Letter: Wants vs. Needs

Currently, the Lochmueller Group is working on preparing the Needs and Purpose Statement for the Mid-States Corridor, and they have released the draft statement for the Dubois County portion of the road. 

To find out the needs of Dubois County, they talked to the eight largest companies in the county, the airport, and two “economic development” boards financed mostly by the aforementioned companies.  The report shows that these companies want a four lane limited access road so that they can get their truck accessories and office furniture to their destination a few minutes faster, and so that they can tap into the large pool of available labor to our north (I must be missing it when I drive through all the farmland between Loogootee and I-69).  The key word in that sentence is want.

Here is what I think Dubois County needs:

The farmers of Dubois County need land to plant the crops that help feed us all.

The small businesses of Dubois County need traffic passing in front of their storefronts to keep their stores open.

The homeowners of Dubois County need to be able to live in the homes they love without the threat of the government bulldozing their property.

We need to respect and honor the history of the farms that have been owned and operated by the same family for well over a century.

We need forests to clean the air.

We need wetlands to absorb the rainfall and keep our communities from flooding.

We need wildlife to have places where they can live away from people.

Are we going to allow a handful of businessmen and politicians take away what we need for what they want?

We are asking everyone to join the fight against this massive overreach that will hurt so many.  Stop by the Property Rights Alliance booth at the Dubois County 4-H Fair to sign our petition against this project and join us at our next meeting at 7 p.m. on July 24th at the Schnitzelbank in Jasper. 

Together we can make a difference.

Tom Bartelt
Huntingburg