Speak Out 4/20/11

Backward projects

THE trail that runs through Cape Girardeau was said to be for joggers and cyclists. Why do we need to waste more money that could be used to fix roads like Lexington Avenue (instead of patching and making them worse) to make a separate trail for cyclists? Whoever is in charge of making these decisions is wasting our tax money hand over fist with these backward projects.

Bankrupting state

IT appears that Gov. Nixon, if we don't get him out of office soon and get somebody else to take his place, is going to bankrupt the state of Missouri, and everybody in Missouri is going to be jobless.

Life is precious

TAXPAYER money should not go to Planned Parenthood because they perform abortions. If Planned Parenthood's contraceptives were doing a good job there would be no abortions. Abortion is not health care and taxpayers should not have to pay for them. All life is precious.

On the job training

OBAMA for a second term? You've got to be kidding. It would be the "kiss of death" for the U.S. if this Chief Ditherer gets four more years of on-the-job training.

Military spending

AMERICAN cowardice is killing this country. We spend $700 billion in military spending. Wake up America. No other country in the world spends such a high amount of the GDP on military as we do.

GOP hypocrisy

THE total increase pushed for by the great fiscal conservative, small government Republicans from 2002 through 2007 equals $4 trillion. Wake up, people, and stop listening to the propagandists and vote all these crooks out of office.

Unfair tax code

WE are senior citizen retirees. Counting required IRA distributions, we are just inside the 25 percent federal income tax bracket. You can't print what we have to say to Republicans who want to dismantle Medicare and put Bill Gates in the same tax bracket as us.

China's problems

IS anybody paying attention to news coming out of China in regard to pollution? They're having trouble with pollution and health problems from it. Also, the workers are starting to complain about how they're treated in the workplace environment. They're also concerned about global warming.

Waiting on Dems

HOUSE Republicans are waiting on the Democrats to show up to work and the President to stop vetoing everything.

Balance the budget

THERE'S a very brave young representative in the U.S. House who has devised a plan to balance the budget. His name is Paul Ryan. But the Democrats are saying his plan is too draconian, that it's too much, that he's cutting too many programs, that he's doing too much stuff, and yet his budget won't balance for 28 years. He's not doing enough. We got to cut spending. We've got to balance this budget.

Truancy solution

I agree with a recent Speak Out comment on how parents have been punished over their child's truancy. What if the parent has other children? Surely at home they've got to take care of them, and they punish the parents. The commenter said to get the parent to agree to some kind of detention, and if the students realize that's what's going to happen to them, that would probably stop the truancy. That's getting right at the solution for the problem.

Unemployment benefits

THIS is about the unemployed people not looking for jobs. I see why they don't want to look for jobs. When you work at a $8-an-hour job for 40 hours a week, that's just $320. Why would you go look for a job when you can draw that kind of money and not do anything, not even have to look for work?

Kids in school

I think it's the parents' responsibility to get their children to school. There's really no excuse. Children need to be in school.

Obama's failure

THE only way that the deficit will be reduced and our country given back to us is to get President Obama out of the White House. Wake up, people. Remember what you've put up with for the last couple years.

Airport security

I keep seeing on TV where people are criticizing the security people at airports for patting down children. How ridiculous can a person's thinking get? These criticizing people don't believe that a terrorist would load a child with explosives? Come on. We know there's nothing they won't do to terrorize people or kill them, and using a child would not bother them one iota.

Liquor licenses

I think a casino will be a real shot in the arm for Cape Girardeau. The biggest mistake the city council can make is to issue more liquor licenses. There are already too many bars downtown. I believe that's why many people stay away. Most cities only issue a certain number of licenses per capita.

Right-to-work

THE main concern I have is that if Missouri becomes a right-to-work state then the wages will be affected for every worker out there. Without the unions there will be no one to stand up for your rights with big companies, and prevailing wage jobs are few and far between. Not just the union workers will be affected by this bill.

Helping others

I consider our family in the middle class, but as the figures show we are in the poor class. However, I do not think we are too good to pay our share of taxes, unlike the rich Republicans who want it all. Look at all the things that have been happening -- tornadoes, earthquakes, fires, floods and uprisings. They had better start thinking differently, as I believe we are getting a message that we should be helping others.

Shifting responsibility

IN ending Medicare as we know it, House Republicans just voted to shift the responsibility to already cash strapped state governments. What a great idea.