While the economy recovers from a painful recession, there is outrage from the public and the White House about what some banks are preparing to fork over in bonuses. So while they are focusing on the perks that the private sector bankers who took public funds are getting, no one is focusing on the perks our elected officials get. And we pay for all of these. Well, let's compare, Just a little sampling of perk vs. perk. So, B of A CEO has apparently one corporate jet. What shall we call Air Force One? Then, apparently, there is also an Air Helicopter One, a fleet of special reinforced limos, etc. I suppose that the CEO of B of A also has a tennis court that was recently converted to a basketball court with, you guessed it, public funds? ...more

November 2, 2009

End war, forever. Make the planet greener. Please help my dad find work. Make it rain candy! Thousands of kids detailed their hopes and expectations for President Barack Obama in letters and drawings as part of a worldwide project, with 150 chosen for a free e-book being released on Presidents Day. ...more

February 16, 2009

Fire State Farm Editor's note: The following letter was written to Jim Thompson, president of State Farm Florida, and forwarded to Sen. Mike Fasano. It is reprinted here at the author's request. ...more

February 5, 2009

Dear Mr. HandyPerson, Rain and humidity have caused mildew to grow on the ceiling in our entryway. It looks like grease spatters. What can we use to clean or kill it, and what type of paint should we use to prevent that from happening in the future? ...more

November 2, 2008

I am frightened. If we vote "yes," we keep Spring Hill Fire Rescue Board commissioners who put down Spring Hill citizens and rubber stamp the firefighter union requests. If we vote "no," the Spring Hill fire board will be dissolved and I, as a Spring Hill resident, can go before the Hernando County commissioners and be treated with respect and allowed to request oversight on the excessive spending of Spring Hill Fire Rescue District. ...more

October 22, 2008

Dear Readers, In June, Mr. HandyPerson responded to a Florida reader having trouble finding a house painter who did not expect a 50 percent advance before signing a contract. He opined that perhaps this was not terribly unusual because the painters might need to purchase materials, and that she should make calls to city hall and the Better Business Bureau to ask about local standards, and to check about prospective painters. ...more

August 28, 2008

We look like the walking dead, straggling into the receiving office of a large discount retailer, shirts wrinkled and sweaty, hair disheveled, faces gaunt, shoulders slouched. Truck drivers. I first saw him while rounding the turn at the far end of a long warehouse. He was sitting on the landing gear of a semi, and he looked very tired. ...more

December 15, 2007