Don't forget hog farm
With all the attention focused on the environmental tragedy in Texas, we in Arkansas are losing sight of the smaller but significant one here, C&H Hog Farms in the Buffalo National River watershed. I want to thank Arkansas Democrat-Gazette columnist Mike Masterson for keeping this issue alive and before the public.
The hog farm is seeking a new permit to increase the territory that it can use to spray millions of gallons of raw hog manure. It appears the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality is ignoring all the evidence to the contrary and is wrongheadedly considering a new permit. It should be revoking the old permit and closing this hog farm and its manure fields down.
The loss of the farm and its few low-wage jobs will be nothing compared to the economic and environmental loss if the pollution to the river is not stopped and reversed.
Gentle readers, be in touch with the Department of Environmental Quality and express your views. Thanks again, Mike.
JAY FULBRIGHT III
Malvern
The scars of wars past
I would really like to watch this series The Vietnam War on PBS; however, I'm afraid I can't.
The American people wrongfully blamed us. We, the service men and women, followed the orders we vowed to obey. I was a young Marine in 1965 when I hit the beach in Chu Lai or thereabout. Eighteen years old and off to fight a war.
Wrong, right or indifferent, the Vietnam veteran came home to slander and ridicule. Imagine my feelings when I hit home turf, happy to be home, happy to be alive, only to be called a baby-killer. Landing in El Toro, Calif., processing through customs, etc. Being debriefed and told what to say and what to do. Advised not to wear our military uniform as we traveled to our homes. What a slap in the face.
I blame America for allowing that to happen. No war/conflict is popular, never has been, never will be. A ridiculous loss of life; over 58,000 Americans died.
Even today as service men and women return home from Iraq or Afghanistan or wherever, people applaud and shout "welcome home." What is the difference today from the Vietnam War era? Was I not important enough to be welcomed home?
I'm not sure what scars pain me the most, the scars of war or the scars of ridicule.
STAN JAROS
Cammack Village
Statues on the square
I love reading Civil War history. I have been to several of the largest battlegrounds that have very informative monuments and displays.
I would encourage the powers that be to move the Bentonville Square statue to the Pea Ridge Battlefield Park. At the base, a list of all the Confederate divisions from the different states who were there.
If we need a new statue on the square, we should have one that commemorates the Trail of Tears that passed through Benton County.
Another suggestion would be a statue of a prominent woman of Arkansas, maybe Maya Angelou. This country could use more statues of women of distinction.
ED PARKS
Rogers
Outstanding writing
I would like to thank Mr. John Brummett for his outstanding op-ed piece in the Sept. 14 Democrat-Gazette. He obviously spent a good deal of time with his research on the facts of climate-change science.
It does not escape my notice that it appears right beneath the perfect cartoon by Bruce Plante from the Tulsa World newspaper. Excellent!
CHARLES SISCO
Fayetteville
Respects boundaries
I was disheartened to see yet another letter from a disgusted reader canceling their subscription to the Democrat-Gazette over a perceived slant in the op-ed section. First of all, for every subscriber fed up with any liberal slant the paper exhibits, there is another equally upset over conservative bias.
Personally speaking, I don't care for several regular columnists, and I get annoyed whenever the editors try to influence their "gentle readers" to accept a particular point of view. But I acknowledge that reading opposing viewpoints helps expand my understanding of a subject, and that sometimes I'm the one who got it wrong. Secondly, we must remember that the primary purpose of a newspaper is to report news, and this paper does a great job respecting the boundary between reporting facts and expressing opinions.
I am a recent transplant. The primary newspaper where I used to live (and wrote for), part of a national news media organization, regularly placed opinion columns on the front page and used editorials to promote local businesses and its own publications. It endorsed candidates for office. It tried to force a leading state politician out of office. It referred to a leading female state politician in a news story as being "dressed like a Malibu Barbie." It would not allow negative articles about its advertisers and, when forced to report a "bad" story on an area business or event, would use op-ed columns to offset any negative impact. Coverage on minority groups/events was limited and overwhelmingly negative.
So rather than seeing the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette as being irredeemably slanted, I see it as being refreshingly well-balanced. And when it comes to op-ed columns and letters, I remember that these are merely one person's opinion, and it is my choice to read them or pass them by. And if I am really annoyed, I turn that section into a chew toy for my dog. Problem solved.
KATHERINE TUCKER
Perryville
Musings on Hillary
Isn't it ironic that Hillary Clinton made a small fortune writing a book telling everyone what an idiot her husband was, and now is making another small fortune telling everyone what an idiot she was?
Meanwhile our president, who gets no respect, is working for free and donated $1 million to the hurricane relief effort. Wonder how much Hillary and Bill donated.
Wake up, America.
HARVEY SIDES
Newport
Editorial on 09/17/2017