Would you want to move here?

Is it any wonder Brainerd has the highest unemployment in the state? We have a mayor who has described the city’s water as poison, city council members who have been running the show for over 30 years and whose sole focus is seeing how cheaply a city can be run, residents who regularly trash the school district without knowing what they are talking about, and a downtown that is mostly bars, with the council allowing more, despite ordinances otherwise. If you were a business owner or professional, would you want to move here and create jobs?

Discouraged catalog purchaser

I try to purchase, as much as I can, U.S. made products, however when purchasing from catalogs one never knows where items are made! What would it take to put a short message, along with all other info, saying where each product is made?

Winner, winner!

The Pequot Lakes bus settlement has sure made me want to join a union. Now I get to pay union dues, get less paid time off and less pay. Hey, there’s a winner.

School board needs to be in touch

The literacy coaching model should be a hot topic in the Brainerd School District. I can only imagine the amount of money that’s been wasted. It’s never pushed the kids to read well. They are coming into third grade lower than ever. The school board needs to be in touch and talk to the teachers. They are only hearing what administrators want them to hear and it’s not accurate.

Church billboard is terrible

There’s a church that advertises on a billboard by the Franklin Arts Center. Their new billboard is a picture of a lady with extremely seductive eyes looks totally demonic and it’s totally a misrepresentation of God’s laws. I feel like if they’re trying to attract people that are addicted to sex or Internet porn, this should really draw them in. It’s a terrible billboard. Just horrible. I was in shock when I drove by it yesterday.

Hole will always be there

Monday’s commentary page included a really great column by Kathleen Parker concerning the New York Times having trouble telling the difference between allegations and facts and in the process, they smeared a football player. Unfortunately the Times isn’t the only paper that does this sort of thing. It’s sort of like pounding a nail into a flawless piece of wood. The nail can be pulled out and a retraction or even an apology can be offered by the paper, but that hole is always going to be there.

Houge needs bold print, too

Wednesday’s paper, front page, bold print: Per diems, etc. It’s a shame Commissioner Doug Houge didn’t make bold print. He certainly deserves it. He thinks his salary covers expenses. Wow. Way to go, Commissioner Houge. Thank you.

Fox in charge of hen house

Enjoyed the “Congress looking to police itself on insider trading.” Talk about putting the fox in charge of the hen house. Maybe while they are at it they can get together and decide to give up their large pensions and start living on what the rest of us have to, including medical insurance.

Regular Joes were a big help

I am 83 years old. I fell at a gas station the other day. I yelled for help and within a few seconds, three guys were there, picked me up and put me back on my feet. They had to work at it because I weigh approximately 285. One of the three then pumped the gas for me and another escorted my wife to and from the station to pay the bill. The three were regular Joes. I am certain you will never see their names on a police blotter for breaking into fish houses. Thanks again gentlemen.

Bigger issues

Amongst the bickering! How about some customer service at the airport when a airplane arrives? I arrived at the airport Sunday evening only to be told by the pilot to wait on the airplane until Brainerd airport staff came out to greet the airplane and set up for our arrival. We ended up waiting on the airplane for almost 15 minutes before any Brainerd staff came out to help the airlines unload us and our luggage.

Vox Pop, voice of the people, publishes Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Submissions are limited to 100 words. To phone in a comment, call (218) 855-5888 and leave a message. To e-mail a comment, write to voxpop@brainerddispatch.com. Comments, which must meet the newspaper’s standards of fairness and good taste, may be edited for clarity, length and libel.