The Way I See ItBy cj pollickSales Tax - A recent article in another newspaper stated how many millions of dollars in sales tax are being lost by Pinellas County. Why? Many people are choosing to do their shopping in Hillsborough County (Tampa). Think about it folks, why not shop in Pinellas and keep the sales tax here! Indian Rocks Beach Boat Parade - On December 15th the city of Indian Rocks Beach will host its 21st annual Holiday Lighted Boat Parade. Boats participating in the parade will rendezvous at the Holiday Inn Harbourside at 6:45 p.m. and will then head north to the end of the city property at 7 p.m. Prizes will be awarded after the parade to winning boat owners. Don't miss this annual IRB lighted boat parade. Local Elections - Qualifying period for potential candidates in Belleair Beach begins Friday, December 14th. The city of Indian Rocks Beach's qualifying period is January 7-11, though R.B. Johnson has already declared his intention to seek re-election. Cut Taxes Now! - Looking for a worthy group that hopes to help cut Florida property taxes? Go to www.CutPropertyTaxesNow.com. Download the petition. The proposed plan will cap taxes for all Florida property owners (homestead and non-homestead.) Applies to taxable value and not the market value. Support Cut Taxes Now. Oprah And Obama On Tour - Oprah Winfrey made a giant leap into politics by offering to travel with Democrat presidential candidate Barak Obama. Does the name Oprah Winfrey help to attract crowds of people? Yes. Can Obama overcome other Democrat candidates due to the support of Oprah? Time will tell, but Oprah has proven that more people attend political rallies if she is a part of that campaign. What about other celebrities entering the campaign travel circuit like Oprah Winfrey to support a candidate? It is likely that other big name celebrities may soon join the campaign trail to help "their" favorites candidates. Wouldn't it also be great to see endorsements by Bill Gates and other big name business tycoons? If You Say It, Back It Up! - Pittsburgh Steeler free safety Anthony Smith said the Steelers would beat the New England Patriots last Sunday. He guaranteed the win. Wrong. Of course, ex-jocks refer to this pre-game "smack" talk as just part of the football game. Players hear worse football talk on the playing field. However, more experienced NFL players have tended to leave trash talk to rookies and avoid creating issues before a tough football game. When you are planning to play the undefeated New England Patriots you would think players would leave their trash talking on the playing field and avoid providing any incentives for the undefeated team, but not the Steelers free safety. Did Smith back-up the pre-game rhetoric? No. Is New England still undefeated? Yes. In fact, with remaining games against the Jets, Dolphins and Giants, it is likely that New England could go undefeated during the regular NFL football season. Interestingly, the last game of regular season for the Patriots will be at the Giants on a Saturday night at 8 p.m. Imagine the excitement at the New York Giants stadium on a cold December night when the New York team might need a win to enter the playoffs. Wow. Kenya For Sex - Older rich women from Europe and England reportedly head to Kenya on special "personal" vacations in order to obtain sex from young Kenyan men. A week of sex, walking the beach, and head back home to England says the tourism report. No harm done, say the older, white-haired women. However, in Kenya the AIDS rate of infection is reported to be about 7 percent and most likely is higher. Not a good thing for the older women who might become infected. It is worth the chance, say many of the women who seek fulfillment of their sexual fantasies in Kenya. Brazil Might Be Solving Fuel Costs In 2007, But Are Failing In Basic Human Rights - In a land where they are proud to have solved fuel costs (thanks to use of ethanol, etc.), Brazil can't be proud of worldwide reports of human rights abuse. An example? A case where a 15-year-old girl was imprisoned in an Amazon jail with 21 men for weeks. Yes, you can imagine the rest of the story. The men would not let the girl eat unless there was sex. Neither guards nor government officials offered help to the young girl. When she was finally released she was told to lie about her age and keep the story quiet. However, when the president of the Brazilian Bar Association heard about the story, he said it was a clear case of criminal neglect. The Bar president also went on to say that regretfully there are still places in Brazil where they house men and women in the same jail rooms, such as in the Amazon. The father of the young girl? He wants justice. The bad news? He won't get it in Brazil. Top 10 Business Schools For Entrepreneurial Students - Looking for that top-rated business college for entrepreneurial studies? Here are the latest Princeton Review ratings: 1. Babson College (Mass.), 2. Univ. of Houston, 3. Drexel Univ., 4. Univ. of Arizona, 5. Univ. of Dayton, 6. Chapman Univ., 7. DePaul Univ., 8. Temple Univ., 9. Univ. of N. Dakota, 10. Loyola Marymount. What is interesting about this entrepreneurial major business school list is the lack of certain prominent colleges one might have thought would be on the top-ranked list. Babson College number one? Chapman University number six?
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