Speak Out 5/31/05

Talking and driving

I LIKE the proposed Illinois law banning the use of cell phones while driving. This not only should be for the teenagers, but for the adults as well. Missouri should enact such a law. The law should be strictly enforced. We even have our policemen talking on cell phones while driving. That should not be allowed.

Spending the profits

KEEPING MONEY at home is not ignorant. Let's use the Drurys as an example. People all across the country stay in Drury hotels. Where does that profit go? Back to Cape Girardeau. If the Drurys were not based in Cape Girardeau, there would be fewer restaurants and jobs. Would they have torn down the Holiday Inn to build Holiday Inn Express and create a business area? I doubt it. The point is where the profit stops is where the profits are spent. If a Japanese corporation is receiving the profits, it will spend the profits in Japan.

Wear those helmets

I OFTEN see families riding bikes without helmets. Parents, please make your children wear a bike helmet. You should also wear one for your safety and to set an example for your children. If your child won't wear a helmet, take away the bicycle. This is serious. A child's safety is the parents' responsibility.

Squeezed out

SOUTHEAST MISSOURI State University's higher tuition example was based on 12 credit hours a semester. Whatever happened to the average 15-hour semester? Fifteen hours at $171.50 per hour is $2,572.50 per semester, not counting all of the junk fees that are added on. Give us all the names of the regents so we will remember these are the ones who have forgotten that SEMO stands for Southeast Missourians. The school was established for them, and now they are being squeezed out. Only the rich need apply.

How they voted

A SOUTHEAST Missourian article states, "Defying Bush, House passes stem-cell bill." The Southeast Missourian forgot to state that Jo Ann Emerson also defied Bush. Emerson was the only Republican from Missouri to vote in favor of House Resolution 810. I would appreciate it if the Southeast Missourian would be unbiased in its news coverage and at least tell us what our U.S. representatives are voting for or against.

Bear attack?

THANK GOODNESS that guy shot the bear. A dog in Fruitland was probably attacked by a bear. They don't know what kind of animal it was, but it probably was a bear because a bear is more likely to tear through a fence. A mountain lion would simply jump over or go under. I wonder if it is the same bear. I wonder how far a bear can travel.

Manages like a pro

I WANT to say some words of praise for the woman running Roth Hardware in old Illmo. She's doing an excellent job. In the past year, she's had a lot of responsibility, but she runs the store like a pro. I think that should be mentioned, because she's a very dedicated person.

Bridge access

I AGREE with the caller who suggested that the traffic light at the west end of the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge be removed. The traffic should be routed to come to Sprigg Street and then brought to the bridge. Unfortunately, I think this is too sensible for the planners in Cape Girardeau.

Scientific sense

IT DOESN'T take a scientist to realize that science has approved chemicals that are poisoning our bodies and medicines that are killing people. It is proven that mercury is dangerous for the human body. Science and the FDA have approved so many things that do nothing but kill human beings, slowly but surely. How can anyone say there's nothing wrong with putting mercury in vaccines? That makes no sense whatsoever.

Road repair

I AGREE County Road 318 needs paving. Every time the county patches it, our cars are a total mess with all the tar. Raise our taxes a little bit, but please don't patch our road anymore. Give us a blacktop.

Yard-sale detour

THIS IS answer to the person who was worried about getting to Kennett this weekend because of the 100-mile yard sale. Her best bet would be to take I-55 down to the Caruthersville exit and go across to Kennett. She could miss all the yard sales on Highway 25.

Double standard

I'M SICK and tired of living in a community in which its citizens are held to the law, but the city and university are not. There were all kinds of promises made by the university when it built the Show Me Center. Ninety-nine percent of those promises have not been kept, things like traffic lights and widening of roads. Instead, it's a nightmare on the nights of basketball games. The city is holding us accountable for certain laws, yet it cut down a man's tree and didn't follow its own notification process. Why isn't somebody being held accountable? Twice in the last week I've seen people in city trucks driving around with passengers in the back. Yesterday a police officer was behind them. They didn't pull the city truck over and issue a warning or a ticket. It's against the law to drive on the city street in Cape Girardeau with people in the back of a truck. What about the police officers and the sheriff's deputies who speed like maniacs? So why am I as a citizen being held to one standard, but they're being held to a different one?

Seat belts on buses

ALL THE recent attention to school bus safety and the fact that the kids aren't in seat belts misses an important point. If I have my child in my car and he's not seat-belted, I can get a ticket. However, the school bus company can have my child in its vehicle not seat-belted twice a day, and that's just fine. To me, that should be against the law as well.