Viewpoints

The next Allamakee County Committee meeting will be Thursday, August 27 at 9 a.m. at the Allamakee County FSA Office conference room.

Reminders
June 15 - August 3: Nominations can be received for the COC elections.
June 15 - September 30: ARC/PLC sign-up for 2014/2015 program.
July 1 - September 30: 2016 MPP (Dairy) Program sign-up period.

An open letter to the Allamakee County Board of Supervisors:
Last week I read in The Standard about the Board of Supervisors’ decision to make the intersection of Old Stage Road and Old Highway 9 a four-way stop. Initially it seemed a peculiar decision and on further reflection I am puzzled as to why the decision was made.

To the Editor:
Like many New Yorkers, my worst fear looks like this: Find yourself driving on a rural road at night, far from any town, with little or no cell service and no houses around, when all of a sudden you collide with a deer.
This is exactly what happened to me on Sunday night while driving from Marquette to Waukon on Highway 76, but before I could panic, a car pulled over and a man and a woman got out to help me.
They calmed me down, moved the deer to the side of the road and taped up my bumper so that I could keep driving until I got to a place where I could spend the night. They even gave me their extra roll of duct tape just in case the bumper came loose again.
Unfortunately, in my panic, I didn’t get their names. I hope this message reaches them so that they know how grateful I am for their help.

Antonia Farzan
New York, NY

To the Editor:
Last week over 5,000 volunteer hours were put in to make Camptastic at Camp Tahigwa happen. The mantra “Camp must go on” was in each of these volunteers’ hearts.
In 2010, the Girl Scouts of Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois (GSEIWI) Council announced that traditional residential camp would no longer be held at Camp Tahigwa in Dorchester. A fine group of women and men decided that was not an option, thus Camptastic at Camp Tahigwa was born, offering girls of all ages a true overnight camp experience, complete with the famous climbing tower, jell-o fights, and sleeping under the stars.

by Dick Schilling, Editor Emeritus

by Rev. Steve Oden

by Dick Schilling, Editor Emeritus

by Rev. Tom Buresh

To the Editor:
Just before the July 4th holiday, Governor Branstad left Iowa schools in a lurch just weeks before the start of the new school year with a $56 million veto of urgently needed funding. The veto came as a surprise to everyone because his office was part of the final negotiations to close down the 2015 legislative session. At that time, he gave no indication that he was opposed to the school funding plan or that he would veto the agreement. According to school leaders, the veto means larger class sizes, fewer teachers, and higher property taxes.  One school district said yesterday they will operate in a deficit next year because of the veto.
With 6% growth projected in the budget next year and an additional $1 billion in surplus and reserves, we can afford to make a solid investment in our schools next year. The state closed the 2015 fiscal year on June 30th collecting $33 million more.

To the Editor:
It was a mystery to me why Governor Branstad vetoed the $55.7 million for one-time education funds that was a bi-partisan agreement that was reached in an overtime legislation session. The state of Iowa presently has over a billion in surplus and this $55.7 million was returned to the general fund - a mere  .005% addition to the surplus. Do you remember the battle over the budget regarding funding for education in this last session? The Democrats came down to a 1.625% increase (down from 4%) and the Republicans hunkered down and said, “No more money for education beyond the 1.25% increase.” Negotiations stalled and time and overtime ran out. So the Republicans talked it over among themselves and decided to offer to make up the difference with a deal to accept a $55.7 million one-time spending deal if it did not go for teacher’s wages - just supplies, books, gas for the buses, etc.