Speak Out A 05/02/03

Failed to cut spending

REPUBLICANS WERE put in control of both houses of the Missouri Legislature in large part to cut spending. In that endeavor they have failed so miserably it makes the Democrats seem miserly.

Spending priorities

IT'S IRONIC that when you ask the managers of Duck Creek Wildlife Area why they didn't plant crops for the ducks, they tell you they don't have the money, but they can spend millions on a nature center at North County Park.

Worker appreciation

I WANT to tell the girls at the city utility office thanks for being there for so long, day after day. I am sorry the city doesn't think enough of you and other city employees to give you the raises. Instead of mailing in your payments, why don't some of you go to City Hall and tell those girls thanks?

Utterly unctuous

MISSOURI CHAMBER of Commerce and Industry CEO Daniel Mehan recently chortled that corporations in this state deserve what many consider to be undeserved tax breaks. How utterly unctuous.

Cuts at the top too

I'D LIKE to know if the cuts school districts are experiencing apply to their central offices as well. I'm wondering if the folks are getting raises and increases in benefits while teachers and staff members are facing frozen salaries and decreased benefits. I think that would make a very good article for the paper. Lead by example.

Reap what you sow

JACKSON SCHOOL District's money woes won't go away simply by reducing the number of teachers or closing the smaller, outlying schools. The money problems come from the state legislature and its unwillingness to properly finance education. Remember: you reap what you sow. This budget shortage will come back to bite us all in the form of undereducated and underprepared graduates.

Responsible drinking

MY PARENTS gave each of us girls (there were four of us) an occasional glass of beer as a treat when we were little if we helped pull weeds in the garden or helped do big projects in the hot sun. My oldest sister is 42 and does not drink at all. The rest of us are occasional drinkers only. None of us is an alcoholic. My parents raised us with the right attitude that if we wanted to drink there was beer in the fridge and if we wanted to drink we did it at our house rather than getting in a car and driving around drinking. Wake up, parents. Your kids are drinking.

Roundabouts, bypass

YES, CHAFFEE has a roundabout, but it is abut five times bigger than the one in Cape Girardeau. I drive a tractor-trailer around it and never curb a tire. You can't even begin to do that at the one at Cape. As for congestion in Jackson, the best thing they could do is build a bypass around the town . Maybe people would realize that most of the traffic is from people outside the city limits.