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The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 5, 2007

Read History On GOP

Regarding 'Blacks Must Wake Up To GOP Tactics' (Other Views, Sept. 28):

I am surprised by Bob Herbert's nebulous and ridiculous hit piece on the GOP. I would like to point out to Herbert that the Democrats have completely controlled Congress for all but 10 of the last 40 years. It seems to me that this article is just another 'get Democrats elected at any cost' article by the extremely biased media. I noted that Herbert writes for the New York Times, which says it all. I find it hard to believe that the Tribune would publish such rubbish.

The Republican Party was founded on equality and the platform is individual responsibility, national defense, limited government and lower taxes. Sorry, but 'putting down' black folks is not in there; that has been the long tradition of the other party. I would recommend that Herbert get out and read a little history now and then.

DENNIS LUSK

Odessa

Column Was A 'Canard'

Gov. Charlie Crist needs to respond to charges made by N.Y. Times columnist Bob Herbert. In a piece meant to smear Republicans, Herbert tells us that the Republican Party sent Florida state troopers into the homes of black voters in 2004 in an effort to intimidate them.

Let's for a moment put aside what Herbert is saying about the Republican Party and let's look at what he is saying about our state's law enforcement officers. According to Herbert, the Republican Party has the power to tell Florida state troopers what to do. Furthermore, troopers will engage in illegal activity at the behest of the Republican Party, which of course accuses our law enforcement officers of felonious behavior.

The governor needs to step up and defend the force when canards like this are printed, especially when written for national consumption.

JOSEPH RUSCIGNO

Tampa

Vote Candidate, Not Party

Regarding 'Top GOP Candidates Pass Up Debate For Black Voters' (Nation/World, Sept. 29):

As a black Republican, I find myself disillusioned with the Republican Party. I joined the party to support George H.W. Bush in the primary against Ronald Reagan. I have stayed in the party because I would always tell my friends that the Republican Party did not care about race. I always believed the party cared for all alike; we were for equal rights, but not affirmative action.

But the Republican frontrunners turned their collective backs to black America and expect me to stay in lockstep with them. You can't get the black vote by ignoring them. If one of the frontrunners wins this nomination, they will not receive my vote. One party takes us for granted and the other ignores us. Black America can change that by voting for the person that best serves them, regardless of party.

JAMES A. OLIVER

Valrico

Single-Payer System

Regarding 'For-Profit Health Care' (Letters, Sept. 30):

Our health care system is great for the super-affluent who can absorb the exorbitant costs, but not for mainstream Americans. Few in Europe have any intention of creating an American-style health care system. European systems have better health statistics than the United States - everything from infant mortality to longevity.

The pharmaceutical industry in America indulges in outrageous price fixing. Is it not a disgrace, in the richest nation in the world, that folks have to turn to Canada and other nations to afford prescription drugs? Either that, or subsist on dog food.

The United States needs a single-payer, nonprofit-oriented public health care system to replace our wasteful, corrupt and greed-induced, privatized, profit-driven system. It's the profit-mongers who wish to prevent its implementation, like the pharmaceutical industry and private insurance companies whose advertising budgets alone are astronomical.

Let's put the health and welfare of Americans first on the priority agenda.

ROBERT B. FLEMING

St. Petersburg

Currency And Oil

Your editorial 'Dollar Slips On Foreign Oil' (Our Opinion, Sept. 25) is incorrect in that as the dollar falls in value against foreign currencies, it does not directly affect the price we pay for oil.

Petroleum is priced in dollars worldwide. As the dollar slips, the Canadians, Europeans and Japanese pay a cheaper price because their currency is more valuable against the dollar. Only if the price of oil is raised do we have to pay more. While that may occur, it is not the same thing as an increase in cost due to exchange-rate fluctuations.

IAN MacFARLANE

St. Petersburg

SCHIP Worth The Cost

We hear the statistics all the time. Last year nearly 9 million children in the United States went without health insurance; an unsettling number considering the wealth of this nation.

The State Children's Health Insurance Program has successfully insured millions of children from low-income families. President Bush recently vetoed the bill passed by Congress that would fund SCHIP and expand its coverage to millions of poor children who currently go without health insurance.

His decision wasn't about money. The cost of this program is equivalent to what our country spends in 41 days to support the war in Iraq. President Bush chose his dogmatic ideologies and unjustified fear of publicly funded health insurance over the needs of millions of our children.

CHRISTOPHER WHELDON

Tampa

Get Rid Of PIP

Regarding 'PIP Transition Period Concerns House Panel' (Metro, Oct. 3):

One of the most offensive issues of the Florida Auto No Fault law is that it takes away customer choice. I, like many other Floridians, do not need PIP coverage. Under Florida No Fault, I am forced to buy an expensive coverage in which costs are driven by fraud and abuse.

Let me choose what I need to protect myself and others. Any form of mandatory insurance has not, does not and will not function equitably in a free market society. Get rid of PIP and let me choose my auto coverages based on my needs and my wallet.

CONRAD DENEAULT

St. Petersburg

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