SPEAKOUT

Lance Armstrong is a hero

THANK YOU for putting the story of Lance Armstrong winning the Tours de France on the front of the sports page. That man came back from testicular cancer that had spread to his lungs and his brain. Now he's the man.

Not in favor of two-year licenses

I'D LIKE to say something about the bill that Governor Carnahan has signed into law about extending the license plates and driver's licenses to two years. People who get their licenses are going to have to pay double when they get their licenses. I know that it'll be for two years, but I am against this two-year deal. I never wait until the last day of the month to get my license. I always get it in the first or middle part of the month, and there's hardly any waiting. These deadbeats are going to get it their way, just like the city had to put up a four-way stop at Sprigg Street and Bertling just because some people wouldn't stop at a stop sign. Now everyone has to stop. These kinds of laws being passed has to stop. I would not vote for Carnahan for Senate for this reason. He just lost my vote.

Don't ask for more donations

THIS IS the same farmer's wife complaining again. Are you people as tired as I am of individuals calling on a Sunday wanting money for people who already make more money than my husband and also have a pension, which my husband does not? I'm talking about the State Patrolmen's Association. I told the caller that my husband has a very dangerous job. He is a farmer. And to back me up, the next day after the call, our wonderful paper said farming ranks No. 3 and sometimes No. 1 among the most dangerous occupations, and mining construction are also in their findings. You choose your occupation. My husband still farms and also works on air conditioners. So next time you call my house, I'm going to call a state patrolman's house asking for a donation.

Who's paying for what?

THIS IS to the person who thinks his taxes are going to take care of the working poor and that the poor are looking for a handout regarding health insurance. Get a life. You're taxes won't come close to paying for your Medicare which you probably won't collect anyway. Your taxes pay for million-dollar bombs and wars and pensions for our wonderful government. My husband is out $70 per week for health insurance. You see, he got hired in one of those wonderful jobs that provide insurance. What a crock. Oh, by the way, people: Watch your bills from our local doctors because we were charged for X-rays that my husband did not get.

Old Democrats weren't liberals

I CAN'T believe my Democratic friend who praises the party's leaders of the past: Roosevelt, Truman, Kennedy, who have nothing in common or share none of the views or beliefs of the liberals of today. They would have been outraged at abortion, homosexuality or praising draft dodgers as heroes. John Kennedy said, "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." How many liberals would agree with that today? We have a lot of good, decent people. When it comes to politics, many don't know or just close their eyes to their party's platform or Christian family values and just listen to what the politicians promise them.

Article read like an editorial

I'M READING the front page of the July 26 Southeast Missourian, the article entitled "Census emergency: It must be budget time." Did you misplace this article? It certainly reads like an editorial and a blatant attack on Republicans. These things are not attributed to anyone. I'm really shocked and amazed, especially from a paper such as the Southeast Missourian. Come on. Straighten up. You know better than this.

Tired of judgmental comments

SOMETIMES FOR a Christian it's just downright sickening to open your newspaper and read Speak Out. I don't think Jerry Springer will run for the Senate, but who are you to judge? And the person who said there are plenty of disgraces: Do you know that that actually happened in the White House? Were you there? Did you see it? My God teaches me to only confess the things that I have seen and not to disgrace others. Why can't everyone read the Bible and live like Jesus did on this Earth? And don't judge others, because those who judge will be judged someday, maybe not in this world but in another. It's so sad that we can't open up our paper and read good things, interesting things, things that mean something. But all we read about is either slander or disgrace or talking about someone else. Please, people, let's try to do what God would want us to do.

I you're paying, send the money

I WOULD like to know where this caller in Speak Out get the idea that he pays for my Medicare. That's a joke. I pay for my Medicare. I pay for medical insurance plus medicine, plus I pay over $1,000 house taxes, and all I get is Social Security. I would like to know where this person pays for me. I would like that answered. I would like you to send me the money if you are paying for me.

Get rock 'n' roll at the fair

TO THE person asking why fair organizers always have country music at the fairs, it's because supposedly country music is more wholesome, more family oriented, closer to God than that devil rock 'n' roll music. Well, music is music and people are people. Country music people have their skeletons in their closets, so why don't you bring us some rock 'n' roll music.

Explicit magazines in doctor's office

I SENT some kids to the doctor today, and I had no complaints whatsoever about the service we received. They had us in and out. The doctor was efficient. But while we were sitting in the waiting room, the kids picked up magazines and were leafing through them. They had the most sexually explicit photos. I couldn't believe it. I don't want to go into it, but these were extremely vulgar. There were advertisements and an article on "126 intimate sex secrets." These are kids. This was a doctor's office. I realize that sex and violence sell these days, and there's really not a lot we can do about it. However, I am appalled that we would go to a doctor's office and pick up these magazines and the kids can see these pictures. You've got little babies in there, toddlers, preschool, elementary, high school on up. It's unbelievable. There should be some places we can go where our children won't be exposed to this. I'm not talking about bikinis or skimpy lingerie. I'm talking about nudity of the female body and sexual encounters.

A source of inspiration

I'VE BEEN hearing how hard some have it, how they have no breaks, no wealth, no respect, treated like dirt all their life, when really they have no ambition or responsibility, but someone owes them. Then you meet people with physical handicaps. Some are very young, working every day, not whining about their plight in life but showing guts and determination. Some are in wheelchairs, some missing limbs, and so on. But they have a lot of heart, and I respect them so very much. The lazy who are in good health who want welfare, free this, free that, government handouts, you should take a lesson from this. What an inspiration, what courage, what great human beings. And what an honor it is to meet them. I won't mention any names because I don't believe they'd want the attention or pity, but what a spiritual pickup. I'm so proud of all these disabled people who show their character and grit by pulling their weight under a heavy burden. They are so special. To me they are the real heroes in our society.

Trashy life is handed down

I GUESS all neighborhoods have them: the few who never pick up around their house, leave their garbage cans in the front yard all week, never trim, always have excuses for not mowing -- too hot, too wet, too dry, too tired -- garage, back yard, front yard full of clutter, just where they used it last. I feel sorry for their children, because this is usually where their trashy way of life comes from. It's handed down.

Pay fine, obey speed limits

CONCERNING THE good doctor and his traffic ticket, using his logic, there should be no speed limits on I-55 north of Benton because that's where the hills start. Naturally, if you have to use the brakes to slow down going downhill, then you would have to accelerate to go up the hill to make sure you get over it. So no use for speed limits on the interstate. Come on, Doc, pay your fine, take your sign down and grow up.

Something wrong in athletics

I'D LIKE to comment on the news. I just heard about the linebacker from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I think it is wrong for the police to do the man the way they did him. They judged him without any calls at all. They did the man wrong. Very wrong. I think something ought to be done about all this bull that is going around in athletics.

Get fiscal responsibility

AT LEAST 75 percent of the present national debt was incurred while we had Reagan, Bush and Quayle as president and vice president. These three had a complete lack of fiscal sense. Why do the boneheads who hold Reagan and the others in such high awe completely fail to understand the serious long-term problems caused by these three? When Gerald Ford was in office, the interest on the national debt was less than $40 billion a year. When George Bush left office, the interest on the national debt was over $290 billion per year. In other words, Bush, Reagan and Quayle's financing stupidity make it a fact that we have to pay $250 billion in taxes more that does nothing but pay for past tax stupidity, and nothing is paid to reduce the debt. For God's sake, get our people in Congress to be fiscally responsible, not a bunch of lying, stupid phonies who are completely without fiscal responsibility.

No net loss of private property

OUR FRIEND Jo Ann Emerson is absolutely right. Government does not need to buy up any more private property. This country was founded on the idea of people owning the property. The more government buys it, the less people own. What we need is a new concept of no net loss of private property. Any time any government buys any land, they ought to be forced to sell the same amount of land back to the people. How that would work out would be if Cape Girardeau wanted to buy some property for a new city park, they'd have to sell a little bit of one of their old parks back for a subdivision. Or, maybe they could get the state to sell a few acres of forest land back to people as private property. We need no net loss of private property.

Put the burden on the parents

WHY CAN'T the fear of lawsuits be eliminated for the teachers in the classroom by the teacher phoning the principal when a violent student will not comply with the teacher's reprimand. Then the principal and a school officer would come to the classroom and remove the violent student. Then the principal would phone the parents to come pick up the disruptive student. There would be a signed statement required by the parents that they came and picked up the student and will discipline him. Then parents would sign another statement later when they felt he was eligible for further good-behavior schooling and return him to school. This would put the responsibility where it belongs: on the parents, and release the school from liability. If the problem continued, dismissal could be instigated with proof of prior incidents and signed statements by the parents on file relieving the school of blame and any successful lawsuits.

Finish the steps first

HOW CAN the university expect to be using the River Campus by 2002 when they haven't even been able to finish the steps to the Kent Library in over two years?

Oran schools are appreciated

REGARDING THE comment about Oran schools receiving an A-plus from the Missouri Board of Education: As a lifelong member of the Oran community, I appreciate the effort of the faculty, administration and other school personnel who put forth the extra time and effort every year to maintain a good school system for our students, often with little or no support from the parent. With this rating, their efforts have been recognized. Good job, Oran.

Oran deserved top rating

I'M CALLING in response to the person who implied Oran schools got an A-plus rating only because the school knew in advance of the review. Oran didn't have any more notice than any other school in Missouri, so if they received an A-plus rating, they certainly deserved it. In addition, there are numerous things that are looked at by the review team. Just because the school has a new coat of paint does not change the fact that Oran students are meeting and exceeding state averages on achievement tests. At what levels students are performing is the best gauge for school success. This kind of success can't take place only in the month prior to an evaluation.

Plenty of KC coverage

RECEIVING A temporary transfer to Cape Girardeau from another state has been a learning experience for myself and my family. Every day we read up on events in nearby communities and look up those towns on the map to get an idea where they are located. As we look at the map and read the local newspaper and listen to the local television station, we start to get confused. Geographically, it would appear that St. Louis is the closest metropolitan community on the eastern side of Missouri. But neither news medium discusses events there. Instead there are weekly if not daily stories from Kansas City, which is some 350 miles away. Kansas City has some nice areas, but then so does St. Louis, and St. Louis is closer.

Be careful about donations

I'M CALLING with a warning to people in our community who are being solicited by people identifying themselves with a community police association. Unless the person calling you gives you the city and location of the police force for whom they are soliciting, please hang up the phone. After talking with the Cape Girardeau Police Department, I was informed that none of the money that is being given to this particular group is being handed over for service with the Cape Girardeau department. So that's just a warning to people who receive solicitation. It's always best to call the city police department to check, and this current solicitation is fraudulent. Be careful.

Incentives for writing tickets

I JUST read the article about the traffic tickets in Cape Girardeau going from 4,000-something to 9,000-something tickets per year. I just found out there are no bonuses, but there are incentives for the officers to write tickets. I think the people of Cape Girardeau ought to be informed that the city's police officers are getting incentives for writing tickets. It's just horrible.

Cartoon was in poor taste

I THINK it was in poor taste to publish the cartoon "Dear Kennedy Family" on the editorial page or anywhere else in the paper. I was deeply saddened when President Kennedy died, and my children now feel the impact with his son's death. I know it is a biased newspaper, but this is simply ridiculous. Who is responsible for this? I realized that other newspapers probably published it also. I'm just tired of such a poor paper for the size of Cape Girardeau. I had relatives over from Connecticut, and they thought it was an inadequate paper. They publish one themselves.

Potholes at Humane Society

I THINK it would be really nice if someone would donate some asphalt to fix the Humane Society's driveway. There are a couple of really big potholes forming there.

He doesn't know right and wrong

I SAW an interview where the president was saying it was morally wrong to give Americans a tax break. I'm about tired of watching the president point his finger at me and tell me what's right and wrong.

Looks like everything doubles

IF WE go twice as long between vehicle inspections and our driver's licenses will be valid twice as long as they are now for twice the money, does that mean we'll have to wait in line twice as long at this license bureau?

Remember Bush raised taxes

I JUST read Gary Rust's column about Gore giving Bush credit for the economy. I want to remind Gary that George raised taxes. So it helped. Now we've got this phony tax breaks Republicans want to give us, and they say there's no real surplus there. So why in the world are we cutting taxes instead of leaving them alone to keep things going?

Thanks for returning package

I WANTED to thank the person who returned the package of items I had purchased at Lowe's. In loading the car, I left one bag in the cart. I didn't realize it for a couple of days. When I went back to Lowe's, someone had turned it in at the service desk. I appreciate their honesty and thank them very much for being a decent person and not walking off with it. Thanks a lot.

Another point of view

REFERRING TO the July 28 newspaper headlines on the front page: "Car licensing to get easier." Could it not have been easier to simply say "Driver's fees will double," "Registration fees will double" or "Inspections will also increase"?

Talk about being phony

YOU GIVE Bush credit for the economy, but you never gave George credit for raising taxes. Lowering taxes, one of the Missourian editorials claimed, would help the economy. Forget the national debt. Bush raised taxes and got the economy going. Now the Republicans have passed the tax cut on a phony surplus. The tax cut is for votes and nothing else. If a person is in debt, he doesn't want his income lowered. They argue, "If we don't cut taxes, the money will be spent anyway." Watch them. They'll spend it anyway, and it'll all be the Democrats' fault even with Republican control of Congress. After all, they just gave themselves a raise, didn't they? You talk about phony.

Maybe a history lesson is needed

A LETTER writer recently suggested there were third-party candidates on Mount Rushmore. The writer went ahead to say, incorrectly, that Theodore Roosevelt had formed the Bull Moose Party. She then said incorrectly that he was elected to two terms as president. She then said incorrectly that Andrew Jackson was a third-party candidate. She then said proceeded to say that anyone who didn't understand this needed a history lesson.

Why the leeway on speed limits?

I WAS very relieved to read your article about ticket writing on the increase in Cape Girardeau. In your article is says that most police allow 10 miles per hour over the speed limit most of the time, or something to that effect. Sgt. Davis told me that that was untrue, just a year ago. In fact I told him that people operate under that assumption, and he said it was a misconception, and that police do not give over ten miles an hour before writing a ticket. In your paper, it was clearly, blatantly said that it is true. I'm concerned about that on two points. If that is true, then drivers on my street -- a residential street with a park right on the street -- can go up to approximately 44 mph instead of the 35 mph posted. However, the city engineers told me that 35 mph is the maximum safe speed in an area such as this and that 44 mph is too fast to be safe. Another point: If they are allowed up to 44 mph in a 35 mph zone, that's approximately 27 percent leeway in obedience to the law. Are drivers getting a 20 percent leeway in obedience to other traffic laws such as stopping at red lights, yielding to ongoing traffic and other offenses? Why is 27 percent of leeway given in speeding and not in other laws? If we wanted it to be 44 mph and that's what was safe, the engineer would recommend 44 mph, not 35 mph. I think it's time the city police enforce the laws as they are written on all the laws, not just on the ones they selectively choose.

Praise for South Elementary

MY CHILDREN have been to several different schools in the area. They went to South Elementary School in Jackson last year and will be attending it this year. I believe South Elementary is the best in the area.

There are court cases too

IT'S AMAZING that James Nall can determine the Founding Fathers' beliefs regarding the Second Amendment without referencing any of the several dozen federal court cases holding that Second Amendment only applies to organized militias such as the National Guard. He must be much smarter than all of the federal judges in this country.

We need real news, not fluff

I WANTED to applaud the Southeast Missourian for running the articles on the expose of public records and access to them. I truly enjoyed it, and it was very illuminating. I would hope that the Southeast Missourian itself could go into in-depth investigative reporting such as the Illinois papers did on this project. It's about time that our newspapers quit running fluff articles from the AP or Reuters or any other low-end news source and outlet. Anyone on the Internet can access these items, but what we are searching for is the real news such as what's exposed by the reporters going out into the field and trying to gain access to public records and the reaction and conclusions thereafter.

Try again on gardening

TELL LAURA Johnston not to be disappointed if her first attempt at gardening didn't meet her expectations. Lots of factors play a part in the successful garden. Just try again next year. It's rewarding when everything works together to make your garden do well.