In response to the column by Raleigh Whiteman dated Dec. 3, I'll take the bait. The fact that your children (spouses and grandchildren) are unable to spend Christmas with you is a good sign. They are setting up their own family traditions. It is a tribute to you and their mother. Feel blessed. Forget shopping. You will be wasting a lot of time and money trying to find things they don't need or want. They will also be doing the same for you. As the patriarch of the family, you have an opportunity to change things. Return the real meaning of Christmas; it will be the greatest gift of all. Here are some suggestions: Rather than gift cards, make a donation to a cause they believe in, in their name. Do they love animals? Cancer, diabetes, heart association and Alzheimer's associations are donations well spent (let them know ahead of time that this is your plan this year so they don't waste all their time and money on you.) ...more

December 8, 2009

Meaning of Christmas In response to the column by Raleigh Whiteman dated Dec. 3, I'll take the bait. The fact that your children (spouses and grandchildren) are unable to spend Christmas with you is a good sign. They are setting up their own family traditions. It is a tribute to you and their mother. Feel blessed. Forget shopping. You will be wasting a lot of time and money trying to find things they don't need or want. They will also be doing the same for you. As the patriarch of the family, you have an opportunity to change things. Return the real meaning of Christmas, it will be the greatest gift of all. Here are some suggestions: ...more

December 6, 2009

Nine-dollar-a-slice cheesecake at taxpayer expense angered local lawmakers and apparently isn't sitting too well with the state, either. ...more

November 27, 2009

Nine-dollar-a-slice cheesecake at taxpayer expense angered local lawmakers and it apparently isn't sitting too well with the state, either. ...more

November 25, 2009

Letters to the editor from Nov. 14 editions. ...more

November 14, 2009

Pasco County commissioners have hired an Orlando-based law firm specializing in labor negotiations to handle future contract talks with the county's unionized firefighters. ...more

October 22, 2009

The Senate voted on Tuesday to prohibit credit card companies from arbitrarily raising a person's interest rate and charging many of the exorbitant fees that have become customary - and crippling - to cash-strapped consumers. ...more

May 20, 2009

Buy The Houses As a constituent, I'm concerned with the government's trigger happy approach to spending money on aiding a sickly banking industry. In fact, I find myself asking exactly what this is doing for the average American, while more people are losing homes and jobs, and ending up in shelters and on the street. My mom teaches kids whose families are afflicted by the economic crisis, and her school has been helping to shower and clothe kids in this position. ...more

March 22, 2009

Celebrities lounging in nightclubs and beaches crowded with bikini-clad models: a given in Miami. Traffic jams and Latin-American bakeries: sure. Cows? Not exactly what the city's known for. ...more

March 21, 2009

Celebrities lounging in nightclubs and beaches crowded with bikini-clad models: a given in Miami. Traffic jams and Latin-American bakeries: sure. Cows? Not exactly what the city's known for. ...more

March 20, 2009