Speak out 7/29/08

Carter's legacy

REGARDING JIMMY Carter: We all grow nostalgic for the old days of the peanut man from Georgia. His response to the energy crisis was to tell Americans to put on a sweater. What an insightful man. He was weak when it came to our defense. He allowed Americans to be held hostage for 444 days. Since then he has worked against American interests in every way and in every country. The fact that he and Al Gore have both been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize makes me scared of anyone who is ever awarded a Nobel Peace Prize.

New freeway

LOOK OUT, Scott City. Although something desperately needs to be done, it should have been done years ago. It appears that the proposed new Ramsey Creek exit to Interstate 55 is going to turn a street in Scott City into a freeway through a subdivision where people and kids walk, ride bikes and stroll with infants. Although there is never an easy solution to these situations, it appears Warner Street may become a disaster.

Open house

I WOULD like to thank Gary and Wendy Rust and Judi Naeter. The open house for the old newspaper boys was great. We wives enjoyed it as much as the old boys did. Thanks.

Useful golf carts

PLEASE DON'T concern yourself with how the new golf carts will get their batteries charged during a power outage. They run on gasoline. They are much more useful than a water park will ever be. A water park will end up like the water slide in Jackson.

School-supply lists

I THINK it is a shame that the Scott City School District does not send out the school supply list to places like Wal-Mart and Staples. The district didn't have them out last year, so I was running around everywhere trying to find supplies. If the district can't send the lists to the stores, at least send them to the homes of students. My taxes should be enough to pay for the stamp.

Highway speed limits

STOP GRIPING about the speed limit. If you want to go 55 mph to preserve gasoline, fine. That is your right. It is also my right to go 70 mph. I have been driving for almost 20 years, and I don't want to go back down to 55 mph. To be honest, I have trouble driving at 70 mph, I can't imagine having to go slower. My SUV gets 400 miles on a tank of gas, and that is going at a constant speed of 75 mph. I don't think that is to terrible.

Taking risks

MAY I offer a bit of unsolicited advice to area candidates seeking political office? It is not a good time to emphasize the fact that you have experience. We want change, and we're even willing to try to achieve it by taking a bit of a risk.

Right course

ALMOST 90 percent of the Chinese think their country is on the right course. That is in stark contrast with the percentage of Americans who think we're going in the right direction. It currently stands at about 20 percent.

A worthy endeavor?

"Speak Out poems make my day,"

I often tell me wife.

Her terse response? "I pray

someday you'll get a life."

Now we know why

MICHAEL SAVAGE: it is better to be silent and thought of as an idiot than to speak and confirm it. This also goes for the individual defending him in Speak Out, saying that Savage was taken out of context. Even when you hear the whole thing, it is obvious that he does not know what he is talking about. No wonder Savage is such a popular radio host.

Up to the majority

ALL THOSE high-minded attempts to oppose or justify the ruling of the court on the right of the individuals to own handguns on the basis of constitutional principle are well-written but wrongheaded. The folks on the U.S. Supreme Court are political partisans posing as objective interpreters of the Constitution. The case of Bush versus Gore should have made that quite apparent. The Constitution means whatever a majority wants it to mean.

Savage's words

I'LL TELL you what. If you think Michael Savage's words were taken out of context when he referred to 99 percent of those diagnosed with autism as morons and brats, judge for yourself. Listen to his exact words at Media Matters (mediamatters.org) I am stunned that statewide political candidates and a Missouri-based insurance company still advertise on his program but take some solace in knowing that several radio stations and sponsors have dropped him. Conservatives should jump on the bandwagon on this one because Savage, a self-professed conservative, gives this political philosophy such a bad name.

Job security

DAVID LIMBAUGH knows what he's doing. He is quite aware that his ongoing Obama bashing will increase Obama's chances of winning, a scenario he no doubt favors. I mean, think about it. An Obama presidency will provide him with an endless amount of material about which to write for another four to eight years. On the other hand, a McCain presidency would be so blah even Limbaugh would succumb to a Carteresque malaise or Phil Gramm mental recession and likely lead him to throw in the towel as a columnist and author.

Wonderful angels

A BIG thanks goes to Beth St. John and Kelly Crawford for their undying "love they neighbor" philosophy. These two angles have tended my yard and garden for the entire month of June due to my hip replacements. They have walked my dogs, fed my cats and did my laundry so I wouldn't have to go up and down steps. They tended to my every need and even took me to get X-rays when I fell on the second night home. Cape Girardeau County is lucky to have such wonderful angels in our community. They are two lovely ladies with two giving hearts.

Bush and Batman

I SWEAR this is true. Rush Limbaugh must really be running short of material. He spent considerable time the other day favorably comparing Bush to Batman.

Payback time

MEMBERS OF the Republican establishment in Cape Girardeau were generally outspoken opponents of Gov. Mel Carnahan. They trashed his wife, Jean Carnahan, and played a key role in ousting her from the U.S. Senate. Robin Carnahan is now Missouri secretary of state. Now the local powers go begging, hat in hand, asking her to change the wording on a ballot initiative so we might have a better chance of getting a gambling boat on the Mississippi River in downtown Cape. The saying, "You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours" holds very true in politics. Mayor Jay Knudtson has beseeched the secretary of state (whose parents Cape's movers and shakers maligned) to change the ballot language as a matter of, get this, fairness. Good luck. Paybacks are hell, huh?

Picking up trash

ON MY way to work I saw a man picking up trash near the First Pentecostal Church on Lexington. I would like to thank him for his awesome work.

Take responsibility

I AM so tired of hearing the public complain about the economic-stimulus checks. Take responsibility for your own well-being and stop expecting the government to continue to bail you out of every difficult situation you find yourself in. If you're having financial difficulties. find ways to cut back. This is not a difficult concept. Car-pool to work. Eat meals at home. Buy generic instead of name brands. Rent a movie instead of going to the theaters. There are many ways to save a few dollars that add up quickly. Soon, you'll find that you are able to save your own money and not rely on the government.

School repairs

DELTA SCHOOL District is going to vote on a new grade school and raising taxes. I live in the district, The pamphlet the district sent out had pictures of the grade school. The district has not taken care of the building. Why should we vote to raise our taxes for a new grade school? Why should we pay because the district didn't keep it up? Take pride in the school we have. It can be repaired a lot cheaper. I will be voting no.