Editorials

The SEMO District Fair begins once again today. The gates open at 11 a.m.

Last week, the Southeast Missourian and our older adult magazine, TBY: The Best Years, featured inspiring stories of men still making a difference.

The Cape Girardeau Family Resource Center is in transition.

Forty-four teams from five states competed at the 16th annual Cape BBQ Fest held last month in Cape Girardeau. The event is always something to look forward to as Arena Park fills with an aura of fun and the aroma of smoked meat.

Up until recently, the reality talent show "America's Got Talent" has been something of a guilty pleasure. Many of the initial acts were so poor the producers were clearly going for shock value to supplement the handful of truly gifted performers who would make their way through the season.

In two years the city of Cape Girardeau will ask voters to renew for the fourth time a transportation tax known as the transportation trust fund.

Tomorrow is a day set aside for barbecues and picnics and a little relaxation. It is a day our nation celebrates its work force. We celebrate Labor Day, too. We will not publish a paper.

There's a different feel in and near downtown Cape Girardeau these days.

Tonight in towns all across the state, a sense of adrenaline-laced urgency fills the halls at area high schools as we are now only hours away from the kickoff of the high school football season. Chatter at area coffee shops will reach a crescendo. Band members will be mentally marching their steps.

When Leasa Stone witnessed something horrible, she mourned. And then she acted.

The emergence of more than 20 sinkholes in South Cape has been somewhat disconcerting, causing the closing of part of South Sprigg Street to through traffic since January. Last week, the road was reopened, and the city deserves plaudits for carefully taking care of the problem.

The future of energy — what form it might take or where it might come from — is a hot issue in 2008. Fuel is fueling debate with idealists on both sides of the political aisle coming forward with plans.

The Cape Girardeau School District's alternative school found a permanent home last week, a new 16,681-square-foot, $1.57 million facility.

If you can remember back to your junior high days, you may remember how tough it was.

Marble Hill, Mo., like many small communities in this section of the state, is considering allowing its residents to operate utility vehicles within the city limits.

Last week 2,000 people attended — with more than 1,100 competing — in a state horseshoe tournament in Scott City, sponsored by the Knights of Columbus. The three-day event, which drew raves from all involved, helped raise funds for local Catholic charities.

With classes set to start next week at Southeast Missouri State University, there has been an influx this week of more than 300 international students in Cape Girardeau.

Almost any water — from your bathtub to an ocean — can be dangerous. The Southeast Missourian frequently — too frequently, really — reports about mishaps in area ponds, lakes and rivers.

To be inspired is to be uplifted and encouraged to do something meaningful with our lives. Certainly the audience that heard Patrick Henry Hughes during his recent performance at Cape First Church in Cape Girardeau left uplifted.

The United Way of Southeast Missouri is just days away from the kickoff of its 2008-09 fundraising campaign. The effort to raise money for community agencies will officially begin at 11:30 a.m. Aug. 29 at Cape West 14 Cine.