LETTERS

Covers community

I read, with great interest, William Jones’ guest column on working at KBBA in Benton during the 1960s. I had much the same experience (minus burning the trash) at KVMA (63 on your dial) from 1983 to 1985. And much like Jones, I have stayed in broadcasting part-time since then.

I must lament that the KBBAs of the world are often neglected these days. Often, groups get a town’s FM station and don’t understand what to do with the AM. What to do is find someone interested in community programming.

I am very fortunate that I am able to spend three hours every morning sharing local information, news, obits, etc. (and Christmas music!) on 1490 KXAR in Hope. Chances are, most small towns have someone who would enjoy doing that and providing the service.

There are still some small-town AM stations that do a good job of sharing their local color. KGCS in Marshall comes to mind, as does my alma mater, KVMA. And God bless KVSA in McGehee (1220 on your dial with studios on U.S. 65 between McGehee and Dermott).

If your town has an AM station, tune over and see what’s on there. Enjoy a local voice telling you about your community, and as the late Mary Kay Wyrick used to say in Magnolia, about “people you know or wish you did.”

MARK KEITH

Hope

Pass over pols’ moms

I’m becoming more pleased with Voices Editor Brenda Looper’s columns with each one I read. However, in her last column, she opined that moms should instruct the Republicans on their foot-in-mouth syndrome where women are concerned.

Is Ms. Looper familiar with Tom Cotton’s voting record and his stand against the Violence Against Women Act? Is she familiar with the deprivation of food to kids that his draconian attitude against SNAP programs has and continues to perpetrate against kids and their out-of-work parents?

That just skims the surface of this ideologue and his scorched-earth policies.

Now who is his latest campaign champion? His mom! And to the best of my knowledge, Avis Cotton was a Democrat on Vic Snyder’s support team in recent years. The fact that Tom Cotton “chose” to be in the infantry rather than take a cushy job as a lawyer in the military? Where could he serve the country better-as a rifle-toter or a legal eagle in Congress? Where’s the advantage in being a ground-pounder in the infantry when political expertise is the order of the day?

I think Avis was probably paid to say what she’s saying in his behalf. Where is the concession to her common sense, where she’d never be so insipid as to be championing a rifle-toter?

Yes, employ moms to correct them, but not “mothers” who are used to being held in “righteous subjection” to their superior male husbands and remarkably astute sons who have aspirations beyond their qualifications.

But keep up the good stuff, Ms. Looper. You’re appreciated.

KARL HANSEN

Hensley

Wheat from the chaff

Yes, the Mark Pryor ad on TV about his biblically based values is a doozie. The Democrats, especially, keep sending the message to Americans concerning the separation of church and state.

Then we see this ad.

Hypocrite? You decide.

DENNIS MILAM

North Little Rock

A common-sense bill

As a lifelong gun owner, I deeply value my Second Amendment right to bear arms. Hunting and sporting is a cherished tradition in Arkansas, and I am also sensitive to those who buy guns for self-defense. But gun deaths will account for more than 30,000 American lives lost this year, and this toll will only rise if we do not move forward with common-sense steps to make sure guns don’t fall into the wrong hands.

Comprehensive background checks are a simple but vital tool for ensuring that anyone that gets their hands on a gun is up to a basic level of responsibility. That’s why an overwhelming majority of gun owners welcome these 90-second safety measures at the point of sale.

They in no way threaten our right to bear arms, and they make our communities safer for all.

Common-sense background-check legislation like the bill sponsored by NRA A-rated Senators Joe Manchin and Pat Toomey in April had the support of a majority of gun owners for good reason-they knew that keeping guns away from dangerous individuals would only make our Second Amendment rights stronger. Yet despite such widespread consensus, a minority of senators blocked this modest measure from ever coming up for a vote.

Gun owners have long enjoyed using firearms recreationally and accepted valuable safeguards designed to keep everyone out of harm’s way. In that spirit, for the safety of our families and our communities, we urge Sen. Mark Pryor to reconsider his vote and stand with the law-abiding citizens he represents.

DAN LAYNE

Bryant

Textbook no, iPad yes

It seems most college students don’t like to pay for their textbooks because they cost so much. Students are having to pay around $700 a year for their textbooks; prices increased 82 percent since 2002. Early in this fall semester some students decided to not buy textbooks because of the prices.

Using ebooks in iPad is, I think, the best solution to solve this problem. Some benefits of using an iPad instead of textbooks include saving money, conservation, keeping up with the technology, and taking advantage of the professors and graduate students who have efficiency. By using iPad, you can save because you won’t have to pay for your textbooks any more. You would have to pay only $450 first when you start the first semester for a new iPad.

Using iPads can not only save college students money, it can also cut down on paper used to make books. An added bonus is the ease with which iPads can be used and updated. I would like to learn and I love science, but I would like to do it and not to be broke after buying books.

ALI ALFARAJ

Little Rock