Speak Out A 03/30/03

Dog in the trash

THERE IS a dog leash policy in Jackson. I get very frustrated when I put out my trash on trash day and go out and see my neighbor's dog digging in it so I have to rebag it. It would be a courtesy to their neighbors if the dog's owners would try to keep their dog in on trash day. I'd like to get along with my neighbors, and I don't like to have to call the dogcatcher. But I do get very aggravated.

Ticket problems

I THINK Toby Keith and Rascal Flatts gave an outstanding performance. I would definitely pay $45 a seat to see them again. I think the way tickets were sold to the concert was horrible. I hope the organizers come up with a better solution for future concerts.

Hollow voting

I BELIEVE the people of Cape Girardeau have the good sense to vote down the four tax proposals in April, not that it matters. We should have learned from the River Campus that voting down something does not mean it will not happen anyway.

Poll on sex education

A RECENT Zogby poll, conducted on the current guidelines used in sex-ed programs used in public schools, found that nearly three-fourths of parents said they favored abstinence and character-based sex-ed programs in the schools over the current safe-sex programs. Safe-sex programs have for 30 years used misinformation and dubious methods to make it appear parents overwhelmingly support them. This poll is the first poll that has not dealt in generalities and vague questions.

Let them decide

LEAVE SNAKE Hill the way it is? Let's leave it up to the people who have lost loved ones on that stretch of road. Let's let them decide.

Good, bad old days

TO THE person who doesn't want to go back in time: Neither do I. I have a young daughter with diabetes, and I'm very thankful for the medical care she has received. Seventy-five or 100 years ago she probably would have died. There are some good things about the past also. Children respected their parents. Parents loved their children. And people had morals and values. I know there are still people out there who love their kids and live by their morals. But there are so many out there who don't.

Disgusting cartoon

I WAS disgusted by the Michael Moore editorial cartoon you ran in the paper. Since when is telling the truth a crime? The manner in which he spoke may have been wrong, but every one of his comments was absolutely true. If anyone ever bothered to check their facts before spouting off, they would know this.

Looks like a dump

I-55 IS starting to look like a dumping place. I travel from Scott City to Sikeston every day, and it seems to be getting worse. Does the state not have to take care of it? Are the people who have adopted a portion of highway too lazy to clean it up?

Classes cut for game

IF YOU think bribing the kids for MAP scores is bad, how about canceling a school day just because the ball team goes to a state tournament? My tax dollars go to educate my child. I thought sports was extracurricular.

School on Good Friday

I AM a student at Central High School. We are going to make up a lot of snow days and are scheduled to go to school until June 9. We are not getting a spring break. What I don't understand is why we get out on Martin Luther King Day but have to go to school on Good Friday.

Vote yes for progress

MICROSOFT HAD a slogan that asked, "Where do you want to go today?" Cape Girardeau voters ought to ask, "Where do you want to go tomorrow?" Yes, votes on the four tax issues can ensure a bright future for a progressive community. I voted absentee and voted yes on all four issues.