Not worth that price
Reading the article about the VA solar-power system at the Veterans Hospital, it was stated that $8 million of funding was provided to save the hospital possibly $150,000 a year.
Doing the math, at that rate the cost of the project would be recovered in 53-plus years. That does not include maintenance or replacement costs.
That expense is just another example of how taxpayers get ripped off on so-called environmental projects.
How could a project like that ever be justified? It seems it was simply a political make-work project that cost the taxpayers a lot of money.
NICK PALANGIO
Damascus
No publicity for her
Do us all a big favor--save yourself the cost of printer's ink and newsprint by giving us readers limited mention of Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. I believe she won't draw flies here in Arkansas; she won't bother to campaign here, but may have a fundraiser. I'm sure her group of Arkansas friends could fit in a phone booth, but the only one left is in Prairie Grove, and that's Republican territory.
Some of us remember old Hillary badgering a gentleman candidate for governor (Tom McRae) who had the audacity to oppose Bill. It seems nothing has changed in her persona since her Arkansas years. They say it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks.
Many of us are sick with the Clinton flu, but don't make it terminal. The only known cure is silence, and that's one thing Obamacare can't address.
DON SHELLABARGER
Little Rock
Legislators did good
Still not sure what House Bill 1228 was supposed to be about. Still not sure what an LGBT is. Although in the case of state Rep. Bob Ballinger, if it meant lettuce, ground beef and tomato, perhaps he should have discriminated against himself!
Humor aside, I think your paper (and newspapering is a tough racket nowadays) should have followed the lead in this manufactured legislation, issue, and topic, and manufactured a new supplement, as the Arkansas Times is doing with its Out in Arkansas shortly coming to press.
Again, no joke, this is brilliant: Journalistic integrity aside, take a non-issue, make it one, and make some dough (no, Mr. Ballinger, that doesn't mean doughnuts). They will draw some nice ad revenue off of this.
So at the very least, with all their nonsense, this year's state Legislature at least ginned up some capital for at least one state-owned business, even if with a law that didn't quite become one, meant nothing, and would never have changed a thing.
C.C. CROOK
Pearcy
Takes more than that
Please tell me that a few shovels full of asphalt placed in our chasm-like potholes doesn't constitute "problem solved."
WALTER TUCKER
Little Rock
Very wrong decisions
Shame on the North Little Rock School Board: Dorothy "Dot" Williams, Scott Miller, Darrell Montgomery, Ron Treat, Scott Teague, Sandi Campbell and Luke King. I believe their firing of Brad Bolding ends a string of very wrong decisions. Surely none of these people will ever be elected to anything again.
It seems this group has joined the evil conspiracy that will result in the demise of the North Little Rock School District because of a serious dearth of leadership. Students, parents and teachers--bail out as soon as you can. This ship is doomed!
Evil has won a battle; good will win the war.
THURMAN W. BOOTH JR.
Sherwood
Makes the rich richer
It's not surprising to me that the Democrat-Gazette seems to consider this recent legislative session the best in a while. The group of Pharisees and Sadducees types in the state Legislature obviously believe their theology, and making rich people richer is good for all the people of Arkansas.
MILTON DAVIS
Conway
Working people pay
The record number of Americans saying taxes are too high aren't the 1 percent who are raking in money hand over fist--and you vote for Republicans who want the rich to pay less?
The working man is paying freight in this country and the lazy rich are laughing all the way to the bank in the Cayman Islands.
STEVE FOSTER
Greenland
Misleading opinions
Now comes a Jonathan Bernstein of Bloomberg News, reprinted on your opinion page, to fire more aluminum chaff into the air in a misguided effort to apparently mislead and confuse educated Americans. Then his bogus rant begins.
If he says that a Constitutional Convention is a bad idea gone "viral," I guess it is. But it seems fact-checking eludes Bloom-berg just like the Washington Post piece which sprang up like sumac in the hard-news section recently.
Were Bernstein to research any facts at all, he would learn that the groundswell of effort nationwide is for a second remedy penned by George Mason IV under Article V: A Convention of States.
This has nothing whatsoever to do with the U.S. Congress. State legislatures, with no interference from their governors or Congress, may call their own convention.
States can invite all the delegates they want but enjoy only a single vote. Imagine 37 of our sovereign states passing silly law. Just won't happen, period.
We don't intend to change one word of our precious Constitution; we want to limit the powers of a runaway federal government in vital matters of debt, taxation and regulation. And many thousands of citizens and state legislators are already on the march to this patriotic end.
Please look up Convention of States and learn the facts. Don't depend on the kindergarten playground tactics of a supposedly educated and seasoned columnist who masquerades as a constitutional scholar, just like someone we know in the White House.
JOHN NUETZEL
Gosnell
Put the hatred aside
Arkansas, we could put our hate aside for a few months and fix our streets and highways. I think we have the worst potholes in this country.
My husband and I have lived overseas and travel many states in this country, but I must say we have the worst streets and highways here. There is litter on these highways. I was born in Florida and in the last six months have traveled back there. I must say, Florida has some beautiful highways.
My husband and I retired on the West Coast after 33 years. I used to ride my bike every week on the bike trails. A friend and I would walk around our city every weekend. My husband and I would walk with our kids and dogs on the beach. We never saw trash.
Instead of worrying about President Barack Obama, Tom Cotton and now Hillary Clinton, let's get together and see if we can all work together and clean up this beautiful state. Hatred will be with us forever, but cleanliness we can all help with. I stopped reading the Democrat-Gazette because of so much hatred written in it. I never saw a newspaper with so much hatred.
There is no reason our beautiful state should have so many potholes. Put hatred aside for a couple of months and let's all work together. Even God loves cleanliness.
JULIA RANDLE
Jacksonville
Editorial on 04/16/2015