Nobody asked me, but –
. . . The clamor – and with money already in the pipeline - for a library in Indian Rocks Beach is totally foolish. If IRB, with about 5,600 permanent residents, were a village on the wild plains of Kansas, one could see the necessity of a library. But, hey! There are three very big libraries (Clearwater, Largo, Seminole) very nearby. Looks like the advocates want a library so that IRB can run with the big dogs. Very high price on that notion.
. . . Many observers are taking note of the great job Hoyt Hamilton does as a member of the Clearwater City Council. Ole Hoyt really knows how to bring home the bacon.
. . . Daily newspapers work this way – an event happens one day, it is reported the next; like something happens Tuesday, it is in the paper Wednesday. Not so with the Big Paper. Not a word in the paper of March 15 on the elections in Seminole and Belleair the day before. Not a word. It demonstrates the contempt the Big Paper (“Florida’s Best Newspaper” har har dee har har) has for its readers.
. . . Tying teachers’ pay to student performance is about as unfair (and ludicrous) a measure of pay scales as could exist. For obvious reasons, some teachers, in certain areas, are just not going to have students with high scores.
. . . Strange that the super-dooper $23 million Largo Public Library no longer has available out of town newspapers. Clearwater’s library features a wide selection of papers for folks who are addicted to newspapers.
. . . From the memory bin – Harry James’s rendition, with the orchestra, of “You Made Me Love You.” Good stuff, friends.
. . . It turns out the smartest guy in the whole Iraq schmear was Gen. Tommy Franks, who did a “feets do your stuff” routine and got out of the picture as soon as U.S. forces had an initial victory.
. . . It is appalling that a highly educated, high performance guy like the superintendent of schools is at the mercy of a bunch of housewives and disgruntled former teachers.
. . . Whatever became of Bob Dini?
. . . One abiding mystery is why a shop on Indian Rocks Road, across from Anona Methodist Church, gets away with tying up traffic and bringing Largo police to the scene to safely control same.
. . . Why was Puerto Rico an entry in the World Baseball tournament or whatever the silly thing was called? Puerto Rico is not a country; it is part of the United States. Dumb.
. . . One high-ranking county official bemoans the composition of some elected bodies, as being made up of people lacking expertise to deal with what is before them. He’s exactly right. At U.S. Senate and House levels and state levels, candidates get vetted well for qualifications. Not so on the lower municipal and county levels. Very dangerous.
. . . Examples of misuse of the language (and becoming mighty tiresome) – using the word “issues” as a synonym for “problems”; “step up” meaning to take action; “beg the question” as meaning the obvious next question; “reach out” misused as merely contacting someone.
. . . Note to public officials – always get your lawyer to give the green light if you intend to do something like vote on an issue that benefits your employer. That way, you will never be found guilty of anything. Conflict of interest? What’s that?
. . . Frank Hibbard, Clearwater’s mayor, made the headlines by successfully throwing out the first ball as the Phillies began their spring training season. Big Frank’s weak performance last year, when he was able to hurl the old horsehide only about 5 feet airborne, attracted attention, too. Redemption came March 3. Apparently he did not play ball as a youngster.
. . . Sic transit – Skip and Joyce Chittenden leaving Belleair Beach after making a very strong and influential mark over the years. They follow into history Chris DeMaio, Kay Woolcott, Jan Fletcher, Andy Rodgers – all very strong personalities and now gone.
. . . Let’s all take a moment and ponder in sympathy the poor fellow who is married to that walking around horror, Kate O’Beirne. That kind of ugly should be unconstitutional.
. . . Early in the criminal and horrifying tide that overtook Germany from 1933 on, the overriding theme was “If you’ve done nothing wrong, there is nothing to worry about.” Then, zum Bade.
. . . Our clever friend says – People demand freedom of speech as a compensation for the freedom of thought which they seldom use.