SPEAKOUT

Not with breakfast

I'M ALSO a University of Florida alumnus who has waited over 20 years to see the Gators win the national championship. I'm as thrilled as David Angier but I wish he could have done a College of Journalism and Communications proud by using a more finely termed phrase than "the living snot." It's a bit rough to take, especially at breakfast.

Congrats to Central

I WANT to say congratulations to Coach Reutzel and the rest of the Cape Central basketball team for winning the U-High Tournament. They were definitely the best team in the U-High Tournament by beating Charleston. That should have been the final game. Scott City just got lucky. Congratulations to Cape's Nathan Owen, Lavel Lewis and Travis Cox.

Mona Charen is right

AS MONA Charen said in her column, Newt Gingrich knew 10 years ago that he was under very close scrutiny for his ethics and legal actions. If what Newt Gingrich has done since then is the best he can do, knowing he was being watched very closely, there is something wrong with the man. Mona Charen has appeared on many different talk shows as the voice of the right wing on many things. She is not a left-wing representative. She is one of his people, and she says that he's not to be trusted, I agree with wholeheartedly with her, don't you?

Congrats to Scott City

CONGRATULATIONS to the Scott City basketball team and Coach McCord, not only for coming in second at the tournament, but for the other games before that event. This school may be small, but it is a good one. Most students are very respectful, clean and dress neatly. One can walk through the halls feeling perfectly safe, and we get to know almost all of our schoolmates. Our teachers take time with us whether it is an assignment or a problem. I have heard from larger schools' students we aren't cool. True, there are ones who are in trouble at times. I think this starts at home. There are parents who are involved with themselves, and when their children get in trouble, they do not understand. Mothers and fathers, study yourselves and admit the mistakes you make and become more interested in our activities.

A water rate increase?

I CANNOT believe the city is considering a water rate increase. I thought we passed a tax to cover that. Now, we will have a tax increase and water rate increase too?

Leave it blank

I TELL, you I just can't keep my eyes off TCI's new offering to our program lineup. Animal Planet on channel 30 is just one of the greatest things I have seen on cable in years. It takes me way back to the late 50s: fuzzy filming, bad lighting, audio in and out and the same old lizards just crawling around from show to show, the same gorillas swinging from tree to tree in the same manner. Give it up, TCI. Get something on there or just leave it a blank screen.

Tricks will be remembered

WHAT A wise city council we have. Seems like I've been misinformed again. The front page said the city would consider a water rate increase. However, it appears that the considering was done last summer when the city figured the rate increase into the budget. Very sneaky indeed, and I'm one who will remember these tricks.

No more laughs

I REALLY miss the Comedy Channel and I'm not laughing anymore. That isn't funny.

Deadbeat parents

I'D LIKE to comment on the term "deadbeat parent." A lot of us out here do pay our child support that we owe, and I have had not luck whatsoever getting any help for any agency regarding my visitation. I've always been told I have to hire a lawyer. Recently I was jailed because my ex said I hadn't paid my child support when indeed I paid my child support and have proved this. I would appreciate if people would stop and consider what they're saying and look at both sides of the story before they term someone a deadbeat parent.

Give us cable we want

STOP LYING, TCI. You say you give the customers what you want. Well, listen. We want decent channels to watch, not the new channels you bought at a cheaper rate. And as far as KFVS goes, I've called TCI, and they said if KFVS does not want to comply, they'll just replace them right away with another channel. I mean, I am so disgusted and all of my friends and family are. What is going to take Cape Girardeau to get a decent cable company to service us?

This is why they lost

A CALLER said that a liberal could not be a Christian. These kinds of remarks are exactly why the Republicans have lost the last two elections, and I'm really surprised at the Missourian for printing such trash.

Blatantly unconstitutional

I'D LIKE to comment on the fact Scott County is getting a new jail and more police officers and more patrol cars. I think that's great in fighting crime. However, I do not agree with the almighty Bill Ferrell saying that his officers are going to stop cars without probable cause. This is a blatant violation of the Constitution. Does anybody out there care?

Komodo dragons

THE ONLY positive thing that come out of the TCI lineup change is that VH-1 and Comedy Central are not longer sharing channels. At least now viewers won't get hopes up for Saturday Night Live reruns to find hours and hours of American Bandstand. At least with the Cartoon Network, if they promote a Smurfathon, the viewers know when to avoid the terrible programming. The combination of the Comedy Central and VH-1 would ambush viewers. Additionally, I don't understand the outrage of WGN being replaced by Animal Planet. Animal Planet provides interesting and educational programming, such as on the mating ritual of the Komodo dragons, and WGN now has some basketball team. Why show some little known NBA franchise featuring the icon of advertising who also happens to be the greatest basketball player and a skinny guy with multi-colored hair when you can have wholesome family shows like Lassie?

Thanks for finding purse

I WOULD like to thank the kind people at Sav-A-Lot that found my purse and turned it in at the office there. I would just like to say thank you and God bless you.

Charge big users more

I HAVE two complaints that I'd like to air, and one of them is that the city council wants to raise the rates on regular taxpayers. Why don't they just charge the large commercial water users the same price as they do us? After all, they're the ones causing the shortage, and they should be paying the same thing that we pay. My second complaint is the slaughter of the wild horses in the West. These beautiful animals should not be slaughtered and sold for food overseas. Representative Emerson should introduce legislation to stop this needless slaughtering of these animals.

Water rate concerns

THE MAYOR and the council of Cape Girardeau can tell us ever day that we're not getting a double whammy on the water increase, for which we are. The way I read this, we passed a bond issue for higher taxes, and now they come along ahead with a water rate increase again this year. What I would like to know is why the water rates didn't have to go up every year when Union Electric had the waterworks? We have been taken for a ride on this sewer tax and this water deal in Cape Girardeau for years, and it ain't getting any better, it's only getting worse. How many increases do they think people can tolerate on fixed incomes? I think they need to get their priorities straight and forget about the airport. The money they're spending on the airport, spend it on the waterworks, because the airport is never going to do the working man of Cape Girardeau any good. It's only for the rich people who have airplanes.

Not enough words

I DON'T believe that I have the words at my command to show my disgust, my displeasure and my consternation at TCI for the way they have scrambled up the TV programs. I just don't have words for it.