Letters to the Editor

Talk about it

Time to fix stretch of local ‘troubled road’

To the Editor:

As one who travels the “troubled road” on North Ohlman Street several times a week, I am so angered by the obvious political ploy of the cheapskate Davison County commissioners, who refused to fix this strip of road owned by the county, because of the expanding city limits of Mitchell.

I have measured the distance of the roughest part and it is only three-tenths of a mile long. Now how much would a temporary fix of that distance have cost the county?

Davison County should elect more responsible commissioners as soon as possible.

Michael D. Ryan, Mitchell

Don’t legalize pot in any form, fashion

To the Editor:

In November, we will vote on whether to outlaw smoking from the rest of public places in South Dakota. This is OK with me. I don’t like breathing in the smoke in restaurants, etc. We will also be voting on legalizing marijuana, contrary to federal law.

When I was working as a police officer, we would get calls from people smelling marijuana and respond to bars and other public places. They would say “Honest, officer, it was a tobacco cigarette and not marijuana.” If both laws are passed this fall and the police get called to a bar, the person that is approached will say “Honest officer, it was marijuana, not tobacco.” Have we completely lost all common sense?

When we compare marijuana smoke to tobacco smoke, the dangers are the same and some experts would say that marijuana smoke is worse than tobacco smoke. We know that there are a range of problems with someone smoking marijuana that are much worse than tobacco use: loss of ambition, very addictive, weight gain, plus a host of psychological problems. It is also a gateway drug to other illegal drugs. America does not need another legalized drug.

I know that this is being advertised that it is for the benefit of people with medical conditions. Look who is behind this — it is the same people that have wanted to legalize marijuana for everyone. They are starting here and their ultimate goal is to legalize marijuana for everyone. This is their first logical step.

In California and other states that have legalized marijuana for medical reasons, there are a host of problems. Communities where there are legalized growers have attracted people to their community who are less than desirable. What do you tell your children? In apartments, neighbors and owners complain that they do not want to smell marijuana. Can you believe the enforcement issues? Again, it is against federal law.

In California, a doctor sets up a storefront, people that want a prescription for marijuana come, and they pay a fee and get their script. Most even have a list of symptoms for the person to choose from so they can get the script.

I hope that South Dakota voters are smarter than California on this issue. Vote no on Initiated Measure 13.

Denny Kaemingk, Mitchell

Please help save American way of life

To the Editor:

I am getting sick and tired of Stephanie’s commercials praising her for voting against Obamacare, cap and tax and the porkulus bill. Who is she trying to kid? You know as well as I do, if Pelosi would have needed Stephanie’s vote for these nation-destroying and economy-destroying bills, Stephanie would have given her vote to Pelosi.

In Stephanie’s commercial where she is trying to defend her voting with Nancy record, she basically said she votes against Nancy more than most of the other congressmen. Big deal. She never did say that she did not vote with Nancy 90 percent of the time.

We need to fire Pelosi to stop the spending (if we don’t, kiss our country goodbye), stop the destroying our Constitution, stop Obamacare, stop the takeover of the American companies and stop the class warfare (when was the last time you got a job from a poor man?). Please help save our American way of life and vote for Kristi.

Stephen C. Elkjer, Sioux Falls

Clean up the mess Congress created

To the Editor:

Congresswoman Herseth Sandlin supported the $787 billion stimulus bill. Herseth Sandlin and administration officials said the stimulus bill would create 10,000 jobs. Instead, unemployment has increased rapidly since the bill’s passage.

Herseth Sandlin voted against a plan to end TARP and use the funds to pay down our debt. South Dakotans want more jobs, not more bailouts. Stephanie had an opportunity to end the program, but instead she sided with Nancy Pelosi.

Our congresswoman has voted for major budget and spending bills every year since Democrats have been in the majority, and this year the U.S. House has not produced and passed a budget for the first time in history since the 1974 Budget Resolution Act was passed. This is a complete failure in fiscal leadership.

Stephanie voted for the Employee Free Choice Act (Card Check). The bill strips the right for union workers to vote by secret ballot during union elections. She voted on the side of the unions rather than the rank and file.

She voted against prohibiting federally funded abortion services. Though some folks in our state believe in a woman’s right to choose, they also believe that abortions should not be paid for by taxpayers. Most of us would have supported the bill — Stephanie did not.

Also, Stephanie voted against the child interstate abortion notification act. Don’t we in South Dakota have a right to know if a child is pregnant and contemplating an abortion? The act would have made it illegal to transport a minor across state lines for the purpose of an abortion without parental consent. Most of us would support this act, but she chose to support her party.

She also voted against the Federal Election Integrity Act. Most South Dakotans believe it’s only common sense to show proof of who you are when voting.

She voted against the health-care reform plan, which is what most South Dakotans wanted, but says she does not support the repeal of this plan. Why, if you voted against it, would you not want to get it overturned?

Let’s support Kristi Noem so we can clean up the mess this Congress has created.

Milton Schrader, Alexandria

Give Democrats a chance in S. Dakota

To the Editor:

It’s that time again to get out and vote, so let’s all do it.

Our Democratic candidates are raring to go, so let’s give them a chance to see if they can improve things in our great state of South Dakota.

Gov. Rounds and Daugaard tried for eight years and nothing has changed, so let’s get some other people in office, like Heidepriem and Arndt, Ben Nesselhuf, and Becky Haslam and keep our good Stephanie Herseth Sandlin.

We don’t need people who are not truthful about what they will do or run other candidates’ hard work down.

Let’s understand one person cannot cure our ills. We must work together, and I believe our Democratic candidates have and will continue to do so.

Negative ads hurt everyone. Stop them now and get some information out that makes sense.

Vote in November and vote Democratic and let us unite and help South Dakota be a better place to live and raise our children.

Joanne Hegg, Mitchell

Herseth Sandlin not for S.D. values

To the Editor:

If you are a pro-life conservative from South Dakota, there are clear choices in the two U.S. House candidates.

* Kristi Noem twice co-sponsored legislation to require abortion facilities to offer sonograms to pregnant women.

* Kristi co-sponsored the Women’s Health and Human Life Protection Act, which would have ended abortion in South Dakota except in instances of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother.

* Kristi co-sponsored legislation to allow employee sick leave to be used for the care of a spouse, child or parent of the employee if the spouse, child or parent has a serious health condition.

* Kristi is 100 percent pro-life. She will maintain a 100 percent pro-life voting record in Congress.

* Kristi has been endorsed by the National Right to Life and the Susan B. Anthony List.

* Herseth Sandlin has a 100 percent voting record with NARAL Pro-Choice America.

* Herseth Sandlin has a 100 percent voting record with Planned Parenthood.

* Herseth Sandlin has a zero percent voting record with the National Right to Life Committee.

* Emily’s List, an organization “dedicated to electing pro-choice Democratic women,” is the largest contributor to Herseth Sandlin’s political campaigns, giving $318,301.

* Herseth Sandlin voted to allow federally funded abortions.

* Herseth Sandlin twice voted against a bill that would criminalize the transportation of a pregnant minor across state lines with the intention of the minor obtaining an abortion.

* Herseth Sandlin voted to lift the ban on abortions at U.S. military facilities overseas.

Al Franken said “Nancy Pelosi knows she can count on Stephanie Herseth Sandlin.”

Herseth Sandlin does not vote to protect the unborn and on governmental spending, in just nine votes in 2009 and 2010, she has voted for $6.85 trillion in appropriations, etc. Does this represent South Dakota values, which she has repeatedly boasted that she votes?

Dan Hargreaves, Stickney

Reserve Board must be closed down now

To the Editor:

America needs to close down the Federal Reserve Board. Americans feel the Fed was created to protect the American economy and the American people. The truth is the Fed was created to protect the banks and only the banks. The recent economic crisis gives an example of what the Fed really does.

When America’s economy faltered, the Fed reduced interest rates to virtually nothing, destroying America’s investors’ and savers’ source of livelihood. At the same time, they gave billions of dollars to “save the banks.” Bank executives received billions in federal funds while American savers received the bill. On top of this, the banks were allowed to borrow huge amounts of federal funds at nearly zero interest and to leverage that money many times and to then loan these funds back to the government at much higher rates. Presto, the banks have become re-liquified. The American family who worked all their lives and saved for their retirement saw their income drop so low that many are now living in poverty. What a great job the Fed has done at the expense of the American saver. The Fed saved the banks by destroying the American saver.

The Fed needs to be closed down now.

Robert D. Parsons, Pierre

Noem should stay home, run her ranch

To the Editor:

We have a fine and dedicated person in Stephanie Herseth Sandlin to represent us in Washington, so why would anyone want to send someone who can’t even mind the laws of the road in her own state?

Did anyone ever check on how many dollars her ranch is taking in with subsidies from the government? Did she ever turn that down or send it back if she wants to cut spending so bad?

The negative ads being paid for by groups we never heard of are disgusting, but it seems Ms. Noem will stoop to anything to get elected. I’d suggest she stay home and run her ranch and business that she says she is so good at and let us re-elect a proven leader in Stephanie Herseth Sandlin.

My vote goes to her, and I hope yours does, too.

Norma Fristad, Letcher

Tags: our towns, michael ryan, legalizing marijuana, denny kaemingk, stephanie herseth sandlin, kristi noem, milton schrader, dennis daugaard, scott heidepriem, joanne hegg, dan hargreaves, federal reserve board, robert parsons, american way of life, stephan elkjer, norma fristad, kristi noem ranch, state values, opinion, ohlman, marijuana, congress, tarp, alexandria, democrats, stickney, letcher