Merry Christmas - May each of you have a very merry Christmas with friends and family.
Many thanks and Merry Christmas to our troops serving our nation around the world. We greatly appreciate the sacrifices you and your families make for us.
God bless you all.
Apathy Rules In Clearwater - Three city council seats will be filled in the upcoming March election in Clearwater.
However, there is competition in only one race.
Current City Councilmember Carlen Peterson was unopposed.
A second city council seat will be filled by George Cretekos, who was unopposed.
The third city council seat does have competition. Paul Gibson and Norma Carlough will campaign for this city seat. Gibson has opposed several city financial items; especially the way the city spends money. Carlough has served on city committees. Gibson stands for changes in the way the city spends money, Carlough supports the manner in which the city works with various city committees.
It could be interesting to see how many Clearwater citizens actually vote in this election.
Strange People On The Beach - Thanks to a Dad who was alert, an alleged photographer was questioned by the police on Clearwater Beach last week.
It seems that the father was changing a wet bathing suit on his young child on Clearwater Beach when he noticed a man with a zoom lens camera taking pictures of the young child getting changed from the bathing suit. "Zoom pictures of my young child changing clothes on the beach," said the Dad. "No way."
The Dad chased the cameraman and caught him by the Clearwater Marina, where the cameraman tossed a small computer chip into the water. The dad was yelling for police and asked if anyone noticed him toss anything into the water. "Yes," said a few bystanders.
After a diver brought-up the memory chip, the photographer was questioned and released.
The man was questioned due to an alert Dad who would not tolerate pictures of his young child changing clothes on the beach.
Some folks might say pictures taken on the public beach are fair game. Who knows, but you must admit, the Dad did the right thing. Some photographers might take these pictures and put them on the Internet.
The Dad?
With more people like him, we might have less child porn. Kudos to him.
Outback Bowl - The way I see it, the Outback Bowl is a great thing for Tampa. After all, most of all the bowl activities will take place in and about the City of Tampa. Well done, Tampa Tourism Board. This is a great sporting and economic event for Tampa.
Clearwater?
Hmmm, let's see, they plan a half day activity to visit Clearwater Beach (if the weather cooperates.) Yes, half a day on Clearwater Beach, called "Beach Day."
Financial benefits of this day?
You tell me, but I'm sure we'll receive great reviews.
Best And Worst Drivers? - Have you ever wondered who might be the best drivers on the roadways? Well, according to a prominent insurance research firm that reviewed over 14 million motor vehicle records and auto policies, the following occupations were the best drivers on the roads:
1. - Homemakers
2. - Politicians
3. - Pilots
4. - Firemen
5. - Farmers
The worst?
1. - Students
2. - Medical doctors
3. - Attorneys
4. - Architects
Engineers? They placed 11th in the best driver category.
So the next time you have road rage against a Mom driving a car, think twice, she is probably the safe driver.
Waste Of Government Funds - There is an annual list of pork-barrel projects that receive taxpayer funds - in the U.S. Congress it is referred to as the Congressional Pig Book. There are 375 reported pork-barrel projects with a taxpayer value of $3.4 billion. Yes, that is $3,400,000,000 of hard-earned tax dollars being wasted every year.
What are some of the places receiving such tax funds?
Here is a partial list:
The list of government waste projects goes on and on every year regardless of who is President and which political party is in charge of Congress. Imagine $3.4 billion dollars of tax dollars wasted every year on those ridiculous projects. Arctic Winter Games in Alaska? Toilet Summit? Teapot Museum? Amazing stuff, isn't it!
Senator Tim Johnson's Illness May Swing Senate Control - In the world of politics one should never be surprised. South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson's recent stroke speaks volumes about how quickly things could change in the U.S. Senate.
If Sen. Johnson (D-SD) can't serve in office, then the governor appoints a fill-in until the next election in 2008. The governor is a Republican. It should be expected that if anything happens to Sen. Johnson, a Republican would be appointed to fill the senate seat.
50-50 tie in the Senate. (The vice president would break the tie . . . thus, GOP control of the senate.)
Of course, all of this hyperbole is due to a sudden and sad illness to one politician.
Amazing and sad story.
Happy - No man is happy but by comparison. - Thomas Shadwell