Bill provides cover
for all sorts of abuse
There have been so many bad bills coming out of the Arkansas Legislature this term that it's easy to overlook one. House Bill 1665 passed recently with little coverage from the media, who were busy covering bills attempting to prevent Freedom of Information Act access and other questionable legislation. Gov. Hutchinson signed HB 1665 into law. For those unfamiliar with the law, it will allow any business to sue any person who takes unauthorized video on commercial property.
How does that affect the average Arkansan? The bill could apply to any business including nursing homes and day care facilities where abuse can happen with little knowledge by the outside world. What if it were your mother or your grandchild in an abusive situation that penalizes the person who documents the abuse. Without visual documentation, it is difficult to prove abuse. This law says look the other way or risk being sued.
Some might think that because the Humane Society opposed this bill that would penalize whistle-blowers who report inhumane conditions in puppy mills and factory farming that this bill is about animal abuse and has no impact on their lives. This isn't just about animal abuse; it is about abuse that can happen to the elderly in nursing homes and young children in day cares.
In my opinion, this bill poses a greater direct threat to Arkansans that any bill passed this session. The bill was passed by an overwhelming majority of both the Arkansas House and Senate. I encourage you to contact your representatives and demand an explanation of why they voted for this bill.
Adrienne Forsythe
Centerton
Beaver Lake critical
to region's successes
The lead editorial entitled "Call it Progress," in Sunday's edition of the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette speaks of the growth in Northwest Arkansas "driven by the likes of Walmart, Tyson Foods, J.B. Hunt, and all sorts of major and smaller businesses--continues."
I find nothing in the article about 50-year-old Beaver Lake, which is the real driving force behind all of this growth. If it were not for the life-blood water it furnishes, said growth and progress would be nowhere near what it is today.
With four intake structures now on the lake, furnishing water from Harrison to Oklahoma, not only have new and existing businesses flourished, but the home building supporting these businesses has been phenomenal.
I agree with the editorial quote of Mike Harvey, chief operating officer and interim president/CEO of the Northwest Arkansas Council, when he said, "It takes forethought and management, because you don't want to spoil what makes this an attractive place to live." I prefer to call it "Growth is not always progress," and business leaders in Northwest Arkansas need to be eternally vigilant to see that it is managed properly.
Many who live in Northwest Arkansas, and particularly those arriving in the last 15 to 20 years, take Beaver Lake for granted, and don't realize how it all began, or what it means to the economy today! But Beaver Lake has been, and will remain, the gift that keeps on giving.
John Fuller Cross
Eureka Springs
Commentary on 03/31/2017