Speak Out 4/29/07

Bits of history

A LONG-OVERDUE compliment to Sharon K. Sanders for her thoughtfulness and diligence in compiling the "Out of the Past" columns. As an amateur historian, I have long appreciated her work and look forward to each and every entry. Kudos, Sharon.

Does not compute

THE ASSOCIATED Industries of Missouri, in its April 25 op-ed column, said Cape Girardeau County would lose less than $27,000 in sales-tax revenue under the sales-tax exemption proposal (House Bill 131) for manufacturers. Yet Procter & Gamble says it would save over $360,000 a year. And P&G is only one of the many industries in Cape County that would benefit from the exemption. Both numbers cannot be correct. If the revenue loss is so little, then why is the AIM pushing so hard to get the bill passed?

Officers on patrol

POLICE CHIEF Carl Kinnison says "people are leaving the bars downtown drunk and causing the vandalism that many store owners are experiencing." How about a walking patrol officer in the downtown area during peak trouble hours? Forget the cameras. They won't work well at night unless they are infrared, and those are expensive. A walking patrol officer or two would help all over the downtown area as well as the south side where drugs and prostitution are on the rise. The officers could even ride bicycles and save the city several dollars in fuel expenses.

Islamic beautification

THE NEW bas-relief mural on the side of the Islamic Center on West End Boulevard looks beautiful. I'm glad the center fixed up the building. It can now be a sense of pride for Cape Girardeau Muslims.

Adult decisions

TO THE parents who think that it was wrong to fire a principal because kids liked him: Letting kids chose a principal is like letting the inmates run the asylum. Kids don't always want or know what is best for them. The nicest person is not always the one best for the job in a school with discipline problems. Sometimes adults have to make decisions that kids don't like but are in their best interests.

Security issue

STORE OWNERS in downtown Cape Girardeau should put up cameras and take care of security measures themselves. I don't think it is a problem the city should handle. This seems like a private-business problem. Don't blame the bars downtown. They bring in a lot of tax money for numerous city improvements.

Cyclists have rights

REGARDING BICYCLE lanes: It is tragic that most car drivers have their own lanes and still can't drive safely. It is even more tragic that car drivers think it is their right to speed past, cuss out and even run down cyclists. There are bad drivers and bad cyclists, but they have the same rights on the road.

Smoking bashers

TO THE conscientious smoker: It wouldn't matter if you were a mile away from everyone while you smoked and invented a way to recycle cigarette butts into gasoline, there are still people who would condemn you for being a smoker. They are not going to be happy until their will is forced on everyone.

County donation

WHY IS it that the Scott County Commission is donating money to an organization that claims to be independent, the Scott County K-9 search and rescue. From my understanding they are also providing insurance for this group. Why do the commissioners not provide insurance and funding to our rescue squad or our fire department? I thought government entities weren't supposed to make donations.