Letter to the Editor

To the editor:
The two letters to the editor in the Oct. 5 Call about a city-county merger gave me the immediate response of: Give me a puff of what you’re smokin’.
To say that residents in the county should feel guilty of what they have worked to earn and provide themselves is unbelievable.
They wrote:
• “… The ‘haves’ in cozy enclaves like Sunset Hills have directly or indirectly failed to treat those ‘others’ in our city as we would like to be treated,” Dr. Keith and Kathy Odegard wrote.
• “I understand my decision (for a city-county merger) would not benefit me and my superior quality of life would go down. And I really don’t care. I really don’t,” Michael Nolan wrote.
Neither letter made mention of relocating to the city to aid in the plight.
I am not and never will be a degree-toting certified public accountant, but it is still evidently easy to determine that a merger of the budget-juggling county to the failing economy of the city would benefit neither one for very long. It would be comparable to putting a new battery with a dead battery in a flashlight.
Does it concern me that the city is in the condition it is? Yes, it does since I was born and grew up in South St. Louis. It tears my heart out to drive through those same areas now and see what they have become. The homes and businesses are rundown and in disrepair with a lack of pride in their appearance.
Do I feel obligated to provide for the city or its residents what they won’t work to provide for themselves? Not a chance. If the city and its residents truly wish for a chance of a merger happening, work to bring the city back to the quality it had been to create a viable city to merge with.
The city’s money may be best spent stimulating residents to work and preserving the quality of their homes and businesses rather than removing statues.
I would however, like to commend the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department for its outstanding service and commitment despite them being girdled by local political control.
Kenneth W. House
south county