Comments from our readers.

LET'S RETHINK HOW we are spending our sheriff's budget. Present scenarios: The Summerville/Hill residents raise personal money to hire off-duty deputies to fight rising crime. We are short 37 officers in Richmond County due to commissioners hacking at the sheriff's budget. Recently, there were two motorcycle cops on Central Avenue using radar. Try this: Put the two motorcycle cops on Bobby Jones Expressway and ticket the hundreds of people flying daily through the construction zone. Use this extra money to hire deputies to fight crime downtown and on the Hill. A feeling of safety returns and people spend more time downtown supporting the economy.

IF WE REALLY want to conserve gas, let's reduce the number of laps that stock car racing is doing throughout the country. It's time for the United States' varmints to shut up and open up the places that are known to have oil for drilling and build more refineries.

A GREAT, BIG RAVE and thank you for Dr. David R. Spearman for the 22 years of good service, time sharing and caring person that he's been to me. I thank you and God bless.

TO THE PERSON who claims that cops aren't heroes: I pray that you never need one of these non-heroes. Anybody who pins a target on their chest every day is a hero.

A RAVE FOR Assistant Principal Ron Middleton at Glenn Hills High School for his program, Teacher Force.

I AM A RICHMOND COUNTY school bus driver and I just wanted to make a rant for the Board of Education to Dr. Bedden. You promised to have a meeting with your mechanics and your bus drivers before school got out. You have let us down.

If you have an opinion to share with other newspaper readers, you may call The Augusta Chronicle's Rants & Raves line at (706) 823-3397, fax your opinion to (706) 722-7403 or send e-mail to newsroom@augustachronicle.com.