SPEAKOUT

Non-essential pay

I HAVE one question about the events the past week. Do our senators and our representatives in our U.S. Congress also forgo their salary for the past week like other non-essential citizens in this country?

REPLY: The question is probably rhetorical, but the simple answer is no. Senators and representatives were not furloughed during the recent partial shutdown of the federal government.

Just an estimate

WEBSTER'S DICTIONARY defines the budget as a financial statement of estimated income and expenses of a country for a period of time. So that just goes to show you that Democrats and Republicans, all of them up in Congress, are really stupid. This does not reduce the national debt at all. That's what we want to get: pay off the debt. Not just estimated income. All in all, Democrats and Republicans are as stupid as anybody can get.

Learn the process

THIS IS a suggestion for 99 percent of the callers to Speak Out complaining about politics and our legislative processes. Before you make that call, go the library, check out a civics book, come home, open it up, turn on C-SPAN and see how it works. You people have no idea what the process is.

Admire the GOP

I'M AN independent who has voted for both Republicans and Democrats in past elections. However, with the current budget debate, I have to admire the Republicans. They know that many of their spending cuts are unpopular and will cost them votes, but they are willing to pay the political price in order to ensure that future generations won't be stuck with this huge national debt. The Democrats know the consequences of not balancing the budget but apparently are more interested in getting votes than ensuring the future of our children and grandchildren. As a middle-class working person, I know how hard it is to make ends meet with 45 percent of income going to taxes. I am more than willing to sacrifice in my retirement years so that my descendants don't have to pay 85 percent plus of their wages to the government.

Blame NAFTA

WHAT DO Slick Willie and Rush Limbaugh have in common? give up? NAFTA. We have a plant in Cape that's going to close down and put over 100 people out of work to go down to Old Mexico and join the many other plants down there. And old Slick Willie even got organized labor to back him on that. So don't cry, union boys, when you're out a job.

Here's a whopper

MY GRANDDADDY told me when I was knee-high to a grasshopper that I mustn't lie. And if I told lie after lie, people might start believing me. Well, as I grew up, I became a politician, and I kept telling lies, and the ignorant voters began to believe in me. Then there were those in my political party who thought my lies were slick. Well, I made it to the top. Those ignorant voters still believe me when I tell them my whoppers. I think next time I'll try to be a king. What do you think?

Cancer equality

WOMEN REALLY have gained equality with men, but I'm not sure that it's worth it. I read recently in Dear Abby's column where the No. 1 cause of cancer death among women and men today is lung cancer, because women are not quitting smoking at the same rate as men. Lung cancer is on the decline in men but on the increase in women. It's estimated that early in the next century, more women will die of lung cancer than men. I don't know if women really have done themselves any favor by gaining equality with men. They may have defeated their own goal by bringing themselves to the forefront of death.

Spreading the blame

IT SEEMS like for the past three years everything that's happened in politics has been Bill Clinton's fault. The 12 years that the Republicans were in before that -- eight with Mr. Movie Star and his idiot clone Bush -- everything was the Congress' fault. So maybe you can enlighten me. There's somebody up there who's got enough sense to know what's going on without blaming it on somebody else all the time.

No tax money

I'D LIKE to say that I don't think the Colonial Cape Foundation should get any tax money for their little endeavor south of the downtown area. I don't know where it would ever end if we started giving away all our tax dollars. Maybe the fact that they're unable to raise enough money and they're unable to get any bank financing should indicate to them that it's a bad idea. They should forget about their plan and forget about that place unless they can come up with private funding. We don't need to be funding every Tom, Dick and Harry who wants to get in our tax shorts.

An obligation?

MR. CLINTON said it was the United States' obligation to send American boys to go over and fight in Bosnia. It's our obligation. What happened to his obligation when the Vietnam War was on and he did what he did? I think it's terrible.

Mural is disgrace

I'M CALLING to say that I had just made it down to see the murals on the floodwall. I think that is a disgrace to the city. It cheapens the whole downtown area. In fact, it looks like a billboard for a side show. I don't know who designed it but whoever designed it is in poor taste and it does not fit with our downtown buildings and everything.

No candy throwing

I WISH that this year during the Christmas parade that no one would throw candy. Last year the kids were terrible trying to rush and get to it. I would like to just go and enjoy the parade.

Automatic balance

CONGRESS SHOULD renew the federal debt. That would automatically balance the budget.

Poker game

WITH THE continuing bizarre unthinking, uncaring and unbelievable statements being made by the speaker of the House, it can no longer be ignored and it is time to ask the question. Is Newt Gingrich playing with a full deck?

Another Vietnam

IF OUR soldiers go over to Bosnia, I'd just like to tell everybody it will be like another Vietnam. A bunch of people getting killed for a senseless cause.

Send the troops

I LISTENED to the Republicans talk about sending troops overseas. I served 4 1/2 years in WWII in the Pacific theater as an infantry solder. We, the U.S.A., have been trying for peace since WWII. We have more or less disarmed the whole world. Do you think we could just sit and have peace? Little wars grow into big wars. It is better to send troops now than wait for a big one. Let's quit campaigning and do what's right.

Looking for dollars

CONCERNING THE library merger and the taxpayers' boundaries. All I can say is be careful, taxpayers, the library boards are after your money.