SPEAKOUT

AN IOWA COUPLE would like to thank the doctor, nurses and personnel at Southeast Missouri Hospital for their kindness, concern and quick action when my husband entered as an emergency patient recently. Your facilities are excellent. Thank you.

THIS IS REGARDING the Kelly school bond issue. It might have passed if you would have possibly asked for a lower amount. You didn't really need a multipurpose building. I agree, the classrooms are needed; but, if you haven't noticed, we are in the middle of a recession and voters are just not likely to spend that much money. If you had asked for a smaller amount, I believe you would have gotten it. Thank you.

AS A CONCERNED citizen of Scott City, my comment is in rebuttal to Mayor Shirley Young in the April 3 edition of Southeast Missourian paper. Concerning the sales tax defeat in Scott City, I think better management of existing funds would make the city's purchasing power more effective. Our real-estate taxes were increased a whopping 24 percent in 1990. What became of all that money? Thank you.

I SEE IN the paper and on TV that the Brazilians have decided to improve their lot in life by holding up Americans on the price of coffee. They have thrown out all contracts, and all the new contracts for coffee are going to be much higher. This is like robbing us without a gun. I believe that the American people should sacrifice a little bit to show the people of the world that we have the willpower to protect ourselves and to show them the values of the world. I think everybody in the country that drinks coffee should immediately begin drinking only one cup of coffee a day. And, if you can quit drinking it all together, fine; that would improve the situation more rapidly. I started as soon as this came out and I don't drink any more than one cup a day now. If everybody in the country does the same thing, Brazil will come to its senses very rapidly. Thank you.

IN RESPONSE TO the comment, "It is common knowledge that many teachers could be earning far greater salaries in the business world than in teaching," I have several observations. First of all, it is obvious a teacher said this because this is common knowledge in the teachers' lounge. Also, it's like comparing apples and oranges; the qualifications it takes to make a good teacher are not always the same ones it takes to make a successful business person. And most importantly, having been employed in both the business world and the education world, the statement simply isn't true. In fact, I would say that, in general, salaries are lower in the business world. Thank you.

I THINK EVERYONE should read Pat Buchanan's column Wednesday, the 3rd. He tells it like it is. What an expensive, costly campaign Bush put on in the Persian Gulf. He should be proud of the results, for himself at least. Did he settle things for those people? I think not. Where has gentle George gone fishing?

IT'S AMAZING HOW we use the word liberal as a bad and dirty word. During 1932 to '36, and during the 1940s, we didn't use that word too much when we were reaping the harvest brought on by the New Deal and the WPA, things of that order, to help the poor and produce jobs and put many people to work to get the country back on it's feet, and to bring in Social Security so the older citizens could hold their head up. We didn't hear the word liberal so much, and it wasn't such a bad word. If they look at the dictionary, they'll see liberal means plentiful, generous. Certainly, a liberal way of thinking doesn't mean that your pro-criminal and immoral. To me, the generosity brought on by the so-called liberals was far more Christian in the way of helping the poor and the jobless than is right-wing conservatism. Thank you.

PATRICK BUCHANAN, ONE of the nation's best columnists, had a hard-hitting article in the Southeast Missourian on homosexuals. He does not call them lesbians or gays. Wonder who in the world coined the word gay, applying it to homosexuals. Buchanan calls them what they are, namely, sodomites. The word is derived from sodomy and sodomy comes from Sodom, the twin towns Sodom and Gomorah, a patriarchal town that had the unenviable distinction of being the first reported locality where this unnatural sin was committed. The account is written in Genesis 18:16-33 and 19:1-38.

WHAT AN UPLIFTING experience it is to read Jean Bell Mosley's articles. I came across her article entitled "The Summer I Learned to See" in an issue of Reader's Digest from August 1977. She is a treasure I hope we all learn to appreciate. Thank you.

THE MAIN REASON teachers are lobbying for this huge tax increase is because they all want a bigger paycheck. But they'll call it education. Calling it education, or saying it's for the kids, plays on the general public's sympathies. Call what it really is: greed. If you were to go into a lot of school buildings and open the closets, the drawers, and look on the shelves, you would find all kinds of equipment and materials that are never touched. The schools are better equipped these days than ever before. Which one of us wouldn't like a sizable raise and to work nine months? Come on, teachers, get real.

I'M JUST WONDERING if President Bush would forgive my 1990 income tax that I'm going to owe since he's so generous to Poland in forgiving $2.6 billion. This has got to stop. We keep giving away billions of dollars. Thank you.

I KNOW THIS MAY seem a little silly, but the KBSI Cardinals commercial running on television is probably one of the stupidest commercials I have ever seen in my life, and it's a sincere waste of two minutes of good television-viewing time. Thanks.

THIS IS TO the 63-year-old who complained about having to pay taxes for the younger generation. Well, the younger generation is paying the Social Security and Medicaid that you are getting. Thank you.

I THINK MIKE Royko is the best writer you have on your editorial page. His columns just keep getting better and better. Thank you.

I WAS WONDERING: Would it be possible for the military to use the precision bombing techniques that we're shown on television to snuff out the oil fires in Kuwait quicker than the current year-and-a-half projections being given by the oil-fire specialist teams?

DOWNTOWN JULIE BROWN is silly, boring and hard to understand. I'm a southerner but I do understand our northerners, but that woman can't speak American. Why do we let people with precise, un-American accents take over American show business? I don't know who to complain to, do you? Thank you.

TODAY, THE KIDS came around selling soccer dollars. I bought some. Soon they will be around selling those McDonald tickets for Little League. I'll buy some. These tickets cost me more than the senior-citizen service tax will cost for my house and two cars in a year. Oh yes, three boxes of Girl Scout cookies alone cost more than the annual tax will cost me. I bought the cookies. I can't believe some of these children's parents said they wouldn't vote for the senior-citizen tax.

I'M CALLING TO ASK if anyone knows anything about the lake going in out around Millersville. Are they going to keep it going or are they going to waste that money? Come on and get going. We just can't stand still; we have to advance a little. Everyone around here thinks it would help that community out there. I sure hope so.

I'M CALLING IN reply to the article in the paper about the showing of Cardinals baseball on KBSI. How come KBSI is only showing 30 games this year when KPLR is showing over 60? And about Mizzou basketball: My friend, you mentioned we were overwhelmed with Mizzou basketball. if you'd take a look, we didn't even show half of Mizzou basketball games compared to KPLR in St. Louis, channel 11. I think you need to revise your statement that you have written in Speak Out here saying that we're overwhelmed with all kinds of Missouri sports on KBSI. I think you'd better check your listing because we're way behind. Thank you.

I UNDERSTAND THAT many high schools are selling the names and phone numbers of their graduating seniors to local military recruiters. I hope that's not going on in the Cape school system, and I wish somebody could straighten us out on that. Thank you.

Cape Girardeau public schools don't sell names of graduates to military recruiters, said Art Turner, superintendent. He said only the names and addresses of seniors, not their telephone numbers, are provided to recruiters upon request.

I THINK IT'S about time the people of the Cape-Jackson area learn how to drive on four- and five-lane roads. First of all, it's Missouri law to keep right except when passing. This inside lane provides a way to keep traffic flowing by keeping one lane for passing and one for slower traffic. Secondly, on five-lane roads the most inside lane is a turn lane; it's not to be used as a merge lane or a stop lane to wait in while traffic thins out. Both of the above-mentioned infractions could result in a ticket for improper lane usage. I would like to see these laws enforced; however, I'm sure our police force realizes these are infractions. Just yesterday I followed a Cape police car from Broadway and Kingshighway all the way to Jackson and he never once moved out of the passing lane.

IT SEEMS SOMEONE has discovered we have hungry people in this country. We have really had some caring people in the White House and we still have. We waste money every day that should be used to take care of little children in this country. To see a hungry child makes me sick. Where does patriotism start? Not in the Persian Gulf, but here at home.

MY CONGRATULATIONS GO out to Scott City Rams senior guard Stephanie Grims, who is an all-state, all-district and all-conference player this year. First in Scott City to ever get this award. Good job, Steph.

I NOTICED IN the paper that there's several cases where a child is left in a car, and they put it in gear and caused a wreck. I think any time anyone needs to leave a child in a car by himself, they should be sure that the handle or foot brake, which ever you call it, is on tightly.

IN THEIR campaigns, self-promotions and TV commercials, all big businesses promise satisfaction. But, if you are dissatisfied, if you have a complaint against them, they ask you to prove it; they make excuses; they fall way short of their promises; and they put the blame on something or somebody else. I have never known any business or any politician to accept the blame for anything. Thank you.

HOW COME, IF people buy a dog, all they do is ignore it and dump water on it and say that it's time to eat? Dogs need love too. A dog is a man's best friend. Thank you.

DOES ANYBODY KNOW of a way that a person could go and look up an old military buddy? All I have now is a phone number and his name, of course. The address got destroyed by fire and he no longer has a phone number nor is he listed with the AT&T operators for the town that he lives in, which is Newport News, Va. Is there a way that this information can be found so I can get hold of him? This is really important. Thank you.

YOU HAVE BEEN writing articles on traffic increases in the city but you haven't run anything about the terrific traffic that Cape Rock Drive carries. I live on Cape Rock Drive and it's getting so you can't hardly get out of your driveway. I'd appreciate it if you would mention Cape Rock Drive. Thank you.

The average daily traffic count on Cape Rock Drive from Kingshighway to Perryville Road in 1986 was 12,610, compared to 10,840 in 1990, a decrease of 14 percent. The traffic count was up 15.9 percent along the stretch between Perryville Road and Lexington. It increased from 4,830 in 1986 to 5,740 in 1990.

I TAKE TIME magazine, and we Republicans can't understand what's wrong. President Bush's picture was in there, and he plainly stated that the IRS takes their hands off the rich people and goes for the people on smaller incomes. I can't understand why. As long as the Republicans were voted in there, they still blame Jimmy Carter for what he did so long ago. What are us Republicans going to do? America's getting in worse shape every day: less finances, schools are in harder shape, taxes are being increased. What are we going to do about that? I'd like for somebody to answer this question. I'm 70 years old and this country's get in as bad a shape as I have seen it through my life. I wish you Republicans would answer me. What we're going to do: change politics or are we going to let things get worse or are we going to clean house? Thank you very much.

I'M CALLING REGARDING the fact that we had a Chinese pagoda statue stolen from our yard. Does anybody know how to anchor concrete castings in the yard where somebody can't take it so easily? It couldn't have been a child; it had to be a grownup. It's a sad state that you can't have anything in your yard for fear of someone taking it. Why is there so much stealing going on anymore? It makes me sick to know that the devil has that much control over the Earth. I'd like to be able to put one back, but now I'm kind of afraid it's going to be stolen again. So, if somebody's got any suggestions, I'd appreciate it. Thank you.