Let the kids play ball

The front page article in the Southeast Missourian on Friday, May 25, regarding Jackson setting goals to curb street ball prompts me to write this letter to the paper. Jackson was built on the natural terrain -- the hills and valleys that give much of the beauty that the residents enjoy. The builders and the subdivision developers didn't flatten the whole area on which the homes were constructed. (Thank goodness for that!) But having your driveway and lawn on a slope does not make it easy to have a basketball goal play area away from the street. Wouldn't you rather have the children shooting goals or playing ball in front of their own home than sitting on a street corner somewhere or running around where they don't belong? In most subdivisions, neighbors know where the children are playing a game of basketball and are pretty careful when driving down that street. You just give them a little time, and they get out of the street for you to pass. It is my opinion that the emphasis should be on getting the traffic that tries to make up some time by going through the subdivisions, to slow down rather than taking away a child's joy of playing with one's friends.

E.R. Davis, Jackson