SPEAKOUT

An understatement

IN A recently published editorial, you quoted legendary state representative Republican Mark Richardson. Richardson said, "There is a serious concern about the direction education reform is moving in this state." You then said, in reference to Richardson's comment that his was an "understatement." Following that, you wrote, in part that "the so-called academic performance standards recently adopted by the state board have been the subject of frequent comment in this space." Frequent comment? Talk about an understatement. Never ending, omnipresent or ad nauseum, maybe, but merely "frequent?" Come on guys, give yourself some credit.

Early release

ON THIS deal about the convict who was a cocaine dealer and being released because he was old. I say, you've got to be kidding me. To me, this is right up there with the O.J. Simpson debacle. You know, Charles Manson is getting up in age. His beard is turning white. So I will be looking to see his release real soon.

Yogi's quote

THE PERSON who called Speak Out about "deja vu all over again" obviously doesn't know that it's a quote for Yogi Berra, ex-baseball great, who was known for his deviation from the center statement. Most of the people in the media who quote him are aware of this. For example, another Yogi gem is "When you come to a fork in the road, take it."

City spending

THERE WAS a letter to the editor Feb. 8 from a person in Illinois that sure hit the nail on the head about Cape Girardeau not needing another park. I think the city needs to watch how it's spending the taxpayers' money and let the foundation take care of it. They bought that. Let them pay for it.

History lesson

THE ARTICLE about the veterans cemetery said the town of Bloomfield was liberated from Confederate control by the Union forces. I don't think this is true. That town was not liberated by Union forces. It was captured by union forces as the people in that area were definitely pro-South. If you study your Missouri history of that area and if you read the old newspapers from that time, you would definitely find that out. Also, many, many people in Cape County were pro-South. Primarily people of German descent were the ones who supported the Union.

Let Boyd buy it

WHY DOESN'T Boyd Gaming Corp. purchase the property of the old St. Vincent's Seminary? Traffic to and from the location with the new bridge highway would solve the narrow downtown street problems. They could make a deal with Colonial Cape Girardeau Foundation to have the seminary building. This prime site overlooking the river property would best serve the taxpayers of Cape Girardeau by having it placed on the tax roles. We have more empty and unkept parks than we taxpayers can afford now.

REPLY: At least two gambling companies, Boyd Gaming Corp. and Lady Luck Gaming Corp., considered the seminary site in the early stages of their consideration of Cape Girardeau for a riverboat casino. Both companies were told that turning a site that is historically connected to a seminary into a gambling operation might be bad public relations. In addition, it was felt that traffic congestion created by bridge traffic and a riverboat would create problems in that area. After Boyd was selected to negotiate a contract for a riverboat here, it pledged $500,000 to Colonial Cape Girardeau Foundation for the preservation and restoration effort at the seminary.

Not my tax money

I AM very concerned as a citizen of Cape Girardeau concerning the city wanting to buy the seminary land out and pay $35,000 an acre for property in south Cape when I believe you could buy all of south Cape for $550,000. This is a dead project. It was dead from day one. It is a total disgrace that the city would get in on this and spend my taxpayer's money to try to buy this piece of property out, and it should never been bought by anyone in the city of Cape Girardeau in the first place.

Hospital spending

I RECENTLY read that Southeast Missouri Hospital purchased a helicopter for $550,000. I was curious why there was no mention of them having to have a certificate of need approved or that the business coalition was not involved in any of these decisions. It kind of seems to me that Southeast doesn't have to go through the same procedures that St. Francis Medical Center does.

REPLY: Helicopter air ambulance services are regulated by the Department of Health's Emergency Medical Services division. In 1989 a decision was made to stop requiring a certificate of need for hospital helicopters.

Read the signs

THE CITY has been fixing a broken water main on North Cape Rock, and ever so often they close the street. It is really amazing all the people in Cape who cannot read the "street closed" signs that are all around. Then it is really amazing to see them all have to turn around and come back.

Minimum wage

TO ALL you minimum wage supporters, I have a scenario for you. Pretend there wasn't any minimum wage whatsoever. You go to a interview with your prospective employer. He says to you "I'll pay what your worth." I guess you answer would be, "Heck, I can't live on that."

No more parks

FOR SOME time I've been wondering how long it would take for the cost of the old St. Vincent's Seminary property to be transferred to the taxpayer. The plan is now evident. The Colonial Cape Girardeau Foundation entered into a purchase agreement for the property. Let them fulfill their agreement, not with taxpayers' money but with their own money. We certainly do not need another park.

Lack of reporting

I'M VERY disappointed that the newspaper or none of the major media or anybody reported on Web Hubbell's testimony in the Whitewater hearings. It's amazing that this guy who used to be on the Arkansas Supreme Court who specialized in regulatory banks knew that his father-in-law was getting an unsecured loan to buy property from Madison and that Hillary Clinton was the principal lawyer at the closing, and we're supposed to believe that he didn't tell his law partner, Hillary Clinton, anything about this. Yet none of this was reported on the news or anything. I guess there's just so many lies there that they just can't cover everyone of them. I don't know what the deal is.

Courthouse accessibility

I WAS wondering why the courthouse on Lorimier Street does not have wheelchair accessibility to the upstairs. I had to go to court there and they had to change the courtroom or carry me up the steps because I'm in a wheelchair. Can't something be done about this in Cape Girardeau?

Support for Taylor

THIS IS for Terry Taylor of the school board. Hang in there, kid, I'm behind you 100 percent. Good luck.

School discipline

THERE WAS one thing in the GOP platform that I thought was missing in regards to public schools, and that was blatant missing information on discipline in the schools and whether or not you support discipline in the schools.

There's a way

ABOUT THE movies shown here in Cape. I think the person who wants to see "Nixon" should get together with the other three or four people who want to see that movie and car pool together to St. Louis.

No equity

IF A black woman voices her opposition to a black man dating a white woman, she's just trying preserve the race. If a white father voices his opposition to his daughter dating a black man, then he's a racist. There's not a lot of equity in that.

NAACP's accusations

I'M A Cape Central student, and I'm calling about the article about Terry Taylor threatening John Jenkins. I was witness to that, and he drove through the parking lot and stopped and looked and took off. He didn't get out. He said something to Sarah and nothing else and just left. I think it's a real shame that the NAACP, which is a good organization, would want to ruin someone that they've worked hard to get on the school board. I think it's really a shame that they would want to do that to someone's name. I always thought the NAACP was a good organization. I just think that they ought to watch who they're accusing. That hurts the whole school board, not just a few people here and there. It hurts the whole school system. It gives us all a bad name, students and all, and that's not right. I think everybody should be treated equal.

New city slogan

WELL, WITH so many restaurants that we have in town, I thought it might be a good idea to rename the City of Roses as the City of Restaurants.

Downsizing facts

BILL CLINTON'S claim to a downsized government is very shallow. Ninety percent of the job elimination has been in the military. The rest of the elimination comes from the fact that the Resolution Trust Corporation has been has been dissolved, and that was all done under the Bush administration. In addition, his claims to 8 million jobs created, 7 million in the private sector, is below the historical average for a recovery period. If it was a Republican claiming this, the media would be pointing it out every day. Since it's Bill Clinton, nobody really even checks his figures. Just thought informed voters might want to know something like that.