Letters: Readers discuss Real ID, Colon Cancer Awareness Month, Loose Park vandalism and saying ‘Thank you’
ID troubles
Any Missouri resident needing a passport to fly should send the bill to state Sen. Will Kraus. (Feb. 23, 3A, “Real ID bill runs into roadblock in Missouri”)
Allen Maty
Smithville
Please thank your Missouri legislature for making a new terminal at Kansas City International Airport unnecessary. In 2018, passengers with Missouri driver’s licenses as their only identification will not be allowed to fly.
With the dramatic decline of Missouri passengers, the preponderance of tickets will be bought by our neighbors in Kansas, and a new more convenient Johnson County airport will make KCI superfluous.
John Perkins
Parkville
Cancer awareness
March is Colon Cancer Awareness Month, a perfect time to bring attention to actions people can take against this disease.
In 2017, there will be an estimated 2,860 new cases of colon and rectal cancers diagnosed in Missouri and 1,170 new cases diagnosed in Kansas. Colorectal cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death in men and third-leading in women in the U.S.
The statistics are scary. However, colorectal cancer is one of only a few cancers that can be prevented.
I received my first colonoscopy at the age of 40 because of my family history. During the screening, the doctor found and removed colon polyps.
Small polyps are usually non-cancerous. However, over time, cells in a polyp can change and become cancerous. This means that certain types of polyps can become cancerous if they’re not detected and removed early, which is why regular colon screening is so important.
It might not be fun to talk about, but screening saves lives.
I hope members of our community will become more aware of the need to get screened for colon cancer this March. Get screened, encourage someone you love who is 50 or older to get screened and save lives.
Christy Dore
Olathe
No ‘thank you’?
Although there are many weightier issues, I am tackling the habit of many people to give an alternative answer to “Thank you.”
The proper response is, “You’re welcome,” not, “No problem.” Of course it isn’t a problem. I am the customer-guest-interviewee and you are the cashier-server-interviewer. The only “problem” is pleasing the customer, and when I say “Thank you,” it means I am. You’re welcome.
Not, “No worries.” The moment you say that, I begin worrying about your patchy education. I have many more important worries, but I resist saying something Nicholson-esque, like “You can’t handle my worries.”
Not “No, thank you.” This is just silly. People being interviewed could just say, “You’re welcome,” saving valuable time for another important question, which would be more interesting.
Finally, RIP the relative pronouns who and whom. I understand why whom is seldom used — most people don’t how properly to do so. Who has been replaced by “that.” Used frequently by people who (not that) should know better, it’s becoming the norm.
Let’s dignify humans with “who,” as in “the driver who” or “the child who,” not “that,” which is for things and places, not people.
Thank you.
Carolyn J. Cottrell
Kansas City
Bad behavior
Kudos to Stephanie Henry, who wrote a Feb. 26 letter about the incessant helicopters looping the Plaza on weekends.
They have driven me inside more than once.
Now, to the parents of the teenagers who are drunkenly vandalizing Loose Park on weekends, leaving massive numbers of beer cans and ripping off the limbs of trees and setting fires — yes fires.
The Kansas City Parks and Recreation Department is aware and wants more police presence, but the damage usually occurs at dusk and through the night.
If you live within walking distance of the park, you might try smelling the breath of your teens when they get home. If it’s beery, they could well be participants.
Loose Park is truly a gem in Kansas City’s park system, and the damage has escalated to alarming levels over the last two years.
If you are a user of the park and see groups of teens with beer, do what I plan to do from now on: Call the police.
Judith Boasberg
Kansas City
Word choice
I am intrigued by the fact that President Donald Trump can use the term “radical Islamic terrorism” but seems to be unable to use the words “dictator” and “Putin” in the same sentence.
P. Christopher Jaros
Kansas City
This story was originally published March 2, 2017 at 8:30 PM with the headline "Letters: Readers discuss Real ID, Colon Cancer Awareness Month, Loose Park vandalism and saying ‘Thank you’."