Speak Out 3/8/09

Interesting article

I read about the Civilian Conservation Corps camp. My uncle, my dad's younger brother, served in a CCC camp. I cut that clipping out and mailed it to his son so he could read about it. Thank you for the interesting article.

Undue influence

PRESIDENT Obama needs to break free from Bush-Clinton influences: Obama has retained certain Bush and Clinton operatives who are choking his ability to overcome the "business as usual" atmosphere of Washington. We thought he would be his own man, but unless he has the courage to break the stranglehold of these operatives, the country is headed for financial ruin. Both the stock market and Main Street are saying get rid of these advisers from the past and get competent people who will at least put together a budget based on reality rather than smoke and mirrors.

Prison life

I heard the story about how much money we spend on prisoners. That could be because we give them the best of everything. When Menard Correctional Center at Chester, Ill., buys ice cream, it only buys Edy's or Breyers, the most expensive brands. Why do we pay for libraries, gyms and TV sets for people who are supposedly being punished? Prison is more like a health spa than punishment these days.

Charity for Hamas

CHANGE you can believe in: Does this mean throwing billions of dollars at every problem that exists? So far everything President Obama has done has cost the taxpayers money. This is no different from what we have always done in the past. Now we are giving millions to the Palestinians who support Hamas. In the end I guess we support Hamas. Why, when we are in so much financial trouble in the U.S., are we giving money to these terrorists? It does not make any sense to me. I was always told that charity begins at home.

Sweet 'Sweet Charity'

MY husband and I saw "Sweet Charity" at the River Campus. We've seen a lot of professional theater in our lives, and we simply couldn't believe these were college students on that stage. The sets, the costumes, the acting, the singing, the dancing: Wow! It was professional in every way and better than anything we've seen at the Muny in years. The faculty and staff are obviously doing something right with these students. Keep up the great work.

Tax propaganda

IN a recently published reprint from The Wall Street Journal, the author (not surprisingly) wrote that President Obama assumes that "taxes don't matter to job growth or creation." Since the economic stimulus package contains a tax cut for 95 percent of Americans, along with other types of tax relief for others, one can conclude that the weasels at The Wall Street Journal constitute a lions dens of lying propagandists.

He's our leader

REPUBLICAN National Committee chairman Michael Steele's apology to Rush Limbaugh for having the audacity to criticize him leaves no remaining doubt that Rush is now the Republican Party leader. Hallelujah!

Morris' record

FOR Southeast Missourian dons to deem it necessary to fill space with a column published by the duplicitous Dick Morris speaks volumes about the degree to which the Southeast Missourian-supported political philosophy and movement have been virtually destroyed. Morris blames Obama for the economic meltdown caused by President Bush. Given Morris' track record, this isn't surprising. If it would promote his own effort at political punditry, he would blame his grandmother.

Seeking alternatives

AT the school forum, I didn't hear anyone from the board or administration admit that the middle school configuration was a mistake. Now their logic is that, in order to fix it, we should close Franklin Elementary School and build a new school. How about rethinking what they are doing with students and offering a viable alternative?

School positives

I have children who attend school in the Scott City School District. I am also an employee of the district. Every day I witness the positive things that occur at our school. We have great students, staff and administration who truly care for all the students at our school. Everyone needs to focus on the good things that happen in our district and stop all the negativity.