By Staff
No dog in this fight'
To the editor:
This is an open letter to Huey P. Long in response to his letter ("Mayor can't serve two masters," The Meridian Star, Oct. 2, 2002).
I can't imagine why someone would feel compelled to write such a negative letter saying such nasty things about government officials of the city of Meridian, and then send it to the Meridian newspaper to be read by the public. I am doubly perplexed that the person lives in Quitman and really, when you get down to it, "does not have a dog in this fight."
Your letter states, "I am not from Meridian, so maybe I can see things that you people in Meridian don't see." If you are under the impression that not knowing about matters in Meridian gives you the ability to see better you are mistaken. Ignorance is not a prescription for clear vision. Cloaking baseless accusations in scripture is a common cover for lack of knowledge, and is, in fact, immoral.
It is true that the railroad is having a tough time of it, and will more than likely need to be subsidized for many years to come regardless of who is chairman of Amtrak. However, the beneficiaries of the government subsidies are our small towns, such as Meridian, Laurel and Hattiesburg, as well as the surrounding areas, which include towns such as Quitman.
We will never come close in what we pay to what we receive in the form of jobs to run, maintain and equip local aspects of the railroad. Another consideration is our national security. Everyone in our country should realize the importance of an alternate transportation network after Sept. 11.
It is true that we are going to have growing pains in Meridian. No one likes to see his or her cost of living rise. However, any good business person knows that in order to be equipped and ready to prosper in the future, you must make your investment in the present.
Municipalities needs differ. In a mature municipality such as Atlanta, for instance, a strong administrator may be needed. However, our need in the Greater Meridian Area is growth. We need a mayor who can go "door-to-door," find and sell Meridian to CEOs from companies such as CBL and others. To do this he will be required to spend considerable amounts of time being where those CEOs are. We do not need our chief executive officer spending his time engineering the patching of pot holes and managing garbage pickups.
No, Mr. Long, not being from Meridian does not automatically give you the gift of clear vision. It takes great rigor. It takes being involved, volunteering your time, keeping abreast of current affairs, joining in a positive and forceful push into the future. Please, shake off the negative and frustrated attitude that has held our community back for so long. Instead devote your time and efforts in positive and cooperative ways.
Monte Royal
Owner, Bonita Lakes Cinema 9
Graduate, Leadership Lauderdale
Class of 2002
Meridian
Limiting recoveries same as limiting rights
To the editor:
Would you please explain what assurances you have from the insurance industry that medical malpractice insurance premiums will be reduced if the proposed tort reform is placed into law.
So far, the only assurances that I have seen is that the people of Mississippi will be constrained from pursuing their right to recover damages when injured by another party.
In 1979, a doctor not authorized to perform delivery of multiple births did not inform us that he was not qualified to assist with the birth of my wife's twins. In the process, my son suffered brain damage due to the doctor's lack of experience in this area.
My son was diagnosed as a "Spastic Quadriplegic." We thought about it for almost two years before we decided to sue. He was estimated to live only three years, but lived 181/2 years. He would have received NO actual damages, as argued by the insurance company at the time, due to the fact that he would not work until he was at least 16 years old and would not reach that age.
Under the currently proposed law, we could not have received enough money to take care of him. We would have been forced to turn our son over to the state in order to receive some help for him. Can you imagine how it would feel to turn your child over the state, and you could only see him for 10 days a year.
Our suit was settled in 1982 for under $500,000. I can tell you that we barely made it with our share of that. Can you imagine what it would take today to care for a Spastic Quadriplegic child for 181/2 years?
When you start to limit the rights of all, you generally limit the rights of the most needy. I ask you to look at other measures to solve this problem. Maybe we need to begin to expunge those problem doctors that seem to account for the majority of the law suits in Mississippi. The medical profession will not police their own, so I guess it's easier to punish the injured.
Alton Wayne Stuart Sr.
Meridian
First things first
To the editor:
Have you ever gone into you child's room after they're through cleaning and thought it looked just great, but then you open the closet door and everything just falls out? That reminds me of our beautiful city. Downtown looks so nice. The mall and Wal-Mart look great up on their hilltop.
How about a drive down Bonita Drive? The homes and yards are attractive, but the roads are horrible.
While you are there, turn up Pippins Road. This road used to be paved until they ripped it up to lay sewer lines after annexation. Same thing with Scruggs Road.
Why would the city of Meridian want more when they can't take proper care of all they have now? Eagle Pointe residents, you have something to look forward to. You will be connected to city sewer and water lines but you will be driving on a mixture of asphalt, gravel and mud. It is not a pretty sight.
I believe these people were much better off in the county. At least the roads were all in one piece.
Kim Carmichael
Meridian
Fall Fest a great success
To the editor:
We wish to thank everyone who came to our Fall Fest/Catfish Feast at Jones Memorial Presbyterian Church on Sept. 28, and for all the support we received. Congratulations to John McClure for winning the quilt, and to J.L. Reece and Genie Coates for winning the Betty Jane Long cakes.
We also wish to thank you for the coverage we received in The Meridian Star. Our day was a tremendous success, and we feel that this coverage played a big part in advertising this event. A special thanks to Penny Randall who was so cooperative and helpful.
Elaine Pogue, Elois Taylor, Hilma Snell
Fall Fest Committee
Jones Memorial Presbyterian Church
Meridian