Bradenton Times News Articles

Palmetto Mayor Shirley Groover Bryant has been as patient as a mayor can be. But the City of Palmetto continues to register as an afterthought to Manatee County Commissioners, who have once again made major decisions regarding resources related to the municipality without discussing the potential impacts with city officials. From the Little League fiasco to renaming the Civic Center, to last week's decision to downgrade the DeSoto Bridge project into oblivion, the BOCC continues to show little regard for the city north of the river.

There is an easy emotional response to tap into via the privatization argument. We all have a certain degree of frustration with government, especially at a time when it is so fractious that even the simplest accomplishments seem impossible. It goes like this: If government and those who run it can't even perform their main function – governing – how on earth can they outperform industries that specialize in particular services? If only it were that simple.

Spending a week at the RNC provided a critical preview of the upcoming presidential election. In going first, the Republicans have defined a revolutionary battle aimed at the heart of America's political divide, or better said, the historic political divide of the Western World – capitalistic, market-driven states vs. those with strong central governments and a liberal social safety net. The facts don't bare out any such battle, but there nonetheless seems to be an eager audience on both sides to cheer the rhetoric. 2012's election has all the intellectual honesty of a professional wrestling storyline and is drawing just as much passion from the blood-thirsty fans.

Former Sarasota County GOP chairman Bob Waechter was arrested this month on charges related to the criminal use of a stolen identity. Waechter, a politically-powerful front man for local developers, is a poster boy for all that is wrong with modern politics and to finally see his deeds result in a mug shot is somewhat satisfying. But charging Mr. Waechter is only the first step. Until the highly-political process of the justice system plays out, it remains to be seen whether a man that has made many friends in high places receives equal treatment under the law.

The door of the financial mess at the Manatee County School District has been cracked open and thus far revealed unbudgeted funds were spent without board approval. Doing something dishonest the first time is the hardest. Once that first decision has been made, the following decisions are generally easier because they are just a continuation of the first. Soon, you have a slippery slope and most anything goes. We need to know what happened.

There exists a plethora of harrowing statistics when it comes to gun tragedies. 7 = the number of mass murders in America this year; 62 = the number of mass murders in the U.S. over the last 30 years of consistent gun deregulation; 71,000 = the number of people who'd already committed gun crimes and tried to illegally purchase one in 2009; 77 = the number of those criiminals that the federal government prosecuted. But the most meaningful might well be the ratio 15:1. That is how much more is spent on lobbying by pro-gun forces than is spent by those trying to sensibly regulate gun sales and license to carry laws.

In 1972, due to a perceived occupational necessity, at the time, an application for a pistol-carry permit, was submitted to the State of New York. This application was accompanied by personal letters of recommendation by various law enforcement officers, with whom there were personal affiliations. Background investigations were made by the FBI, New York State police, county and local police agencies. That common sense vetting procedure has since been eroded by numerous lawsuits, spearheaded by the NRA.

Despite the efforts of local Senator Nancy Detert (R-Venice), Florida is still not among the 39 states to adopt a law making it illegal to text while driving. As text messaging continues to become a more routine form of both business and personal communication, the temptation to text while driving only increases. I don't think anyone would argue that typing on a mobile device while controlling a moving automobile is an incredibly dangerous proposition. But until it is an illegal one, I doubt we are likely to see anything but more of it.

The jarring result of November’s election has left the Republican party somewhat split on the path forward. Many high-profile conservatives are acknowledging that the president's comfortable reelection will require concessions from the losing side. Others are preaching moderation and a rethinking of the party's platform. However, a key group of policymakers stubbornly continue convoluted attempts to uniquely interpret what the voters were actually trying to say. Which faction prevails, will have much to do with the future of the party.

A report published by the New York Times this week claimed that states, counties and municipalities are spending in excess of $80 billion each year to incentivize companies in the hope of creating much-needed jobs. However, the investigation found a stunning lack of oversight tracking the success of those investments, as well as questionable results when a closer look was taken. No public official wants to be seen as anti-job creation in our current economic climate, but more care must be taken to ensure that such massive taxpayer investments are sound.