Speak Out 6/27/06

Political W

PAXTON WILLIAMS' presentation Friday morning speaking about George Washington Carver was excellent except for one thing. He said Dr. Carver inserted W to distinguish himself from the other George Carver on campus because he liked the sound of George W. Then he paused and said, "That doesn't sound so good today." He just couldn't leave politics out.

Amazing women

THE WORLD should know that Laura at Community Caring Council and Sister Theresa from St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church are a couple of the most amazing women you are going to find in Cape Girardeau County. They helped us and are available to help everyone. The world needs to know these amazing women are there.

Maybe a fish

BEFORE GETTING a dog for a family pet, please consider your lifestyle. Along with the basic living necessities, dogs require exercise, attention and companionship. Keeping a dog caged in the backyard 24-7 and attending to it only for necessary feeding once a day is neglect. If this is what pet ownership means to you, perhaps a nice fish tank would better suit your needs.

Dust no bother

WAKE UP, Cape Girardeau County. The whole issue regarding the paving of gravel roads is only a thinly veiled scheme to increase our property taxes even more. Once all the roads are paved, more development in the county occurs, thus higher taxes with fewer benefits to the county residents. Or maybe I'm giving the county commissioners the philosophical benefit of the doubt. The chip seal treatment to control dust on the roads should be a slam-dunk. It is without a doubt the cheapest and most reasonable approach. My family has lived on these roads for many generations, and the little bit of dust has never been a bother for us. Anyone that complains about it should just stay put in town. Keep my roads gravel.

Living with animals

A. J. HENDERSHOTT of the Missouri Department of Conservation wants to encourage people to learn about living with bears. You don't see bears and big cats around because our forefathers had a more realistic understanding of the situation and the importance of human life. These animals are killers and should not be allowed to proliferate in areas where people reside. If your child or grandchild is playing in your backyard should you have to worry about them being killed by a panther or bear? Would their death be an acceptable price to pay for cohabiting with wild animals? The MDC should be finding and eliminating these animals, not encouraging their spread.

Burger flipping

TO THE person who thinks George W. is doing such a good job, let me tell you it took this country more than 200 years to become $1 trillion in debt. Then Ronald Reagan was elected and increased this debt another $3 trillion. Bill Clinton had us on track to pay off this debt in 10 years. Now George W. has us on track to be $10 trillion in debt by the end of his term. The Bushes and Reagan have turned our economy from one of good-paying manufacturing jobs that a person could support his family on into one of hamburger flipping jobs that no one can live on. Now we are embroiled in a war that we can't get out of, and the whole world hates us. George W.Bush is doing a good job? I hardly think so.

Benevolent dictator

EVEN IF one concedes that Cairo is in a state of anarchy, as argued by Sarah Jane Clarke, and is governed by a dictator, Mayor Paul Farris, I would say that Farris is a benevolent and enlightened dictator. In fact, historically speaking, I think Farris is comparable to the enlightened despots of long ago such as Frederick the Great of Prussia and Catherine the Great of Russia. We need more, not fewer Farrises.