Don't ruin a Sunday drive in Cocoa; pay hike raises eyebrows: Letters, Sept. 18, 2022

Florida Today
·6 min read

Why would city of Cocoa want to ruin Indian River Drive with zoning change?

The city of Cocoa's planning and zoning department is considering opening Indian River Drive to condos. There was a meeting last week to change the zoning from light density to medium density on the southwest corner of Indian River Drive and Dixon Boulevard. This area is undeveloped but should be left for single family homes.

The drive along the river is pleasant; a quiet roadway leading south right into Cocoa Village. It is in itself a treasure to the city and the county; a great "Sunday drive” kind of place, with a view of the river on the east and lovely homes on the west. The lots are large, many with manicured lawns leading down to the river. The city thinks this is a great place to obtain more tax dollars by putting up condos there. Think about the river lined with condos and the sun not coming up on Indian River Drive until noon.

We need quiet places to renew our souls, and what better than a drive up a lovely stretch of road? If the city does this, it will set precedent for others to sell out to developers and ruin a lovely, peaceful area of the city that so many people enjoy.

Sarah Callahan, Cocoa

Looking at it per hour, commissioners, that's quite the wage you're making

Congrats to the Brevard County commissioners for raising their pay. They are among the highest-paid-per-hour people in Brevard County and here is why.

I figure they have 50 meetings a year that last approximately five hours each, which is 250 hours a year.

I figure they attend ribbon cuttings, chicken dinners, etc., for another 150 hours a year.

They get their insurance paid for which costs approximately $200/month or another $2,400 a year each.

Some may also get reimbursed for travel which I do not have that info so won’t include, as well as cell phone usage.

So by my figures each county commissioner makes $156 an hour. Not a bad wage.

That should incentivize some local folks to make a run at county commission in 2024.

And here is my question to you: Do you know anyone making $156 an hour?

Bob Socks, Cocoa

Englehart
Englehart

Medical marijuana ruling flies in face of voter-approved amendment

Ever since Florida voters approved a constitutional amendment approving medical marijuana by an overwhelming margin, politicians and the Department of Health have constantly attempted to restrict and/or modify usage that should be between doctor and patient, not some politician with a political agenda.

The latest effort was a last-minute, late-Friday-night “emergency” ruling, arbitrarily restricting daily dosages for inhalants, edibles and tinctures. Smokable marijuana is restricted to 2.5 ounces within any 35-day period. Why the emergency ruling? An emergency ruling requires no input or discussion from the general public, patients nor their doctors, so legislators can do whatever they like with little or no oversight or accountability.

So, what are their credentials to determine what dosages medical marijuana patient may or may not require? Are the people making these decisions certified doctors or are they elected officials who believe they know better than the 71.3% of Florida voters who approved medical marijuana in the first place? So, why all the cloak and dagger, and why is the DOH constantly trying to move the goal posts during the game?

Additionally, why do politicians of a certain party seem to take so much glee in restricting the rights of others, all the while screaming that they want less government? I want less government I want the government out of my bedroom, my bathroom and my personal life, including who I can or cannot marry and what any American can or cannot do with their own bodies. Why is this any of their business? Very simple: It’s not.

Ricardo Alvarez Jr., West Melbourne

A photo of medical marijuana plants is seen behind water pipes on display in Peace Avenue Smokeshop in Port St. Lucie, one of the original stores on the Treasure Coast selling CBD products, along with American-made glass pipes, papers, wraps, vaporizers, custom pieces, and glass accessories. "There's a dispensary across the street where my customers can walk over and get medical marijuana, come over here and purchase the accoutrements and hand choose what they want accordingly," said Chad Rowland, owner of Peace Avenue Smokeshop.

Ready for some Thursday night football? This move's not so prime

Say you do not watch professional football games — that is not the point.

Say you do watch professional football games. Thursday night NFL games will cost us more money. Given the current condition of America's economy, a large percentage of sports fans cannot afford Amazon Prime. We cannot afford to pay more money to watch NFL games on Thursday nights; even if we could, it is the principle of the thing. We would not pay for Amazon Prime.

We pay to watch cable TV, rates that have steadily increased.

The network that aired NFL Thursday night games is now losing a great deal of revenue.

A monopoly: This venture is an egregious monopoly because wealthy entities can, as Nike states, "Just do it."

Diane Norwood-Steven, Rockledge

Wake up, America: GOP needs help to return to sound logic

The Jan. 6 hearings are now semi-complete and President Trump is also semi-quiet except for promoting giveaway money from the Saudi LIV Golf Series. He just will not give up. I refer you back to the time he said he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and wouldn't be arrested. Makes me wonder if he still thinks his “Teflon Don” attitude still holds after all the evidence in the Jan. 6 hearings.

I say wake up, America, and quit drinking the Kool-Aid that is being served to you. Save the conservative Republican Party by real conservatives like Sen. Joe Manchin instead of President Trump. Right now the Republican Party needs all of the help they can get and reimagining will take some serious revamping if their thinking and sound logic are to survive.

Cecil King, Melbourne                                                                                           

Documents weren't Trump's to keep and could pose security risk

Donald Trump left the White House with hundreds of classified documents to which he was not entitled. Even if they had been declassified (they were not) these documents belong with the National Archives.

Trump refused to hand them over, while lying about having them in his possession. A grand jury's subpoena to recover these documents was not honored, leaving the DOJ no choice but to request, and receive, a legal search warrant which allowed them to recover about 30 boxes, in addition to the initial 15 that were found in January. It's possible that there are even more hidden elsewhere. At least one of these documents has information with regard to the military and nuclear capabilities of another country. Obviously, which country this is cannot be disclosed. Who has been shown this (and more) information and what is the risk to our national security?

Hearing complaints about the timing with regard to the upcoming elections, I would like to know what that has to do with Trump. He is not on any ballot. He has endorsed candidates. So what? Where is it written in law that someone who endorses candidates can commit crimes freely?

The fact is that if anyone else stole classified documents, lied about it and refused to return them, handcuffs would have made an appearance long before this. Why is he being handled with kid gloves?

Susan Termini, Merritt Island

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Commissioners' pay hike raises eyebrows: Letters, Sept. 18, 2022