Speak Out A 12/09/03

Stuck with the bill

I AGREE with the Speak Out comment about those who constantly lobby for more benefits from the government, especially the retirees. Our children and grandchildren will be stuck with their bill.

Christian lighting

CHRIST IS the reason for Christmas, the savior that was promised 2,000 years before his birth in Bethlehem. Most homes in Cape Girardeau are decorated with a Santa theme. But we found one home that has a Christian theme that we really enjoy, and we hope the public will go by and look at it. It is a house on the corner of Hilldale and Thomas. Make sure that you not only go in front of the house, but also beside the house. "O Little Town of Bethlehem" is on the side of the house. Merry Christmas to all.

Generating heat

THIS IS in response to the "Political tactic" comment. If this person thinks George W. Bush went to Baghdad to take some political heat off his rear, what does he think about why Hillary Clinton was in Afghanistan at the same time? What kind of heat was she generating?

Treasonous war

A HEALTHY democracy relies on an informed electorate that exerts itself. It is absurd that ignorant warmongers should suggest protesters of the Bush Iraq War are being treasonous. The treason is a president who lies to Congress and the American people and then sends our children to kill and be killed in an unjustified war. If you still think the Iraq War is about terrorism, you just have not been paying attention to reliable news sources.

Need new fire truck

CONCERNED RESIDENTS of Fruitland: The fire at County Road 601 could have been fought a lot better if the main pumper hadn't broken down twice. This main pumper is a 1976 model. Firefighters have had problems with it before. This needs to be fixed. You can't continue to fix an old truck and expect it to keep running. It's old and worn out. It is a risk to our firefighters to have a truck they can't trust. I believe it's time for the fire district's directors to stop sitting on our money and do something. Buy a new truck. They should be ashamed for putting our firefighters and community at risk.

Truth about the war

I JUST saw that film "The Truth About the War in Iraq" at a friend's house. I don't see how anyone could watch that and still be for President Bush and the war. It was 20 high officials in Washington showing how it was all lies. Everybody should see it.

Good paper delivery

WE HAVE the most caring newspaper delivery guy around. His name is Kevin, and he delivers papers in Illinois. Every morning, he makes sure my 93-year-old mother's paper is in reach of the front door. This means he gets out of his car to place the paper there. I want him to know he is special and I appreciate what he does for the senior citizens in our community.

Sustained objection

AS A lawyer, David Limbaugh surely knows that anecdotal evidence does not a case make. It is one thing to provide examples of excessive separation of church and state. It is quite another to build a credible case that government entities at any level or of any kind are systematically engaged in an effort to destroy Christianity and persecute Christians. It is incredibly absurd to seem to assert that Christians in the United States are being treated the same as the first Christians in the early days of the Roman Empire.

GOP irresponsibility

A SPEAK Out writer comments, "My spouse is a professional who probably makes a lot more than the 27-year-old who is complaining about having to pay for prescriptions for the elderly." Some people don't mind social welfare programs when they have excess resources. The burden of the greedy drug program will be placed upon the collective shoulders of the young workers of the next generation and their children. This Republican-controlled government is no more fiscally responsible than the liberal social engineers of the last 50 years.

Pay for medical care

I TOO believe we should pay for senior citizens' medical expenses. They have paid in enough taxes in the past to more than cover the cost. I also believe that doctors are over-medicating our seniors. Are all the different medications necessary, or are they just convenient because Medicare will pay for them?

Paying for a long time

THIS IS to the senior citizen who apparently thinks I owe him medical coverage. How in the world do you justify free education? My father worked a job every day and paid taxes. That is what paid for my education. As for my college education, I took out student loans and paid them back. I worked to make ends meet. I was a member of the military for 13 years. As far as I am concerned, I paid back all debts that I owed to all of the men and women who fought for my freedom before me. Who provides Social Security? Who will provide free or reduced medications? I will, and about 43 million of my working-class brethren. My generation and my children's generation will be paying for this unchecked spending for years to come.

Co-opting the Democrats

THE WALL Street Journal reprint predicting the demise of the Democratic Party at first glance seemed a classic example of the wish giving father to the thought. However, upon further reflection, I concluded that the writer may be onto something. After all, the Republicans have pretty well co-opted everything the Democrats stand for. Domestically, they're spending money like drunken sailors. In foreign policy, once cautious, at times isolationist Republicans have become more idealistic than Woodrow Wilson and more internationalist than Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Time to join up

AS VICE president of finance at Southeast Missouri State University, Ken Dobbins placed SEMO in the MSU consortium. Since Dobbins became president of the university, the benefits of SEMO faculty members and staff have eroded drastically. A recent survey found SEMO to be in the bottom quintile of all public state university benefits programs. While Dobbins has done a good job improving his own benefits package, he has failed in managing the benefits of SEMO employees. It is more apparent than ever that SEMO, Central, Truman State and Southwest need to join the University of Missouri system.