How committed to Buffalo River is the governor?

How committed to Buffalo River is the governor?

Gov. Hutchinson's guest column in the Democrat-Gazette on April 14, declares his allegiance to the protection of the Buffalo River. There are some major holes in this commitment.

The establishment of the Beautiful Buffalo River Action Committee and the Buffalo River Water Management Plan are clearly limited in scope as said entities do not appear to address the very real concerns of hog factory farming in the sensitive karst terrain of the Buffalo River watershed.

While the Buffalo River Management Plan is a welcome opportunity for people to collaborate on many levels, the facilitators of the Buffalo Water Management Plan clearly stated at both of the public meetings held Dec. 9 and March 30 that hog factory farming is beyond the developing water management's plan scope. Hog factory farming will not be addressed by the water management plan.

Yet it is clear that committee and management plan would not have been created had it not been for the hog farm controversy and numerous public expressions. The National Park Service and the United States Geological Survey have submitted substantial and credible data to the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality that indicates likely impairment on Big Creek where the current hog factory farm sits. Yet the committee and management plan have not addressed this data, which was a large part of the impetus for forming these entities.

Perhaps the governor does wish to protect this remarkable natural resource and the tourism industry resulting from the Buffalo River. To sincerely show his commitment he would look at all the science and direct the Department of Environmental Quality to deny the Regulation 5 permit for C&H hog factory and create a permanent moratorium on large-scale hog factory farming in the Buffalo River watershed.

Ginny Masullo

Fayetteville

Trump didn't bomb Syria, as headline suggested

I found the lead headline on the Friday, April 7, front page to be rather offensive, misleading and inaccurate. It read: Trump bombs Syria.

Do we have to continually attack our president? I guess the Democrat-Gazette is right when it is titled the DEMOCRAT-Gazette.

John McCain, who is not a staunch supporter of President Trump, said it right when he stated the president made the right choice to bomb the Syrian airfield, referring to how the past eight years of a failed foreign policy has led the nation to where it is today.

President Trump himself did not bomb the Syrian airfield. The headline should have read "US bombs Syrian airfield." That would have been much more accurate and a lot less misleading to your readers. The decision to bomb, I'm quite sure, was not taken lightly and made by our president alone. He not only listened to his political advisers but also to his military advisers.

I think it is way past time for the Democrats and the people to put aside their differences and unite for the betterment of our country. Or are they so narcissistic and self-absorbed in their own gain that they just don't care about our country any more? They remind me of the group of neighborhood boys who are trying to organize a local sand lot baseball game. Everyone wants to be the pitcher and the boy who has the only baseball states that if he can't be the pitcher then he is taking his ball and going home.

It is time for all these senators and congressmen to man up and take responsibility for their jobs and positions.

Steve Keane

Springdale