Award well-deserved

The Arkansas Newspaper Foundation has just created the Meredith Oakley Award in honor of Ms. Oakley, a longtime Voices and associate editor of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, and voracious advocate of the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.

And deservedly so.

I'd like to nominate Blue Hog Report blogger Matt Campbell as the first recipient of this award. Matt has tirelessly advocated for Arkansas as a seeker of truth and advocate for the FOIA.

Just recently, Mr. Campbell has brought to light the purchase of a lectern by our governor, at first funded by the state's taxpayers, then the office of our governor "juggled" and the state's GOP reimbursed the taxpayers' money back into its account. Without his research on this, it might have gone unnoticed that we citizens of the state purchased this lectern.

What would the governor's office purchase next with our hard-earned money if Mr. Campbell didn't expose this? An overseas vacation for our governor? Oh, wait.

As stated earlier, Ms. Oakley deserves to have this award named in her honor, and Mr. Campbell deserves to be the first to receive it.

RANDAL BERRY

Little Rock

On the Natural State

It wasn't that long ago when the gas companies came in, buying and leasing property all over north central Arkansas, and up popped pipelines and pumping stations everywhere you drove, if you could drive down the roads because of all the gas trucks.

Now it's the crypto-mining stations getting ready to pop up out in the woods in the middle of someone's south 40 acres back in the hills. I keep reading about how loud they are. What happens when the visitors on the Buffalo pitch their tents at night and instead of crickets all they hear is the high-pitched whine of crypto mines miles away? You think they will want to come back?

Just saying ... keep Arkansas the "Natural State."

RACHAEL BATES

North Little Rock

Commission gouged

I was interested to see on TV that a realtors' group and several brokerages have been fined $1.8 billion for something. It is not generally known here, and your readers may be interested to know, that in England the real estate commission is 2 percent and often 1.5 percent. Here it's 6 percent, and there is absolutely no reason it should be more than three times the commission charged in England.

I have sold houses in England for 1.5 percent, but here I have been gouged 6 percent for the same service. I see no reason for having to pay 6 percent. What do your readers think, I wonder?

REG EDWARDS

Jasper