Mae Arsenault has stated her case thoroughly and with good reason and heart on trying to rent the old West Bainbridge Middle School gymnasium so her 14-year-old son’s basketball team could play basketball.

The Decatur County school system has its reasons for saying no. But whatever its reasons, fine, it’s their facility.

But for the Ku Klux Klan to enter the picture with a letter written to Arsenault because her kid wants to play basketball?

What a piece of work—work of hate, work of ignorance and work of low-life dim wits who want to turn kids wanting to play basketball into a dirty little racial ruse.

There’s been a bit of history of why kids can’t find public basketball courts to play on around the community, and it’s been one of those little whispered reasona from bygone times.

But it’s time now to stop the shenanigans.

Let there be a place for kids to play basketball. Sure, make sure all the bases are covered as to liability, expenses and supervision. But let them play.

As for the KKK, find another muck-filled hole and stay in it.

Patrol the river

Following the severe accident of a 14-year-old boy on the Flint River, could the Sheriff’s Department or Bainbridge Public Safety consider adding a boat patrol on the weekends to offer backup for the Department of Natural Resources.

On Sundays and Saturdays, the Flint River gets pretty busy, and rightfully so. It’s our No. 1 natural resource that attracts local and out-of-town water enthusiasts.

But during the summer months, a trained deputy, officer or first responder trained to handle medical emergencies would be a good public safety addition—and it might just save someone’s life.