Unfettered Letters

Men without hats

Watching the inauguration, it was hard to believe so many men were not wearing hat. I saw lots of black overcoats, but going bare-headed in that kind of weather is not very smart.

But I am an ex-clothing and hat merchant, and know few stores have a hat department. Selling a dress hat is a lost art.

Now, cowboys know how to wear a hat. I sold a lot of good hats, but that was a different era.

Bob Brooks
Grain Valley

A national sprinkler system?

Each year the government spends billions on saving lives and property damage due to the spring thaw, which causes floods along the banks of our major rivers and tributaries. This grief, expense and loss of life could be abated if we put the Army Corp of Engineers to work designing and constructing holding ponds, aquifers and a pipe line system that could transport excess water to areas of the U.S. that need it.

Imagine a sprinkler system, much like the ones we have in our yards, only on a national scale. Water to wet areas of the country could be controlled, and dry areas supplemented. Droughts and floods could become a thing of the past.

The benefits of such a program would be enormous in terms of stimulating the economy, saving FEMA billions annually, putting people to work and enhancing our infrastructure long term.

Think about it. A national sprinkler system for the U.S. makes sense. Talk about going “green.” The whole country would look like a garden.

If we can pump oil and natural gas to every corner of our country, a national sprinkler system that puts water where we need it shouldn’t be that difficult.

Paul Styers
Leawood

It’s winter; it snows

This city’s reaction to one inch of snow Friday was pathetic. Additionally, it’s downright embarrassing.

An inch of snow does not warrant intermittent “winter weather advisories” to pre-empt scheduled TV programming. An inch of snow does not warrant drivers to lose their spatial reasoning and drive in the center of two lanes. There were two lanes before it snowed. There are two lanes after it snows. Get in the far right lane and go your 10 mph in the 35 mph zone.

Don’t even get me started on the subject of Ward Parkway post one-inch snow “storm.”

I’m off to shovel my walk and a few of my neighbors’.

Let it snow. Let it snow. Let it snow.

Anne Owen
Kansas City

Protect your pets from winter’s chill

Let’s make sure we protect our companion animals from harsh weather conditions. Just because your dog has a doghouse doesn’t mean it is safe from the freezing temperatures.

People have the ability to find shelter if they want it. Animals that are confined to a yard or, worse yet, kept on a chain or in a cage, have no options but to suffer terribly. Please show compassion and bring your pet inside the house when it dips below 32 degrees. If your garage is not heated, then this won’t be much relief.

A wooden pallet will get your pet off the cold, concrete floor, and a heated, electric dog bed can be purchased at a pet supply store or ordered online. Extra food and water that is not frozen are essential.

In the summer, it is critical to provide a cool, preferably air-conditioned, area for pets when it gets above 90 degrees. A concrete garage floor and an electric fan can provide some relief, but your pet will still need lots of cold, fresh water.

Bring ’em in. When it’s too hot or cold for you, it’s too hot or cold for your pets.

Dawn Sparks
Kansas City

A vote for fall flowers

Did we skip winter? The flowering crab tree and forsythia bush near my apartment are in bloom.

That is change I will vote for, and I approve this message.

Marie Watson
Prairie Village

She must be on funnel cloud nine

I have been racking my brain trying to imagine the exhilaration, the exuberance, the unholy tingling sensation, the thrill and level of personal excitement that Katie Horner must feel when the possibility of devastating weather exists anywhere near Kansas City.

About the best I can do is what a dog must feel like when turned loose inside Fritz’s Meat Market. Oh, the joy!

Don Cameron
Overland Park

Take storms seriously

Tuesday night, the weather was crazy. The sirens went off, the lightning caused a fuel-storage tank fire, there was hail the size of golf balls, rain flooded parking lots, and the sky turned pitch black about 8:15. There was a guy standing under a convenience store overhang, was taping the storm.

There were even a few wrecks, such as the one on 470 near Colbern Road.

People, please take this kind of weather seriously. The guy driving in front of us was speeding and almost hit a car that had stalled. He swerved around the stalled car and almost hit the couple that was standing in the grass median.

Zach Kurth
Lee’s Summit

Strong winds: Our Big Bad Wolf

The “Three Little Pigs” children’s story has a message for adults. For eons, tornado-like winds have followed predictable paths. Like the first two piggies, we build fragile homes. I live in one of those “stick” homes and have been spared twice.

Traveling west from Liberty on 291 Highway, there are thousands of acres of farmland that will have stick homes. One day the Wolf will “huff and huff,” and the destruction will be horrendous. Many lives will be affected. If we continue to build fragile homes in tornado-prone areas, insurance rates will go out of sight.

There are safer designs and better materials that will resist high winds and protect lives, but few builders have the know-how. It is time for the insurance companies to offer large premium reductions and for FEMA to offer large tax breaks to encourage building these safer designs.

Darrell L. Apple
Kansas City

Buy a weather radio

I was in the Brookridge neighborhood tornado that hit at 2:02 am. There was no siren going off. We had two sirens going off earlier in the evening.

I have now learned that you don’t want to put your life in the hands of any TV meteorologist. After what we went through, I know the only hope of staying alive is owning a weather radio. Please buy one! When you are asleep at 2 a.m., it will likely be your only chance of survival.

We went to bed at 9:30 p.m. after the local weather said the risk of tornadoes was over.

Ann Sims
Kansas City

Air-conditioning overkill

With these recent days of warm weather, local businesses seem ready to kick their air conditioning into high gear. I just sat through my first frigid lunch wishing I’d brought a jacket even though the weather outside was comfortably warm.

I’m not sure which I look forward to least: the oppressive KC summertime heat or the frigid temperatures in most shops and restaurants in response to it.

Do business owners think patrons enjoy carrying jackets with them on hot days so we can be comfortable indoors? Do they think we’ll be impressed by all the money and energy they waste keeping their establishments uncomfortably cool?

Can anybody explain why we feel obligated to keep indoor spaces cooler in the summer than in the winter when we’re already dressed for the cold?

Devin Martin
Kansas City