We can help those in need, but not freeloaders

Published 12:00 am Sunday, August 23, 2009

When did we become a nation of irresponsible people? We are all having economic problems right now and I sympathize with those needing help through no fault of their own. I believe in helping people, but they have to do their part. Government social services, including health care, should be available on a temporary, as-needed basis, not as a permanent way of life. We should not reward irresponsibility, nor should we allow Congress to act irresponsibly with our money.

When my mother had to raise five children alone and she needed health insurance for us, she went to work, not the welfare office. She worked two jobs, attended night school and raised her family to be responsible people.

In grade school, we children baby-sat, mowed grass, delivered newspapers and got after-school jobs when we were teens. Those of us who attended college paid our own way.

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We all worked, ate meals at home, wore hand-me-down clothes, but had everything we needed. My mom never used her single-parent status as an excuse not to provide for our family or to allow her children to run wild.

Why is it that people who can’t seem to pay for their families’ needs often have professionally done hair and nails, designer clothes and expensive jewelry? Meanwhile, the rest of us can’t afford those luxuries because we have to pay for our children’s food, shelter and medical needs. I don’t begrudge helping innocent children who have the misfortune of having selfish parents. I do begrudge giving their parents money that they spend on themselves rather than their children.

Regarding health care, I know two non-Americans whose countries have government-funded health care, which they hate. Their income tax rate is 60 percent and they’ve had to wait over a year to see a doctor at times. There’s no such thing as free health care. Somebody has to pay for it and it’s us, the taxpayers.

We must teach our children and Congress personal responsibility like our parents taught us. We can truly help needy Americans without helping freeloaders.

Tamara Sanders

Vicksburg

City in tight times?

The Aug. 13 paper had an article about the Levee Street Depot’s future. The city fathers repeatedly brought up the fact that the city may not be in a financial position to support the depot.

In Monday’s legal ads, the city is advertising for generators for City Hall, the Annex, the wastewater office and the wastewater treatment plant.

I researched prices of just the generators listed and the combined total of the generators is around $260,000. This does not include hooking up the electrical components, the fuel tanks nor buildings and mounting pads.

Transparency is the key to keeping taxpayers in the loop and aware of reasons to raise taxes.

Dan Hall

Vicksburg

Police need assistance

It’s hard to believe no one notices someone stealing a sleeper sofa, end tables and lamps out of someone’s house. Yet you often see in the crime report where multiple large items are being stolen in the city, where you generally have lots of neighbors.

The police cannot be everywhere at once. They also can’t be expected to know what’s going to happen and when unless someone speaks up. If you are concerned about crime there are several things you can do, such as:

• Get to know your neighbors and exchange phone numbers in case of emergency.

• Get to know your neighborhood, who belongs there, what cars belong there, normal day-to-day activities.

• Be willing to make a phone call to 911 or to your neighbor if you think something is suspicious or just doesn’t seem right. 

• If you’ve ever thought about getting a house dog, big or small, they are a great crime deterrent. If a crook has a choice he’s going to break in the house without the dog inside because it’s less of a hassle.

In order for crime to go down we have got to keep an eye out for each other, stop waiting on some magic person to fix everything. This is our town, our children, our relatives and friends. If you’re not willing to stand up and at least make a phone call, don’t be surprised when somebody walks out of your house with your new bedroom suite in the middle of the day and no one sees anything.

Christy Lamb

Vicksburg

Health nightmare awaits

If you are concerned about the direction in which our country is moving, don’t you think it is time to do something about it?

If we wait until we have completely lost every right we as Americans have had, then it will be too late! You cannot unscramble eggs!

People across the nation and here in Mississippi have had enough of the governmental control of our lives.

If you would like to see what is in the health care bill in Congress, find it on the Internet. This is more than just a health care bill, this is a nightmare of government infringement and control of our lives.

Stand up with us, let your voice be heard and help us take back our country.

Join Mississippi Tea Party today; we have a branch in Vicksburg: msteaparty.ning.com

David Boone

Vicksburg

Bill will make it worse

The conservatives and Tea Party groups are not saying that health care does not need improving, but rather that the existing health care bill has too many things in it that will not improve, but rather will make our health care much worse than it is now.

There are issues that will be one way in the beginning, but in a few years will no longer be an option. That is scary.

Big Government Health Care is not the answer and government, no matter who has control of Congress, should not have control over every aspect of our health care. What about freedom of choice?

Many politicians in Washington and on the state and local levels are out for self first and others second. I have a hard time knowing who and what to believe. However, if you want to get a more honest picture and more complete facts of what is coming from our government, I suggest you watch Fox News, which does provide both sides of an issue.

Fredda Hobgood

Vicksburg

Flat tax would work

I am writing about a matter that has puzzled me for years — the Internal Revenue Service.

It has been in existence as an obvious Democratic ploy. It costs us poor taxpayers billions of dollars a year to keep up its existence. And for what purpose? To dog us to death for payments.

What is the alternative? We should eliminate the IRS and, instead, charge a flat sales tax on all of our purchases, say 10 percent. This would put more money in the government’s coffers and not be nearly as costly.

George Mitchell

Vicksburg

America or Cuba?

Instead of letting Obama and Congress decide how we are to be insured, for our sake, our parents’ and children’s sake, let the people vote on this ridiculous medical bill.

We are being led down the road to socialism and if we all don’t stand up and march in the streets we might as well elect Fidel Castro’s brother to be president next time.

Bobby Bryan

Vicksburg

Volunteers could do it

Oh, woe is us. The grant we can get to restore the Levee Street Depot into a transportation museum has some strings attached. It cannot be used to restore the upper floors to house all our nonprofit organizations in one place, which would be so beneficial to the community. Poor babies.

When I was coming along there was no such thing as a government grant. It was an insult to our American independence and ingenuity, a direct path to dictatorial interference in our private affairs, but even worse a step toward the socialistic regimes we despised. No indeed. No American worth his salt would sink to the level of a whining crybaby expecting the government to be a wet nurse, caring for us from cradle to grave. Our communities were perfectly capable of deciding what the community needed or wanted and the community would simply go ahead and do it. Maybe it’s time this community resorted to some old-fashioned ideas and ideas of “making do with what we have” on hand rather than bragging about how high we can increase the national debt.

It’s a funny thing that the so-called government of the people is flat, stone broke and the people made it that way by unburdening themselves of any responsibility in exchange for a life of fun and games.

Here in Vicksburg and Warren County we have a large number of highly educated and talented people who are perfectly qualified to restore the old depot. And we have plenty of suppliers who are generous in donating to community attractions. We’ve already paid for architectural plans. What more do we need to get off our backsides and spend a month of Saturdays restoring the top floor of the old depot to improve our own nest, so to speak?

L.C. Giles

Vicksburg