It is such a shame that we have to read in the Sunday newspaper that once again, Rep. Katie Dempsey has to be fed another meal for her and her husband, Lynn Dempsey. This time the bill comes to $181.44. Where do they eat? In Paris, France?

We Romans send her to the state House at her request and at the request of her fellow Republicans, and yet she cannot seem to just go there and represent us. She cannot turn down a big, fancy meal and apparently, that is not all. What else has she done with the rest of the total of $768.97 which is not shared with us readers on Sunday?

However, the real point is why she must partake of lobbyists’ money at all?

Of course, it does not compare to that of David Ralston’s lobbyist’s money — in 2010, it was about $50,000. Yet, that session, we remember that Rep. Dempsey got a 10th of that money, didn’t she?

It seems to me that for 40 days in the House, one really needs no extra money to get the job done. Why do we put up with it at election time, year after year? If Rep. Dempsey’s Cheshire Cat’s smiling face would care to respond to this particular question — what do we get out of it? It might make the reading of it in our Rome News-Tribune a little more palatable.