SPEAKOUT

Buy American while holiday shopping

I WOULD like to thank the Cape Girardeau merchants that carry American-made products. I would like to ask everyone to be careful when you're shopping this Christmas. So many products from toys to shoes to household items are made in China. Please support American workers. Look for the "Made in U.S.A." label.

Health insurance for all

IF YOU mention health care for everyone, too many citizens react as if it's un-American -- even the Christians who suggest the idea. I was told years ago by a well-respected insurance gentleman that insurance is like the country started. If your neighbor needed to build a log cabin, you all helped. If it burned down, you helped rebuild. Same with your barn or your neighbor's barn. In insurance, we pay into a policy, and if someone needs help to regain their health, we help each other. Don't mention national health. You've heard the word starting with "social" and some people will make it sound like a four-letter word or even sinister. However insurance companies will be quick to point out if you want to improve your coverage for you group, yourself and employees, then diversify the risks. Sounds good doesn't it? Sure, it's better. And why not for the entire country to pay into one financial organization and diversify the risks as great as possible? Have two or three plans to choose from for flexibility of choice. We condemn the government for not doing anything but charging taxes and creating jobs. What are we doing with health insurance premiums? Hundreds of companies have duplicated or triplicated the same jobs. Everyone of them takes our premium dollars off the top for CEOs, managers, assistant managers, bonuses, trips, meetings before they pay one cent of our bill. If we cut this out, we will eliminate jobs. Whatever you do, don't suggest national health insurance for all. Let one or two insurance companies handle the group for all of us, and we keep the government out of it. If group insurance makes sense for companies, why not all of us" Health insurance for all of us.

Aldermen should represent the people

THE CITIZENS of the city of Jackson need to wake up. I don't think they need aldermen who have stated a need to "Put a stop to all of the development going on Jackson." I also don't think they need aldermen who have stated in open council session, "I don't care what the people want." Mr. Cunningham and Mr. Reiminger need to realize that it was the people that put them into office, and they have a duty to the voters, and the city of Jackson, to make decisions that will make our community a better place. Passing ordinances that will make it impossible for developers to build new subdivisions in this community is not what the voters had in mind when they elected you. The people of Jackson deserve a city government that will put them first.

Local news lacking on TV

JUST GOT in from work and flipped on the TV to Channel 12, hoping to find out what happened in my neighborhood while I'd been on the job all day. Well, I had one minute of the episode over in Kentucky and then this Heartland news went all the way from Russia to Siberia to Pocatello, Idaho, to Oklahoma City, Shreveport, La., or anywhere else they could get some information without doing anything. Pretty good chance that I can catch what they just showed me on the CBS News at 5:30. So I guess the best thing that I should do in the future if they're going to continue to do this kind of reporting and it appears to me for many years they have, is to just swap channels.

Need to change the status quo

I HAVE just been reading the last few weeks about several things that really upset me. First, this area of Southeast Missouri is a below-average income area. Secondly, our education is below average, and thirdly we have a lifespan below average. Something is drastically wrong. The education, if it isn't good, we're not going to have the income, and if you don't have the income, with the way the present medical system is, you're not going to have a long lifespan because you have to have money to get medical attention. Therefore, something needs to be done. The political system as it is presently set up isn't doing the job. It's about time for a change. When you're at the bottom of the heap, you can't and shouldn't put up with the status quo. Something has to be changed.

Addicts need help, not prison

I JUST read in the paper that this Republican Pat Naeger of Perryville thinks that meth users should get life sentences. I think that is so ridiculous. What good is that going to do? I mean, putting drug addicts in prison just overpopulates the prisons. They need help. They don't need to be locked away.