Advertisement
I am writing this letter in regard to Sen. John McCain's statements concerning drug testing in Major League Baseball. I agree that steroid and drug use in major sports in America are horrible and do not set a good example for America's youth. I do not agree that the government should get involved. Leave this to the leagues.
If the government really cared about examples to America's youth regarding drugs, we would drug test every rock band, movie star and TV personality.
These are the people that the kids in America really look up to.
They may not know who the vice president is, but they sure as heck know who Britney Spears and Mandy Moore are.
Along these same lines, maybe the government should be drug testing the people who really matter — themselves!
So, Sen. McCain, I admire your efforts to keep steroids and other drugs away from the role models of America's youth, but I think you are going in the wrong direction.
Businesses pay their fair share
By MICHAEL M. BIRKLEY
Madison
While it is true that businesses pay less and homeowners pay more of Wisconsin's property taxes than they did 20 years ago, WEAC President Stan Johnson's assertion that this is the result of state business tax exemptions is flat-out wrong.
While the state's manufacturing machinery and equipment exemption and more recent personal property exemptions did reduce local tax bases, they were accompanied by increased aid to offset the taxes that school and local governments would have otherwise shifted to homeowners.
As for the "shift" from agricultural to residential taxpayers occasioned by enactment of the use-value law, according to the state's Legislative Fiscal Bureau, farm use-value reduced the state's property tax base by less than 2 percent. That was more than offset by the taxes paid by new commercial and residential construction, not by raising the tax burden on existing homeowners.
Businesses pay a smaller portion, and homeowners pay a greater portion of the property tax today — not because "the state gradually shifted the property tax burden from businesses to individuals" as asserted in Monday's column — but, because home construction more than doubled the growth in business construction over the past twenty years.
As a result, residential property which represented only 53 percent of the state's taxable property in 1978 now accounts for 72 percent of the statewide property value and pays 72 percent of the statewide property tax.
Businesses account for 28 percent of the statewide property value — which includes most of the machinery, equipment, appliances and furniture they need to do do business — and pay 28 percent of the statewide property tax.
Michael M. Birkley is legislative director of Wisconsin Property Taxpayers Inc.
True meaning of Christmas
By JEFF BERTRAM
Onalaska, Wis.
As a member of Valley View Rotary, my group was responsible for collecting food and donations at the Rotary Lights this past Saturday.
It is amazing to see the generosity displayed by our community every year. This night however, one particular person touched me more than others.
Around 9 o'clock, a boy about 8 or 9 years old exited the park with his father. As they left, the boy thanked us for the lights with a smile on his face from ear to ear.
After they crossed the street, I heard the boy yell "wait a minute dad!" and came running back.
He stood in front of me, reached into his back pocket, ripped open the Velcro on his blue wallet, and dropped a dollar in the bucket saying "somebody needs this!"
This is the true meaning of Christmas; we should all be this thoughtful. Lastly, if this is your son, please make sure Santa gives him a little something extra!
Praise for Frisbee course
By MATTHEW KELLER
La Crosse
I'd like to throw a shout out to the individual(s) who had the vision to put together La Crosse's incredible Frisbee disc golf course in Pettibone Park.
I'm not sure exactly what is going on in the park with the course (the local media has been too busy putting together stories on stuff like gay marriage and the Ten Commandments to hit this topic), but it appears as if there will be an additional nine holes added in the spring.
I wouldn't know, because no news source has shared that information with me yet.
Whoever put this idea together and made it a reality, you rock.
It's astonishing to see 20 or 30 people on a typical summer or fall day, all from different walks of life, playing rounds with friends or people they just met at the first hole's tee.
You have created something that has benefited our community both socially and economically (discs have to be bought at local retailers or from the guy who swims for the lost ones in the lagoon).
People have been coming from all over the Midwest to try our course out, and that's really cool.
Keep up the good work, and we are lucky to have you working in our Park and Recreation Department. (Go ahead and clip this out and put it on your fridge, your efforts are appreciated).
Language barrier is a critical issue
By BRADY HOWE
Minneapolis
In the shadow of the incident regarding the Hmong hunter who was involved with the murders of six other hunters, I have read several letters in newspapers regarding the ability of immigrants abilities to comprehend and use the English language.
Many of the letters have been negative in content. I do not see a problem though with immigrants not being able to speak English.
When my ancestors immigrated to America from Norway they did not speak English. In fact, none of their descendants did either for several generations.
I bet that if many of the people that have a negative viewpoint on the current language situation regarding immigrants checked they would find that their ancestors were in the same boat when they arrived in America as current immigrants are today.
Let's not forget the struggles that our ancestors had when working with the immigrants of today.
Brady Howe is a former Holmen, Wis., resident
|
More Opinion: |
