No News
I get my local TV news from Cape Girardeau and I was surprised that they paid so little attention to the Kinder Shut-Ins visit. Just about 30 seconds of voice over B roll (stock footage). Surprised because Kinder is from Cape and before getting into politics he was a mover and shaker in Cape, and Cape is a large "small" town. So I think that we can declare the Shut-In story dead. Some in Jeff City may try to keep it alive, but even the St Louis Post, that was a champion of the Black River before December 14, doesn't seem to have the energy to keep this story going.
The Lesterville Relay for Life group held a fund raising dinner and bluegrass evening this past Saturday at the Lesterville school. It was very well attended and I didn't hear anyone talking about the Shut-Ins. A lot has been made about how with the Shut-Ins closed that Lesterville will be losing money. I'm not so sure. If you were camping at the Shut-Ins you probably did not drive to Lesterville. If you were staying in Lesterville and went to the Shut-Ins for the day I doubt that you would cancel your trip to Lesterville because the Shut-Ins are closed, there are a lot of other things to do and see beside the Shut-Ins.
What ever is going on behind closed doors in Jeff City really has little to do with us here in Lesterville. We originally believed DNR when they acted concerned about the clay in the river, but they were not representing us and the truth is that the residents and businesses in Lesterville were never represented at the table where the deals are getting done. I do believe that when the final negotiations are done that AG Nixon probably has a greater interest in the local problem than anyone else. But the local politicians see him as a threat to the status quo. They just want to see the new reservoir built (and I'm not opposed to that idea) and keep the property tax money flowing.
So years from now, the river will still be flowing through the shut-ins and folks will have a good time visiting this wonderful corner of the Ozarks. You will have to look hard to find the bronze plaque with the names Childers, Blunt, ect. This seems like a big deal now but in the long run it is just a minor blip on the seismograph of life. The plants are recovering from the freeze and the hummingbirds are drinking a quart a day. Enjoy
posted by staff @ 7:27 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
You're right. It really is an unimportant story. I don't have any idea why I kept writing on it, myself. And such writing does no good, so will also stop.
Good luck to you in the future. Enjoy the hummingbirds.
Shelley
Really? Kinder's overflight made NPR in St. Louis (I rarely listen to the snooze media). The dueling PRs made the St. Louis P-D website. (I'm not likely to waste 50 cents on the actual paper.)
The weather is getting warmer, and people are asking questions. I just wish I could vote for "Someone Else" for governor in 2008.
The overflight also made the radio news on KTJJ-FM Farmington. This was the station which covered the dam break better than any of the STL media.
The Shut-Ins Park being closed does affect the Lesterville economy. The campground at JSI is very popular and almost always filled in the summer months even during the week. People turned away will then travel to Lesterville to find a place to camp.
And a small child is put in the hospital and injured for life by truly reckless conduct of Ameren managers and no one gets arrested and no one goes to jail.
So, if you are a big time manager for a big time corporation, go ahead and run your plant however you want, because you won't pay the consequences when you hurt someone in Missouri.
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