Today's Letters: In death penalty debate, fairness is a key concern

Justice should not be delayed Nov. 25, letter 

Since Gov. Charlie Crist and Attorney General Bill McCollum sought to defend themselves in the newspaper, I would like to publicly address this to them:

Mr. Crist and Mr. McCollum:

Your concern seems to be that you are acting according to norms and that you are not to be blamed for a waste of taxpayers' money.

I wish you would think of much larger issues than that. First, no one is saying that Mark Schwab is a nice guy. Those of us who oppose the death penalty abhor what he has done and hope that he spends the rest of his life in prison. So the question is not so much concern for him as it is concern for fairness as well as concern for ourselves.

Unfortunately there are murders committed every day in this country, but only a few murderers get the death penalty. And they are not always the ones guilty of the most horrible offenses. Look over the records of those who have received the death penalty: Most are poor, badly educated, sometimes from abusive homes. This does not excuse their crimes; they are still criminals. But it does bring up the issue of fairness.

Second, executions do not stop other people from committing murders. European countries do not have the death penalty and they have fewer murders. Even here in the United States, states that do not use the death penalty do not have more murders.

Are you really talking about justice or are you talking about vengeance, and anxious to make a name as being "tough on crime?"

Ultimately, killing to prove that killing is wrong brutalizes all of us.

Lucy Fuchs, Brandon

At a penny per pound, a little adds up to a lotNov. 25

Don't be misled on the pay of tomato pickers

On behalf of Florida's tomato growers, we completely disagree with Robyn Blumner's column regarding our industry.

First, payroll records for the 2006-2007 season show that Florida tomato harvesters earn an average of $12.46 per hour. These are actual wages paid to tomato harvesters. Growers pay taxes to the government based on these wages. The average wage of $12.46 per hour is nearly double Florida's minimum wage of $6.67 per hour.

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers continues to mislead the public by focusing only on one aspect of the paid hourly wage, the bucket or piece rate. Our growers offer 45 to 60 cents per bucket as a way to help farmworkers earn more than the minimum wage. The per-bucket compensation is part of their whole hourly wage.

Blumner misleads readers by contending farm workers make an average of $10,000 to $12,500 per year. Harvesting tomatoes is not year-round work; it's seasonal. After the season in Immokalee ends in March, many of the workers will move on to other crops in other cities and states. So the money they make harvesting Florida tomatoes is only part of the income for those who work in other crops.

Members of the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange are free to sell their tomatoes to whomever they wish. In fact, they continue to sell Florida tomatoes to Yum Brands and McDonald's - they simply have rejected "penny-per-pound" schemes because of concerns over federal and state laws related to antitrust, labor and racketeering.

Most important, the Taco Bell scheme did not "double" the wages for tomato pickers - Blumner simply accepts the coalition's claims as fact - but rather brought a small weekly pay enhancement so insignificant that many workers choose not to even cash those checks.

Our industry is strongly committed to supporting long-term, comprehensive solutions that improve the lives of all farmworkers and their families because we greatly value our relationship with them. For more information about how we ensure that abuses do not exist in our industry, please visit www.safeagemployer.org and www.floridatomatogrowers.org.

Reggie Brown, executive vice president, Florida Tomato Growers Exchange, Maitland

College football players should be paidNov. 25, Perspective story

What about scholarships?

Michael Lewis basically neglected to consider "scholarships," only using the word once in his lengthy piece. A college scholarship could equate to as much as $100,000 of "compensation" over four years of athletics.

I'll grant that college football's revenues are tremendous. They support most of the average athletic department's budget for many other sports, both male and female. So, let's tell the whole story.

Peter Ford, Tierra Verde

Rush, little baby Nov. 25, Perspective story

Just play

This article should be required reading for every caregiver of a preschool child. Please, parents, put down the flashcards and get on the floor with your child and play. There is nothing more valuable for brain development.

Danielle Thorp Sutton, Ph.D., Tampa

Rush, little baby Nov. 25, Perspective story

Love of learning

I was thrilled to see the issue of rushing education being brought to the mainstream. I find it disturbing how many preschool children are "forced" to sit down at desks, or watch "educational" videos in an effort to get ahead.

My children attend Suncoast Waldorf School in Palm Harbor, where in the play-based kindergarten they are allowed to follow natural stages of learning, depending on their cognitive, physical and emotional stages.

I recognize that a lifelong love for learning will get them further in life than memorizing flash cards and learning how to pass a standardized test.

Kelly Ford, New Port Richey

Medium defunct Nov. 25, letter

Still drawing readers

The letter writer really tinkled in his mess kit on this one. (He was critical of newspapers.)

It is obvious he does read the paper since he read Philip Gailey's column and appears to have vacated his couch long enough to write his letter.

Keep up the good writing, Times!

D.J. Holding, Dover

[Last modified December 1, 2007, 20:22:43]