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In this stressful age, just be a friend

Re: Helping the poor.

This semester at St. Petersburg College I wrote an essay concerning the working poor and what can be done to help. With the cost of living rising higher and higher (notwithstanding the cost of gas alone), most of us can't donate money to charitable organizations, and our busy lives can keep us from volunteering. Here's what I came up with instead:

Each and every one of us needs more than food, shelter and clothing. We all need help on occasion, and some of us need more than others. It's the support we get from others that helps most to keep us afloat when things go bad. The lack of a support structure is a key deficiency for those in perpetually dire straits.

There is something that each of us can do about this, though, and without much effort: We can all make friends. Friends can help in places that the state cannot. Are you a mechanic? You can help fix your friend's car. Are you a doctor? You can tell a friend when it's time to go to the clinic. Do you have kids? You can babysit for a while when your friends need to go to the store. I can drive a truck, so sometimes I'll help friends move.

It's amazing the results that can be made in the lives of others when they feel they have someone they can count on when things go sour.

This short, minor letter is my call to others to help where they can.

Glen Canaday, St. Petersburg

Tax would help end homelessness

Re: Harris: Earmark money for homeless, by Jon Wilson, April 30

County Commissioner Calvin Harris is on the right track in his thinking. A 1 percent tax on food and beverage sales (as Miami-Dade County has) would do much to help the homeless in Pinellas County. Such a tax would put more than a modest dent in our homeless problem. It must be a well placed tax, however. A tourist tax may also be the answer.

We all have various ways of making a living. But should not principle be our profession also? When we consider the hierarchy of need in our area, should not homelessness be at the top of the list? Helping the needy should not just be a verbal utterance. We should launch an "Operation Just Cause" and develop programs that will render homelessness a relic of the past. The cause of righteousness demands it.

Robert B. Fleming, St. Petersburg

Bay Pines bayou needs cleanup

Re: County aims for cleaner waterways, May 3.

This article outlined a plan between Pinellas County and the Southwest Florida Water Management District to spend $128,000 to determine the extent of pollution in local waterways, and listed such sites as Lake Seminole Bypass Canal, Brooker Creek, Mullet Creek and several others as likely test areas.

May I also suggest the saltwater cove just west of the Bay Pines VA Medical Center? This once-deserted bayou is now the site of scores of boats, barges, pontoons and assorted watercraft, many of which have either entirely or partly sunk.

Are some (or many) of these home to "liveaboards," and have coliform counts been taken at the narrow entrance to this anchorage in recent years? Let's get the most for our tax dollars and start with the areas most obviously in need of attention.

Julian Fant, Treasure Island

Please, no more blemishes

The Pier looks great just as it is. The building contractors have enough work downtown. Suppose a new building on the Pier looks like the condo under construction on Beach Drive NE.: a condo with pimples.

Maybe they should name it Pimple Arms.

Ed Hubert, St. Petersburg

Public bus drivers aren't the problem

Re: PSTA bus drivers need our respect, letter, April 30.

Congratulations to the letter writer who addressed the problem of the large number of bus operators leaving the system because of unobtainable scheduling, lack of buses, etc. All quite true.

PSTA is "down" 14 to 30 drivers, according to some estimates. As the writer mentioned, some buses are 12 years old and they break down frequently, stranding passengers for an additional hour.

Scheduling has its own problems, with some buses late 24/7. And even when the buses are on time, riders can miss their connections by as little as five minutes. Drivers have frequently pointed this out to management and just as frequently have been ignored.

The operators themselves, however, rate an A+ for professionalism, courtesy and friendliness. It's disappointing when your bus doesn't show up, but the person responsible is sitting behind a desk at PSTA, not behind the wheel.

John Royse, St. Petersburg

Motorcycles scream in the dark

A longstanding problem needs resolution. Motorcyclists are using both Ninth and Fourth Streets N between Gandy Boulevard and the Howard Frankland Bridge as a speedway.

I recently spoke to an officer at the Sheriff's Office. He was very kind and well informed and very much aware of the problem.

To be honest, the only reason I even bothered to complain is in regard to the noise these motorcycles make - at high speed in the middle of the night on Saturdays and Sundays. (These guys are very clever. They race for an hour and scram.) The noise could wake the dead.

Officers are restricted from pursuing a bike doing well over 100 mph - and rightly so. From time to time they have a sweep with other departments in the area, but for the most part the problem keeps going on.

What can be done about this problem?

Michael Frisch, St. Petersburg

High school talent worthy of notice

Re: Rising Stars.

An outstanding evening of talent among Pinellas County high school students was presented Friday night at the Mahaffey Theater. Walker's Rising Stars was a scholarship competition that showcased the top 20 students, competing for the top prize of $10,000.

Dr. Jeffrey Walker, a St. Petersburg neurosurgeon, sponsored this event through the Pinellas Education Foundation.

There was no mention of the event in the St. Petersburg Times. This was an extremely positive event sponsored by the Pinellas County school system and worthy of recognition.

Nancy Fannon, choral director, Seminole High School

[Last modified May 10, 2006, 07:20:53]