OpinionMarch 3, 2007
Speak Out 3/3/07
White dropout rate; Money returned; Sheriff's probe; Can't hear sirens; Unsafe workload; Gun nonsense; Drop in the bucket; Inflated grades; Hollow promises; Individual choice; Ripe for abuse; Dumb idea; Off the streets; Divided culture; Thanks to bus driver; Making a profit; Care is available; Climate change; Timing the lights; No to socialized plan
White dropout rate
I DON'T mean to be rude, but just as many white students drop out of high school as black students. Let's not only tell stories of black students. Isn't that something we are trying to get away from?
Money returned
I HOPE the rightful owner of the money my daughter found at Target Feb. 23 and turned in to the security officer got the money back. I'm so glad that my daughter knew the right thing to do. It was a large sum of money for a 14-year-old, and it would have been tempting to keep.
Sheriff's probe
WHY IS the Chaffee Police Department being held responsible for the actions taken against Daniel Ayers? The Scott County Sheriff's Department did the investigation, not Chaffee.
Can't hear sirens
I'VE LIVED in Cape Girardeau my entire life, and the only time I have heard the storm sirens is when I'm near Southeast Missouri State University's campus. None of my neighbors can hear the sirens on the west side of town.
Unsafe workload
THERE IS a nursing shortage. If nurses were unionized, would we be caring for six to eight patients at a time? This is unsafe. If your family member was a patient, what would you think if the nurse had a workload of six to eight patients? A nurse cannot provide good care to patients with this kind of workload.
Gun nonsense
WE IN the United States have surely lost our minds. A third-grade child takes a pellet gun to school, and authorities want to charge him with a felony. What nonsense. Doesn't anyone remember when almost every high school boy had a shotgun hanging is his back window? Discipline should be left to his parents.
Drop in the bucket
CAPE GIRARDEAU school board member Charles Bertrand said the $5,000 the district would lose annually if a tax break were given to the group renovating the old Sears building was just a drop in the bucket and wouldn't hurt the schools, The school taxes I pay every year are a lot less than that. Does that mean I can stop paying mine and they won't be missed?
Inflated grades
AN ITEM receiving lots of attention in the news is the fact that a study shows that grades are up but test scores are down. Somebody had the bright idea to do a study. It isn't needed. As a substitute teacher for various schools in the area with 10-plus years of experience, I can assure you that teachers give enough extra credit to float a barge. Many students are allowed to redo assignments or tests they do poorly on, and some teachers flat-out inflate grades. Why? To keep administrators and parents from complaining. I know some outraged teachers are going to call in and deny this vigorously, but remember what Shakespeare said, "The lady doth protest too much."
Hollow promises
DEMOCRATS PROMISED a five-day work week for Congress, and they have delivered only one day of work per week. Democrats promised an open floor debate on all issues, yet they have only allowed Republicans to do so once. Democrats promised to get rid of the so-called culture of corruption, and yet they appoint a man known to have taken bribes to the homeland security chair. Had enough?
Individual choice
LINDA BANGER'S account of her accident leaves out one thing. Just because she's happy she had her seat belt on doesn't mean she should be able to use force to make others wear theirs.
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Ripe for abuse
THE KEY to the motivation of our local Keep America Beautiful bureaucrats is buried near the end of the article. The more active they are in harassing local citizens, the more grant money they will receive. Since it's your tax money, this equates to being beaten with a stick you have to provide. They even bragged about involving police. Here's another situation ripe for abuse.
Dumb idea
THE TWO men who made the bomb threat in Jackson might have had the dumbest idea I ever heard. Is it possible that crooks are getting more stupid? I would like to praise the Jackson Police Department for its fine work and the exemplary job they do every day.
Off the streets
WHY DO I see the cops at the same house -- day before yesterday and yesterday -- arresting the same people who are there again today day? I saw the police arrest the same guy both days. It is a waste of taxpayers' dollars. Why mess with them if you're not going keep them off the streets? I see them standing on the corner selling drugs. I'm tired of being inconvenienced by the police. I can't get down my road when I'm coming home from work.
Divided culture
PERHAPS THOSE who feel a lack of black culture might consider doing like the forefathers of many of us did: adapt to mainstream America. Setting themselves apart because they are black does nothing toward the goal of eliminating racial divides. It seems that a large segment of blacks prefer that division.
Thanks to bus driver
REGARDING THE school bus incident reported in the Missourian: That young woman should get an award for her actions. Her parents must be proud of her. She probably kept herself and the others from being seriously injured if the bus had crashed into a tree, building or another vehicle. My husband was a school bus driver for several years, and he taught some of the older students how to stop the bus, put on the emergency brake and open the door in case something like this happened.
Making a profit
PLEASE ENLIGHTEN me if I am wrong. Chad Hartle wants to purchase the Schultz school building for $1.7 million, but only if he receives a tax credit. If the state gives him a tax credit of $2 million, then is the state not only buying the school for him but also paying him $300,000. Isn't it time for businesspeople out to make a profit to do it on their own instead of using taxpayers?
Care is available
A RECENT caller complained that no one in Southeast Missouri accepts Tri-Care Prime Remote, which covers eligible military members who live more than 55 miles from a military treatment facility. Secondly, I have never been turned away from any health-care provider in Southeast Missouri. We are fortunate to live in such a supportive area.
Climate change
TO THE caller who wants to ban auto racing: You are correct that NASCAR is polluting our atmosphere, but there are several unforeseen regulations that limit engine-power output and emissions. Compared to natural carbon outputs such as volcanic vents, decaying matter and our own respiration, NASCAR and all forms of combustion amount to just a drop in the bucket. Remember that global warming is going to be overhyped. Look at it this way: Even Al Gore has backed down and is calling global warming a climate change.
Timing the lights
TO THE person who cannot make it across crosswalks before the light changes: Walk faster. As long as the city is keeping to the standards set forth by the Missouri Department of Transportation and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, even the slowest of walkers can make it across the street in a timely manner. In fact, most longer traffic lights, like Clark Avenue and Broadway, correspond to the time it takes someone to cross the street and not on the traffic volume or flow conditions.
No to socialized plan
TO THE person who said he worked all his life and cannot afford insurance. I have a wife and three children to support. My wife and I both work. I work two jobs. Why should the government take away what I earn to pay for health care for you? How is it right to take away the money a person earns and redistribute it to other who have not earned it? I agree we need to find some solution to the problem, but socializing medicine is not the answer. Look at the job our government has done with Katrina and Iraq and then tell me you want them in control of our health care.
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