OpinionOctober 15, 1997
SPEAKOUT
THANKS, COUNTY commissioners, for your decision not to jump in and spend taxpayers' money when you were requested to establish a referral system to help the needy. This appears to be another request to establish a position that's not needed, to be funded out of taxpayers' money. ...
Agencies already do referrals
THANKS, COUNTY commissioners, for your decision not to jump in and spend taxpayers' money when you were requested to establish a referral system to help the needy. This appears to be another request to establish a position that's not needed, to be funded out of taxpayers' money. People do know where to go for help, and we already have an established system. The helping agencies provide referral services to try to meet the need. We simply don't need another agency to tell people where to go. Good job, commissioners. I also wondered about United Way jumping in to expend funds to create such a referral system when it's not needed.
Do something for the children
THANK YOU, Sam Blackwell, for your column last Thursday. Maybe now something will be done for these children. Thank you again. I can't say it enough.
TV ministers are on welfare
I SAY give to your hometown church. The church and the minister are always there for you. But I wouldn't send a penny to these television preachers. They just want your money to keep them on the air and to buy their Mercedes, every stitch of clothing they put on their backs, every expense they have, even every bite of food they eat so they can live high on the hog. Yes, it's better than working for them, but I figure that they're on welfare.
Opportunity for financial gain
I READ a recent letter to the editor advocating Interstate 66. One thing the writer failed to mention is that he is employed by a company involved in real estate development, restaurant ownership, hotel construction and ownership and billboard advertising. This person stands to gain greatly financially if I-66 were to go through. Now don't get me wrong, I'm for I-66 also, but I just question the motives of somebody who stands to gain tremendously financially by this thing going in, and not mentioning that fact in his letter to the editor.
Who needs all that progress?
I'D LIKE to say something about this I-66 road project and this Bollinger County lake. They say it'll bring in more people and more economic development. Who needs it? Have you ever looked around Cape's highways lately? It looks like St. Louis or New York or Chicago. And some people in Jackson are complaining about overcrowding. People in the Pocahontas and Fruitland areas are complaining about the sewage coming out of the ground. Crime is increasing. It's all because of too many people. We didn't have these problems 40-50 years ago. Cape and Jackson were pretty nice communities. You didn't have this traffic and crime to worry about. Maybe we should do like Montana: Tell people to stay away. We don't know what to do with all of them we've got now. Maybe it's time we just enjoy what we've got and not tear it up.
In defense of AmeriCorps director
I'M CALLING in regards to the AmeriCorps program. I have said I wouldn't call and say anything about this, but in reading the last Speak Out comment about Mr. Thompson -- anyone who knows Mr. Thompson knows that he has time for everyone, the students, the faculty, whatever. He is not that kind of person. Mr. Thompson was not upset in his letter. He merely stated the truth.
Rich pay more with flat tax
THIS IS a response to the comment in Speak Out about the flat tax and the poor paying more. This sounds like the same old Democratic line. Since when is 10 percent of $40,000 more than 10 percent of $400,000 or $4 million or Ted Turner's $2 billion? If you're smart enough to figure this out, then you're too smart to make the statement that you made.
Lying habit produces a liar
ONE LIE in a lifetime does not make a person a liar. The habit of lying is what makes a person a liar.
Sales pressure for students
I'D LIKE to voice a third opinion on the school fund raisers. First, I'd like to say I agree with the comment that the fund raisers are extreme and the kids get very little reward unless they're one of the very top sellers. I've had kids in this for at least six years. I'd like to say to the other caller who said the first caller needed to talk to a responsible adult who knows all the facts: I'm sure an adult, and I've been told the facts by the schools here in Jackson. I support my schools, and I support the fund raisers only because my child was led to believe that if you sell X number of items, which is 10 or more, you can go to the carnival that they're going to have in the afternoon. When I asked what would happen with the other kids that didn't sell items, they were unsure at that time. They couldn't tell me what they would do in lieu of the carnival. But that was the minimum number of items that you could sell and gain any kind of reward. So, for what it's worth, the first caller wasn't wrong. Maybe Cape schools' fund raising guidelines are different, but that's the way it is in Jackson.
Take time to protect your dog
AS THE owner of two dogs, recently I had an encounter with my dogs and a neighborhood dog. The other dog was running loose in its yard and then saw my dogs. It started running toward us. I keep my pets on long anchored leashes, so I couldn't grab them and try to take them in quickly. One of my dogs is very protective of me, and I didn't think she'd respond well to a stranger. The strange dog jumped up a wall and into the yard, and I, a 95-pound, 21-year-old woman, had to keep this boxer mix and my shepherd mix and border collie apart as the owner of the boxer mix halfheartedly jogged over. Trying to calm me down, the man assured me his pet wouldn't bite, but that wasn't the problem to me. Having a pet is a responsibility, like having a child. Keeping them safe should be the priority. If this man would have taken $15 or so and invested it in a leash and an anchor for his yard, he would have been able to sit back and enjoy his dog's playfulness instead of having to chase him around the neighborhood. Restraining a dog with a leash isn't cruel. It keeps them from the possibility of fighting with another dog they may encounter if they're running loose, and especially keeps them safe from running out into traffic. If you love and respect your dog, take a couple of seconds to hook them up to a leash. Teach your dog obedience, and protect your dog, please.
Need more city leaf pickups
HOW CAN the city people who have trees take care of their leaves with only one pick up for fall and winter? That is plumb stupid. There should at least be two.
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Why didn't columnist step in to help?
TO SAM Blackwell, concerning his article on child abuse: What a sad, pathetic revelation of your mindset. In the first place, combating child abuse doesn't start with "we," it starts with the individual. Why would you expect, or even hope, for others to stop when you didn't? It sounds like you're trying to purge your conscience by putting everybody else into your leaky boat. And please don't come back with another article saying that this is precisely the response you were hoping for, to involve the public. We weren't there. You were.
Just more politics as usual
IT IS amusing to watch the indignant posture that the local right-wingers try to assume at the prospect of campaign finance abuse in the White House. But we must remember that these are the same right-wingers who, several years ago, saw absolutely nothing wrong with persuading Southeast Missouri State University to endorse and support the Ronald Reagan Republican party campaign stop in the Show Me Center under the guise of calling it an educational event. And that event was subsequently determined by the Federal Election Commission to be an illegal act. Both locally and in the Gingrich-locked congress, it's all politics as usual.
At the mercy of healthcare providers
HATS OFF to the person who made a good point about health insurance for $98 a month. Like she said, the person who recommends that we minimum-wage people ought to do without cable TV, generic cigarettes want the working poor to be slaves to the medical profession. We're blackmailed by them, because we either pay up or lose everything we have, or pray that we don't get sick. Greedy insurance companies worked so hard to defeat President Clinton's plan for a national healthcare. In other words, they want us to be the underdog to the affluent. They can say "work hard" all they want, but you'll find very few people who were fortunate enough to receive wealth, mostly obtained from the backs of the poor. So hats off to that person. The greedy insurance companies want us in the position we're in right now. I'm no welfare recipient. I'm well-insured. But I feel for the people who are at the mercy of the medical profession.
An experience with Chaffee police
I MUST thank the Chaffee policeman who gave me so much attention and provided a personal escort through town early last Sunday morning. I had just left the emergency room where a sick relative had been and was returning home via Chaffee to drop my two great-aunts off at their home. Upon entering the outskirts of Chaffee, I immediately met another car being followed -- I mean escorted -- out of town. However, this policeman was kind enough to turn around and follow me to my first destination. At first I thought this was just a lucky coincidence, since I was stopping very near the police station. I assumed the policeman was just in a hurry to get back to the station, and that's how he managed to get behind me so quickly. However, I was wrong, because by the time I reached my second destination three or four streets away, I realized that the nice policeman was staying right with me. I'm sure it was to ensure my safety so late at night. He was so courteous, he followed me until I turned to go out of town. What other town can a young woman like myself drive through early in the morning and feel so safe and protected? I won't bother to give my name, since I'm sure he was nice enough to run my license plate through his computer and knows exactly who I am. But just a wee bit of warning to him: other young women might mistake this treatment for some sort of harassment and might not be as nice about as I have been. I just wonder why some people feel that Chaffee needs a different police force. Please print this, as I'm sure the Chaffee police department would like all of the citizens who have complained about them to realize what a fine job they're really doing of protecting everyone.
Proposed solution for land mines
I WOULD like to comment on the land mines in other countries that some people are complaining about. Why not just put a timer on them, so that in a month and a half they blow up, or set them to go off when a certain frequency is chosen.
Crosses are appropriate reminder
I READ with amazement the comment of a person that felt that trees should be planted in place of the white crosses that they felt was an eyesore. They said trees would beautify as well as represent life, and crosses symbolize death and murder of innocent babies, not life. Maybe they could plant weeping willows. Do you suppose that the thousands of people driving by will think, look at those trees, they live while 4,400 babies die each day? Those babies will never climb, much less see a tree. What a tribute to the more than 65 million babies slaughtered in our country to date.
Is anybody listening to concerns?
I HAVE seen comment after comment about North Clark being like the Indianapolis 500. Nothing has changed. All I want to know is this: After all these comments, where are the cops? This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever seen in my life. I don't understand it.
Did they refuse the pay raise?
I BET all 27 lawmakers up in Congress who opposed the automatic pay increase turned down this $3,000 cost-of-living pay raise. Isn't that wonderful? We have some honest congressmen and congresswomen up there. They turned the pay raise down.
Little donations soon add up
THIS IS a challenge to everyone with a family and a big, caring heart. I have two grown children and six wonderful grandkids. Last week a fire destroyed the world for the family in Scott City. Those kids lost their mother and their little brother in that fire. They lost their clothes, toys and everything. The paper said the man worked as a janitor. He's going to need a babysitter, and I'm sure the whole family needs counseling to face this tragedy. The Amicks are wonderful people. I'm mailing $8, one dollar for each of my children and grandchildren. It's not much, but if everyone would mail a dollar, it could change their lives. I'm sure the police department, fire department, or the Amick Funeral Home would see that the family gets the money. Please help.
Families need fire safety plans
Does your family know what to do in case of fire? Do they have an escape plan? A meeting place? Do they know to touch the doorknob before they open it? If it's hot, do not open the door. Put something around the bottom of the door to keep the smoke out. Heat rises -- stay close to the floor. Every family should have a weekly safety meeting.
Let churches do the counseling
NO WONDER kids aren't getting a good education these days when schools have counselors for grieving. I would suggest that's what churches are for on weekends. As I was growing up, if a classmate died it was something you talked about, but you didn't necessarily go see a counselor. I'm wondering if for some kids it's just an excuse to get out of the education process for a little bit. You have parents to talk to. You have clergymen. If your family doesn't take you to church, then maybe you are left out in the cold. It's ridiculous when schools can be doing so much more to educate our children that they get into the personal relationships of families, things that family and church should be able to handle.
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