Speak Out 4/24/15

Ballot palette

It seems like the city of Cape Girardeau has a new tax increase for the voters to approve on almost every ballot. And now that gasoline is finally affordable, politicians, including some in the Missouri State Legislature, have proposed raising the fuel tax. They would not think of cutting unnecessary, redundant and wasteful government programs in order to fund needed projects. That is too much work for lazy politicians to do. It is much easier to ask the taxpayers for more money. Taxpayers now must work almost four months of the year to pay all state, federal and local taxes, and the amount of time needed to achieve tax-freedom day have been increasing steadily for years. Soon there will be a very simple tax return. The first line will read "what you made last year" and the second line will read "send it."

That's rich

It's hilarious that someone would call out the Republican party for being rich in their perception. With what? They think the Clintons aren't rich? I mean after the criticism for the outlandish amount Bill Clinton and possibly Hillary too for speaking engagements. There was some criticism to the outlandish amount of money these people get when speaking. The Clintons are rich, too, is the point. The closest to a poor man that we've had running for president lately was Obama. It's just a thought to keep in mind.

Beholder's eyes

Those who hate and bully and pick on others are very unhappy with something inside themselves. You need to go look in the mirror and learn how to love yourself, warts and all. Only then can you learn to like and love others. Remember, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, and pretty is as pretty does.

Police accountability

I disagree with the St. Louis editorial writer, and the reason is because I think the safety of policemen should be protected such as the instance of the cop in Ferguson. For a while, they had to keep his name private because it was for his safety and his family's safety. If you have a group of people going haywire, you know, you have to protect those who have called to protect. There's too much of this, they're public officers, we're entitled to know. They're not paid enough for what they do, policemen, basically.

Option game

That is ridiculous that children can opt out of taking standardized tests such as Common Core testing. The girl in the picture looks smart enough. When I was in school, I wouldn't even have thought twice; it wasn't even a consideration of opting out. You say there, you took your test. I personally wish the school district would help them opt back in immediately by saying there will be no high school diploma if you have not taken your standardized testing. That's the way to solve that problem.

Never imagined

I never thought I would see the day in America when a Christian baker would be forced out of business and in danger of losing her home simply because she didn't want to bake the cake for a same-sex wedding. That day is now here; 400 years ago, people fled Europe and came to this land so they could live their lives, run their businesses and worship according to their religious beliefs without the government telling them what those beliefs should be. After looking at Indiana, it's obvious that President Obama and the Democrats believe the government and the courts should have the power to force people to participate in activities that go against their religious beliefs. Amazing. The progressives have taken us back 400 years. The Christian baker can take comfort in one fact, however; she is losing her business and home in the name of "tolerance."