Speak Out 5/18/05

Saving some lives

A SPEAK Out comment said "ending one life so that another life can live is wrong no matter where on this Earth you go" concerning Mr. Trickey's reported success with stem cells. Why do people still have so many misconceptions about this process? Lives are not being ended for the purpose of harvesting stem cells to save others lives. These cells would come from lives that were ended legally and for a variety of reasons. Why not make life come out of the situation by using those cells that will otherwise go to waste? Not using the cells won't stop these lives from being ended.

Different views

THE POLITICAL views of a teacher is nobody's business and should make absolutely no difference to a student. Are you afraid that your child may be exposed to ideas that differ from your own? Perhaps instead of teaching your children to believe only what you believe and nothing else, you should instill in them the wisdom and maturity to examine an issue from all angles and make their own decisions. It is only when you understand all the sides of an issue that you are able to truly defend your view.

China's backing

TRADE DEFICITS are not necessarily bad for the United States. In addition, China has great faith in the ability of the U.S. government and economy and our ongoing ability to pay back the debt it's financing.

Avoiding the problem

KUDOS TO the Springfield News Leader. The blood of those teens who died in that tragic crash is in part on the hands of timid Missouri legislators who, like toadies, caved in to special interests and refused to pass legislation limiting the number of teens who can be in a moving car at any one time. All this, even though neuroscience has proven beyond any doubt that the teen brain is more susceptible to risk taking and impulsive behavior.

Not freeloaders

DOCTORS ARE not freeloaders, I work for a few of them. Doctors are constantly being squeezed out of money. Insurance companies, private or government, only pay what they want regardless of what a doctor charges. Every year, Medicaid and Medicare pay less and less. That is why some doctors are reluctant to care for Medicaid or Medicare patients. Private insurance companies do the same thing. Recently some OB-GYN practices have dropped out of a local carrier because of this. Every year, doctors receive a pay cut, so do not say they are freeloaders.

Real compassion

I WORK with people with disabilities day in and day out. Believe me, a majority of us would love nothing more than to go to work. People with disabilities are especially difficult to place in jobs for a variety of reasons. Would you play Russian roulette? You would have a 16.67 percent chance of shooting yourself. But the probability of any one of us being disabled either at birth or during our young adulthood is a higher probability than the firing chamber having that bullet in it. Some of us have won this gamble and have fully functioning bodies and minds, while 20 percent of us do not. Should the 80 percent who won now turn their backs on the ones who lost? I say get a real conscience and learn the true meaning of compassion. Try putting yourself in others' shoes rather than speaking from the confines of your own small mind.

Cowardly response

THIS IS in response to the person who believes the Bank of America branch that has experienced an unfortunate number of robberies should be changed to a drive-through-only facility. Don't you think giving in to people who break the law by making things incredibly inconvenient for everyone else would be a cowardly response? There have been measures taken and more to come that will help combat and hopefully discourage similar situations.