When I was a young child my parents tried to teach me the value of money.  One hundred pennies made a dollar.  With a dollar one could buy three gallons of gasoline, enough to drive to town and back.  Parents taught children to be very careful with money so it wouldn’t be lost or wasted, but Benjamin Franklin may have said it best, “A penny saved is a penny earned.”

It was difficult to save a penny.  First, I seldom had one.  Second, if I had one, I could hardly wait to spend it.  My father often told me the penny was burning a hole in my pocket. It didn’t matter whether I lost it or spent it. It was soon gone.  The only way to really save it was to lock it away in a piggy bank.

Finding a penny was not only rare, it was a big deal.  My grandfather, bending over to pick up a penny, would invariably say the penny wasn’t worth the pain in his back, but he continued to pick them up anyway.

There are people today who insist we should abandon the penny. I’ve heard a variety of reasons why the penny is no longer useful.  They say things like, “When people leave them at the cash register, it’s time to end the penny.”  They point out a majority of us stash pennies rather than bother with spending them. Even with banks begging us to bring them in, it seems hardly worth the effort to carry a quart or gallon jar of pennies to the bank.

Some activists remind us, even after replacing the copper in pennies with zinc, the cost to our government to make pennies is still more than the pennies are worth.  Businesses hate them. They are wasteful of the time it takes to count them and they no longer facilitate commerce.

The penny has become a part of our language and adds to our nostalgia of a simpler time.  Ever wear penny loafers? Remember the penny pincher?  Who could forget the black sheep of the family who kept returning like a bad penny?  My favorite was the lucky penny. Remember the time when you were offered a penny for your thoughts?  cialis online was a wonderful movie and you really could buy penny candy for a penny.

Nothing can stop the passage of time and change is inevitable.  The value of pennies is now so low no one wants them.  I can’t think of anything one can buy today for a single penny.  Yet, we continue to spend approximately one hundred million dollars per year making more pennies.  These are pennies worth so little they are a nuisance to most people and not even poor people will pick them up.  I see them on floors everywhere, in department stores, in convenience stores, in grocery stores, and in parking lots.  Poor people, including those on food stamps and the homeless, just step over them.  They are truly not worth picking up.

The penny may ultimately have to go, for a variety of economic reasons, but I’ll be disappointed when it does.  The demise of the penny will be perhaps the first tangible proof to the masses our dollar is failing.  As long as we have the penny there is hope we can restore the dollar. Our current sales tax is six pennies per dollar.  Remove the penny and it’s easy to imagine a sales tax of two nickels.  When tax is the topic of conversation, six pennies are far better than two nickels.

The penny is in trouble and we may not be able to save it, but I am optimistic and hopeful we can someday restore the value to the penny.  It is a part of Americana.  It is a part of who we are.  It is tradition. It is also like the canary in a coal mine.  Lose the penny and we lose hope.  Lose the penny and our nickel is at risk.

I frequently pick up three or four pennies in a single day, sometimes more.   I freely admit they are not worth picking up but I pick them up for a different reason.  I pick them up because I can, and I can because I pick them up.  I know dozens of people personally, and have seen many others, who cannot bend, squat, or stoop sufficiently to pick up a penny.  I like being able to pick them up, so I pick them up to continue to be able to pick them up. At the risk of being simplistic, I offer my opinion.  People who step over pennies when they are young are far less likely to be able to pick them up when they are old.

There are two ways to view a penny on the floor.  One can see it as further evidence of the decline of the dollar and dwell on that negative subject.  The other is to see it as an opportunity to preserve or improve one’s health. So, for my patriotic friends I have the following suggestion. The next time you see a penny on the floor, enjoy the nostalgia of the moment and say to yourself, “cialis online.” Then proudly pick up that penny which humbly proclaims, “IN GOD WE TRUST.” Our penny is not yet dead.  It still has a pulse, it still has a message, and so long as we care, there is hope.

I am happy and excited to announce my quest to win Seat 4 on the Alachua City Commission.  I am also happy to be a candidate among such quality opponents and for the leadership and commitment of my campaign manager, Mr. Leslie Richardson, Jr.  There seems to be little difference between our commitment to service and willingness to address the tough, important issues for the continued well-being of our cialis online community, not just select special interest.  Similarly we all have low or zero tolerance for the “nastiness of politics” that generally stem from a self-centered thirst for power and position rather than a people’s servant disposition.  Thus, I have no doubts that we are all candidates who want to do what is best for all.

Though greatly alike, there is one multi-faceted important distinction between me and my opponents. I know the city from the inside out, have significant exposure from attendance at numerous city and county commission meetings and service on numerous community boards here and in many other areas.  Also, my diverse experience and exposure has enabled me to embrace all perspectives of businesses from emerging micro-entrepreneurs to multinationals.  This was aided by my MBA and credentials in economic development.  I also understand and relate well to the needs of individuals regardless of their race, creed or socio-economic status.  While I can’t make everyone happy I will do my best to make as many happy as I can…no matter who they are.

I have the integrity, exposure, experience, credentials and intestinal fortitude, to serve this community while protecting and garnering maximum return on its resources—financial, human, and environmental.  I have demonstrated significant success in planning, implementing, and successfully managing projects that improve lives.  With your vote, I can do more of that right here at home.  Thus, my goal is to ensure that the City of Alachua will forever be a great place to live, work, and play!

In closing, I would like to applaud the city’s consideration of smart grids.  I have worked in a city that already employs smart grid technology in managing utilities.  Alachua has needed a solution to the high costs of utilities for a very long time.  It is encouraging to see us finally taking a serious and viable approach to addressing this important challenge.

Please support my campaign and vote for Pat Lee on April 10, 2012.  Thanks for your consideration.

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I am pleased to announce my candidacy for Alachua’s City Commission Seat 4.  As a resident of Alachua, my desire is to serve the citizens with honesty and integrity. As your next city commissioner, I will work to preserve our city's reputation and foundation. My interest and experience in managing people and organizations will prove valuable in serving the citizens of Alachua during these challenging times. I am excited to bring my leadership, professional skills and demonstrated work ethic to the Alachua City Commission.

The City of Alachua's future is filled with challenges and opportunities, and I am eager to be a part of this city's promising future. We must continue the revitalization of this great city by building on past success, but also continue to seek new and innovative strategies. To be successful, we must plan for the future in the areas of economic development, jobs, budget management and education. We must continue providing a safe and clean city that residents are proud to call home and raise their families. I am dedicated to improving the quality of life for our citizens. I ask for your vote on April 10, 2012 for Alachua City Commission Seat 4.

For more information about my candidacy, contact me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  Together we can make a difference.

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When one drives in Alachua County it is painfully obvious that our roads are crumbling. According to the county’s figures, there is a $380 million backlog. Given that this information is two years old and the deleterious multiplying effect that happens as roads degrade, the backlog is rapidly approaching half a billion dollars. The questions now are why did we allow this to occur and what do we do about it?

There are three primary reasons we have this road problem: 1) Outright neglect; 2) County commissioners have planned reduced road infrastructure over the past 20 years; and 3) These same commissioners have been spending your money on their utopian visions.

Neglect is simple “Why do today what you can put off until tomorrow?”

Reduced road capability is camouflaged under the umbrella of “Smart growth” and “Sustainability” when the purpose is to curtail any economic growth, especially in the county’s small cities where better roads are a necessity. The utopian visions are manifested in myriad “pet projects” siphoning off literally millions of taxpayer dollars that have no benefit for taxpayers in general.

As the first person to represent small cites on the Metropolitan Transportation Organization (MTPO), I reached the conclusion those who have dominated both the Alachua County Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) and the Gainesville City Commissions want to limit the use of automobiles in favor of an expanded bus system and other limited modes.  While East Gainesville residents have a need for more bus service, the MTPO has focused on forcing West side development toward severely curtailing auto use.

What to do about the crumbling roads?

We cannot ignore the situation; the longer we wait the more expensive it will be. Some roads are now so bad that they are a hazard for public safety.   The solution begins by reprioritizing the county budget to place road repair at the top of the list. Present commissioners must put aside their personal agendas to do their constitutional duty – provide core services to their constituents. They must look for alternative solutions that are cost effective such as paving overlay, which will add to the life of a road and slow degradation.

Currently, groups such as the Builders Association and Gainesville Chamber of Commerce are being asked by the County and City of Gainesville to get behind a new sales tax initiative.

Like many of you, I am skeptical of giving these commissions any more money.  We must let them know they need to insist that roads, along with public safety, be the highest priority this budget year, along with the demand that non-essential spending be seriously curtailed if not suspended.

The present commission has left quite a legacy, one we will be saddled with for years. The clock is ticking, but it’s not too late. We must stand together and speak with a clear voice:  “We are going to fire you this November, and choose a Commission that will fix our roads.”

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If you thought this is about cialis online sending Valentine’s Day cards, you would be wrong.

When Valentine’s Day rolls around, I admit I am a dyed-in-the-wool romantic.

By this time next week, Cupid’s big day will have come and gone, and so too will have all the electronic messages sent with such fervor and passion.

With the great efficiency and speed of today’s social media, people will have emailed, tweeted, IM’d, and more, their passionate intentions of affection, love and undying devotion to their significant other –– or others.

Some messages will be funny, others poignant and still others outrageous.

But with all the whiz, bang, flash, zip-a-dee-doo-dah, and instantaneous professions of adoration, something will be lacking –– the passion, the spark, the magic, the tender caring that true love elicits and deserves.

And that is why I am making the case for the good, old fashioned from-my-heart to-your-hand Valentine’s Day card.

The kind of cards that dads gave moms and moms gave dads.

The kind of cards that grandparents exchanged well into their golden years.

The cards that were found long after those very special people were gone – cards, edges yellowed with age, with a lingering musty scent of years gone by, tucked lovingly away in a drawer or keepsake box.

Giving an old fashioned card may not be as sensory-affecting as flashing e-cards, Facebook status updates or Twitter tweets.

But cards have a lasting, enduring quality of substance that speaks to relationships that are lasting, enduring and are about truly caring for someone else.

It used to be that everyone wrote letters, postcards and even thank you notes.

But in today’s electronic age, letters are rare, with the exception of the impersonal mass marketing genre that stuff our mailboxes to overflowing with deals we’re told we can’t afford to miss.

And I can’t remember the last time I received a postcard in the mail.

Sadly, thank you notes have been on the endangered species list for decades.

This brings me to Valentine’s Day cards –– actual cards with envelopes –– that are selected with care, and which transform heartfelt feelings that you may find difficult expressing, into words.

Cards reinforce that deeper affection that can’t be conveyed by shooting a text, twittering a tweet or posting a status update to potentially hundreds of "valentines,” also known as “your friends,” “your contacts” and “your followers.”

A Valentine’s card in the purest sense is meant for that one and only love of your life, and it carries a sentiment intended to pass from one heart to another.

The card needn’t be fancy or expensive, but it should embrace that special bond that only the two of you share.

A memory can be slipped inside a card –– a ticket stub from a special occasion, a photo from a memorable moment you shared or even a dab of his or her favorite fragrance.

Try that with an electronic message.

A Valentine’s Day card is an envelope of time and memories, waiting to be filled.

It has substance that you can touch and feel and hold close.

And whether attached to the refrigerator door with a magnet, left on the nightstand, or carefully tucked away with special treasures, a card is a reminder of the lasting and enduring love you have for that special someone.

And that my friends, is why most of us need Hallmark on Valentine’s Day.

So what's your priority, Alachua School District, having your children score well on FCAT tests or having them get a rich educational experience?

Apparently the former, as Altrusa International cancels its program of having area citizens (including me) spend less than an hour reading books to children in the lower grades.

This year the program was cancelled, and the chair of the literacy committee of Altrusa expresses regret but also thinks the program should be eliminated because of the lack of "precious" time for teachers to prepare students for the FCAT tests.

Is this yet another instance of the testing tail wagging the educational dog?  We have to "schedule" this opportunity for children to interact with adults other than their teachers so as not to conflict with the testing schedule?

In fact, based on a published article on the matter, the School District itself was "unaware" of Altrusa's decision to cut the program and a spokesperson pledges full cooperation to continue the program and cites a "miscommunication" with the organization resulting in this year's cancellation.

So what's next as the grim reaper of standardized testing works its deadly way across the landscape of public education?

Can we no longer "afford" to have: recess, school assemblies, field trips, music, drama, sports---anything that doesn't help kids fill in the correct bubble on an FCAT test?

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Although much has been said about the sad state of affairs in High Springs, much more could be said.  But just as sadly, any explanation would surely not adequately convey just how dire the circumstances.

The ill-advised appointment of Jeri Langman to Interim City Manager should have been a sign that the High Springs Commission was acting in bad faith.  It would be akin to smelling smoke and knowing something isn’t right.

When the City’s engineering firm, attorney, and interim police chief all resigned within a span of a few weeks of each other, that was an indication there was a fire smoldering at City Hall.

The sudden and disquieting resignation of Commissioner Eric May earlier this week was the explosion.

If you live in the quaint city of High Springs, you should know that not only is your city on fire, the flames are licking at your door.

Vice-Mayor Bob Barnas, Commissioner Linda Clark Gestrin and Mayor Dean Davis all claim to be undoing and fixing the mistakes of prior commissions.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  As a trio, these elected officials have created more problems, upheaval and political unrest than any other commissioners in at least the last decade.  High Springs is in throes of a hostile takeover and the residents should be aware that this commission is not acting in your best interests, contrary to any statements otherwise.

The commission’s appointment of Langman, one of Barnas’ campaign workers, reeks of political insider trading, favors and paybacks.  This is evidence enough that there are no checks and balances in High Springs.

And when the political environment crosses the line from the politician to the employee, as in Langman’s case, the repercussion can be far reaching. The morale at City Hall is not only at an all-time low, employees are left paralyzed as they fear for their jobs.  These employees witnessed what at the very least appears to be cronyism as the interim city manager effectively forced the interim police chief out posthaste and then appointed her friend to police chief without conducting a formal job opening and application process.  Furthermore, Langman hastily transferred one longtime employee to a different position in what appears to be another personally motivated act.  And the list goes on…

Today the City of High Springs is under the control of a coalition of individuals that is not working on behalf of the residents of High Springs. Scarce city resources are being squandered daily in their quest to further their own agendas of retribution, retaliation and political paybacks. And the few residents who have spoken out have received only lip service laced with platitudes.

Seldom has an entire community fallen so far so quickly at the hands of so few.

High Springs is at a crossroads. It is no longer enough to sit on the sidelines and complain about your community in hopes that someone else will fix it.  The responsibility rests on the shoulders of each and every resident of High Springs who truly cares about their community, their quality of life and their future. The strength of a community is in the people, or it should be, not in the hands of a few officials who dictate to others. The residents of the City of High Springs must become active in the local government.  Talk to your neighbor. Attend a meeting, ask questions, demand answers and do not accept an answer if it doesn’t make sense or you don’t agree with it. Be heard, be persistent, and be heard again.

And above all, demand a transparent, ethical and professional commission and city manager.  The current ones appear to be lacking all three of these qualities.

Have you bothered to read the cialis online recently and especially cialis online, cialis online the cialis online?

It appears that you have paid very little attention to the rights guaranteed by the founders of our country based on the recent news release by Ms. Sebelius, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, on Jan. 20, 2012, in which she stated:

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I do not believe you, Ms. Sebilius, or anyone else in your administration have read this hallowed document very closely or, obviously worse, have opted to ignore the "unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," guaranteed every American in our cialis online.

It is stated in cialis online of the cialis online:

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In cialis online of the cialis onlineit is stated:

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In order to offer protection from unfettered intrusion by the federal government among the states or its individual citizens, our forefathers proclaimed in cialis onlineof the cialis onlinethe insightful and poignant words stating:

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These three articles clearly speak to the rights of: "the free exercise of religion; "not denying the rights retained by the people," and "ensuring rights are protected and reserved to the people."

In case you are interested, I proudly spent a 20-year career in the United States Navy defending these precious constitutional rights.

I ask with utmost bewilderment, how can you, Ms. Sebilius, and your administration have the audacity to force religious institutions, or the people, to adhere to an edict contrary to their "group" or "individual" right to worship their God as they so choose?

Mandating laws on religious institutions regarding the use of contraceptive methods in preventing pregnancy is not the right of the federal government. It is the right of faithbased institutions and/or individuals to exercise their religious beliefs as they deem appropriate.

Your administration is forcing individuals, most of whom believe in a power greater than themselves, to choose between their personal conscience and an unfair government mandate. Forcing mandatory contraceptive provisions be included in health insurance plans for nonprofit religious institutions is a travesty of justice.

What is next? I pray that we as a country are not heading down a "slippery slope" in which the federal government attempts to pass laws in the future limiting the number of children an individual or family can bring into God's world through the miracle of birth--at least one country already limits childbirth for their citizens.

Our forefathers knew what they were doing in separating "church and state" matters as a principled idea. You should do the same and stay out of the personal liberties of all Americans.

I implore you to reconsider your decision in mandating this unjust "contraceptive" law on America's faithbased institutions. Let the "people" decide. It is the "constitutionally-right" thing to do!

Robert W. Wilford

Senior Chief Petty Officer

(U.S. Navy - Retired)

Alachua, Fla.