What's happened to Florida State football team?
You don’t really want to think this, much less say it …
But it appears that the Florida State University coach has “lost” the team. This, of course, assumes that he had the team in the first place.
Actually, because of the transfer portal, it really is difficult to determine if the players have gelled as a team.
Well, actually, it appears they have not done so, but is the portal the reason?
Getting to know one another through years of experiences, of forming friendships and deep ties in a myriad of situations on the field and off is negated by use of the portal.
Does this really matter? You bet, Red Ryder.
The Seminoles have given new meaning to the trite phrase, "playing just good enough to lose."
How did this happen? Looking at the schedule, it appears FSU has a very good chance of losing the rest of its games.
How do you go from having an undefeated season to not being able to hold your head up the following year?
The team's best defensive back missed a game due to having been charged with a DUI. Are there any dark things going on of which the public is not aware?
If you hearken back to the Bobby Bowden era, there were two national championships and more wins than any other college during a 15-year span.
And last year‘s undefeated, top 10 performance … my goodness.
To see the current state of the program is headshaking to say the least.
The answers will eventually reveal themselves. They usually do.
In the meantime, as the season moves forward, it appears Seminole fans will remain glum.
Roy Bickford, Vero Beach
Column evokes emotion of decades-ago trip to West Point
I enjoyed Laurence Reisman's column in which he mentioned West Point.It reminded me of a 40-year-ago visit I shared with a longtime school chum.
Walking around, we saw a path postedwith a sign: "Off Limits to visitors." (I think the path led to "Inspiration Point.")
So, of course, we had to see what was there.
As we passedthrough a wooded area, we saw a casually dressed young man coming from the opposite direction.
"I think we're busted," I told my friend, Anne, expecting to be politely told we should not be there.
Instead, all smiles, the young man pointed behind him.
"If you look to your right on the hill, there is a young deer."
I asked were he was from and how long it had been since he saw his parents.
"Michigan, and a few months," he said.
"I'm from Michigan, and if you like I'll call your parents, let them know I met you and how thoughtful you were," I said.
"Great," he said, giving me his home phone number.
A few days later back in Michigan, I talked to his mom.I told her how well he looked and how proud she must have been having such a fine son.
She said she appreciated hearing from someone who had seen him recently.
Reisman's mention of West Point brought back the pleasure I felt in letting his mom know how well he was doing.
Ruth Sullivan, Vero Beach
Sister seeks justice for brother, a stabbing victim
My brother was recently stabbed in Gifford. As I write this, he is fighting for his life after being driven to Lawnwood Regional Medical Center.
The alleged aggressor may face minor charges and law enforcement says the case was an altercation.
My brother has a 5-year-old and an unborn child on the way. How can a stab to the throat cause him to be treated this way?
My brother’s daughter is waiting on him. She saw him every day.
He had to sit on a curb and is now fighting to not be brain dead.
Nothing seems to have been reported. Everything is just active until they make an arrest. My brother is a dad, a brother and friend, but someone else brings a knife to attack my brother. Nobody cares and you just have to keep fighting, but I pray he makes it.
The adults and kids bully at Vero Beach High School. It’s OK.
The Health Department knows buildings have mold. It’s OK.
To almost kill a man and to think the attacker and law enforcement might get away with misconduct is just awful.
I want my brother to be OK. I don’t know how long a teddy bear can keep his daughter happy.
He shouldn’t be in a coma, trying to wake up, at 36. Give people a break.
Theresa Hillsman, Vero Beach
Learn from past on taxation, rather than repeat mistakes
When contemplating an investment, businesses must predict the return over time.
The level of taxes can be the deciding factor. With a corporate income tax rate of 11% in Ireland, for example, it’s no wonder that during President Barack Obama's administration (when the federal corporate income tax rate was35%), many U.S. corporations moved their plants abroad — and took their jobs with them.The IRS tried to tax them anyway, but the companies built up foreign reserves of untaxed revenues.
In 2017, Donald Trump lowered the corporate rate to 21% and taxed the untaxed reserves at 10%. An estimated $2 billion came back right away. More followed; some corporations moved back.Suddenly, we had manufacturing jobs here in the states.
Remember, Obama said he’d need a “magic wand” to bring back such jobs.Trump did it with economic incentives
The IRS reports U.S. revenues from corporate taxes are making new highs every year despite the lower rate.Kamala Harris wants to raise the federal corporate rate to 28%.She had better get her magic wand ready because, as Art Laffer (the noted economist) said in his book, “taxes have consequences.”
Harris also wants to let the Trump tax cut expire. The Tax Foundation says this will cost $7,500 annually for a family of four making $200,000 per year; $2,000 for a family of five making $165,000.
These examples show the naivety of Harris’ tax proposals.Sometimes what sounds good politically (higher taxes for big corporations) is counterproductive.That’s why it’s good to have real experience. Let’s learn from the past instead of blindly "turning the page to the future."
Tom Miller, Vero Beach
Inflation? Why not spend less dining out?
This young man, in a column you published, is complaining about inflation?
“For example, just the other day, I ventured to the Lucky Goat Coffee to catch up with my friend, Lestat," Pedro Rodriguez wrote. "Just in gas, my day was already off to a $20 start. That’s not counting the coffee I had once I arrived.”
Why doesn’t he make coffee at home and invite his friend over, or go for a walk in the park? Our supermarket often has good brands of ground coffee at buy-one, get-one-free prices, and my little coffeemaker has worked well for years.
What happened to having breakfast before you leave for work or school, and coming prepared to do your job?
Helen Frigo, Jensen Beach
Trump selfishness shines through
Aren’t voters who claim they’re voting for Donald Trump because he will be better for the economy either kidding themselves or needing an excuse to vote for a felon?
Trump’s "Art of the Deal" seems to be breaking a contract and claiming he will make it better (Iran nuclear contract — broken, not remade). Who believes that a man who has filed for bankruptcy so many times would be good for the economy? It was good for his personal economy, but not for the contractors and creditors who were forced to take pennies on the dollar, nor for the banks who gave him huge loans. But as he said when questioned in the 2016 debate, it was “good business.”
Then you have the Trump University enrollees, or those who bought shares in his Mexico resort/condo development. What will happen with those who bought shares in Truth Social? If he loses, won’t he file for bankruptcy after selling his allowed amount?
The economy Trump inherited was good until COVID. Remember how many people lost their jobs? Wasn’t the price of gasoline low because people weren’t commuting or traveling? Was he really worried about people dying or was he worried about how COVID was affecting “his” economy and therefore his re-election?
Remember when he didn’t want people to get off the COVID cruise ship because it would increase “his” COVID numbers? Remember how the GOP decided to make Dr. Anthony Fauci the reason things were so bad?
I give credit to Trump for getting the vaccine created quickly, but he was upset because it wouldn’t be available until after the election; once again concern for himself and not for people dying.
Is there anyone on this planet more selfish than Donald J. Trump?
Anne Brakman, Vero Beach
With lack of ethics rules, Supreme Court runs amok
It was announced recently the U.S. Supreme Court has adjusted its ethics rules to allow judges to take lavish vacations on their friends' dimes.
It's interesting how the justices get to decide what laws they will and will not follow. What’s more interesting is nowhere in the Constitution does it give the judicial branch the power to be exempt from laws.
The current Supreme Court granted the president forms of immunity. Nowhere does the Constitution mention giving the president immunity for anything. Nor is this decision grounded in history or precedence.
The Constitution lays out the process of amending the Constitution. Nowhere in that process does it say the Supreme Court shall have the power to amend the Constitution. We just blindly believed and obey the Supreme Court regardless of its decisions, believing the court always realized the Constitution is more important than politics. We believed it was detrimental to the country to openly criticize the court. Those days have long passed.
The court no longer seems interested in preserving the Constitution; it seems more interested in preserving its power. This Supreme Court has more power to decide your life than ever in the history of our country.
Under this court, justices no longer are calling balls and strikes, they're now deciding various facets of your life. This Supreme Court has seized unprecedented power with billionaire right-wing zealots lining their pockets. The framers never intended the judiciary to run the country, but it is.
Don Whisman, Stuart
Readers missing facts about candidate Harris?
As a longtime TCPalm subscriber I'm continuously amazed at the ignorance of some readers who for some inexplicable reason support Kamala Harris for president while disregarding the facts.
One might ask what these people are thinking when history screams of her unfitness to serve as president. This woman has repeatedly stated how proud she was to be the last person in the room when disastrous decisions were made by Joe Biden and his inept political cronies — relatively few of whom have military experience or private sector involvement. These cronies are best described as political wonks or sycophants.
It began with Biden's disastrous Afghanistan surrender to the Taliban, where he directed billions in taxpayer-funded new military equipment be left for the terrorists to use in killing and maiming our young service members serving in the Middle East.It should forever be remembered this Biden withdrawal was adamantly opposed by our best career generals and resulted in the unnecessary deaths of13 young service members.And Harris was proud.
Next is Harris serving as border czar overseeing the largest invasion of a country by millions of unwanted illegal immigrants from all over the world.And Harris was proud.
Finally, we have Harris and Biden to thank for the high inflation, and they did this in just three years. During this time, American families were confronted with some price increases of 100% or more of what they were three years earlier.Think of the prices of a dozen eggs, gasoline, chuck roast, etc. And Harris was proud.
I leave you with this truism:"Ignorance is temporary, stupid is permanent."
Jack Jennings, Port St. Lucie