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Hernando Today

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 22, 2007

Illegals Bring Home The Bacon, Keep Prices Low

Illegals working Florida's citrus and truck farms picking fruits and vegetables send their money home to allow the second-highest contribution to Mexico's gross national product into the millions and millions, helping its economy and families attempting to build their lives toward reaching some parity with industrial nations for independence in home ownership and modest buying power in their country.
Florida farmers and growers will need to scramble to get crops to market while lawmakers demand illegal immigrants go home but provide no solution to help farmers and growers move their products to the marketplace.

This disparity in the assistance government is responsible to provide our truck farmers and citrus and berry growers typically harvested by Mexican immigrants requires immediate consideration by state lawmakers. Local labor pools by teens and day labor enterprises may not be the answer, as these pools of labor are not qualified to sustain the hard work and back-breaking labor to assure harvesting, nor are they willing to work piecemeal by the basket as Mexican workers will with their large families.

While voters look on to the issue of illegals in our labor market and are on the side of keeping them in Mexico, then they must be willing to pay the price of higher costs in the marketplace for fruits, berries and vegetables or sit back and watch our markets dry up while imported products from South America and China fill the marketplace.

Do-gooder patriots beating their chests will pay the price sooner than not at the marketplace for their convictions.

Deron Mikal

Brooksville

Lack Of Planning

Cause Of Traffic Woes
A mere six or seven vehicles making a left turn blocks others from lining up to cross over to Wal-Mart or turn right onto Cortez. While waiting, the view to the west is the vacant Whistle Junction building and its ugly existence. Drivers have plenty of time to ponder what type of business may eventually make matters worse.

Foresight may have added an additional lane, dedicated for a right turn onto State Road 50, making Coastal Landing a safer, more accommodating experience to this grandest strip mall in town. My guest said the cost to move the post supporting the overhead traffic lights would be in excess of $100,000.

Considerate planning might have provided access to and from Jacqueline Road to the north and/or Chambord Street eastward to Sunshine Grove, thus relieving traffic along S.R. 50. An opportunity lost.

At the west end, making a leftout of the inconvenient location of the K Store, or a left from the frontage road of the Coastal Landing parking lot puts driver's patience to the test. Also, whether making a right, left or proceeding straight out of Walgreen's doesn't help matters. I am surprised there aren't more accidents because of these situations.

Instead, I notice another entrance-only driveway has been added along Cortez. It welcomes more shoppers without a thankful way to exit.

A phrase that comes to mind is the infamous words of my Dad, Robert Rae, when he gave his opinion of such a state of affairs, "What a bugger!"

Ron Rae

Spring Hill

Angel Program

Helps Those In Need

We are all aware of the

financial difficulties in the

community and folks with

children who may be without

this upcoming Christmas

season.

The Christmas Angel Pro

gram in Hernando County is

the only program that tries to

make a Christmas for teens, as

well as infants and school age

children.

For those who can, it would

be a great help if you would go

to Wal-Mart or Beall's depart

ment store and pick out a

child's wish list, especially one of a teenager.

Our families are referred to

us by local schools and

churches. We try to assist the

whole family, all siblings in

the home.

We believe teens need to

return to school with some

new duds and maybe a gift

that their family couldn't af

ford.

Our children's gifts are

clothes and gifts and or toys.

We try to do Christmas so it's

not just a couple of items, but

a true Christmas. For more

information or to directly

sponsor a child, you can also

cal 352-596-1552.

Mary L. Scarff

coordinator,

Christmas Angel Program

Good Guys Go

Down In History

Many disapprove of the "harsh" interrogation methods that could possibly save our country. To them our reputation as a moral nation, a defender of rights and upholders of the Geneva Conventions is more important than defending the citizens from a nuclear blast or from destruction of the nation's infrastructure by people who wish us dead.

They think we are "too good" to resort to the despicable means our enemies will not hesitate to use. With a morality more concerned with the rights and feelings of others than our own survival, eventually our country could be destroyed by those whose rights we seek to protect, and we could be history.

But we'll be known as the good guys. That at least will feel good.

Bob Womack

Crystal River

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