Around Here By Leo Coughlin Nobody asked me, but - . . . To our best recollection, the former city manager of Largo was very often involved with the fire and police departments in their macho exercises - rapelling with the fire fighters and engaging in SWAT team exercises with the cops. These tough guy endeavors were taken so seriously and in such fashion that on at least one occasion said CM suffered a broken nose. A real tomboy, hey? . . . Why does the U.S. Congress have long, painful and complicated debates over how to break federal law? . . . News item - Fatsos may have lost all that weight and are now skinny, but there is a danger of fat "inside" - you see, folks, in some areas you just can't win. Eat, drink and laissez les bon temps roullez. . . . Whoever is running the Devil Rays these days (thank heavens it's not Naimoli!) ought to inform sports news outlets around the country that the team is located in St. Petersburg, NOT Tampa. (And ole Lou, in Chicago, is showing that flash of temper that almost put him out of baseball.) . . . So far, official estimates from the Conference of Bishops show that $1.5 Billion (BILLION!!) has been paid to settle lawsuits involving the rape of children by priests. And where does that money come from - the collection basket! (Barnum was right.) . . . Methinks the "outing" of Steve Stanton was done by none other than the sick boy himself. Yup. The guessing is that he called the turn on himself. Why? Publicity. And it worked. . . . How come a force of 150,000 soldiers with high tech equipment and weapons has been fought to a standstill by 20,000 insurgents who use homemade bombs? . . . You can't blame one local city clerk if she should complain - she gets burdened with requests to pass on lengthy, tedius and tiresome e-mails to "all elected officials" (who probably ignore same) from one obsessive character who is probably a publicity seeker of sorts. . . . Does anyone really watch Motormouth Matthews? The cutesy-wutesy Chris asks a guest a question, Chris then answers and the idea is that he be told how bright he is. As one eminent lady said, "If that is what Holy Cross produces, I'd never send a kid there. Ugh!" . . . Here we have another prelate, Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles, who encourages law breaking in respect to illegal aliens. People in this country illegally should be thrown out. (Yes. Thrown out. Every single one of them.) Mahony advocates support of lawbreakers. He should be locked up. . . . A friend recently explained to me what "American Idol" is. I have never watched it (at my age, can't waste time on the trivial) but according to the description it's a 2007 version of "Major Bowes" or the "Arthur Godfrey Talent Scouts" - never heard of those, hey? . . . Something on TV called "Dateline" exposes sick and deviant adult men who want to have sex with underage boys and girls. I have only seen little bits and pieces of it, but there is a lesson to be drawn from it. It is teaching the impressionable, in a very subtle way, that one is supposed to cooperate and tell the truth when being questioned by the police. Wrong. We have an adversary system in this country (innocent until proven guilty). The only thing to tell the police is "I want a lawyer." . . . Listen my children and draw near - do you hear that sound of stampeding footsteps all battling to get into our country? (Especially with this latest "let 'em all in" agreement by the nabobs of both parties.) Y'all better learn Spanish because you of European blood are on the way to second class citizenship in this great country. The Spaniards who know their history must be chortling over what's happening. . . . Poor old Dan Lundberg. He's one of the more dimmer bulbs in Congress. He thinks (as many do) that the idea of the Immaculate Conception and the Virgin Birth are one and the same thing. For those who accept the notions of both, they are distinctly different. . . . No taking chances dep't. - Clearwater Mayor Frank Hibbard, taking full advantage of the obvious, has just put his city through the rigors of Hurricane Preparedness Week, just in case of a departure from historical experience should cause an ill wind to blow this way after an absence of 86 years. . . . We are now in the shortest span of the year - Memorial Day to Labor Day. Blink and it will be here. Ciao! Return to Home Page Return to Current Edition Contact us