Author: opinionstogo

For all those appalled that the University of South Florida and the Hillsborough school district will be taking a serious budget hit in the coming school year, these thoughts:

*No way is a shortfall not going to hurt. And no way did this have to happen. Florida’s toga-party of a Legislature keeps giving incompetence a bad name. Long-term, revenue-raising solutions? There’s a better chance of bringing back Ol’ Sparky.

Obviously it does no good to write your representative. But here is a perverse suggestion. Send out some thank you cards. One to Jeb Bush, who can’t reconcile Republicans and Libertarians and saves his passion for FCATS, vouchers, affirmative action and presidential visits. One to Johnnie Byrd, who would rather cut a critical service or tap a trust fund than repeal a gaggle of special interest, sales tax exemptions. One to Kendrick Meek, who never got over being kicked out of his governor’s sit-in. The former state senator and now a Congressman from Miami-Dade created Amendment 9 to reduce class size. And the rest to this state’s (but not this county’s) voters who were too clueless to see where their yes vote on Meek’s amendment would lead.

*Florida’s budget is so hamstrung by having to live within Johnnie Byrd’s means, that it was almost shocking that the money would be found to fund a special session to finalize the budget.

Amid the miasma that is the Florida Legislature, it’s obviously easy to lose sight of basic priorities — let alone a given bill. But here’s one that even the fiscally challenged House could sign off on. Florida Senate Bill 2562 won’t cost anything.

The bill would merely designate the Port of Tampa-based SS American Victory as “Florida’s Official State Flagship.” Arguably, in a time of war and world peril, this restored Merchant Marine ship would merit no less a distinction than Florida’s official designations for flower, tree, bird and song.

Built in 1945, American Victory carried supplies, equipment, ammunition and personnel to the Pacific Theater of World War II, Korea and Vietnam. It also transported humanitarian aid in helping to expedite the Marshall Plan.

The Merchant Marine, lest we ever forget, had the highest casualty rate of any service during WW II. It was also the only WW II service that was completely integrated. It was critically important to its time — and ahead of its time. Now seems an appropriate time to underscore that with the flagship designation. In so doing, we celebrate this state’s rich maritime history and honor thousands of Merchant Marine and Navy Armed Guard veterans.

Mayor Pam Iorio’s well-honed communications skills have served her handsomely on the County Commission, in her Supervisor of Elections capacity and on the mayoral hustings. But that was then — and this was Tallahassee.

She was in the capital last week to lobby for Tampa.

By virtue of her two decades in public service, she was hardly a stranger. And by being a big city mayor, she is a big time, state player. But just for good measure, she came accompanied by former Governor Bob Martinez who is also familiar with the perspective from Tampa’s City Hall.

By all accounts, the right doors were opened and the right people seen — from Gov. Jeb Bush to Senate President Jim King and House Speaker Johnnie Byrd. If nothing else, it said Iorio wasn’t wasting any time getting right to the agenda she campaigned on. Iorio, who inherited a city that is largely bonded up, was in Tallahassee to make the case for ongoing help in urban revitalization, affordable housing and the arts. That’s the hat trick for Iorio’s mantra-goal of a more “livable” city. Tampa also can use state leverage for federal help on water issues.

Opened doors, however, can still lead to closed minds. The Governor and the Speaker arguably own two of them.

The economy is dicey and the budgetary process seems scripted by Eugene Ionesco channeling Byrd. Cuts ranging from universities to the medically needy are not just fiscally irresponsible, they’re flat-out harmful to a state that was already behind in such support. Amid a very real crisis that cries out for long-term, revenue-raising solutions, Bush and Byrd soldier on — fighting the partisan cliché canard of liberal spending in state government. Thanks for nothing.

But that’s what you get when you mix a post-Sept. 11 Florida; a couple of ill-informed, costly referenda votes; and a Legislature that has turned “living within our means” into an obscenity. It’s what you get when tapping trust funds and cutting critical services are preferred to revising the state’s outmoded sales tax system and repealing some of the more outlandish, special-interest exemptions.

As to what Iorio gets for her efforts, this much, at least, was encouraging. It was the response of King, the Senate President, to her heads-up that she expected to be working the capitol corridors “a great deal next year.”

“There’s a finite amount of money, and in the end you want to help who you know,” acknowledged King. “It behooves a mayor to make oneself known here to get things done.”

Iorio is quickly finding out how many roles the mayor of Tampa must play. Right now none may be more important than “squeaky wheel.”

For those looking for a little different way to honor mom this Mother’s Day, consider the annual Mother’s Day Picnic at Ybor City’s historic Circulo Cubano, the Cuban Club.

Doors of the Cuban Club at Palm Avenue and 14th Street open at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, May 11. Lunch, catered by Sabor de Tampa, will be served at noon in the Ballroom. The music of Son de Mi Tierra begins in the Cantina at 1:00 — and dancing continues until 5:00 p.m.

This 91st annual celebration also features a cash bar plus raffles, door prizes, family photos and carnations for all moms.

Seating this year is limited to 400. Tickets are $15. Children ages 5-9, $7.50; ages 4 and under, free. Sponsorships are still available. All proceeds go towards restoration efforts of the Cuban Club building.

To order tickets or inquire about sponsorships, please call either Jorge or Ileana Diaz at 248-2954.

In a previous incarnation I taught secondary school here in Tampa and in Philadelphia. They were inner city schools with all the usual connotations and euphemisms for tough neighborhoods and challenging students. Mordant references to “combat pay” — as in, “How about some?” — were hardly infrequent among the faculty.

Now I see where the Hillsborough County School Board has voted unanimously to actually offer extra pay to teachers in its poorest schools, which invariably are the toughest for teaching. The goal is to halt the inevitably — and understandably — high turnover at such schools, which only adds to the formidable task of teaching the neediest students in the poorest schools.

Some 700-800 teachers are expected to receive an additional 5 percent in pay in a program funded with federal dollars that are typically earmarked for recruitment, retention and staff development. Those who qualify for the bonus will also be attending regular training seminars and working with mentors.

This is not, of course, a panacea for high-poverty schools. It doesn’t ameliorate poverty. But it does address one key variable: faculty. As in improving chances for a better, more stable one.

Call it a concession to reality and well worth the investment. The better the faculty, the less likely it will be “combat pay.”

It won’t be the first time this has happened at Florida State University. In fact, it happens every year in Tallahassee. In the fall FSU will welcome fewer scholarship students than it had expected.

But in this case it won’t be a baseball player who forsook FSU for Major League Baseball bonus money. And it won’t be a hotshot football or basketball star who couldn’t produce a qualifying score on the SAT.

This one will be different. Tragically different. This one is an academic scholarship recipient who won’t be reporting — because he was killed in Iraq.

Lance Cpl. Andrew Aviles, not yet 19, had deferred his full scholarship to fulfill a more immediate dream than going off to college to get a bachelor’s degree in business. Ever since joining Junior ROTC, he had wanted to be a Marine. It was, say those who knew him best, out of a sense of duty and challenge and a constant quest for self-improvement.

What makes it so tragic is what makes Aviles, Robinson High School, Class of ’02, so special. It’s why the students and staff of Robinson took his death so hard.

Unlike many young men and women who sign on to this country’s all-volunteer armed forces, Aviles had plenty of options and the brightest of prospects. Scenarios for success tend to beckon for athletic class presidents who are members of the National Honor Society, third in their graduating class and winners of an academic scholarship. Family and friends spoke highly of his character — and sense of humor.

Aviles’ could easily have headed for FSU, gone on to graduate school and carved out a safe, successful, satisfying career in any number of fields. Instead he became a Marine and did his duty first. And last.

We are all in his debt, and we salute Tampa’s Lance Cpl. Andrew Aviles. One of the “best and brightest” was also one of the “bravest.”