I agree to the plan for changes in our government. Tax credits to keep our jobs in this country and small business loans through community banks are paramount in helping unemployment. Clean energy and jobs created by this will also help. ...more

February 3, 2010

A high speed rail system is the latest and greatest promise from the lips of the "messiah." ...more

February 3, 2010

I was a kid when Interstate 4 was begun. I remember my dad and uncles making almost all the same objections that are being made about the bullet train: "Why, we could drive from Tampa to Orlando in two hours or more." "No one will use the interstate." "It would be a waste of money." ...more

February 2, 2010

I have heard and read so many political pundits and mainstream media types stating the Democratic Party must rephrase its message to sway voters back into the fold. Nothing could be further from the truth. ...more

February 1, 2010

Clerks in all 67 counties are being informed they may have to cut another $36 million from their budgets before this fiscal year ends on June 30. ...more

January 24, 2010

It was distressing to learn of the loss of jobs at Habitat for Humanity. Worse, the decision of the county commissioners to not fund $500,000 presumably because the county doesn't have it, means the loss of $1.54 million grant money that would have been spent in the community. The county likely would have had the money had impact fees not been suspended sometime around July, 2009. From the report on Jan. 10 of the decline in building permits for 2009 and from the impact fees schedule in Highlands County Web site, I calculate roughly that the county lost over $1 million in impact fee revenue because fees were suspended. Clearly the suspension did not stimulate new building. ...more

January 17, 2010

A Lakeland man's act of kindness Thursday night turned out to be the last thing he ever did. ...more

January 16, 2010

Retail sales unexpectedly fell in December, leaving 2009 with the biggest yearly drop on record and highlighting the formidable hurdles facing the economy as it struggles to recover from the deepest recession in seven decades. ...more

January 15, 2010

After spending months debating whether to privatize animal control, the City Council ultimately ended up backing the staff's recommendation to stay with Pasco County Animal Services. ...more

January 12, 2010

A government report Thursday on claims for unemployment aid signaled that layoffs are easing and that the economy could be on the verge of posting the first monthly gain in jobs in two years. ...more

January 8, 2010