SPEAKOUT

Statistically, guns protect

I DON'T believe there have been any murder victims in the past 20 years who were holding a 9 mm handgun while they were murdered.

No need for milking outcry

I READ where Melvin Gately participated in a milking contest again. I hope he milked the cow from the correct side this year and there won't be an ongoing controversy about it. Except for the inexplicable barricades on Cape's streets, The milking incident was the most controversial issue in our city last summer.

What aren't they a hate group?

I WOULD like to comment on the recent headlines about this guy who's supposed to belong to a hate group. Why is it when they show those guys marching and holding their signs, it's all hate. But when homosexuals have a march and want the right to have sex with kids, they're not called sexual predators or a hate group, especially when they bash Christians. I think the homosexuals have done more to ruin this country than these hate groups. Most of those groups live in isolation, whereas some the homosexual groups have managed to gain power in Washington.

No need for more murder laws

A CRIME is a crime. A murder is a murder, whether it's committed out of love or out of hate. So what is the point of adding moral laws to the books? Is it because our officials have nothing better to do? I simply don't understand that. If you murder somebody, it's a felony. I don't care whether you did it because you loved the victim or whether you hated them. The courts will decide. Why another law? It does not make any sense and it is totally useless.

Thanks for help at the ER

I'D LIKE to thank the young security officer, Jimmy, who helped me in getting to the emergency room at Southeast Missouri Hospital. I arrived at the opposite end of the emergency room and was unable to walk or drive any further due to my illness. Jimmy drove me to the other side, got me into the ER and parked my car for me. His kindness was very much appreciated. I would just like to say thanks for all his help.

Goofy nuts not well-regulated

I HOPE Peter Kinder and the rest of the people who want a right to carry guns law will understand how lucky we are that Don Smith was not trained in the handling of guns. Instead of two people killed, we could have easily had another dozen killed by a person who is a good shot. Some goofy nut is not what was meant by a well-regulated militia that was approved by the Constitution.

Who do they think they are? Harvard?

I DON'T know if it's just me or if everybody else is getting sick to death of picking up the paper at least once a week and seeing an announcement where SEMO's building something new or getting a pay raise or wanting to build a parking garage. Then they want to put artificial turf in the stadium. This is ridiculous. I was in the Golden Eagles. We practiced on the field the week before a game, and we had to go all the way from the Brandt Hall, which is way across on the north end of the campus, all the way to the stadium, carrying our instruments and stuff. How much are we taxpayers going to be asked to pay for? This is not Washington University. The students can barely afford to go to school there now. Every new expansion, every new addition, the enormous salary raise for the new fellow coming in -- this is just getting to be too much. Who do they think they are? Harvard?

Thanks for sugar-free recipes

I'D LIKE to thank you very much for the sugar-free recipes for the diabetics in the paper. I really do appreciate it. My husband is a diabetic. I'd like to see more of them. Thank you very much.

Respect for funeral processions

TO THE person who commented in Speak Out under the heading "Traffic tickets for stupidity": I would think you probably should have the biggest one of all for not observing a funeral procession, something that is sacred. You're supposed to pull to the side of the road to show respect for the family, not the person who's dead. I wish they could find you and give you the biggest ticket of all for your stupidity.

A reply in Austin Powers-speak

A SPEAK Out caller thinks the new Austin Powers movie should have been rated R. Yeah, baby! What a shagadelic comment!

Choice and balance on Internet

I URGE you to get the Internet. I think you'll find that there's a balanced reporting there. You'll have your choice. You won't be force-fed the Clintons 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can read things that are more interesting and certainly more balanced. The national news media has no balance whatsoever. Their propoganda and their brainwashing techniques of constant repetition of slogans and sayings from the Clinton camp's legions of liars aren't going to give you any information that would allow you to make your own decisions. You have to think freely. Don't let the national news media tell you what you think or what everybody else thinks. On the Internet you can find many sites where you can find conservative points of view along with liberal points of view. You can get a choice and a balance of news.

Stadium upgrade will be a plus

TO THE caller who was skeptical of the renovation of Houck Stadium and how it would help the program: I have to disagree. I believe it would help because it would allow for greater recruiting incentives, which in return would bring better athletes and a stronger program. This would bring more of the community and the students involved in the football program, and I think it would be a wonderful move for Southeast Missouri State University.

Playing the victim

CAN YOU believe Mrs. Clinton is running for senator from New York? Why not the state she was first lady in, Arkansas? What do the faithful Arkansas Democrats think of this? She's playing the victim for all it's worth. Of course, liberals love victims. Her only claim to fame is that she was jilted by her pervert husband, and then she planned his defense.

Debt, deficit are explained

IN REGARD to the person who called in wondering what the difference is between the deficit and the national debt: The deficit is when federal expenditures exceed the revenue that the federal government brings in. The national debt is the total amount that the government owes to anybody. The majority of the national debt is to the citizens of America. The deficits cause the national debt to rise. And the national debt is all of the deficits minus any federal excess.

Adultery is wrong too

I WOULD like to make a point that some people seem to be missing. It is wrong to be a homosexual. But it is also wrong to commit adultery and fornication. And how many of you are doing that? God says that nobody doing any of these things is going to inherit God's kingdom. So please stop putting just one class of people down. By the way, I am straight.

Choose priorities for spending

WE ARE hearing a lot about people who can't afford health insurance. Being able to afford health insurance is primarily a priority situation. Most of those people who say they can't afford insurance or choose not to afford insurance are people who go out and eat fast food, buy food already prepared and all they have to do is heat it up. They're too lazy to do their own work. They want someone to do it for them. The reason they're wanting a health program is because they think someone else will pay for it. Let them choose their priorities and pay for what they would like to have. If they don't want health insurance, don't complain about it.

Bad image of spending

I THINK SEMO University is presenting a bad image with all the money being spent on the Seabaugh Building, remodeling of Kent Library, the River Campus in the $35 million area, the presidential perks listed in the paper, salaries of everyone on the faculty and administration being raised, and a tuition raise at the same time.

Parking garage a grand idea

CONGRATULATIONS TO SEMO president Ken Dobbins. His idea for a parking garage in mid-campus is a step in the right direction. I have a few ideas on how the deal could be improved and developed further. First, the issue of safety. Night safety in that area could be increased by adequate lighting and actual SEMO officers patrolling as opposed to student patrols. Daytime safety would be easily controlled with well-marked pedestrian walkways and one-way entrances and exits to the garage. Something that may make all parking on campus easier would be to do away with the levels of preferred parking on campus. Just having perimeter and one level of preferred parking would allow people to park wherever is most convenient to the majority of their classes as they change from semester to semester. Someone will undoubtedly make an issue about using the band's practice field for the parking garage. Well, there's a grassy field that is being worked on just up the hill from their current practice area. This field could very easily serve a number of purposes: soccer practices, impromptu games of baseball or football and, yes, even a practice area for the band. All that would be required would be a little planning on the part of anyone who wished to hold a game or practice there. The plan for a garage is a wonderful one. With some simple logic and an unselfish attitudes it would not be hard to get it built. After all, isn't a university there to serve its students?

American won't forget them

BILLY BOY and Hillary are in their ego glory now. He is parading all over America, and she is parading as a wannabe New Yorker. They are both ego jokers, self-possessed and wallowing in self-glorification and gratification to try to erase their humiliation for their scandals. America does not forget. They are a corrupt couple out for power and self-aggrandizement. They will forever be an odious and odorous, notorious stigma on America. They are a disgrace to the human race.