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When viewing manatees, it's best to keep your distance

Re: Manatee petting: Just good fun, or marine harassment?, March 20.

I am very happy to see that there is something started regarding the regulation of the manatee "petting" in Crystal River. The manatees go up that river to seek safety from the colder water of the gulf, but then get harassed by humans. How would you like some stranger to come up and jump on your back, or keep your child away from you? On top of that, the human contact teaches the manatees not to fear people, resulting in more boat-animal accidents.

My heart was broken to see the video of the heartless pursuit of "petting" manatees. Let them be! I understand the town of Crystal River survives on the tourism that the manatee "petting" brings, but when is it ethical to turn viewing wild, endangered animals in their natural environment into a Disney World-like, theme-park experience? As an avid participant in outdoor sports, I believe it is more fun and fulfilling to see the animals from a distance, and witness them live, behaving as they should.

I hope that after your article, more people will realize how detrimental it is to disturb manatees, and think before they touch, grab or ride them.

Stop the manatee swims

Re: Manatee petting: Just good fun, or marine harassment?

I have always felt that the allowed interaction between manatees and human beings was way over the top. While I understand that to view the animals close-up fosters the recognition that they require our respect and protection, this activity has now evolved into one that disturbs and invades their territory more than anything else.

Watching the videos of swimmers and divers chasing and disturbing and blocking these animals, I couldn't help but think that the manatees had become prey for human beings. They have just become another item of entertainment for human consumption, and as usual, human beings feel that their needs and wants take precedence over anything else. I say shut it down - except for viewing posts that allow people to see the animals in their natural habitat.

I applaud the St. Petersburg Times for the investigation into this issue. This is media coverage at its best. Let's hope it will precipitate the necessary changes to this ridiculous activity.

Abortion should remain available

Re: Women need to be more responsible, letter, March 13.

The letter writer is off the mark in two key areas. First, she assumes the mother in question didn't use birth control. She could break a leg jumping to conclusions like that. The woman probably did use birth control and had it fail. No birth control method is perfect, and all of them have a failure rate. Abortion is simply a fallback for when birth control methods fail.

Another part of that problem is that birth control is unavailable for many women because of its expense. Most health insurance companies will not cover contraceptives. It seems they'd rather pay for babies. Thanks largely to the current administration, government-subsidized birth control is almost entirely unavailable to the poorest women.

I've always been a supporter of the Dutch model, which has shown that the way to reduce the number of abortions is to make it easy for women to reduce the number of unwanted conceptions, and make sure they know how.

Second, she mentions that in her opinion pregnancies caused by rape should not be aborted. She mentions that the abortion can be as traumatic as the rape. Forcing a woman to carry to term a pregnancy caused by a rape is simply prolonging that rape through the nine months of the pregnancy, and doing damage to her body that a simple rape would not have done. Has the letter writer no compassion for the woman who has been raped? Abortion should absolutely be an option for a woman who has been raped. To not offer that option would simply be uncivilized.

Abortion can never be justified

Re: Abortion considerations, letter, March 13.

If abortion is banned, said the letter writer, fathers will not be prosecuted but mothers and doctors will be if caught; abortion will continue even if banned; no abortions means more unwanted children who "would wind up languishing in foster homes only possibly to be murdered at the hands of a parent or step-parent."

It amazes and depresses me that the letter writer apparently cannot see that these fragile reasons to allow abortion collapse easily under the weight of what abortion really and only is: killing a child not yet born.

There is no justification for killing an unborn child. None. Why should an unwanted child, the innocent result of a mistake or, perhaps an evil act, or even, sadly, a change of heart, be given the death penalty? Have we gone mad in this country?

Part D can be easy

I cannot believe all the brouhaha about Medicare Part D, unless it is politically motivated to make President Bush look bad. My wife and I went to our local drug store (Walgreens) and told them what drugs we took. In a couple of days they sent us a printout of all the providers, what their costs were and a number to sign up. We both chose different plans and they are working just great for us. I'm sure other drug stores offer the same service. If people would only take advantage of this service they would find out how really easy it is and also see the savings they would have on their drugs.

It should be about property rights

Re: Tampa historic designations.

Downtown Tampa just lost hundreds of jobs, tax revenue increases and progress - all for the sake of three facades from the Kress, Newberry and Woolworth buildings, which are at this time boarded up and full of graffiti.

Some things are historic and some are not. Either way it should be up to the owner to decide what to do with his buildings. Property rights should prevail.

Good to hear

Re: Honest man returns son's last gift to father, March 16.

It was great reading the article about Carlos G. Rojas spending nine weeks trying to find the right Carlos Rojas to give him his son's life insurance check of $200,000 that was sent to him by mistake. Not many people would have done that. Most would have cashed the check the way his insurance company told him to do. No wonder our insurance companies are in such a sad state.

[Last modified March 23, 2006, 02:15:42]