Columbia Missourian FRIDAY & SATURDAY, March 26-27, 2010 — Page 5A

Write.
Reflect.
Respond.

TODAY’S QUESTION
Should a moratorium be put on city travel expenses?
Third Ward candidate Gary Kespohl released a campaign ad this
week that publicly criticizes incumbent Karl Skala about the travel
expenses he accrued during his first three-year term.
The ad says, “Skala has been on a three-year, taxpayer-funded
spending junket — traveling and eating like a king.” The Johnny Cash
song “I’ve Been Everywhere” plays in the ad, too.
Skala defended his spending, saying the expenses were legitimate. A
portion of his travel was to attend conferences of the National League
of Cities which has met in New Orleans; Orlando, Fla.; San Antonio;
and other locations over the past three years.
Council travel budgets from city records show that Skala spent more
than other council members on travel during each of his first three
years on the council. Each ward representative is allotted $4,500,
while the mayor is given $10,000 for travel expenses.
There are guidelines for these expenses but no specific rules. The
Finance Department determines if expenses that exceed the suggest-
ed amount are justified.
Kespohl said he feels city officials should be more specific when
spending taxpayer money.
Should a moratorium be put on city expenses? What do you think of
Kespohl’s ad targeting Skala’s travel?
— Kourtney Geers
Tell us what you think
E-mail your comments to letters@ColumbiaMissourian.com
Or mail them to: Idea of the Day, P.O. Box 917, Columbia, MO 65205

State could lose money

with back-only licenses
L Republican
et’s face it, we all get a bit
nervous when we see the red
and blue lights of a police car
when we are driving. “What did I
do wrong?” is usually followed by
“this time” for those of us who tend
to have a heavy right foot.
Even when the lights are burning
into your rear view mirror from
keeping the idea alive as an amend-
ment to SB781.
SB781 is a comprehensive bill
ignorance
shines in state Capitol
concerning the regulation of motor
vehicles. You most likely know this
as the bill that would outlaw texting
while driving for everyone, not just
drivers 21 years old and younger.
The amendment, effective Aug.

one mile back, the nerves still raise
a few hairs on the back of your
neck, and as you pull over to the
right lane, you
hope and pray
that the state
trooper does not
join you.
So having a
box on a lamp
post at a busy
intersection
David that takes your
picture if it
Rosman perceives you
have violated the
rules concern-
ing red lights is unnerving. Is that
legal? Can a private company oper-
ate these cameras, evaluate the
pictures and then send those that
appear to have drivers violating a
state law to the controlling police,
sheriff or state patrol office for
further action?
The same reaction comes when
you know that you just passed an
innocuous van parked on the side
of the road that might have a speed
camera inside attached to a speed
gun.
Both of these situations might
lead to the increasing paranoia of
opening your mailbox to find a traf-
fic ticket. Where’s a cop when you
need one?
For any of these cameras to work
properly, an automobile needs to
have a front license plate. At least
for the time being.
Now here’s the rub. Along with
various lawsuits ranging from
which court should handle these
remotely issued tickets to the con-
stitutionality of not being able to
confront your accuser, the Missouri
General Assembly is now looking
at the elimination of front license
plates.
A quick search on the House
and Senate Joint Bill Tracking
site shows that five of 12 proposed
bills concerning license plates
involve removal of a vehicle’s front
plate. Republicans and Democrats
alike think that stamping only one
license plate instead of two will
save the state money. All of these
efforts died either a quick death or
have not seen action in more than
a month. Yet Sen. Matt Bartle is
General Manager Executive Editor
Daniel S. Potter Tom Warhover
potterds@ warhovert@
missouri.edu missouri.edu
28 if passed, says that only one
license plate will be issued for a
private vehicle unless you want to
pay an additional $15 for the front
plate. If you order a vanity or “spe-
cial” plate, two will be issued auto-
matically. Will they also charge the
extra $15 automatically?
First, the problem is the loss of
funds from traffic tickets by the
various municipalities and the
state that use red-light and speed
cameras for enforcement. Without
a front plate, how can you properly
identify the violating vehicle? The
Missouri State Highway Patrol says
you cannot.
The Highway Patrol says the loss
of the front plate “could reduce an
officer’s ability to detect a violation
by 50 percent, would have a nega-
tive impact on personal property
tax collection, mandatory insur-
ance compliance, as well as the col-
lection of license fees.”
How will municipalities, which
have already spent hundreds of
thousands of dollars on camera
equipment, recover lost expendi-
tures and revenue?
Will municipalities have to spend
additional money to readopt the
current camera systems to catch
the front (the driver’s picture) and
back (the license plate) of the vio-
lating vehicle?
Will the bill really save the
state that much money? The fis-
cal impact note to the bill says the
state will lose $1.44 million imme-
diately. That’s the cost of license
plates and tags already in stock.
In fact, the fiscal note says that
there is “no way to estimate the
full impact of this legislation, it
assumes an unknown impact.”
SB781 will cost Missouri money,
not save it.
The second problem? Who in
their right mind would be willing to
spend an extra $15 so the munici-
pality can mail you a ticket based
on a picture?
To paraphrase an old saying,
“Stupidity is nine-tenths of the
law.”
David Rosman is a award winning editor,
writer, professional speaker and college
instructor in communications, ethics,
business and politics. You can read more
of David’s commentaries at InkandVoice.
com and The New York Journal of Books.
Managing Editor Opinion Editor
Jeanne Abbott Jake Sherlock
abbottjm@ sherlockj@
missouri.edu missouri.edu
W
e know that God must our elected rulers is so strong that,
love idiots because he as the Missourian reported Tuesday,
made so many of them. the Senate Insurance Committee
What’s less clear is why George approved a bill prohibiting the pur-
they seem to congregate in our state
Capitol.
Kennedy chase of insurance that covers abor-
tion. We already have more restric-
If you’ve doubted that we’re being tions than all but three other states.
governed largely by the less gifted, Not tough enough, say the senators.
I call your attention to events of the Kinder is out of touch Meanwhile, offered a chance to do
past few days. Most, but not all, of some actual good, Republican lead-
the idiocy was touched off by the with reality but in step with ers have blocked, again, Rep. Mary
passage Sunday night in Washing-
ton of a law that will extend health his fellow Republicans. Still’s attempt to limit the predatory
practices of the payday lenders.
insurance coverage to 30 million of
our fellow citizens, limit the abuses those expansive Medicare Advan-
We have looser rules and more of
those predators than our neighbor-
of insurance companies and trim tage policies and move toward ing states. It seems certain to stay
the federal deficit by billions of dol- closing the “doughnut hole” in our that way. Perhaps coincidentally, the
lars over the next decade. It’s not prescription drug coverage. Columbia Daily Tribune reported
perfect, but our country is a giant You can be pretty sure he has that payday lenders have contrib-
step closer to catching up with the blocked from his memory the real- uted $383,050 to legislators in the
rest of the developed world. ity that the individual mandate he’s past three years.
Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder, who opposing is actually a Republican To close on a positive note, there
fortunately has no real power, and insurance industry idea that may yet be grounds for hoping that
immediately announced that he is used to be supported by the likes our leaders at least sense their limi-
joining the lawsuit filed by 14 state of John McCain and Mitt Romney tations.
attorneys general — all but one before they were lobotomized by the I discovered on a conservative
Republican — challenging the fed- tea partiers. Web site the news, unreported by
eral government’s power to require The lieutenant governor may be the mainstream media as far as
everyone to have health insurance. out of touch with reality, but he’s I can see, that the legislature has
Mr. Kinder, already running for in step with his fellow Republican decreed a period of prayer for wis-
governor, said he’s doing this in fantasists in the legislature. Down dom to begin at noon Monday in
his role as designated advocate for the marble corridor from his office, the Capitol Rotunda. The Illinois
senior citizens. the House has already endorsed a Review reports that Christians are
You have to wonder if he real- state constitutional amendment that being asked to pray and fast for 40
izes that we senior citizens are purports to exempt Missouri from days, until the legislative deadline
generally highly satisfied with our the federal law. The Senate is eager for passing the state budget.
Medicare (which is, contrary to the to join in. Wisdom for this bunch may be
looney tunes shouters and unlike It’s as though they never heard of a stretch, even for the Almighty. I
the new law, real government insur- that dust-up called the Civil War, or suppose it can’t hurt to ask, though.
ance). You have to wonder if he maybe they’ve forgotten who won.
We haven’t heard much about nulli- George Kennedy is a former managing
understands that the new law will editor at the Missourian and professor
strengthen the financial health of fication since then — until now. emeritus at the Missouri School of
Medicare, relieve us of subsidizing The anti-health care mood among Journalism.
Guidelines for election letters
The Missourian will publish letters and guest columns about phone number, but we will publish a general description of
the April 6 elections for City Council, the Columbia School where each writer resides.
Board and city ballot measures at no charge.
Letters generally run around 400-500 words. Longer pieces
Letters must be received by April 1. The last day for let-
will be considered for guest columns.
ters to appear in print is April 4. The last day for letters to
appear at ColumbiaMissourian.com is April 5. Questions? Contact us at 882-5743.
All letters will run online at ColumbiaMissourian.com. Every
MAIL: Letter to Editor, P.O. Box 917, Columbia, MO 65205
effort will be made to publish them in the print Missourian
by April 4. E-MAIL: letters@ColumbiaMissourian.com
Anonymous letters will not be accepted. Please include a FAX: 882-5702
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DOONESBURY by GaRry Trudeau

“I believe that the public journal is a public trust; that all connected
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missouri school of journalism
WRITE: Letter to Editor, P.O. Box 917, Columbia, MO 65205
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