John Hood wrong on GOP tax cuts

I must heartily disagree with John Hood’s portrayal of NC GOP as not as bad as Kansas in their legislative moves in a column published on Wednesday.

The N.C. GOP has made many bad decisions that hurt its citizens and our children in the public school system. Their monetary support of  charter schools at the expense of public education is most deplorable.

No, their paltry teacher raises do not replace the money they have taken away from the education system and its children. Their decision to deprive NC’s working poor of health care by refusing to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act is more than deplorable.          I could go on and on, but in my eyes, these are the two worst decisions.

Leave Kansas out of the picture. Focus only on N.C. and its citizens.

Of course, you also have the bad decisions that have brought about voter intimidation and not being able to vote which keeps the GOP in office with gerrymandering and drastic changes to the voter laws.

No, NC GOP cannot be excused.

— Pat Bullard

China Grove

Giving an award

Thank you, Aaron Church. I’ve been waiting to hear about something more stupid than placing stinking butt-cans in a no-smoking zone. You hit a home run.

Congratulations are also in order. You have just picked up the unwanted S.O.Y. (Shame on You) Award for your personal trash story.

At one point in time, while you were wondering what locals would prefer, I was wondering, too.

I was wondering “How large is your family to generate that much trash in one week?”

I was wondering, “If you have a designated backup ‘bringer’ to the street, in case you forget?”

I was wondering, how someone that makes a very good living doing arithmetic for an entire county does not know if he dropped off five bags of trash or six bags of trash?

Here goes the one I was wondering about the most. No, it wasn’t the $10 fee. This “wonder” got you your S.O.Y. Award. “Why don’t you recycle?”

At another point in time (I can’t help it), I was wondering if you ever thought about saving money, instead of spending money and generating more revenue to waste?

I was wondering if you smoke ciga-butts, dip snuff or chew tobacco?

I was wondering if you ever visit “Don Nicotine” Park?

I was wondering if you are ever going to bring up — “Enough is enough; let’s ban tobacco in the parks!!!”

This one is for you, Greg Edds, and your grow plan. G.R.O.W. (Get Rid of Wrongs). Smoking in the parks around all the little children is WRONG! I know it and you know it.

-— Whitey Harwood

Rowan County

Editor’s note: the following two letters are in reference to  a letter published on Tuesday that was written by Marie Miller about traffic around Webb Road

Maybe someone will notice

I am with you lady. Last year, I sent a letter to the sheriff, Highway Patrol, Fire Marshal, EMS, county commission, Secretary of State and Secretary of Transportation. I told them how hard it is to go anywhere on Leach Road if you don’t know the back way out. I stated that if there were an emergency at the flea market or surrounding area there would be no help available. Those trying to get in or out of flea market “own” the road. Many are aggressive and hostile. A road rage incident is not unexpected. None of them bothered to answer my letter.

I remember the fire that took out the first flea market. It was a weekday, and no one was hurt. Could you imagine an overheated car fire on a weekend?

Hundreds of cars would burn and many people would be hurt by people trying to leave. It took five fire departments all day to stop that fire. Not one would be able to get to it on a weekend.

I have been told by a number of people “there is nothing you can do; it is here to stay.” Maybe so, but I will send the addresses of all those I contacted and a list of lawyers names when there is an incident involving severe injury or death to the family of the victim. I pray it is not my family or yours. Mike Shue said he also contacted people about this. So God protect his family also.

Thank you for your letter. Maybe someday someone will notice the problem.

— Vicki Sanders

Salisbury

Does anyone care?

Headline: Crash at Webb Road Flea Market takes the lives of local residents! This is only hypothetical of course, but it is only a matter of time before it is a reality.

I have to wholeheartedly agree with Marie Miller’s letter on May 30 concerning the out-of-control flea market. As a resident of Webb Road for over 30 years, I have seen this problem growing and growing over the last few years.

Mrs. Miller is dead-on in her analysis. My question is: who is responsible for this disaster? Did anyone do a planning analysis on this? Do they even care? I doubt it. It does not help matters that a large percentage of the patrons of the Flea Market are not familiar with our rules of the road.

Our government will issue a drivers license to anyone even if they unable to read road signs in English and obviously should not be driving.

Yet, we continue to pay taxes to government officials as they sit on their duff and do nothing.

Then again, I would not expect any more, at least not until it involves one of their “own.” Money making is the political game; unfortunately, our lives are their playing pieces. I’m just waiting on that headline.

— Wayne Drye

Salisbury