Voice of the People - February 1, 2009
Republicans are hypocrites
The flaming hypocrisy of these people makes me sick to my core! The Republicans spent the last eight years literally giving our jobs away to other countries. President Bush and a Republican Congress signed 11 NAFTA-style treaties in Bush's first term. At the same time, a Republican Congress spent six years running up the most massive deficit in our history. They also deregulated every business they could get their crooked hands on, including the banking industry, removing consumer safeguards and plunging us headlong into this recession.
Now these two-faced connivers accuse President Obama of spending too much on a program designed to help ordinary Americans weather this storm. What do the Republicans in Congress object to? When he was interviewed two days ago, Rep. John Boehner, the House Minority Leader, said the bill was full of pork in spite of the fact that it had no earmarks. When pressed to define "pork," he responded that the bill had money for education and the arts. Heaven forbid! Education? Really?
Republicans in South Carolina are no better. The Republican Party has dominated here since Nixon was president. They claim that their economic policies are the best, but after 35 years one might think they would make more headway. South Carolina was ranked the fourth poorest state in the country even before this crisis hit. Our unemployment rate is perpetually higher than the national average.
We have a governor who is the avowed enemy of public education. He has done everything he can to gut it. Now he is urging the state Legislature to refuse the stimulus money if the bill is passed. If he has his way, we get to watch other states rebuild and improve their schools, roads, bridges and power grids while ours continue to crumble. Those states will develop the infrastructure that attracts new business while we continue to wallow in poverty. What a formula for success!
Schools and educators prepare American young people to compete in the work force so they can be productive citizens and enjoy decent lives. Our schools and the students who attend them are in eminent danger of teacher layoffs, ballooning class sizes and a definite drop in the quality of their education. South Carolina educators are professional, and we will do our very best to provide the best instruction possible, but even we can't work with nothing.
Boehner and the rest don't care if American children are educated or not. I guess he doesn't believe it puts money in the pockets of his wealthy patrons. It would be better to keep the masses poor and ignorant. That way, we are easier to control. As for money for the arts, if the Republicans have their way, we won't be able to understand art, music, theater and literature anyway, so why bother.
Ladies and gentlemen, there is a reason the Republican Party lost power in this country; they deserved it.
Curtis LeMay
Rock Hill
Lawmakers should pass Sen. Hayes' water bill
Thank you, state Sen. Wes Hayes, for introducing the Fair Share Water Bill (S. 275). This bill will help ensure the public's right to clean, abundant water while preserving our desire for responsible economic growth.
2) Passing this legislation will help protect our water supply in regional water negotiations. The lack of this legislation has put us at a disadvantage as we try to settle our dispute over the Catawba River with North Carolina. If we don't know how much is being taken out, how can we expect other states to respect our rights as downstream users?
3) Respecting seasonal flows and relying on the best science about maintaining healthy rivers are critical to protecting our river resources. Sen. Hayes' bill respects seasonal flows.
4) The Fair Share Water Bill will provide existing and prospective industrial users the water they need to flourish in South Carolina.
Sue Kost
Tega Cay
This story was originally published February 1, 2009 at 12:10 AM with the headline "Voice of the People - February 1, 2009."