Published: August 18, 2009 09:19 pm      

LETTERS: August 19, 2009

Reader: Thanks for the unwanted concert Northside



If you live in the area around Northside Christian Church, I mean as far away as the Klerner Lane area, I’m sure this past Friday night you heard a concert whether you wanted to or not. I live along Rainbow Drive and it was like I was on the front row, so help me God (no pun intended). I called the New Albany Police to report the loud music and the person answering the phone said they would try to find out were it was coming from and, after taking my name and number, would call me back.

After an hour later and they were still trying to find it, I got frustrated and did some detective work myself. This is when I found out it was coming from Northside and it was 10 p.m. I then called police back to tell them where it was at, realizing they knew the whole time. But as most people know, the police direct traffic for the church, so as the old saying goes, they did not want to bite the hand that feeds them. Anyway, I was informed that it was in the county’s jurisdiction and that they had a permit for the outdoor music. So, I then called the church and got the answering service, who told me they had a permit to play until 11:30 p.m. I then called my councilman, Mr. Gahan, who heard the noise also and told me the county commissioners gave the OK for the permit. Imagine that — they must not live close to the church, that is, if you want to say we do.

I guess my question is as big as that church is: Why not have the concert inside and save all the calls and complaints and me typing this letter?

After all, I would rather have been enjoying my Friday night off instead of listening to religious head-banging music. Hallelujah!

— Alan Montgomery, New Albany





Reader disgusted by Vick signing



The signing of Michael Vick by the Philadelphia Eagles was a sad day for the National Football League because it means the league has sold out its integrity. NFL owners seem to think there aren’t enough players with good character to win so they hire animal abusers. The message sent by the NFL is that it doesn’t matter what you do off the field as long as it doesn’t involve drugs, guns or harming other people.

Why should children look up to Donovan McNabb when they see people like Vick given a slap on the wrist and million dollar contract.

I do believe that Vince Lombardi has rolled over in his grave, and I, for one, will not watch any of the Eagles games on television.

— Harold R. Wilson, Corydon



Congress members need to stop the madness

To our elected representatives:

Will anybody stop the madness? Will nobody truly lead our country with an America-first attitude?

We went through eight years of the George W. Bush administration, even though he kept us safe after 9/11, he overspent, which ran up deficits.

He undertaxed imported products from countries with slave-type labor and neglected our border problems and sovereignty issues. This happened because Republican senators and representatives rubber-stamped his policies during his tenure.

Now, what is taking place in the present administration may even be worse. Will any Democratic senators or representatives stop the madness that is taking place in Barack Obama’s reign, or will they do what their Republican counterparts did in the previous administration’s tenure — going blindly along while our country is in distress and decline?

Obama signed a bill with more than 9,000 earmarks, after promising not to sign any bill with an earmark. Obama signed the Omnibus Bill, with an 8 percent increase, when it should have been decreased by at least 8 percent or more. Obama signing a stimulus bill for more than $700 billion that truly and obviously was a spending bill, rather than a bill to stimulate our economy and create jobs.

Here is a hint for our leaders, if you want to create jobs and business activity, you undertake massive infrastructure and energy projects all across our country. Another hint for our leaders is to implement projects, such as nuclear power plants, refineries, oil and natural gas recovery sites and useful road and bridge projects — such as the East-End Bridge construction for our immediate area.

These types of projects not only would help our unemployment problem, but would create a tremendous amount of private business activity.

Every penny of a stimulus bill should be spent for these types of projects instead of paying off groups and states who supported the president in his election run.

The payoff-style of spending has little or no reverse pyramid effect on our economy.

Even locally, the federal government dictated how our school systems were to use the stimulus money they received. These mandates were neither economically wise nor beneficial to the education of our children.

Now, the president wants a new health care and cap-and-trade bills passed that, again, only will cost the American citizen more money, hurt the economy and move this country dangerously close to socialism, to which I truly believe is this president’s true agenda.

Will any Democratic senators or representative have the intestinal fortitude to stand up to this president, or will they follow their Republican counterparts examples that hurt this country during George W. Bush’s term?

Neither being a compassionate conservative or an idealistic liberal are good traits for our country’s leader.

As a citizen, it is very frustrating to see some very basic policies and practices not being enacted that would help our economy and preserve the American way of life.

— Kevin Guernsey, Henryville



What would be different about health care?



A quick question to all who seem to be for the government taking over health care.

Please explain to all how the government takeover of health care would or could be any different than the other sinkholes they have their dirty hands in — Social Security, the Postal Service, Welfare, Medicare, takeover of auto manufacturers ... and the beat goes on?

— Mason Gary, Clarksville