Editor’s note: Today’s letters to the editor are from Southwest Junior High students learning about persuasive writing.

To the editor:

I do not think that it is fair to assume that everyone is able to shovel their sidewalk. I would like to call your attention to Lawrence statute number 12-1801, that the sidewalk belongs to the homeowner.

If the homeowner is in any way unable to shovel their own sidewalk, then they should not be fined. Also, if for any reason they do not want to deal with the responsibility, they should not have to. People need to be more worried about their everyday lives, rather than paying for fines on how they take care of their property.

Once the government starts making people pay for a personal home keeping issue, they are overstepping their boundaries. Although the sidewalks are public, they are overall not the public’s property. Therefore the public should not complain about what citizens do with their property.

What about the streets that don’t have sidewalks on one side, but have them on the other? One side of the street doesn’t have to worry about getting fined, but the other side does. This is not fair.

The government needs to know when to stop getting into the citizens lives.

Maddie Woodard,

Southwest Junior High