The Way I See ItBy cj pollickThey’re Here And It’s Awesome To See – Yes, the license plates from IL, NY, WI, PA, NJ, CT, OH, etc., are here and it’s wonderful to see so many people on the beach supporting the beach businesses. Belleair Beach Election - The City of Belleair Beach will not have an election. All of the incumbents were "elected" due to no opposition. The following people retain their city office:
Mayor - Lynn Rives Over 80 And Still Active Pilots - Perhaps you have heard of UFO's, yes, that is the group of active pilots who are over 80 years old, the group is called The Flying Octogenarians (UFO.) They are planning to meet at their annual luncheon in Lakeland, Florida, at the Hilton Garden Inn (Lakeland Airport.) The group meets to hear about flying exploits and adventures of their members. Many of the members had served in the military and have some interesting stories to share with fellow over-80 active pilots. Call Don Newman at 727-461-0237 for more information about this annual meeting. Happy New Year, I Guess - There have been years when one would say Happy New Year and expect a better year than the year ending. However, 2008 has not been a good year to many people and 2009 is expected to be more of the same "good" news. Perhaps our New Year Resolutions could include the following:
Sinclair Lewis once said, "Intellectually I know that America is no better than any other country; emotionally I know she is better than every country." However, not everyone agrees with the words of Sinclair Lewis. One Russian professor predicted that by 2010 America will splinter due to civil strife and political unrest. California will shift allegiance to the far-east, the upper mid-west will favor Canada over America, the northeast will join the European Union and the south will join southern neighbors in trading and finance. Thus, and according to the Russian prognosticator, America will be separated into four separate pieces. Russia will be stronger and America weaker, so he predicts. Unfortunately for this Communist, he does not really know much about the common American, we are a resilient people. We have championed wars and economic slumps to remain one nation undivided. Yes, this Russian's opinion probably has support from several other anti-American nations around the world; but, America has had these types of enemies since the founding of our nation. In recent memory, America was never so united in national spirit until terrorists attacked the Twin Towers on 9/11. A divided America? Perhaps those folks should read more of the words spoken and written by one of our famous presidents, Abe Lincoln. Tampa Bay Bucs Fall To New Low - Dallas lost to Philadelphia and the hopeless Bucs lost to Oakland. Thus, the 2008 football season ended for both NFL teams. Here is the big difference when comparing Dallas Cowboys to the Tampa Bay Bucs: Dallas has good, young talent and the Bucs do not. 2009 could become one of the worst football seasons for the Bucs if they do not have one of their best recruiting seasons. Yes, Dallas has too much team dissention, but that could be cured by eliminating only a couple of players. The Bucs have problems with too many aging players and no replacements. We hope for a better 2009 for the Bucs, but know that it might get worse before it gets better. Of course, the Glazers are talking about increasing Buc's season ticket prices for 2009-- and, The Way I See It, that financial move could be a big mistake. Time will tell if Tampa Bay fans accept any 2009 ticket price increases knowing that the team may not be a contender. They Called Her,"Shaghala" - There is a well-to-do Egyptian couple in California that obtained the services of a 10-year-old girl from Africa to be their servant for 10 years. Yes, this is a case of slavery. However, this is not an isolated case where well-to-do Africans have obtained services of young African children to be their servants for several years at ridiculous financial terms ($45 per month pay.) One survey in 2001 reported that there were over 10,000 forced child laborers from Casablanca alone; even more cases were reported from Cairo and other places in Nigeria. How many indentured slaves are working in just America? Thousands upon thousands. How did the servants get to America? From wealthy African families that desired cheap domestic help from Africa. Africans enslaving fellow Africans. The child laborers often were/are forced to live in the garages of their masters and not attend school. Servants work long hours and handle most every household duty forced upon them. Welcome to modern-day slavery and it is occuring in America, Germany, France, England and many other nations around the world. Imagine the horror of a young African child being told he/she was to be a servant for another more wealthy African family for 10 years and taken out of their country? Fortunately there are groups in the US trying to stop this form of indentured slavery and there are US courts that will send perpetrators to jail. Shaghala? An African word describing a servant. What is strange about the story from California is that neighbors saw the young girl working long hours from the kitchen window ... and waited before reporting the case to the police. If you suspect this form of servanthood is occurring in your neighborhood, call the police. The measure of success is not whether you have a tough problem to deal with, but whether it’s the same problem you had last year. - John Foster Dulles |