Speak Out 6/25/06

Any time they please

I SURE would like to know why I can't put my garage sale signs on the corner of street, but someone can park their big old truck at the corner of Rampart and Melrose any time they please!

Photographers in war

CBS NEWS is showing many pictures of Dan Rather in war zones and all the dangers he is facing. Why don't they show or name the photographer who is taking the pictures? The photographer is in more danger than the person who is doing the talking. I think they're ignoring people who should be decorated.

Take it back

I WAS contacted by a police officer about my business sign. He told me I had to remove the sign. The sign is on my property about 60 feet from the street. It is a nice sign, and I feel that since it is on my property and I pay my taxes I can do whatever I want with my property. At least it is not an eyesore. The people of Cape Girardeau need to get their city back.

Signs of the times

I HAVE received notice from the Cape Girardeau Police Department that our business sign needs to come down. They are saying it is OK to put out election signs but not our business signs. I say this is discrimination. If that is the case, we will make our business signs into election signs. We will put "Vote for this business, we will get the job done." I will pull my sign down when all the signs for the doctors' offices, the banks, the hospitals, the funeral homes, the churches, the schools and the billboards along Mount Auburn Road come down.

Kitchen explained

ACCORDING TO the Oxford Dictionary of Word Histories, the word kitchen is from Old English cycene, is from west Germanic and is related to Dutch keuken and German kuche, based on the Latin coquere, which means "to cook."

Pricing reality

WE SEE advertisements all the time for special sales, special discounts, rolled-back prices on the items. What this tells me is that they have these things over priced to start with.

Thanks, MoDOT

THIS IS a compliment to the Missouri Department of Transportation. The new road surface on the interstate is wonderful. It will be great when you get it all finished, but what you have finished is so smooth and better then the concrete. It is just amazing. Thank you for all your good work.

Self-reliance at fault

IN RESPONSE to the letter by Thomas Hamilton, the person who was addicted to meth and went to prison: Total reliance upon himself got him in this mess in the first place. There is only one thing to do: Rely on the Lord God. We are faulty human beings, and relying on ourselves proves to be our downfall.

Oscar for Al?

Al Gore could become the first person in history to win an Academy Award (I don't think Reagan ever won one) for his eye-opening documentary on global warming and a year later be elected president for the second time.

Principal hiring

IN REGARD to Jackson hiring retired principal Rick McClard: In your article Dr. Fisher said they advertised the position through an e-mail to district employees and no one applied. There were teachers within the district who applied for this position. I am one of those people. I was told the decision had already been made. Qualified people did apply. Two other teachers in my building applied as well. We were all told it was filled.

Way we were

YEARS AGO at the intersection of Routes 146 and 3 in Illinois they had big wide turns when you came south into Cape Girardeau and the right turn from 146 to go south on Route 3. They narrowed that down where you practically have to stop to make the turn coming in there. They had accident upon accident. Now they are talking about making the highways like they were years ago, giving you big wider turns. Now they are going back to the way they had it before.

Dixie Chicks fan

I SAW the Dixie Chicks perform on TV about a week ago, and it was just delightful to see them again. When are they going to really start performing? They have a lot of fans out here who really don't care what their political feelings are. I just love to hear them sing.

Superiority complex

THE ONLY reason doctors refuse to see pharmaceutical reps is because of a superiority complex. They see themselves as too good to be bothered by such an evil. By not accepting samples, they think that they have won some moral victory, but the real loser is the patient. The patients are the ones who have to pay for a prescription only to find out that the drug doesn't work for them or they don't tolerate it.

Flouting our laws

I DON'T have a phobia against immigrants, or xenophobia, but I do have an aversion to foreign nationals who flout our laws and stomp on our national sovereignty. Ditto for politicians who violate their oaths of office by pandering to scofflaws.

Teachers' complaints

I UNDERSTAND a teacher's job is stressful, but I am tired of the Speak Out comments from teachers about how they are underpaid and overworked. Most of the teachers I have seen get time off whenever they wish. They have student teachers for months at a time. They get holidays off, snow days, summer off. They get grant money, appreciation days, and many accolades for their work. How many appreciation days are there for service industry workers? How many waitresses wish they had a snow day off with their children? Try cleaning a hotel room after goose hunters have been there, throwing a drunk out of a bar, entering a house at night because of a 911 call, working in a ER, waiting on a group of 20 people that leave a $5 tip. If you hate your job, leave. If you love it, then find some joy again.

Controversy defused

A POTENTIALLY explosive controversy has been defused. Sincere thanks to Cape Girardeau school board president Sharon Mueller for not-too-subtly reassuring the public in a succinct letter to the editor that the idea of year-round school is off the table.

MoDOT football

MODOT MAY be flying the Missouri flag upside down because shameless state executives legislators bandy it about it as a political football instead of providing what's necessary to carry out its important tasks.

Regulating commerce

YOU KNOW it's amazing the city of Cape Girardeau, run mostly by Republicans, decided against the yard sale signs, and the Southeast Missourian gives signs with the purchase of an ad. I was always told in school that only Congress had the right to regulate commerce.

Noise in the park

SEEMS LIKE every time I try to enjoy a peaceful day or evening at Capaha Park the loud motorcycles, typically Harleys, seem to spoil it. Something needs to be done about these loud motorcycles in our community. The mayor and police chief need to stop these irresponsible bikers.

Send in bombs

I HOPE our Missouri Senators and representatives in Washington have enough sense and courage to speak out about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Will any amount of money, any amount of years spent and any number of wounded and dead U.S. soldiers change anything in that part of the world? These people don't want to change. If we really want to change them, then get our people out and send in the bombs. It might be time to make a choice like Harry Truman did. Enough of this idea that we have to consider human rights when they slaughter some of the best young men we have in this country.

Local action

I CALL upon the Cape Girardeau City Council and other surrounding communities to follow the lead of other cities and towns. Since the feds aren't going to do anything about illegal immigration, it's time to pass local ordinances providing for the closure of businesses and punishing others who employ illegal immigrants from any country.