Speak Out 8/18/06

Take a look

BEFORE YOU decide that all early stem-cell research is wrong, please go to any nursing home in Southeast Missouri and ask to see the Alzheimer's ward. You may change your mind.

A place to smoke

MY SISTER'S a nurse. She's one of the best. But she smokes. I don't think it's right that a nurse doesn't have a place to smoke if she's an adult. There should be a smoking room at hospitals for nurses and doctors.

Group learning

COOPERATIVE learning is a good thing. I think even the most intelligent can learn from others. And the more intelligent certainly learn management skills, which will help them later in life.

Crack house problem

I SIT on my porch, and there is a drug house across the street. But the police and the city council are worried about a banner or yard-sale sign. I don't understand why something hasn't been done about the crack house across the street from us.

Street vending

WHY CAN'T a mobile vendor sell his wares if he has the proper sanitation license on the public streets in Cape Girardeau? Is it because he's going to give stationary businesses some competition? Is this why a law was enacted in 1967 to prohibit this? I think we need to take another look at our antiquated laws. The established businesses in this town do not own the public streets, and neither do the mayor and the city council. If it is not a safety or sanitation hazard and the proper licenses are obtained, we should be able to buy a sandwich from a mobile vendor on any corner in Cape Girardeau.

Not tired

HEY, JOE Sullivan, your Aug. 11 column is right on as far it goes. I'm sick and tired of it all too. But throughout history, righteous people have been sick and tired. The problem is not with the perpetrators so much but with the complainers like you writing articles. They make you feel good, but it sends a defeatist message. I can go on forever about things I'm tired of. What about the things you're thankful for? And then offer some solutions. Just enough so-called goodness makes evil float. You may be tired, Joe, but I'm not.

Worst in the world

THIS NEW cab service is the worst in the world. Whoever thought it would be better is crazy, because it's not better. It's 10 times more expensive. The bus line is crazy. You have to walk to get to it. It doesn't help us a bit. We need to change back.

Disappointing world

MY MORNING always starts with the one-line prayer in the Southeast Missourian. Thanks so much for the inspirational thought. I read Joe Sullivan's column on Aug. 11, and it made me feel disappointed in this world we live in. And it made me tired too.

Going to the ER

IT'S NOT just the uninsured or the underinsured who are using the emergency rooms. It is people who have insurance and who have a private physician who used the ERs also. The reason is that private physicians seldom have a doctor on call after hours and on the weekends. If you call your private physician, you will more than likely get a recording that gives office hours and gives you the number at the hospital where you should go in case of an emergency. This has left people bereft of a physician after hours. That is why many go to the ER.

Police work

THANK YOU, Cape Girardeau Police Department. The police busted chops last night on North Hanover Street. We had the best night sleep we've had in months. The good people on Hanover Street were starting to feel outnumbered by the bad element. The police scored one for our side.

Missing fruit

IT'S BAD enough we have to lock our houses. It's bad enough we have to have police protect us from people without scruples. But it's really sad that when you come home ready to take the fruit off your trees and find out somebody has entered the yard and stripped the tree of all the fruit.

Too expensive

I JUST called the cab company in Cape Girardeau, and the cost is $13 to take me to Wal-Mart and back from Sprigg Street. This is crazy.

Smoking illnesses

A LOT of blame has been placed on smoking for causing illnesses. There was an article years ago about the effect our home and work environments have on some people's health. Basically the article stated that the chemicals, petroleum and artificial products contained in drapes, carpets, paneling and upholstery in our surroundings can cause asthma and allergies. How can smoking be blamed entirely for illnesses?

Dangerous grass

I HOPE the grass and weeds and trees along county roads will be mowed down pretty soon. This is turning out to be a safety hazard with animals coming out of nowhere. You're not able to see them coming from along the roadside. At the stop signs, you can't see cars coming without having to pull out into the oncoming lane.

Keep it down

TAKE A lesson from Boston, where the minimum wage is $6.75 an hour and is scheduled to jump to $7.50 an hour in January 2007. A cup of coffee will set you back $1 as opposed to the common 50 cents or less that a cup will cost you in Southeast Missouri. Let's not become like the blue states where government-mandated wages and taxes have pushed the cost of living through the roof. The people who are supposed to be helped by the minimum wage are hurt by rapidly rising prices in states that have raised the minimum wage. Help fight inflation by voting no for the minimum wage increase in Missouri.

Fewer competitors

WE READ about the mayor of Farmington, Mo., losing his position because of electric rates getting so high. And we're reading now that Jackson is going to have to raise rates too. If I remember correctly, it was the Republicans and President Reagan who promoted the idea that deregulation would solve a lot of problems and create competition. It did not. What happened was the big boys bought up the little guys, and the competition was cut down. Deregulation was not a solution for us.