I originally believed the article "Bill makes GI new site for State Fair" in the April 1st Independent was an April Fools' joke.

In the article, Mrs. Hornady was asked where G.I.'s portion of the $8.5 million would come from and she stated, "I don't know the absolute answer; I think we'll find a way to make it work."

Mr. Don Dunn's response to the same question was he could not say "with any precision..but it's a general consensus we will come up with the $8.5 million contribution "

OK, now it's time to yell out "April Fools!"

Hornady's answer of "I don't know the absolute answer" and Dunn's answer of "I can not say with any precision" are not acceptable answers to the funding question.

I, and I suspect others, want to know how G.I.'s $8.5 million donation will be funded. If the relocation group plans to commit G.I. to $8.5 million up front, on top of future annual installments of $200,000 to underwrite the fair, wouldn't a very important early step be how to fund it? Maybe Hornady and Dunn plan to personally write a check to cover it since they said "we" will make it work. I have a gut feeling I know who "we" is, but they don't want to inform the taxpayers just yet.

I am all for moving the State Fair to G.I., as it will provide dollars to the local economy. However, who pays the cost and who gains the benefits? Will the State Fair be self-supporting or will the city (i.e. taxpayers) have to perpetually subsidize it? Taxpaying citizens should not be burdened with more taxes to subsidize the event if only business reaps the gains.

I feel the comments Hornady and Dunn provided project an arrogant attitude and smell of a conspiracy to ram this project down the taxpayer's throats. As public servants, please dare to be forthright, honest, and give us citizens some transparency as to who will fund this project.

Ray Ericson

656 Joehnck Road

Grumpy writer upset at almost everyone, everything

Let's hope the Economic Development Corp. can't meet its deadline to acquire CAAP. It's too bad the County Board didn't sell the land back to the area farmers who wanted it and by rights should have had first chance instead of the greedy EDC, which was voted in by stupid people back in 2003 that thought another tax from you and me was just what Grand Island needed to blow on big companies that make nothing but money. I remember the do-gooder letters from "important" people that thought new businesses would hire people at $20 an hour so all the poor slugs working at $5 would get these jobs with big pay. Is the bottom line money or greed or what the city wants the city gets?

I wonder if the high-rollers ever worry about who will feed America when all the farmers are squeezed out to EDC and Grand Island grows to Alda and Doniphan. Isn't that what the goal is? Boy, look how big Grand Island has grown. Aren't we a nice big city? I and many others well remember when Grand Island was a great town before taken over by immigrants and crime. I guess Mexico, Argentina, China, etc. food will do for future generations.

Does anyone care about here and now? The way this town is going, it's foolish to worry about 20 years from now. Many people will be gone in 20 years, including me and probably Marlan Ferguson, so let's solve some of today's problems with taxpayers' money. I'm sick of hearing about infrastructure; my dictionary reads: "foundation, the permanent installations required for military purposes."

Big-salaried people with big ideas that only help their cause gets a little old. They probably don't have a clue how close the N.A.U. or Amero is. Or they didn't read Mr. Valdez's letter what Prof. Gutierrez has in mind for the United States of America. That guy might not be insane but he has a screw loose if he thinks Mexicans will win the next Civil War. This isn't his homeland, but if people keep pushing multiculturalism it won't be America either.

L.M. Miller

1104 W. Charles St.