Speak Out 1/14/15

Some advice

for Kaplan

I have some advice for Kaplan -- if I were you I wouldn't be buying a house here in Poplar Bluff or even signing a long-term lease!! -- and maybe keep your bags packed!!

City stole $6 M

from utilities

The city stole about $6 million from the municipal utilities department when they sold the city cable and did not repay the loan. It is not "borrowed" if it is not repaid -- it is stealing! It now appears from looking at Kaplan's budget that he plans to steal the remainder of the municipal utility reserve. Folks when he throws that money away we will have to repay it ourselves with higher utility rates.

Obviously Kaplan and some members of the council don't understand the "borrowing" concept because they have not paid back money they have "borrowed" in their personal lives --and we have to pay that back too!

NOTE TO CITY COUNCIL: Before hiring our next city manager (Kaplan's replacement) be sure to run a credit and background check -- live and learn!

How about

something new

Can't you put something else in Speak Out other than gripe about Kaplan? My second complaint is on Wednesday, under "Everybody's Business," every week there's something in there about the top real estate producer. Same old thing every Wednesday. Can't you get some new ideas, please? Thank you.

Letting the

lights go out

Yes, I'd like to say something. I'm a taxpayer and I imagine everybody in this town is a taxpayer, but my question is--I was out at night a few nights ago and I counted about 20 lights or more out. Now isn't that the city's responsibility to get them fixed when they are reported? And I have reported them and the last time I reported they wanted to know what the pole number was. I didn't know they had numbers. And besides that I thought the people owned the town. We pay city taxes so the mayor can help run the city better, but he is not doing better because he's letting our lights go out. He's letting a lot of things slide by that just are more important to be taken care of. I say he needs to be run out of town like the older days. Just run him out of town! Because he's not doing nothing for us and for his information it is not HIS town! It's the people's town. The people have the right to say what they want to say. He's here to just try enforce things. And if he can't do his job, bye-bye, just like the old timers. I'm not a city employee, but I am paying my city taxes and I'd like to see the town to better. I've lived here for 30 years and I've lived here before, too. So, I think our town is a good town that should be saved.

Mayor is

cleaning up PB

You probably won't print this, but I just want to say, everybody shouldn't blame the mayor she's doing her job cleaning up Poplar Bluff. Just a couple of weeks ago she was seen picking up the trash out of Rick's Convenience Store on Highway 53. You gotta start somewhere!

How do we

avoid Kaplan?

There is an old saying which I think is very true. It says: He that knows not, and knows that he knows not, is a student. Teach him. He that knows and knows that he knows, is a leader. Follow him. He that knows not and knows not that he knows not is a fool. Avoid him. How do we avoid the city manager?