Speak Out 7/5/13

City water

I appreciate the city of Cape Girardeau Public Works Department Water Division sending me the 2012 Water Quality Report. But why didn't the report simply state in the first sentence: Dear customer, your water quality in Cape Girardeau is great. Our drinking water meets or surpasses all federal and state drinking water standards. While the report may excite a water treatment engineer, all I want to know is that the water quality in Cape Girardeau is OK, or if it is not, why not?

Tax the bars

I do not agree with the restaurant tax to pay for the police department. Let there be a bar tax; that's what's causing trouble for the police anyway. At restaurants, food is expensive enough as it is. Leave the restaurants alone.

‘Merit based'

Just wondering. Several references were made to "merit based" salary increases at SEMO in a recent Southeast Missourian-based news story. What are the criteria for a merit-based salary increase, or are the words "merit based" a misleading euphemism for an across-the-board salary increase for most if not all instructors at Southeast Missouri State University?