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Editorials
Trust the people
Unnecessary White House secrecy does a disservice to the millions of citizens whose informed vigilance could be a crucial asset in the war against terrorism.

Et tu, Jim?
It can be an ugly sight when a big man falls flat on his face. On Monday, Sen. Jim King, R-Jacksonville, was heard to remark that his job as Senate majority leader is "to do whatever the Senate president tells me to do." Well, not exactly. Just two days later, King deserted John McKay amid the climactic struggle of his career, announcing his opposition to the $1-billion in instant tax reforms that would balance the Senate's budget. Unlike the Jim King everyone thought they knew, he wouldn't even talk about it. Confirmation came in a written statement that cited an "outpouring" of opposition from his district.

Letters
Congress should support president in war on terror
Re: White House secrecy denounced, March 6.

Columns today
Robert Trigaux
Director's past connects TECO, Enron
John A. Urquhart enjoyed a long and successful career with General Electric, selling turbines to electric utilities. So it was no surprise that in 1990, when he was in his early 60s, he joined the board of directors of a promising young power company.

Howard Troxler
When trying to be fair takes a turn for the worst
Everybody says that John Nicely is one of the best-loved high school principals ever. Parents love him. Teachers love him. The students at Tarpon Springs High School cried and gave him hugs of farewell on Tuesday, which was his last day on the job after 11 years.

Ernest Hooper
Iorio drops out of the spotlight, but Dave enters it
If for no other reason, I lament Pam Iorio dropping her mayoral bid simply because it makes the race a little less interesting.

John Romano
Will hard-earned good will leave town with McHale?
ST. PETERSBURG -- Side by side they stood, each praising the other.

Perspective
Taking jobs, alienating customers
For weeks Americans have been told that the outsourcing of high-tech jobs is good for our economy. So said Greg Mankiw, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers in a recent report signed by President Bush. So, too, writes Thomas Friedman of the New York Times in articles praising the rise of call centers in India used for everything from making airline reservations and reading medical X-ray films to providing tech support for American computer firms.

Philip Gailey: Democrats fall off campaign finance reform wagon
Well, what do you know. Soft money is back, and it's making hypocrites of all those Democrats who fervently championed the McCain-Feingold campaign reform law, not to mention those Republicans who objected to the law's restrictions on issue advocacy.

Bill Maxwell: Who is for the farm worker?
Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is touting legislation to improve the lives of Florida's 300,000-plus farm workers, who endure institutional and systemic injustices each day in our fields and groves and their personal lives.

Robyn E. Blumner: For some defendants, an American gulag
In Bernard Malamud's masterpiece The Fixer, inmate Yakov Bok was subjected to psychological torture in a Soviet gulag through the humiliations of constant shackling and repeated strip searches.