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Ignorance? Arrogance is a believable explanation

Re: Businessman's Largo vote raises questions, story, April 16.

I do not claim to be the smartest person in the world, but even I know that you have to live in the place where you claim a homestead exemption. I also know that you have to vote in the precinct where you maintain your residence and homestead.

Surely, Fred Thomas would not have us believe that he lives in Largo and his wife lives in Belleair? Does Fred Thomas really expect us to believe he is that ignorant of the laws?

Or does he really believe he is above the law that the rest of us have to follow?

Where will he be registered next week?

Re: Businessman's Largo vote raises questions, story, April 16.

Hurry up, Clearwater! Get the downtown plans approved while Fred Thomas is busy exerting his influence in Largo, where he's a registered voter this week.

I guess memories are selective. Didn't Save the Bayfront (the Clearwater group supported by Mr. Thomas) call out professional wrestler Hulk Hogan for supporting the downtown plans of a few years ago when he technically was not a Clearwater resident?

Do as I say, not as I do . . .

Now let's find out about "Friends of Largo'

Re: Businessman's Largo vote raises questions, story, April 16.

Thank you, St. Petersburg Times staff writer Lorri Helfand and Times researchers for a well-documented expose on Fred Thomas. Hopefully, the State Attorney's Office will follow through with any appropriate charges.

One cannot help but wonder what similar research would show with regard to the group "Friends of Largo" that received Thomas' unprecedented $20,000. Just who are these "Friends of Largo"?

Thank the twins for what? Not beating you up?

Re: How about thanking twins for the work they've done? letter, April 13.

I don't understand how letter writer Dorothy Vernon can expect the public to praise the twin firefighters who allegedly beat a man on Clearwater Beach. "These twins deserve our thanks and our support," she wrote. For what? Maybe you should feel lucky you're not the person they beat.

Just because they are off duty isn't an exception for poor behavior. I am a firefighter and I know there are many more qualified people to do the job then these twins. They have a criminal background. Why should citizens of Clearwater settle for that?

Bridge as a race course isn't that surprising

Re: Bridge drivers clocked doing more than 110 mph, story, April 3.

I can feel for those poor fellas who got arrested for doing 180 kilometers per hour on the Bayside Bridge. You're 20 years old, have a peppy car, it is 1 a.m., you have 21/2 miles of open, well-lit track in front of you, and it is dark. (I wonder if they were wearing sunglasses.) The temptation must have been too much to bear. With hormones raging, I wonder which one was greater: the thrill of speed or the thrill of getting caught by the police.

As an expatriate from Germany who's been living in Pinellas County for close to four years, I've never understood the purpose of owning a high-performance car in the United States. The concept of accelerating your car in 7 seconds or less from 0 to 60 mph and then not being able to go significantly faster is like giving Viagra to Robinson Crusoe. What the heck is the use?

Imagine this: If Tampa Bay was in Germany - autobahn-wise, that is - there would most likely be the same speed limits enforced in the urban area on the interstate highways. Somewhere north of Tampa on I-75, probably just north of the I-275/I-75 junction, the speed limit-free zone would begin. In the south it would be somewhere south of Bradenton.

But, alas, Tampa Bay is not in Germany, so all those hormone-ridden kids have to find different playgrounds or break the law. What a choice to make. What an unfair world.

Meanwhile, I'll keep moseying down the Bayside Bridge at 15-20 mph on my bicycle morning commute, trying not to think of Joshua "Speedy" Lewis and Joel "Breakneck" Barbot who've driven on the same piece of road.

By the way, did you know that you can book vacations in Germany for the sole purpose of driving on the autobahn?

Ah, Germany, I still miss you sometimes.

[Last modified April 19, 2006, 01:58:13]