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Flush With Ignorance, Mr. Happy Is Several Cards Short Of A Full House

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Daniel Ruth

The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 20, 2008

"You have made my 'deck of weasels' but you're somewhere around a five or a six," wrote the fun-loving fippress.

"You are not even close to being an ace of spades (former Defense Secretary William Perry); the ace of hearts (Bill Clinton); the ace of diamonds (Newt Gingrich) or the ace of clubs (Trent Lott)."

Normally the letters that flow in from the many devoted, satisfied customers of these scribblings might take issue with the subject of a particular column or blog item. Our dear friend fippress, however, was angry with me for somehow being anti-veteran, which I've never been.

"You've made my deck," Mr. Happy explained, "because of your appalling lack of support for our nation's military retirees and your abject failure to speak out on issues important to military retirees."

Uh. What?

Simply as a practical matter, how could anyone not be supportive of the men and women in uniform who have served this country? And I've never suggested otherwise.

Indeed, for many years I have been a vocal critic of the especially onerous policy of concurrent receipts, which unfairly offsets veterans' income against pension benefits.

At the same time, I should be flattered by the back-handed assertion by fippress that I have so much juice with the Bush junta to correct all the ills of the Veterans Administration. Ah, if only that were true.

'Noles Are Only Semi-Sovereign

In response to a recent column on the Florida Supreme Court striking down an expanded gambling compact between Gov. Charlie Crist and the Seminole tribe, which would have realized billions of dollars in revenue to the state, beavis39ghz (Wouldn't Skippy be a better name?) wrote: "Aren't Indian reservations considered sovereign entities?"

Yes, but only if the inhabitants remain mired in poverty, illiteracy, unemployment and substance abuse. Once they started making money and improving their lives it's a whole other ball game.

Crimson13 dared to commit common sense by noting: "To all you conservative voters to whom taxes are the devil, if you do not want this state to have an income tax, you will need to look at the example set by Nevada."

Sami Al-Arian, On The Rocks

A column on the legal morass surrounding former University of South Florida Prof. Sami Al-Arian also inspired some missives. Although Al-Arian has more than completed his federal prison sentence after agreeing to plead guilty to one count of providing financial support to a terrorist group, the government continues to incarcerate the professor.

"Sami Al-Arian has NO VISA that would permit him to live at his son's house while awaiting trial," wrote JonathanMark from the Planet Kalidnoid 7. "Lots of visaless people want to live in relatives' houses in the U.S.

"Most visaless persons are Hispanic" - by the way, I'm letting this go on only so you have some idea what I deal with each week - "rather than convicted Palestinian terrorists. If an ICE Immigration and Customs Enforcement jail is good enough for visaless Hispanics then it is good enough for visaless convicted terrorists who come here to terrorize."

First off, Al-Arian was in this country legally at the time he was initially charged back in 2003. Second, a federal judge allowed Al-Arian to post a $350,000 bond on the condition he live in his son's house. Third, the entire visa issue is gibberish and boy could I go for a cocktail about now.

In a return to some semblance of coherence, Razziegator (How about a name like Spike? But I digress.) noted: "If Al-Arian is guilty of something, then put him on trial and get a conviction and a sentence. Oh yeah, been there and didn't do that. Keep him in jail anyway, it's the American way apparently."

You better watch out, Spike. You start advocating crazy, bizarre stuff like the U.S. Constitution and due process and the next thing you know you'll be accused of being a dreaded liberal. You've been warned.

It's Enough To Make A Grown Man Veep

Confederate flag towel boy Bart Siegel sent a letter, but who cares?

Meanwhile, Crimson13, daring to go for a common sense quinella, also responded to a column on the pending engagement of Charlie Crist to socialite Carole Rome, who got the space station in the settlement.

"If he wants the vice presidential nomination, he needs to have a ring on his finger," Crimson13 mused. "As it is, the '700 Club' set is going to be holding their noses to vote for Johnnie Mac, dare you imagine the idea of a Southern Politician that does not even have a wife to trot out?"

So true, so true.

Keyword: Book of Ruth, to read and comment on Daniel Ruth's blog.

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