COMMENT
Speaking up Thanks for speaking up for area public schools in your Sept. 12 article “Schools: Winners and losers.” At Parkview, National Merit finalists study along with a broad-based group of academically talented high-achievers. Over 67 percent of the class of 2013 received scholarships averaging more than $33,000 each. One would be hard-pressed to find better percentages. The class of 2014 outscored the class of 2013 during spring AP testing so we are looking forward to even greater successes in the future. Thanks for the kind words and your attempts to dispel the negative stereotypes that plague our public schools. Patricia G. Treadway Little Rock
From the web: In response to the article “Stand up for Bill Maher” (Sept. 12): If wanting to listen to this scumbag is terrible, paying to listen to him is horrible plus 1,000. I can’t imagine enough people attending this to pay his transportation here. I would not have thought there would be enough people in the whole state to make it worth his trip. I guess I overestimate the citizens of Arkansas. God Bless THEM anyway. pat72209 From the Arkansas Blog, “Legislature gets Westerman’s $220,000 welfare study. It’s a doozy, with cuts of hundreds of millions from Medicaid to nursing homes” (Sept. 20): I have never seen, in my 79 years, so much hatred against poor people. I have tried to figure out why Republicans actually hate poor people so much. What I have decided is that Republicans realize that the fact that there are still poor people in the world disproves the Republican theory of economics — that benefits to the people at the top will trickle down to the people at the bottom of the economic scale. Since there are still people at the bottom who have not benefitted from the trickle-down theory, Republicans are infuriated that they stand as living evidence that their economic theories are, as described by George H.W. Bush, “voodoo economics.” Therefore, they believe that they must punish those who disprove their pet theories. I am so tired of Republicans. I think we will see in the 2014 elections a big Democratic surge nationwide, but this will not happen in Arkansas, where prejudice still reigns supreme. Plainjim From the Arkansas Blog, “The legisla4
SEPTEMBER 26, 2013
ARKANSAS TIMES
ture’s pork barrel scam pays for park for Mayberry family” (Sept. 20): I refer you all to the “Tim Griffin rule,” which states that political party membership is the determining factor for right and wrong. It is legal and moral for a Republican to use taxpayer money for things that would be illegal and immoral if a Democrat did them, simply because Republicans are doing the will of God and Democrats hate freedom. Given that our state legislature is controlled by Republicans, it is quite proper for them to tax the people and use the money to improve their personal property, buy guns,
or go on vacation. I_AM_THE_NRA This article is beyond frustrating to me. Andy and Julie Mayberry are great people and to slam them for trying to get a public park in East End infuriates me. I am a resident of Saline County and live in East End. I attended the Saline Quorum Court meeting along with several other East End residents. Not ONE SINGLE person came to this meeting to oppose this park. We all want a park for our children. It’s ridiculous that we have to drive to Bryant, Benton or Little Rock for our kids to play
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on a decent playground!!! We pay taxes just like every other area of Saline County, so why does East End never get anything? Neither of my children are handicapped, but I think having an accessible playground is a great idea! It’s safe and everyone can play together! The Mayberry’s daughter is not the only handicapped child in East End! This is not a park for their daughter! To even hint at that is ridiculous. Yes, the land is owned by the Mayberry family. Do you know what else is on that land? You failed to mention that. The Ican Arts & Resource Center. This is a center for special needs kids to go and do activities. People come from ALL OVER this state to attend classes at this center. So having an accessible park RIGHT NEXT to the center would be amazing! Next time you write an article about East End, please get your facts straight. This article is bad journalism. East End Resident Well, obviously, if Republicans want it done it is constitutional. But the beauty of all this is that Mayberrrys, Clemmer, Hutchinson are on record that unnecessary government spending is good, worthwhile and benefits people. I’ve long agreed. elWood
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From the Arkansas Blog, “Republican extremists threaten to hold America hostage” (Sept. 18): I agree that what we are seeing is “economic terrorism.” It is worse than that, it seems to me: It is an asymmetrical, terroristic, revolution against democracy in America. We are already back to — nay, back beyond — the oligarchic concentration of income and wealth that occurred in the “gilded age” of the late 1800s and early 1900s. We are dealing with people who seem to be operating on the principle that government should not only have no power to tax to provide any need, but also government should be unable to regulate toward a common good any owner of any private asset and unable to own anything at all — not roads, not schools, not armies or navies. It does not matter to them what a majority of the population want or vote for. If the people do not support the revolution, they should not be allowed to vote. And what is wrong with the Democrats is that their leadership has been unable to grasp that they are dealing with revolutionaries who have to be defeated, not part of a community to be organized. Snapback
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