Comments from our readers:

A HEARTFELT RAVE TO all the veterans. If you can read this, thank a teacher. If it's in English, be sure to thank a veteran.

WHY NOT PUT THE prisoners to work to save the botanical gardens?

THE REASON THAT I wear summer footwear during the winter is because I just got a pedicure.

I'LL BE GLAD WHEN WE reach the stage where we only have self-checkouts because at least the machines say thank you and hello.

IT LOOKS LIKE THE good time at the gas pump is over with. The price of gas jumped overnight 10 cents a gallon up to $1.76. It looks like it's in upward swing now. We may be paying more before Christmas. I hope you print this. You never print anything that I call in.

RANTS & RAVES IS an appropriate title for this column. I have never ever seen so many people unhappy within themselves. They hate everybody; they hate everything; they are against everything; and nothing is right.

AS A CONSERVATIVE Republican, I'm willing to give President-elect Barack Obama the same respect that the left gave President George Bush. Zero.

I HAVE A WAY THAT the government can help save some money. Anybody that is on Medicaid must take a drug test. I work in an area where we have a lot of people that have Medicaid. Most of them are alcoholics or are doing drugs. So as a country we could save money by making each one of them have a urine drug test.

THE U.S. CONTINUES to fall away from common sense and civilized life faster every day. Now we depend on government to be Big Brother all the time. Ergo, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration defended the safety of infant formula. If Americans were grown-ups, they'd never have gone so far into things like infant formula when mamas do that naturally.