SPEAKOUT

JOHNNY JAMES' IDEA of rotating the school principals was a good one, but a better idea yet is to rotate classroom teachers.

I NOTICED A couple of comments about the Jaycee Golf Course in the paper in regards to ownership. The city does not own the golf course; the Cape Girardeau Jaycees own the golf course. So, in other words, the city cannot sell it.

You are correct. The city leases the golf course from the Jaycees.

OUR COMMUNITY IS feeling a great loss because of a fire on March 4 that destroyed West End Grocery and Tavern. It will be greatly missed by all.

PLEASE, EVERYONE, LEAVE your yellow ribbons up and also the red, white and blue ones so the troops coming home can see our support.

THE OLD SHOE factory property should be utilized to make a park for that part of the city.

PETER KINDER STILL tries to put Jimmy Carter down while Jimmy is working, helping people, building homes for them. Another thing: Jimmy got all of our hostages out when they were held hostage. Reagan and Bush, with all of their help from Iran and Iraq, still have our men held hostage. I know Terry Anderson wonders about this after five years. Peter, don't forget the sleaze factor. Why don't you talk about that instead of your good ol' boys?

I WOULD LIKE to say how proud I am of Southeast Missouri State University women's basketball team. I hope everyone comes out to support our Otahkians on Friday and Saturday night at the Show Me Center. They are sponsoring the regional tournament.

HOW MUCH DO you to bet that the person who said they would go and kill Saddam Hussein is also against abortion? Thanks.

CONGRATULATIONS, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI basketball team. Too bad we had to get the shaft from the MIAA on the last year in this area. Thank you.

I WANT TO add my thank-you to the troops and to all the leaders in our military and thank God for the war being over. But, America, let's stay patriotic as we have united together and keep up the feeling of pride in America that has been built through this war. There can be something good from it all. Thank you.

I WAS READING the article about the finalists for the position of Superintendent for the Cape Girardeau schools. The article mentions where one of the candidates is from and where he received his degrees. With the other candidate, this information is not given. Could you give this information?

Neyland Clark of Shepherdsville, Ky., earned his bachelor, masters, and doctorate degrees from Indiana University-Bloomington. Shelton Smith of Herculaneum earned his bachelor, masters and specialist degrees from Southeast Missouri State University. He earned a doctorate from SIU-Edwardsville. He has additional studies at Georgia Southern College in Carrolltown, Ga., and Nuremberg University in Germany.

I'D LIKE SOMEONE to tell how come the university will close for Martin Luther King's birthday but will not honor Presidents' Day, which all the national and state offices do. I'd like to find that out because tax dollars are paying for the university, and I think our presidents are due their due as well as Martin Luther King.

I TAKE GREAT exception to the article concerning the Post-Dispatch, a liberal paper, and Sen. Kennedy. The Post-Dispatch I've been reading since I was 6 years old, and I feel that there couldn't be a fairer newspaper. As far as Sen. Kennedy is concerned, he has proven himself a champion, a fighter for the poor and for the elderly, and an aid to education. If he takes pity on a certain country, it certainly is out of humanitarian reasons, for the man was born well-to-do, as you probably know. I only wish we had representatives of our state in the Senate and our local congressional district to show concern for medical benefits for the poor and aged as Sen. Kennedy has proven himself to do. Thank you.

I HAVE HEARD that some of our top government officials have spoken of rebuilding Iraq. These politicians in Washington, D.C., had better get their priorities in order. To spend millions of dollars bombing this country, and then to even suggest that the taxpayers go in and rebuild this country after this war, is absolutely ridiculous and ludicrous. How long is the American taxpayer going to take these kind of shenanigans? If this country rebuilds Iraq, then I say everybody on Capitol Hill should be replaced the next time they are up for election regardless of their politics. If they permit this to happen, and put this on the taxpayers' back with all the S&L bailouts and other programs we're paying for, then it's time they get someone in there who looks out for the tax-paying people of this country. Thank you.

I AS WELL as hundreds of others agree with the callers who have expressed a feeling of upset regarding allowing beer to be sold at the concerts at the Show Me Center. Has the center fallen a victim to needing more income to pay for the upkeep and salaries? We all know that those people drinking usually cause the largest amount of litter and the need for cleaning up afterwards. Please, SEMO and the city of Cape, see that your standards are upheld. We don't need beer to be sold at the Show Me Center. Thank you.

I WOULD just like to thank channel 13 for running the Kenny Roger's Telethon. It was great. Thank you.

I AGREE THE city of Jackson needs a stoplight at Donna Drive and Town and Country grocery store and Wal-Mart. The city council and the city of Jackson have tried many times to get a stoplight at this area. The final decision rests in the hands of the state highway department. Write the state highway department and tell them this stoplight is needed. The city council has done all they can to get this stoplight in. Thank you.

THIS IS FOR ALL the people who enjoy watching "The People's Court." Since KFVS insists on having it on at 5:30 in the morning, and it's too early for most of us, I want to tell you, if you haven't noticed on your TV schedule, at 10:00 there is one on channel 35 called "Divorce Court" and at 11 there's another one called "The Judge." You might enjoy watching them. I do very much. Thank you.

AS A HIGH school teacher in the area, I have a major complaint. We've heard quite frequently how our high school students have jobs and how some need to work and how some are overworked and are not able to stay awake in the classrooms and their grades are affected. I hear my students telling me their parents are saying, if they want a car they have to go out and make some money to pay insurance and gas. What really concerns me is we have parents with priorities mixed up. To my dismay two of my students were bragging about the number of hours they had been able to work in recent weeks and were looking forward to their paychecks. One student said he had put in 52 hours at his job in one week. Another student said he had put in 45 hours. It stands to reason these two students are not good students, nor are they motivated within the classroom on a day-to-day basis. They also have some extreme absentee problems. Who is supposed to come up with an answer to this? Can their parents not control them? This really concerns me. There's got to be an answer somewhere.

DON'T WE, THE consumers, pay for the weather channel in Cape Girardeau? It also has regular commercials. Why are we are also bombarded with the thing running across the end of it. Thank you.

I WOULD JUST like to say I am very proud to live in a country where we have freedom of speech and very proud to be an American. And I'm damn proud of the soldiers who fought overseas. Thank you.

THANK YOU, MISSOURIAN, for your coverage of the motorcycle parade in support of our troops. When about 200 motorcyclists come out on a cloudy, cold, winter day, and something important is happening, we believe that showing our patriotism is important and we want others to know about it. We are made up of men and women from all walks of life including many professional people who enjoy two-wheel traveling. We would invite you to take a good look at the local chapters of the Harley owners group: Goal Wing Road Riders, Christian Motorcycle Association and Freedom of Road Riders. Our ranks are growing in this area and we have something good going on. Thank you.

I LIKED KBSI'S programming better before they started having all this basketball on. I don't mind some games on the weekend and stuff like that, but it seems like every time you turn on the TV on KBSI at night they've got basketball. It always runs over. They never have shows like Star Trek on that a lot of people like to watch. I think it stinks.

CONGRATULATIONS, SCOTT CITY Lady Rams. You may not have won the game against Twin City Rivers but you're still the best team around. You are a great team. Keep up the good work.

NOW THAT SUMMER will soon be upon us, I feel it is time the city council and concerned citizens ban together and outlaw the sale of fireworks. Thank you.

AS AN LPN for many years, I would like to speak out about some of the families who come to the hospital to sit by the side of their mother or husband, and criticize the nurses and demand things from the nurses. A lot of these things aren't good for the patients. In general, they're just there to make the nursing staff feel like they're worthless. Hospitals anywhere in the country don't staff well enough to provide personal maid service and personal private duty nursing for each room 24 hours a day. If you really want to help, try to make friends with the nurses and help us do our job. Provide those personal extras that we would love to give but don't have time to give. The families who complain the most and make enemies out of the nurses wind up getting the worse care for their relative.

COME JOIN THE fun on Sunday, April 7, at the MS walk being held at Capaha Park. Whether you're a leisure stroller, exercise or race-walker, you can participate with others and enjoy the beautiful route. Keep fit and help find a cure for MS. Hope to see you there April 7. Registration begins at 11. The walk starts promptly at 12. Thank you very much.

SPEAK OUT I wish to sound off about this. In 1937 I started having deducted from my paychecks Social Security tax. I paid it for 50 years. It was supposedly invested in funding situations whereas it had a return. I am now drawing Social Security and I am tired of people saying that they are paying for me to live. I paid for it, I worked for it, and that's it.

I'M A CONCERNED citizen and a mother of a son who has been out of work, and he's made a living for his family for many, many years. His place of business has been closed up and he can't find a job. He's tried very, very hard. He has sent out lots of resumes and they've all been sent back to him. They say since he's 38 with no previous experience they can't use him. His unemployment ran out and he went to public aid as a last resort and asked for help. He is very, very low, and it's a pity that a person can't get help until they can get out of trouble and find a job. They're made to feel like they're nothing but trash. He's very low. He has two children and a wife and he can't make a living for them. Thank you.

I WAS READING in Time magazine that Dick Cheney, our secretary of defense, received a deferment from the Vietnam War because his wife was pregnant, yet he opposed a law that would excuse one parent from the front lines in the event married soldiers with children were both called to serve. How two-faced.

AT NORMAL AND SPRIGG they've had two wrecks within the last two weeks. This evening they had a wreck and had to have the ambulance out there. As they were coming up over the hill, the ones that were stopped for the wreck hit. So there were two wrecks there on Sprigg. How many wrecks have to occur on that corner before they put a four-way stop in? Cars shoot up over that hill completely too fast coming down Sprigg. The only stop sign is on Broadway and Sprigg and Bertling. I think the city ought to see by now they need a four-way stop there.

I WENT TO the mall with my kids to get the Cracker Jacks I saw advertised. I was going to purchase six boxes. The money was going for United Way. They would not let me. I could not believe it. There were other people all around who wanted three or four. They said they have a limit of two. I said the ad said nothing of this. The man from behind the table was getting it from all sides. He said he was not the one who made the rules.

I'M CALLING because I'm upset about the Cracker Jacks at the West Park Mall. A friend of mine got to get as many as he wanted, but when I went I was limited. I just do not think it was fair. Thank you.

Elizabeth Chastain, mall marketing director and assistant manager, said a limit of two boxes was imposed from the start of sales to give more people an opportunity to buy them and to prevent people from buying large numbers of boxes to increase their chances of winning. The promotion was to have lasted three days, but, despite the limit, the 25,000 boxes were sold in two days, she said. Chastain said some of the volunteers who sold the boxes may not have known at first that there was a limit of two, but the limit was enforced later.

I READ IN the paper where someone said Reagan was the greatest president we have ever had. Well, you are wrong. Roosevelt was the greatest. If it hadn't been for Roosevelt, we would not have Social Security, and I think we should all thank God for that. I know you younger people don't think you will ever draw it, but you will. I thought that too, but now I draw a pretty good check every month. Thank you.

I AM VERY proud of our country and our military. I wanted to be patriotic and buy a small U.S. flag and attach it to my radio antenna. I did pick up a small flag and was about to pay for it, but I laid the flag down without buying it and left the store disgusted. Why? Because it was made in China. Every since I can remember I was told that China was our enemy and couldn't be trusted; about the same as they told us how bad Iraq and Saddam is. I am so proud of the way the Americans supported our armed forces. Now, I ask, hope and pray that the American people will support the same people when they return to work at their jobs and buy products that they help manufacture in this country. I will buy that flag yet, but I guarantee you one thing: it will have a label that it is made in the good old U.S.A. Then I'll be extra proud of it. God bless our American military and American workers. Thank you.