Speak Out 4/17/07

Import concern

I WONDER if the pet food debacle will have any influence on people buying imported goods or things made from imported goods. It might be something worth considering.

And no taxes

PUBLIC SCHOOL choice may become reality in Missouri. Public schools could be filled with students, none of whose parents paid property taxes in the district. I'm for it.

Matter of principle

STATE SEN. Jason Crowell has been accused of abandoning Gov. Matt Blunt by voting to restore Medicaid funding in an effort to save himself from defeat. I think that's a cynical view and that Crowell realized that what he had done in voting for the cuts the first time around was a mistake. I applaud him for having the courage to switch his position as a matter of principle and truly believe the constituents he represents will agree.

Time with children

READING SOME of the comments from the Web poll on Easter created different emotions. I was most saddened by those who had no one to celebrate with. My children gathered together on Saturday evening to eat a meal, and we spent a little time together on Sunday before they had to return to their homes. How blessed I am to have that time with my children.

University mission

A COMMENT lamented the fact that Southeast Missouri State University is never mentioned in news stories regarding the New Madrid fault. Southeast administrators downgraded the importance of academic research in favor of establishing Southeast as a teaching university. This mission precluded investing in faculty, laboratories and equipment, etc. and instead allowed the Southeast leadership to spend money on Division I sports, Show Me Center, aquatic center and a River Campus that has more to do with local urban development than education.

Food comes first

EVERYONE SEEMS so excited over the alternative fuel production. But is it really accomplishing what it is advertised to do? The fuel is about 15 cents a gallon cheaper than the regular fuel, but when the prices of everything else goes up just because a farmer can get a little more money for his corn for fuel production, do you think it is really worth it? You can stay at home and be able to afford to eat lower-priced food, but you can't drink the ethanol.

Saving lives

AS A person speaking from scanner land, I hear the police make numerous traffic stops. Many of the people the police pull over are given tickets, maybe because they were speeding or maybe because they ran a red light. I believe the reason traffic stops are necessary is because it is a matter of public safety. Those of you who complain about cops writing tickets should be ashamed, because they are providing for your safety too. The cops also make many arrests of people who were in their vehicles. Criminals use cars just as much as any other person. Let the police do their jobs. Those traffic stops may save lives.

Action was needed

IT IS about time the Cape Girardeau School Board realized a change was needed at Central Middle School. The middle school is filled with creative, dedicated teachers who deserve support. It's a shame it has taken the district so long to make a change that has been needed for years. Although rebuilding a positive school climate among students, staff and community will not happen overnight, our students and staff members will be better off. Thank you, school board, for acting on a situation that has been unfair and a black eye on the community.

Being Frank

The firing of Frank Ellis

makes some good people cower

before a school board gone berserk,

obsessed with its own power.

I say, Bow your neck!

The board cannot do this

to a man of leadership

like Mr. Frank Ellis.

Thanks for contest

I WOULD like to thank all the people, organizations and schools who worked with the "fastest kid in Cape" contest. My son enjoyed it so much. What a wonderful thing. A big thanks to Southeast Missouri State University for sponsoring it and to the schools for their participation. Thanks again.

Questions for board

I WOULD like to know who our school board is representing regarding its decision to change leadership at Central Middle School. Since when do "good people" who are excellent leaders get dismissed because someone wants "a new direction"? What is this new direction our community must look forward to? These outstanding administrators have nurtured this school and the children of our community for the five years of its existence. I fear this "new direction" could be the demise of this developing school.

Good leadership

I THINK it is a shame Frank Ellis will not be the principal at Central Middle School any longer. This is a huge mistake. When my children were at CMS, we never had any communication problems. When my son was bullied, Ellis took care of it instantly and was always happy to talk to us as parents. When he made his rounds, the students would straighten up right away. If he saw boys with their pants hanging down and their underwear showing, he would cut a rope and make them a belt. He was always outside before and after school watching the children.

Use oil resources

AS OIL and gas prices climb due to increased worldwide demand and OPEC control, many people point to ethanol as some sort of cure-all for our dependence on foreign oil. There is not enough farmland in the country to grow enough corn to produce enough ethanol to fuel our needs. New technologies are coming, new sources of fuel, but they are not going to happen overnight. I would suggest you write your federal legislators and ask them to support development of our own petroleum resources, but they are the same people who voted down a similar bill a couple of years back. Don't complain about fuel prices. You put the people in office who opposed the fix.

Higher taxes, same services

TAXES CONTINUE to rise with no increase in the quality or volume of services provided to citizens. Officials say due to inflation costs are increasing, but as everything increases in price so does the amount of tax dollars the government gets, because sales taxes are based on percentages. Taxes should never be increased to provide the same services we currently have.

Time for change

I WANT to thank the Cape Girardeau School Board for doing something positive for Central Middle School. I removed my children last year from the public school system due to reverse discrimination, lack of discipline and overall chaos in the middle school. All children have the right to a safe school environment. I hope the teachers gain someone who will support them.

School teamwork

IN THE midst of the current activity at Central Middle School, I am reminded of a poem written by Ray A. Lingenfelter titled "Unity": "I dreamed I stood in a studio and watched two sculptors there. The clay they used was a young child's mind and they fashioned it with care. One was a teacher and the tools she used were books and music and art. One was a parent with a guiding hand and a gentle, loving heart. And when at last their work was done, they were proud of what they had wrought. For the things they had worked into the child could never be sold or bought. And each agreed she would have failed if she had worked alone. For behind the parent stood the school and behind the teacher the home." How sad to see that lack of teamwork.