Sikeston Standard Democrat: Opinion

Columnists

David Jenkins

Sarcasm De Jour by David Jenkins >>

SPEAKOUT (05/23/13)
I am a New Madrid County Central Eagles fan. I think it was very disrespectful that the New Madrid County Central varsity baseball boys bring home a district championship plaque and they don't get five seconds of recognition considering that six of them boys on that team were seniors. ...

SPEAKOUT (05/21/13)
I too would like to comment about the person who wrote in about the prayers not being answered. You know I often wonder how many times we pray for things, but what we want and what we need, and pray constantly. But how often do we stop and thank God for what we do have. ...

SPEAKOUT (05/20/13)
I used to give to birthright, but about all it gets anymore is these teenage mothers and these women that live with men and have kids by 4 or 5 different men. Hey, it's bad enough when I have to use my tax dollars for this nonsense. You know what, that's why I quit giving to birthright. ...

Speak Out Comments (05/19/13)
Lower than a snake I was just over at the New Morley Cemetery where my family is buried. This is the second time that someone has stolen a wreath off the top of my parents' headstone. I paid a lot of money for those flowers. I want to tell whoever is doing that that I think you are lower than a snake...

More money will not solve poverty problem (05/15/13)
Much of the national dialogue for the past 50 years has focused on the issue of poverty. Wars have come and gone. Social issues have evolved and changed the fabric of society. Technology has advanced at break-neck speed. But poverty remains largely unchanged...

Minor event doesn't deserve the attention (05/08/13)
As the world knows by now, Jason Collins is a much-traveled, mediocre professional basketball player for the Washington Wizards - his sixth team. Until last week, Collins was far from a household name to put it mildly. But Collins - with much fanfare - announced he was a gay athlete which marked a "first" in men's professional sports for an active player...

The economic pain could be avoided (05/01/13)
In his weekly radio address Saturday, President Obama promised more "pain" for the American people unless Congress approved his budget. Now this is the same President who was offered the option by Congress to make budget cuts in the wake of the sequester that would have minimal negative impact. But he declined that offer outright...

In the race to get news wrong (04/24/13)
Like many, I spent the last week glued to my television and smart phone watching the happenings in Boston. But as one news outlet after another made misstep after misstep, I became increasingly embarrassed to say I was a member of the media, no matter how far removed...

Growing uncertainty is unwelcome in US (04/24/13)
We are now to understand we have a "new normal." If you haven't heard the term, you will. Whether it's the uncertain economy, the cultural shift to the left, the growing dependence on government or now the resurgence of terrorism at home, we have entered an age of this new normal...

Tax burden should fall on everyone (04/17/13)
I have to be honest. When I paid my federal and state tax obligation this week, I did so with a tinge of resentment. Granted, I recognize the importance and necessity of a tax obligation. I understand - as best I can - that these funds are what fuel much of our economy...

No compromise? How about a trade-off? (04/10/13)
The possibility of compromise with a "Grand Bargain" on critical national issues seems more remote with each passing day. The reason is both simple and understandable. People compromise on paint color or dinner choices but balk when it comes to issues of principle...

Race time: And the winner is? (04/03/13)
Growing up I remember running race after race on the playground gravel. I raced to impress the girls, settle differences, blow off steam and did I mention to impress girls? I thought my days of seeing boys settle their differences died on the playground gravel but I was wrong...

Fiery message only brings more division (04/03/13)
The President attended Easter services this Sunday. But it was the church minister who captured the spotlight when he seized the high-profile opportunity to share his views on the state of politics during the sermon. The minister - with the Obama family front and center - said "captains of the religious right want to put blacks back to the back of the bus, women back in the kitchen and immigrants back on their side of the border."...

Balancing the budget is difficult process (03/27/13)
I can't help but chuckle when the political tongues start waging about eliminating tax loopholes. In principle, tax advantages that favor special interests are easy to oppose. But loopholes have now replaced "waste, fraud and abuse" as the popular mystery revenue source to solve our economic woes...

Library's expansion needs your support (03/23/13)
The Sikeston Public Library is in the middle of an exciting and much-needed mission to raise funds for expansion. And it's impossible to argue the expansion is not needed. With a goal of nearly $500,000, Library supporters are asking for your help in improving and expanding the community room which serves as the hub of many Library activities...

I'm not yet full of knowledge (03/20/13)
It is funny that no matter how old and gray I get, I can still learn new things. For example, what the word "full" means. For my entire life I thought "full" meant something that contains as much as possible. I have been told I'm wrong. It happened one night while out to dinner with my girlfriend. As the dinner wound down she still had some food on her plate and offered some to me...

What is the best way to help the poor? (03/20/13)
Let's talk about the poor. Most discussions - political or moral - touch on the issue of assistance to the least among us. Civilized societies have always appropriately put the needs of the poor as a high priority, though we quite often differ on just how to provide the needed assistance...

Is the economy really on road to recovery? (03/13/13)
Thank goodness we have arrived at the long-awaited Obama economic recovery. The seas have calmed, as Obama promised, and prosperity has returned to America. The record-breaking highs in the stock market - fueled by a cheap money policy which is unsustainable and a trillion dollar stimulus - must be a sign of recovery...

Pursuit of trivia is just a Google away (03/06/13)
Back in the day, I fancied myself a fairly decent repository of trivial facts. When in college, we would while away study time by exchanging competing questions on trivial matters. Sports, music, current events, etc., all provided sources of unimportant minutia that would be debated over adult beverages...

Paws up, you've been caught! (02/27/13)
Having pets is sometimes like having children. For me and my pets, it is like having children who are too smart for their own good. Take my dog, Kramer. The little rat terrier could figure out a Rubix's Cube if it had food in it, probably in world record time...

Mandated 'training' is just brain washing (02/27/13)
When Rush Limbaugh said last week he was "ashamed" of this country for the first time, I cringed thinking of the all-too-predictable liberal backlash. But then a hidden nugget of pure lunacy crossed by desk. And I understand Limbaugh's frustration, disappointment and anger...

Obama's promises require more funds (02/20/13)
Did you notice the snafu in the President's State of the Union address last week? Even with our highly advanced technology, the President's teleprompter - of all things - skipped over one small paragraph in the President's address. After the President again repeated his desire for a new series of multi-billion dollar federal programs, he said the proposals would not add "a single dime" to the exploding federal deficit...

These wrestlers don't ring true (02/13/13)
When I was a young, I loved to watch professional wrestling. I even used a wrestling move to get out of being picked on by a bully. I hit her with a trash can. So when I was offered free tickets to watch professional wrestling live, I jumped at it. What could be more entertaining than a bunch of muscled-up guys in tights rolling around in a ring? Maybe I didn't think that through...

A new name won't change a bad idea (02/13/13)
The political left has this uncanny knack of renaming - rebranding is the current nom de jour - those issues they hold so dear. The latest salvo came this week during the committee debate on immigration reform. With great hubris, the Democrats warned Republicans against using the term "illegal aliens" during the hearing...

A look at those Superbowl picks (02/06/13)
Every year I look forward to the Super Bowl. It's one of the best days of the year filled with football, great friends, good food and bad commercials. This year was like every year leading up to Super Bowl Sunday. For two weeks men who look like WWE wrestlers in suits dissect every little aspect of the game while men soak in as much as possible so we can regurgitate it to our friends like it is our own knowledge...

Home