I am writing to voice my disgust about the cover of an advertising supplement included with the Nov.10 edition of Highlands Today. The cover shows a beautiful, joyous, young lady frolicking with the American flag announcing this retailer's Veterans Day sale. The message being: celebrate yet another holiday by gleefully shopping. The advertising copy also goes on to say that this is all part of "the magic of..." this company. They can keep their magic in as much as I plan to never set foot in one of their stores. To use Veterans Day to promote a wonderful time to have a sale is tasteless and disrespectful. Of course, I am absolutely certain that no one from that retailer, the ad agency, the media that distributes the circular will step up to the plate and admit to it being in bad taste. I could suggest that every veteran and their families boycott companies that have a flagrant disregard for the meaning of Veterans Day by using it for commercial self-promotion, but, those companies could care less unless it hurts their public image on a national scale. ...more

November 16, 2009

In countless classrooms in countless schools, students participated in countless lessons and projects this week in observance of Veterans Day. ...more

November 14, 2009

Red-light cameras Having driven in the Middle East (Doha, Qatar) with red-light and speed cameras, I witnessed more accidents than they prevented, and there were more violent crashes. Drivers slamming their brakes to minimize tickets were very common and did not subside with education. Drivers just worked around them. ...more

November 10, 2009

"Is he gonna turn the switch, or what's he gonna do?" At 9 a.m. Tuesday, the five men in the coffee clatch at McDonald's were manning their usual stations. None planned to go to the Turner Center, where the president's helicopter was supposed to meet a motorcade of a dozen black Suburbans, white government SUVs and local police cars. ...more

October 28, 2009

A man says he was fired from his job as a cashier at The Home Depot in a rural Florida town because he wore an American flag button that read, "One nation under God, indivisible." ...more

October 27, 2009

The American Legion, Sons of Legion and Auxiliary Post 139 have been sending CARE boxes to U.S. troops overseas for more than four years. Recently they heard from Army Sgt. Michael Genetti who, along with his team, had received the packages for several months. ...more

August 26, 2009

Media General opened its window on Washington 30 years ago, three blocks from the White House. Last week, the recession closed it. ...more

March 29, 2009

In an attempt to bring some order and decorum to a situation that has grown increasingly ugly, state Rep. Kevin Ambler, R-Tampa, has authored a bill putting new requirements on homeowners associations. ...more

March 16, 2009

You've probably heard the horror stories about homeowners associations. ...more

March 16, 2009

When Frank Ryan discovered Cafe Kili a few months ago, he immediately "fell in love" with the coffee house and eatery's appealing atmosphere and the hospitality of its hosts. ...more

February 25, 2009