Your Opinion: Chamber's public relations ploy

Ed Williams

Jefferson City

Dear Editor:

I see that the Jefferson City Chamber of Commerce is again engaged in a public relations ploy called a prayer breakfast. With people like that praying, everyone should pray for the rest of us since their major goal is taking advantage of citizens for their own financial benefit. Christian principals are totally lacking in their attempts to impose taxes on citizens for the advantage of their members. The chamber is a special interest group whose only concern is their incomes. Recent examples are the use tax, Proposition P, which would have allowed unethical votes by chamber members to give city tax money to the chamber, sales taxes to go to the Farmer Brothers who own the Capital Mall, and eliminating property taxes for businesses such as Continental Products, the Farmers' development at the old St. Mary's hospital and the new motels at the old Ramada Inn property. What a disgrace!

It is appropriate their "prayer breakfast" is held at the Missouri Farm Bureau. The Farm Bureau lobbied to get a dishonest bill passed in the state legislature and signed by a business-only governor that would not allow counties to regulate health issues associated with CAFOs. There was a brief time the Cole County Commission could have passed such regulations, but the Farm Bureau apparently got to them, too. It is rare the commission makes the best decision for its citizens.

If you believe in prayer, you should pray the Chamber and Farm Bureau will not be successful.