Speak Out A 04/26/03

Better drivers

SPEED IS not the biggest problem in the world. The biggest problem is poor drivers who can't handle their vehicles at any speed. Motorists on the German autobahn drive much faster and have much lower fatality rates as a percentage compared to the United States. The reason is that their drivers have to endure far more driver's education and are required to prove they can drive, unlike here where you can get a license too easily. Also, the Germans build their roads much better and actually repair potholes.

Torture chamber

SADDAM HUSSEIN turned the cradle of civilization into the torture chamber of hell.

Extra coffin nails

CORD DOMBROWSKI must be a glutton for punishment. Rather than preserve some dignity and pull the plug on the Prestwick Plantation proposal after it was unanimously rejected by the school board, he is going to press on and run it by the TIF commission and city council, even though they have given every indication that they will reject it out of hand. This is like sealing a coffin with not one, but two extra nails.

Learn the language

I JUST learned that our census is printed in four different languages. Anyone who doesn't have the desire to learn our language should not be included in the census and should under no circumstances be permitted to stay in the United States. I've known people who have been here 20 years and still only speak a dozen words or so of English. That's totally ridiculous.

Drug sales on street

THERE IS so much drug selling in the 400 and 500 blocks of Ellis Street. Where are the police when you really need them?

Lots of Republicans

AFTER READING the article on the Mississippi County casino, I wonder why -- after over 20 years of Emersons, over 20 years of Bond, over 10 years of Kinder, a Republican state representative, a Republican president, a Republican House, a Republican Senate and a new Republican senator-- that the county is still in such bad economic shape that it has to attract a casino. Are Republican politics and policies to blame?

Barking dogs

THE CITY should penalize these dog owners who let their dogs bark all day and night and disturb the peace of all their neighbors.

Good teachers

ABOUT THE Gordonville Attendance Center combining classes: The teachers there are so well-liked by the students and parents that anything they do will go over. With being a smaller school the teachers get to know each student personally and know what each student lacks and needs. So go for it.

Simple traffic device

I TRULY feel sorry for anyone who cannot figure out a roundabout. It is the simplest traffic control device there is. You look in one direction and yield if there is traffic coming. If you can figure out how a four-way stop works but not a roundabout, maybe you shouldn't be driving.

Let's move ahead

A SKATEBOARD park is no different than any other city-provided recreation facility. You play at your own risk. We have baseball fields, a swimming pool and numerous playgrounds across the city. People get injured. It happens. We don't shut down playgrounds, and we don't cancel youth sports. Quit worrying and just build the skateboard park. Catch up to the times.

It's new and old

TO THE caller who said one of the news reports about SARS had to be false. One was claiming that SARS was a new virus. The other said we've seen it before. They are both correct. The virus that is believed to be causing SARS is a variation on a known virus. This makes it new and old.