Your Letters Are Full Of Insight

Your e-mails and letters were all over the board this week, from the American Dream to emergency rooms to gator movies.

A number of you were taken with Sunday's column on Isun Maen, who came to this country not speaking the language and all alone and who says she has found the American Dream getting up every morning in the dark to run a restaurant.

•Jack Williams wrote: "Steve, Your story about Isun Maen made my day. After reading story after story about handouts, the story of this woman should be a lesson to us all. She shows that America was never supposed to be easy. America is where we all have the opportunity to make it without being told what we have to do, Thank you Isun Maen."

Firefighter Pay

•Jack Leggett Sr. comments on the discussions about pay raises for firefighters, saying "I totally agree with you concerning the salaries government employees are receiving. Now the fire department is getting a cost of living raise as well as step increase raises.

"I was a city fireman in the late '50s and early '60s before they went union. When it was time to ask for pay raises, the department cited the 56-hour work week. It was never publicized that we worked a 24-hour shift and were off two days. In those days we took the job for benefits and security, not pay. We got no pay for overtime or holidays. Now with the union they not only get all the above, but higher pay than private companies, too.

"The article quotes one man as saying if we do not continue to pay these guys well they will go to other departments. We all know this is not so. You could not run these people off with a stick."

Emergency Experiences

•You are still sending in e-mails and letters talking about your experiences in hospital emergency rooms. I'm really looking for solutions. I have been getting responses from what are called urgent care centers and walk-in clinics suggesting they are the appropriate venue for medical emergencies that are not life-threatening. I'd be interested in hearing from you on some of your experiences in these facilities.

•My old buddy George Bollinger knows more about trains than anyone I know. He has worked on everything from the Clinchfield Railroad to CSX. If you ride an Amtrak train you are likely to see him onboard passing out pins reminding you to stop at railroad crossings. He sent me a clipping from last week's Orlando Sentinel with the headline, "$163 Million Deal Gets SunRail on Track." The article was about SunRail, the proposed commuter train in Central Florida, that is about to hire a Jacksonville company to begin designing and building parts for the $1.2 billion venture.

The article concludes by saying, "If SunRail wins the approval of the Legislature during the session that starts this month, FDOT (Florida Department of Transportation) will purchase 61.5 miles of tracks from CSX by June 30, with construction starting as early as Sept. 30." Around here the arguing continues.

•Finally, Mary Kelley Hoppe, who keeps track of environmental issues across the state, saw this ad for a casting call for a film being made at Gatorama. "Gurney Productions (310-271-1197) is holding a casting call. A fee of $0 to $100 will be paid for your time, depending on the part you are cast in." I'm thinking the $100 means you are a little too close to the gators.