SCENE AND HERD –
Political waters swirling and boiling in Largo as Pat Gerard, current commission member, announces she’ll try to oust Bob Jackson as mayor come March . . . Not much likelihood of that given Jackson’s popularity with voters and Gerard’s ragged record . . . She’s got 2 ½ two strikes against her – two investigations by State Attorney’s office and an ethics complaint just filed . . . Gerard very vulnerable, giving her winking at law violations in the last election (in a city that has decided to ignore the rule of law) and her outrageous exercise of conflict of interest at mid-October . . . The Big Paper sat on her announcement for mayor for several days, part of the BP’s strategy as it tries to orchestrate Largo politics . . . Meanwhile, BP delayed four days getting report of Largo commission meeting October 18 printed . . . How come? Amateurs and tokens . . . One announced candidate (a big and shocked loser last time out) has a platform that wants to “bring the commission together” . . . She will run against super popular and formidable Jean Halvorsen and was obviously not brought into the strategy vis a vis Gerard, otherwise she would have announced for Gerard’s very open seat . . . Looks like strife in the hen house . . .
Joe Burke and Jim Corrigan huddling at Belleair Beach, cooking up, no doubt, some festivities for next March 17 . . . Cookie Kennedy still glowing from the huzzahs of top citizen recognition by Pinellas Suncoast volunteer fire folks . . . John Atanasio, more puzzled now by the Largo budget maze than he ever was when flying B-24 bomber missions during WW2 . . .
O.J. Simpson taking time off from his search to find the killers and visiting Los Angeles, site of the crime where a wild and savage animal, right out of the jungle, killed his wife and another man more than a decade ago . . . Dale Alford, formerly very active in Largo doings, now purveying melt in your mouth corned beef and other delectables on the corner of Central Avenue and Third Street in downtown St. Petersburg . . . Some fur apparently being rubbed the wrong way among professional staff in Largo . . .
Mayor Rudy Davis of Belleair Beach showing the kind of pride that borders on parenthood over BBTV15, the television channel that started carrying his burg’s news October 14 . . . Pride of the Irish – Derek Jeter helped the Yankees to an AL championship and once again proved his mettle on the diamond. Can’t think of a finer example as a ball player and a man and we Irish claim him proudly . . . And, oh yes, as the guy who kept Lou Piniella in baseball more than 40 years ago, I point with pride to Lou’s performance as a color commentator in the playoffs proceedings, looking so boyish and 20 years younger than his age . . .
Local media captive of press agents’ (of the government bureaucracy variety) misuse of the language, styling explosions as “implosions” (couldn’t be more wrong) and labeling beach replenishment as “renourishment” (again, a total absurdity) . . . Steve Stanton, Largo’s city manager, scratching his head and looking about as city staff performs a “feets do your stuff” routine and disappears . . . Still, Largo residents can be happy they are not in a disaster area called Clearwater. All because Largo has a top professional as a city manager, not a “learn as you earn” inexperienced neophyte . . . (Prime example – a $90 million library with 20 parking spaces; would be funny if not so tragic) . . . Not to speak of domination by the “prime minister” (all done behind closed doors, mind you) . . .
Motorists on Gulf Boulevard and residents in Belleair Beach and Belleair shore very irked at arrogant and impolite bicycle riders who delight in clogging the road and impeding traffic . . . Roads are for motor vehicles . . . Gasoline taxes pay for them . . . One angry driver proposed that the elderly chap in St. Petersburg who ran into a gaggle of these bicycle jerks a couple of years ago be named “Man of the Decade” . . . That may be going too far – then again . . .
Elected officials from the cities making up the Pinellas Suncoast Fire and Rescue District meeting this morning with the legislative delegation to quash any ideas of the PSF&R board changing its charter . . . The Legislature is the boss of the district . . . Hard to figure the group from around here going to Tallahassee and bucking the will of the people as against five members on the district board . . . Looks like a slam dunk for the people . . . Then there’s the local duo in officaldom who have earned the nicknames “The Bad Boy” and “The Protector” . . .
And wondering, wondering – why does one local figure have trouble putting together the idea of democracy and majority rule when the latter is the definition of the former? . . . And another thing – have never been able to figure why an oppressed people would resent people who died to free them? Go figure . . .