What's better for the child?

At the beginning of the hearings pitting a wealthy foster family against a biological father from a rural town in Cuba for the custody of a 5-year-old girl, I opined the father should get the child. Case closed. I suspected politics infiltrated what should've been a simple matter of family rights.
I'm not so sure now. Though the judge in the case ruled that the biological father, a farmer of limited means and education, was fit to serve as a parent for the girl, my thinking has evolved as I've read more about the case. The 5-year-old has obviously bonded with the foster couple. Her half-brother has been adopted by them and the little girl is very close to him. What's more, it seems that the biological father and his legal team may have fabricated some letters to prove he was interested in the girl in the eyes of the court.
I think the girl would be better served staying where she's at -- a safe home where she's cared for disinterestedly. In Cuba, yes, she would be with her biological father, but in a home and with a family she really knows nothing about. Biology isn't everything.

Another worry on college campuses

Time was when you sent your kid off to college and worried about simple problems: drink binging, sexual freedom and not enough serious studying. Now add life-threatening danger of shootings as colleges begin to look at technology that will alert students in the event of another Virginia Tech or, more recently, Delaware.
Can you say gun control? Sounds real good to me along with study groups and cold pizza in the middle of the night.

They learn this behavior at home

I can't understand how the young men who are accused of beating up a black FIU student -- some of them my sons' ages -- could behave so inhumanely and horribly. People aren't born this way. They learn this hate at home or among their peers.

Better late than never

Gov. Crist pardoned a guy who had a drug conviction after trying to get pills for pain caused by an accident. Good for you, gov.
I'm amazed that this man wasn't judged -- by prosecutors particularly -- in context of the case. Justice needs to be swift AND compassionate. Reminds me of a debate a professor of mine liked to prompt in college. Is it a crime when you're stealing a loaf of bread for your hungry children?

Simpson's latest: a setup or a crime?

You would think O.J. Simpson would know better than to do anything bearing a remote whiff of controversy. But apparently he can't stay out of the limelight and now is facing a whole slew of felony charges in connection with an incident in Las Vegas.
Something about this incident -- or at least what I've read about it -- really bothers me, and I am, by no means, a Simpson apologist. The "sports collectors" apparently taped the meeting and sold the tape, according to news reports I've read. That smells fishy to me.

Police out of line

The police who tasered the journalism student at University of Florida looked like they were trigger happy. The kid apparently was asking lots of questions of John Kerry during the forum and wouldn't go merrily off into the night. There are dozens of people like that -- once they get the mike, they go off on their own tirades. I've been to several presentations where a member of the audience goes off on a tangent instead of asking a question. Should we call the police on them? Should we taser them too?
I can't understand how five, six, seven cops couldn't control some student.

Start the week off right...

...with a good laugh. Check out this story about a Michigan farm that had the likeness of President Ford cut into its crop. The bird's eye view is good for a chuckle.

Who can afford to live here?

The latest Census survey proves what we've suspected all along: it's WAY too expensive for the average Joe living in Miami. A new study shows that the area is #1 in the proportion of people who pay 50 percent or more of their income to housing costs. This is untenable.
Even longtime homeowners -- moi included -- find home sweet home increasingly expensive. I pay more than twice my mortgage payment toward taxes and insurance. Hubby and I have long talked about downsizing -- but where? Our taxes would actually end up being higher, so whatever we save in maintenance costs would be more than offset by the increase in taxes.
Many, many people I know have moved away. Teachers especially are flocking to Georgia and North Carolina where they get paid about the same but their money goes a long way.

Should candidates have debated in Spanish?

I watched most of the Spanish-language debate of Democratic presidential candidates yesterday on Channel 23. Hosts Jorge Ramos and Maria Elena Salinas were stupendous. To me the more interesting stuff was off stage -- Republicans who didn't want their own debate in a foreign language.
Most bilingual people I know were in a heated argument about whether the debate should have been held in Spanish to begin with. Here was the big question: If you're a voter, shouldn't you be able to speak English proficiently enough to understand candidates' stances on different subjects?

What's the best punishment for these mothers?

Some parents don't deserve their children. (OK, OK, I know I've said this before, but it bears repeating.) In the past couple of days I've read about a woman who forgot her 2-year-old in a sweltering car for 8 hours. The toddler died. Now there's another woman who drowned her 7-year-old and then sent the 5-year-old son to see it. I give the former the benefit of the doubt, but the latter ...don't get me started.
These mothers ought to be quartered. It reminds me of the woman who drove her car with her two toddlers into a river to drown them because she wanted her "freedom" to continue a love affair.

Splitsville -- does ANYONE stay married?

It seems that at least once a week I read about some couple divorcing. Now we have the First Couple of Basketball -- Shaq and Shaunie -- heading for divorce court.
Remember that song, Breaking up is hard to do?Maybe we should rewrite the lyrics, Staying together is hard to do. Certainly marriage is one of the most difficult relationships to navigate.