OpinionApril 28, 2007
Speak Out 4/28/07
Thanks for support; Stick to music; Paying their share; Movement problem; Follow the arrows; Accident in the making; Toward contentment; Matter of life; Domestic gunfire; Less space for deer; Gambling ideas; Now that's serious; Watch out for deer; Not on Social Security; City needs change; Universal education; County rankings; Using carbon; It won't work; No bike lanes; Departing deputies; Playing politics
Thanks for support
THANK YOU so much, Rust Communications, for sponsoring "42nd Street" produced by Southeast Missouri State University's departments of theater and dance and music. Professional-quality shows like this cannot be done at the college level without this sort of financial help, and I know the Department of Theatre and Dance truly appreciates all you've done for them. Productions of such magnificent scale and talent make me proud to be a Southeast student.
Stick to music
SHERYL CROW wants to add a wiping sleeve to the already atrocious table manners that can be seen in almost every restaurant around? Please, Sheryl, go back to singing.
Paying their share
I AM tired of the misconception that the wealthy don't pay their share of income taxes. Comments have been made regarding President Bush's tax return and allegedly how little he paid in taxes. I invite anyone to do a Web search on presidential income-tax returns. The Bushes had taxable income of $642,905 and a total income tax of $186,378. That's an effective tax rate of 29 percent on their taxable income. This example may not be a millionaire's return, but the wealthy still pay their share.
Movement problem
THE ENVIRONMENTAL movement (no pun intended) may be in big trouble if Sheryl Crow becomes its spokeswoman.
Follow the arrows
PLEASE FOLLOW the directional arrows in parking lots. People who drive the wrong direction through lots with angled parking make it dangerous for others.
Accident in the making
ONE OF these days while driving I'm going to have to stop suddenly, and the ensuing accident is going to be the fault of someone who was tailgating.
Toward contentment
WHOLESOME VALUES guide us toward contentment, which is greater than happiness. Government can't give us those values.
Matter of life
SINCE WHEN is killing an innocent life a pro-woman issue? I don't see how "choice" got to be legal in the first place. None of you would vote to put your life on the line if someone doesn't feel like having you around.
Domestic gunfire
THIS CAUGHT my attention. According to the April 21 edition of The Economist, since 1963 more Americans have died from domestic gunfire than in all battles in the 20th century. It seems hard to believe, but considering the source, I guess it's true.
Less space for deer
I ALSO fear a tragedy with the deer who populate the ever-shrinking wooded area along North Sprigg Street. Sadly, concrete has replaced a significant part of what was once a safe haven for deer.
Gambling ideas
AS LONG as the state is going to have gambling, it should have a compulsive gamblers fund. Perhaps the money could come out of the lotteries. It would be best if the state would do away with gambling. Time spent on gambling could be spent on doing more good by volunteering.
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Now that's serious
IN THE April 24 Southeast Missourian I saw Mayor Jay Knudtson's photograph with the most serious expression I had ever seen. I wondered if Cape Girardeau was in imminent danger of a terrorist attack or facing possible destruction by an earthquake. After reading the caption, I discovered that what the mayor and others were discussing was even more serious than the scenarios I had contemplated: golf.
Watch out for deer
IT IS wonderful that some areas of the city still have deer aplenty. If you maintain proper speed on North Sprigg Street and use your lights, you should not have any problems with the deer. These animals are not harming anyone. Accidents and deaths do occur because of deer, but being alert and having deer-crossing signs should remind us to slow down and pay attention. Let's not add more harm to the environment by adding street lights and running more of God's creatures off.
Not on Social Security
THE COMMENT noting that President Bush does not have to pay his 7.5 percent for Social Security might have, all things being fair, also noted that our federal legislators have a marvelous retirement system, and it is not Social Security. Why the very people who have control of Social Security do not have to pay into it is beyond belief.
City needs change
A CONCERNED citizen of Cape Girardeau thinks a digital billboard is gaudy. Unless you want to live in Mayberry forever, change (and, in this case, modern technology) is wonderful for Cape. I don't believe Cape will ever look like Las Vegas. If it does, think of all the money it will generate for John Q. Public and Sally Small Business Owner.
Universal education
STATE FUNDING for Missouri schools is based on enrollment, not attendance. Therefore, schools are not required to keep "bad seeds," as you put it, in the classrooms. What keeps all children in the classroom is the compulsory attendance laws that were established to ensure that we do our best to educate everyone, not just those students who are bright and well behaved. I would much rather have given the "bad seeds" the opportunity to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps and become productive citizens than have them jobless and on the streets living off my dollar.
County rankings
I DID not agree with the Southeast Missouri State University professor when he said Cape Girardeau County ranked third out of 81 ranked counties in the state regarding quality of life. There are 114 counties in Missouri. Where are the remaining 33 counties ranked, and why weren't they included in the survey? To give Scott and New Madrid counties such low ratings is not right. Cape Girardeau County has a population of approximately 70,000 people. If it weren't for the people from surrounding counties coming into Cape Girardeau County each day and spending their money, Cape Girardeau County would be at the bottom of the list. Cape Girardeau County coffers prosper from the people living outside and not just from the people who live within the county.
Using carbon
THE CHEMICAL element carbon can be collected from resulting gases from the burning of fossil fuels by a water tank used to filter the hot-gas residue. The collected carbon, in powder form, can then be used by passing high-voltage alternating current through an electrode made from this carbon. When electricity is passed through carbon, light and heat are given off. It may be possible for an ingenious person to develop appliances such as hot-water heaters, cook stoves and space heaters that create heat by a stepped-up voltage passed through a carbon electrode used in home, office and industry.
It won't work
OUR NEIGHBOR, Sheryl Crow from Kennett, thinks we can save the planet by only using one square of toilet paper per use of the bathroom. That truly is conservative, but I don't think it will stop global warming.
No bike lanes
I DON'T think bike lanes are needed. They're a distraction. On a recent trip to St. Louis, I was wondering what that narrow little lane on some streets was for and why it wasn't being used. A lot of drivers have hard enough time keeping their minds on the road in a full lane, much less narrowing it for a bike lane. The roadways should be kept the way they are here locally.
Departing deputies
I WONDER what is going on at the sheriff's department. We were told by the sheriff he needed pay raises to keep his personnel. Now there have been resignations of his deputies. Either it was not enough pay raise to keep people, or something else was going on.
Playing politics
WHEN WILL the madness end? Congress has sent a bill to President Bush giving him every penny he has asked for. If the troops were really his priority, one would think he would get the money to them and compromise on the details. Has President Bush ever compromised on anything? We went into this war and elected him mostly out of fear. Now he's using fear to keep us there. It is not the Democrats who sent him this bill. It is Congress. Who is playing politics with our children's lives and the future of our country?
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