Letters (Aug. 24, 2011)

If you ride a bike, wear a helmet

My name is Elias Kalua. I?m 9 years old, going into the fourth grade. I?m writing this letter to help other kids not to get head injuries or paralyzed when they don?t wear helmets.

Did you know 314,600 people were sent to the emergency room from not wearing bike helmets in 2001? Sixty percent of bicycle accidents happen on roads within a mile from home. That?s as big as Hillsboro! So now will you wear a helmet?

Just because Hillsboro is small does not mean you don?t wear a helmet. You should always wear a helmet. Helmets are better than dying. And it?s better to ride a bike and look dumb than to lay in bed and never be able to ride a bike again.

I hope you are listening to these words carefully. I would like to see everyone wearing a helmet like me. If you listen, then you will be telling others how to be safe.

Elias Kalua

Hillsboro

Tabor freshmen served Marion well

I wish to extend a hearty ?thank you? to Tabor College and their Freshman Service Day students for the services provided Saturday, Aug. 20. It was a great success in that more than 50 bags of trash and debris were collected from over seven miles of road and ditches that lead into Marion.

About 16 Tabor College incoming freshmen, along with two advisers, spent Saturday morning picking up trash along Cedar Street, Highway 56, Eisenhower, Sunflower, Highway 256 and 190th Road.

The road ditches look much cleaner and this improves the whole county by maintaining a clean and pleasant approach into the seat of Marion County.

The Tabor students were polite, energetic and represented Tabor College well. Thank you, again.

Doug Kjellin

Marion city administrator

Ending Bush tax cuts a good budget move

At the end of 2012, the ?Bush tax cuts? are slated to expire. If the two parties fail to agree on some very controversial issues, in the midst of an election year, taxes for the wealthy will rise across the board producing trillions (with a ?t?) of dollars in revenue over the coming decade.

At this time the Bush tax cuts on the wealthy, with all their loop holes, allow a wealthy taxpayer to pay less taxes than a part-time employee at McDonald?s. So don?t be misled in believing this is an increase in taxes. It is only closing loopholes in the tax code so the wealthy will pay their fair share as do all other Americans.

This new revenue will pay for Social Security, military salaries and extend unemployment benefits until jobs can be found. It would be a constitutional way to begin balancing the federal government?s budget, reduce our national debt and create a brighter future for all.

Bill Woford

Hillsboro

The rich already pay their share of taxes

Your comments got my attention right away. That?s good journalism. When you referred to ?extreme? conservatives, I immediately wondered how one measures conservatism or liberalism, and determines either of them to be faint, moderate, or extreme? It?s like referring to a woman as being extremely pregnant, in my opinion. You either are, or you aren?t.

Anyway, your use of the adjective implied a negative slant toward conservatism, so I eagerly read on. To use an analogy to make a point, again, is good journalism. But, to compare tax hikes for the purpose of increased revenue for government spending to a wage earner working longer/harder for the purpose of earning more income for their family, well, surely that was just a blunder. Right?

Workers earn their income. Tax revenue is not earned by the government. A wage-earner is paid for a skill set that provides his/her employer with, hopefully, some greater return. This simple exchange is one small part of economic growth. But filling government coffers with tax revenue is good for economic performance just like stuffing your car?s exhaust with obstructions is good for its engine performance. (I’ll keep working on my analogies.)

Nations with higher government spending have lower economic growth. That?s a fact. Tax the rich? They already are taxed! Those ?elite? folks you referenced pay a disproportionate share, due to our progressive income tax. The top 1 percent of income earners pay nearly 40 percent of the U.S. income tax!

If you want increased revenue from taxes…pay more income tax. You can make your check out for more than the IRS demands. But you won?t. Because we both know that government doesn?t make better use of your money than you do.

Stop suggesting that those who earn more than you or me should do something we?re not willing to do.

I think it?s past time that those who are concerned about our nation?s debt take a firm stand. If the stubbornness in Washington, D.C., causes a stalemate that inhibits new spending, it may finally bring about a serious intervention that is long overdue.

Alan Goldsby

Hillsboro

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