Published: October 18, 2009 09:19 pm      

Letters - Monday, Oct. 19, 2009

President must get priorities in order

President Obama, where are your priorities? You have trashed us to other nations. You spent nearly a million dollars flying to Denmark to try to obtain Chicago for the 2016 Olympics, and what a defeat you were handed! The U.S. was eliminated in the first round!

Your job is commander-in-chief of all the armed forces, yet you have talked with Gen. McChrystal, who is a specialist in terrorism, only once in the last three to five months. Then only meeting him on an airplane for 25 minutes. At this writing, you still haven’t taken action.

The stimulus hasn’t worked and the nation stands at 9.8 percent unemployment.

I feel sorry for our coming generations who will have to shoulder this burden.

Then there’s the health-care program. What a laugh! And you still want to put us in more debt.

I retired from the U.S. Army Reserve with more than 43 years active and reserve duty, taking an oath that “I will defend the Constitution of the United States of America and that I will obey the orders of the president of the United States.” I did this at 17 years of age. I have not always agreed with some of our presidents over the years on certain political issues or decisions they made. However, as long as I was a member of the military I have tried to treat the president with utmost respect.

Congressman Joe Wilson, R-S.C., made his feelings clear when he called President Obama a liar during the president’s health-care address. Three cheers for retired Col. Joe Wilson who did this to the president’s face, in the halls of Congress, in front of congressmen, senators, the president’s Cabinet, his wife and his guests.

So, Mr. President, get your priorities in the proper order and remember the oath you made on Inauguration Day.

Col. Bill J. Smyser

USAR, retired

Kokomo

We were better off under Bush

For several years my wife and I saved what we could in order to survive and not place a burden on our children in our senior years. Today this retirement savings is going faster than an ice cube dropped in a pan of boiling water.

Since George Bush left office, much of my medical prescriptions have increased in price 10 times what they were.

Recently Barack H. Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. It once was a deservingly prestigious award. Today it’s a joke. In fact, the person presenting it this year must have been in a coma the past decade. I believe Dave Letterman can make peace with his wife. Old Dave would be more deserving of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Never did I ever expect to say this, but I was much better off under Bush than I am today.

Bill Chalk

Kokomo

Church programs in need of help

I am a member of a small but giving church here in Kokomo. We have some outreach programs that help the community. One of these programs is called Kids on the Right Track. This program involves picking up children who otherwise would not be involved in a church and bringing them to church. These children get to learn about Jesus and have fun at the same time. We have a basketball court that these kids can play on and usually there is food available for them as well.

Another outreach program is a food bank that we offer to families in need. Approximately 75 to 80 families in the community are helped out every couple of months with food. We would like to do this more often but the funds are in short supply to acquire the food needed to do this.

However, both of these programs are in serious jeopardy! A few months ago, the van that was used to bring the children and transport the food from where we purchase it was deemed unsafe to drive any longer. While it can be fixed, it is quite an old van and will need more maintenance to keep running than the van itself is worth.

If we are to keep these programs going, we need a new(er) van. However, we can’t do it alone. We could use some help. If you can help us in anyway, please contact us at Pastor Gary Foster, Apostolic Lighthouse, 616 Touby Pike, Kokomo, IN 46901.

The church phone number is 765-452-8639 or call me at home at 765-450-4370.

Sharon Durbin

Kokomo