they make one small driving infraction. This allows them to pull them over and begin the revenue ritual. I'm tired of it. The police need a new plan. If they patrol the areas where they know drugs and crime are breeding they also limit the amount everywhere in town. Let's solve some real issues.

Open enrollment

SINCE SO many schools are under investigation regarding students who are not going to school in their districts, get the government on the ball and get the bill passed for open enrollment. Who cares where the tax money goes? Think about the education of our children. That should be the most important goal of anyone.