OpinionApril 7, 2007
Speak Out 4/7/07
King of the world; Fishbowl nonsense; Patched and plugged; Boxed-wine mentality; Where's the money?; Altenburg's got money; Use the ashtray; I'll second that; Jail money; Like a dictator; Plenty of pork; Widespread impact; Redraw the lines; Fleeced again; Fighting crime; Replacement taxes
King of the world
THE BUSH administration doesn't want Speaker Pelosi to talk with Syria. Why? Donald Trump described Condoleezza Rice correctly. She waves, gets on a plane, gets off the plane waves, goes to photo ops, waves, gets on plane, waves as she comes off the plane and accomplishes nothing. We do have to talk with our adversaries, President Bush and the swagger gang want to be king of the world, not leaders.
Fishbowl nonsense
IF PEOPLE are drinking and smoking with a fishbowl on their heads, it's a free country and people are allowed to make their own choices.
Patched and plugged
WHEN ARE the people of Cape Girardeau going to demand that the infrastructure in the city be upgraded and not just patched and plugged?
Boxed-wine mentality
BOXED WINES have been around a long time. Because they aren't in an expensive bottle doesn't mean they aren't good. To imply people who bought them in the past were cheap is like the executive who won't see a good idea when it is put forth by an employee, but a month later he will bring the same idea up at a meeting like it was his own and the idea will be golden. If it doesn't start on either coast, I guess a retail product doesn't have a chance.
Where's the money?
THIS GUY who says he is going to build an ethanol plant by the airport has been saying that he is going to build a plant in Marshall, Mo., for years. How does he make a profit from saying that he is going to build something and then not building it? Is there a way to make money on feasibility studies and talking to the chamber of Commerce? He must have something figured out.
Altenburg's got money
NOW THAT the Altenburg School District barely won the tax increase, it should have no problem educating the 20-some out-of-district children who each paid a generous $200 tuition for this year. Sound insane? My family's one of them. And the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education knows nothing.
Use the ashtray
CAN ANY of the thousands of Southeast Missouri cigarette smokers please explain to us nonsmokers why it is necessary to flick your used butts out of your vehicles window while driving when your car comes with an ashtray? How about you litterbugs who toss your cancer sticks onto the ground in a parking lot just a few feet from an ashtray that is conveniently located outside the business you are about to patronize? A quote from CigaretteLitter.org: "There is a lot of misinformation out there regarding cigarette butt litter. The biggest myth is that cigarette filters are biodegradable. In fact, cigarette butts are not biodegradable in the sense that most people think of the word. The acetate (plastic) filters can take many years to decompose. Smokers may not realize that their actions have such a lasting, negative impact on the environment."
I'll second that
IN REFERENCE to the comment about people speeding through Jackson: I travel westbound on the same road between 7:30 and 8 o'clock in the morning. Even when I travel 5 mph above the posted speed limit, I have almost been rear ended by people who think I'm in the way. For the last 10 years I rarely ever see the Jackson police enforcing the speed limit in the mornings.
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Jail money
WITH ALL the sales-tax money pouring into the jail, you would think the sheriff's department could keep the males and females separated.
Like a dictator
THE LATEST reason for going into Iraq was to bring democracy to a country where the majority of the population did not agree nor have a voice against the dictator. Seven in 10 people here believe President Bush is doing a poor job and is leading the country in a bad direction. These people sent a message with the last election. These are facts. However Bush says he doesn't care what the population says and will do what he thinks is right. Isn't that what every dictator says?
Plenty of pork
REPUBLICANS ARE yelling about pork in the defense-spending bill. Take a look at the defense bill the Republicans sent to President Bush and he signed before the last election. Does the bridge to nowhere ring a bell? Does the break to the energy companies ring a bell? All these bills contain pork.
Widespread impact
MOST PEOPLE don't think the things happening in Washington affect their everyday lives. Sometimes it takes weeks or months to get to us, but it eventually will impact our lives.
Redraw the lines
THE FOLKS at Leopold know the value of a good education, what's important and what isn't. That is why they are trying to get their children into the best school in Southeast Missouri: to get a good education. The lines need to be redrawn. Leopold ranks the highest of all Bollinger County schools, yet its size is small. These lines were drawn more than 50 years ago. Times have changed, and we need to do what is best for our children's education.
Fleeced again
CONTRARY TO your editorial, what really makes sense is that the Marquette Hotel renovation (at taxpayer expense) has been a gigantic boondoggle and that we have once again been fleeced in a most golden manner.
Fighting crime
I HOPE everyone is taking note of all the crime in Cape Girardeau. We need law enforcement to spend more time preventing and solving crime instead of giving minor traffic tickets.
Replacement taxes
AS CIGARETTE taxes go up, and laws to eliminate places where people are allowed to smoke grow, many smokers are finally cutting back or quitting. Guess who will soon be paying for the loss of cigarette taxes? It is with some small amount of pleasure that smokers realize nonsmokers will soon be rewarded for their efforts by paying new and exorbitant taxes to make up for tobacco tax losses.
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