Where did that information come from?
I expect I am going to sound a bit like a broken record here, but bear with me — I am only going to prattle on for a paragraph or so. If you missed the meeting on drugs in Florence Friday night you missed out on a lot of information you should know about. A pretty good crowd showed up to hear about the meth problem in Marion County. There were people from Cedar Point, Florence, and Peabody. The presentation left the audience better informed than they were when they walked in the door of the Florentine center. Good questions were asked and straight answers were given.
Again, this problem is with us all for the long haul. Meth labs are here to stay and they are deadly. They present problems for many innocent people and you should know the facts so you can protect yourself and your families. There was talk of more presentations in more communities. Please, please make it a point to hear one! If you are looking for an informative program for your club, class, or organization, contact your local police department or the county sheriff's office and ask them to address your group. You have no idea how important it is that you know what is going on down the street, on your rural property, or in the house behind you. I did put together a story about what we heard Friday night. It is printed elsewhere in this paper. I hope you read it and I hope it scares the whoopty out of you — it should.
I understand that the response to my editorial about giving in your own hometown was lukewarm at best. Hmmm. Bummer. Well, perhaps it was a bad year for giving (or perhaps my editorial was just lame.) The economy has not been the best and many of us are experiencing uncertainty in our lives. Maybe we just circled our wagons and decided to wait it out and see what happens. To those of you who did give, many thanks. Linda Britton, who offered a free Christmas dinner to anyone who might be alone on Christmas Day, told me she served about 80 people at her restaurant in Florence. Her numbers are climbing — good for her! She filled a need in her community. It is never too late to make a contribution. Your donations to your favorite charity are needed and welcomed all year long.
There is one thing I would like to know about young people. Why on earth do you kids walk four, five, or six abreast down the street? What is the point and what are you trying to prove? I know we have some really poor sidewalks around town, but are they so bad that you would risk being nailed by some over-loaded cattle truck that can't stop or maneuver around you? Since I live on Walnut Street, I see you do this quite often and I can't figure it out. How old do you have to be before you realize that, tough as you may think you are, you aren't any match for a mid-sized car much less a semi? We provide a couple of different classes with this newspaper every week — help me out here, kids. How about some answers? I would really like to understand this phenomenon. Right now you just scare me!
Is there any month worse than January? Cold, gloomy, dark, depressing — except for basketball. Thank you, James Naismith.
— SUSAN MARSHALL
