Sound Off for Oct. 24
This week, readers Sound Off on topics ranging from teacher salaries to health-care reform.
Geneva teachers
This is in response to the comment titled "Happy now?" about teachers' salaries. I'm assuming it was the contract for the Geneva teachers. There were several misstatements made here. First of all, the raise is not 3 percent a year for three years for almost 10 percent. In reality the first year is a very minimal pay increase, no pay increase the second year and a minimal increase the third year. There was also a reference that these parents need to feed their children. Teachers do the same thing when a student has forgotten their lunch or the parent has not packed them a snack. My daughter is a teacher and she spends upwards of $1,000 each year of her own hard-earned money, stocking her classroom with the nice extras that make her students' learning experience more enriching. She doesn't ask for reimbursement from the district or from her students' parents. She does it because she loves making a difference in her students' lives. My wife and I have raised our children in Geneva and we have been very pleased with how the district puts their emphasis on providing the citizens of Geneva a quality education for their children. We are entrusting our children's education and the future leaders of our country to some of the most qualified educators in the state. I applaud the Geneva School Board for spending our hard-earned money wisely.
No raises for anybody
I'm trying to accept the fact that Social Security will not be increased this coming year but I'm hoping and praying that I don't see that our congressman and senators and all the other people in public office, I hope and pray that they don't end up getting cost-of-living increases. One year we received 1 1/2 percent and they ended up with a 3 percent increase. If we don't get one, they don't get one. They can give up part of theirs to help the older people.
Taking down red ribbons
Does Geneva now have a Parents Supporting Drugs Committee? Well, somebody, some lady, was seen taking down the red ribbons off light posts in downtown Geneva before Red Ribbon Week was up. Could it be she is forming a new group?
Spread good will
It's evident that Obama has always been interested in government and its workings. I feel he has studied the mistakes and policies of past presidents and has put together a plan to change the way government works, especially the corruption that has become rampant during the last eight years. I read where Obama's plan for health care reform is identical to the plan that Nixon tried to introduce in 1971. Ted Kennedy led the critics, saying it was a bad idea. Now, reflecting back, Kennedy said we should have jumped on it, that we missed a good opportunity. I feel people need to relax and have faith in our new president, who seems to be in full control, even under adverse situations. Obama is right on the money about spreading good will around the world and to eliminate nuclear weapons. If a nuclear war were to break out, any life left on earth wouldn't be worth living. All it would take is one mad man to pull the switch.
Enemies list
President Obama, House Speaker Pelosi, Sen. Reid and the rest of the Democratic Congress are starting to act like President Nixon. Nixon had an enemies list and it is exactly what the current administration is forging. The enemies are all the conservative talk show, radio personalities such as Rush, Glen or Sean, Fox News and all the other media that are against the Obama administration for his increased taxes, control of the auto industry and financial institutions and forcing Obama health care on the taxpayers. It is time that Obama starts working on the reason for his Nobel Peace Prize within the United States.
Twisted logic
In last week's Sound Off a proponent of government health care used twisted logic in an attempt to persuade us to be in favor or more government in our lives and economy. The writer imagined that an example of government doing good with our money is the fact that it spends more on medical research than the drug industry. What the person doesn't understand is that success is not measured by the amount of money you can throw at the problem, but it is achieved by results. In the case of medical research, if the government is spending much more on research then why isn't the government developing the life-saving drugs that are now patented by the pharmaceutical companies? Wouldn't it stand to reason that if the government was having success in medical research that we would be spared the cost of expensive prescription drugs sold to us by the drug companies? That is why there is opposition to an expansion of government power in the health care industry. We already have too many examples of the government spending money and getting no positive results. We don't need more.
This idiot
Who is this idiot that thinks we should get rid of the Veterans Administration and Medicare? The people that are getting Medicare and Veterans Administration help have earned this. This isn't something that is just given to us. We have earned it. If this idiot doesn't think so, he better look at what the veterans have done for this country to protect their freedoms.
Untouchable pensions?
Have you noticed that when our local, county or state governments talk about closing their budget shortfalls, they all offer no wage increases, lay-offs or cuts in services. No one will talk about their pensions. Why not? What makes their pensions untouchable? It is time to stop complaining about our government and to do one thing, get out and vote in the primary election in February. If you do not vote in the primary, you let a small group of people decide for you who will run in November. Won't you bet it will be the same candidates who are in office now and the pensions will never change? It is time for new faces in our government.
Insurance costs
This is to all of those hysterical [tea-party protesters] who think that the health care system is just fine. I have an insurance policy for just me, just me. I have a $2,000 deductible and a $3,000 out of pocket and my premium just went from $449 a month to $614 a month, effective Jan. 1. That's a 38 percent increase. So all of you people who think that the Republicans are right and like oh, no, no, no, we can't change the health care system because it's good the way it is, everybody loves their insurance, I've got news for you. This may cause me to have to cancel my insurance and I can't get any because I have pre-existing conditions, so I guess it's OK with you and the Republicans that I die.
