I often take my daughter to school on a road that goes through Baxter's feedlot. Only after a rain, do I notice much of a smell; even then after I get a mile away, I don't notice the smell anymore.

The proposed dairy at Ravenna would be enclosed and more than a mile away from town. I have known the Woitaszewski brothers all my life, they started with very little, but with determination, foresight and a lot of hard work, they have overcome obstacles and been very successful. If they didn't feel this was a worthwhile venture for them and all concerned, they wouldn't pursue it. They have bought and developed land, leaving it better than before; this project would be no different.

I would be the last one to tell Tom Baxter to move his feedlot because of the smell. His being here has been a benefit to the community; the proposed dairy would be a benefit to Ravenna.

People all want and need services, electricity, water treatment, beef, milk, etc.; all these things come from somewhere, but the attitude is, not in my back yard. If half as many people voiced concerns about the Platte River Recovery as the dairy, we might not be facing converting hundreds of thousands of irrigated acres to dry land, greatly reducing our tax base, hurting schools and local economies.

When the Natural Resource Districts run out of people willing to sell their water rights (at the taxpayer's expense), all farmers affected in the Platte River Recovery area will be forced to convert a percentage of their acres to dry land and that's just the first of three phases of the program. This is a real problem we are facing now.

If you are wondering why your taxes are going up, consider the NRD needs more money to buy out those acres and the acres converted to dry land are not taxed the same as irrigated, so everyone pays more. Thank you, Governor Heineman.

Mike Dobesh

Wood River

Death penalty does not stop violence

I sat and listen to the debate on LB 1063 on abolishing the death penalty last week. I could not believe the hate and vengeance I heard coming from the Senators that were in favor of the death penalty. If my family and I can forgive my sisters killer why can't the Senators get rid of their hate for someone that made a mistake and killed someone.

I find it hard to believe that any person would want the violence that happens when a person is executed. They like to tell us that the death penalty is a deterrent to murder, but the truth is that it has a chain reaction that just continues the cycle of violence. The State of Nebraska needs to set a good example to its citizens if they want them to stop the violence.

I found out after the debate was over that the Governor and Attorney General had been twisting Senators arm to get them to change their minds and vote against abolishing the death penalty. What have these men have to gain by keeping the death penalty as law. Do they think that one day that using violence will stop violence.

I watched during the debate as many groups of children come in and sat down and heard the Senators about hate and vengeance that they have for killers. Are these children going to grow up to think that the use of violence is the best way to solve violence. I sure hope not.

We as citizens of Nebraska should be asking our Governor andAttorney General to resign their offices, because they are a big black mark on our state. We should be telling the American people that we want the cycle of violence to stop

Kurt Mesner

Central City

Both parties must respect the laws

I guess I can understand why Gov. Heineman believes he must make a special trip to Albion and Ord this month in support of the Republican candidate for the state Senate, Paul Eurek of Loup City. We are kind of a 'hotbed' of Democrats in the eight counties that comprise Legislative District 41. We voted overwhelmingly for Sen. Nelson in 2006 and half of us even 'elected' Scott Kleeb. Gov. Heineman must be afraid that Mr. Eurek will not make it through the primary against the two Democrats who are running: Gary Rasmussen and Kate Sullivan. Nebraska's Constitution established a 'nonpartisan unicameral legislative body.' Article III-7 says that "each member shall be nominated and elected in a nonpartisan manner." Mr. Eurek announced his Republican affiliation at a debate in St. Paul on March 13, to the surprise of the non-partisan candidates.

I am also surprised that Mr. Eurek has been declared a "Friend of Agriculture" by the Farm Bureau. He's a much better Friend of Business or Friend of Corporate Farming.

I'm not happy about Scott Kleeb's speeding tickets from the last election, but I know how many people wanted to talk to him and kept him too long, while others were waiting for him at his next appointment. He traveled 60,000 miles in our large district while trying to get to every town and county. Many supporters are now offering to drive him wherever and whenever he needs them.

Marion Bahensky, Howard Co. Democratic Chair

St. Paul