Reading the Charlotte Sun Newspaper

The combination of miles of paper, a paid subscriber base, buckets of ink, and high-speed presses combine to breed a special kind of egotism in newsmen and women. It’s an egotism that’s too often expressed upon peering into the mirror one morning and thinking, “Wow! That’s a good subject for a column!”

Sun-Herald columnist Steve Baumann is the latest at the Daily Excuse to succumb to the temptation of imagining his readers will better understand their little town if they first read a history of his mustache and sideburns.

Give him credit: he doesn’t hide his topic: “Let’s talk about my face.”
No, Steve. Let’s not. Next time you are looking for a subject, try one of these:

• We in Arcadia need to know what’s up with the rural transportation initiative.
• We need to know if the local high school’s drop out numbers are down or up.
• How about telling us how the state-level budget cuts will affect local school resources?
• We need to know what the property appraiser is doing to assessed home values in a time of falling market prices.
• We need to know if a proposed 25-acre animal drop-off facility is everything its promoters say it is – and what county permits have been issued.
• We need to know why DeSoto County commissioners refuse to institute a can-and-glass recycling program (or create an inter-local agreement so Arcadians can use Charlotte County’s drop-off facility).
• We need to know if the teen pregnancy rate is still the highest in the state and what initiatives are taken to keep young women in school.
• We need to know the outcome of the investigation into the policeman who shot a citrus worker during a traffic stop.
• Whatever happened to those eight high-powered rifles stolen from the local pawn shop?
• What are the jail conditions that were evaluated by the feds last month?

There is so much more … taxpayers, families, and job holders in Arcadia need to know. And, Steve, your goatee is not on the list. <