Comments by meeho42794

Written on Flu shot doing poor job of protecting older people:

maybe because flu shots are baloney?

Written on Mike Reagen to bid adieu to Naples Chamber :

It's about time.

Written on Estero area getting new clinic under court-approved federal health-care act :

in response to PeopleSpeak:

Great news!

THIS is what we need, non-profit organizations getting into the healthcare business! The more we can cut the profit/greed in providing medicine, the more affordable it will be for everyone.

Clinic owners shouldn't be worrying about the next month's, quarter's, or year's profits. Nor should they be worrying about how many bodies they pack in per hour using the lowest paid, under-qualified, overworked foreign staff just to buy one more vacation home or upgrade to the latest Porsche every couple of years.

Next, work on cutting the fat (greed/profit) from insurance, pharmaceutical, and medical device companies.

There are plenty of industries for financial profit maximization. Healthcare should not be one of them.

who's going to work there?

Written on SPIN METER: Meet the health care tax:

in response to voltihs:

I've read there is tax in the Obamacare law that says if you sell your house or condo after 12/31/12 you have to pay a 3.8% federal sales tax. Anybody else hear about this?

you are correct

Written on Storm damage reported in East Naples, related to Tropical Storm Debby - PHOTOS:

I was heading down immokalee road toward Livingston I saw the funnel cloud and it appeared that there was smoke in front of me ... i thought it was the cloud...then all of the cars got pushed toward the side of road and the trees were all bent over. I gunned it passed the cars ahead to get away from it. Very scary.

Written on Business owner says he could fold if county doesn't pay taxiway expansion bill :

Brock does the same thing with nonprofitsw with grant money. Nonprofits must get 3 quotes to buy a pencil, then submit a reimbursementrequest and wait 6 months (no lie) to get the money back. Nonprofits cannot afford to float expenses while he rejects requests because something was only calculated out to 4 decimal places and not 6 decimal places. No joke.

Written on State ethics complaint accuses Henning of not disclosing property transactions :

in response to northnaples34110:

tator, that County staffer that was fired/resigned popped back up again at the City of Naples. Do a google search.

give us a hint please

Written on Collier water meter audit shows hundreds of customers were over-billed :

in response to joeblow:

This has never been right...we were gone for over three months and NO water was used and they still charged us for the same amount when we were here! If you complain there answer is always: "you have a leak somewhere, or someone else is taking your water". Crooks.

I, too, have heard that same story...because that's what their script tells them to say.

Written on Collier not paying red-light camera vendor; commissioners to consider new contract :

in response to SandnSurf:

Your license will not be suspended. If you dont pay the ticket they turn it over to collections so it goes on your credit report. They cant suspend your license as they have zero proof who the driver was.

you're wrong, they DO suspend your license...happened to me.. went to court and was surrounded by 2 officers (who were not there at the time of the running)

they acted like I was a murderer. pay it, it's not worth the paperwork hassle...and it's expensive

Written on Brock questions consultant's review, financial impact of Ave Maria :

in response to chestercopperpot:

I also wasn't impressed with the clerks lack of understanding of some very basic accounting concepts. The clerk should understand basic accounting, right? After seeing his hack job on Ave Maria, I don't trust the results of any of his audits.


Written on $1 trillion in student loan debt fuels political fire :

here's what has happened: the people with the crushing debt were sold the concept that if you get a college education, you'll get a great job and you'll be able to pay off your loans. That was true maybe even 20 years ago. It is only in recent times that school tuitions have gone up astronomically while job salaries have become stagnant or lots of jobs have gone away. But in the meantime, the mainstream idea is VERY SLOW to change. We are only NOW seeing that maybe $200K for an undergraduate degree where you can only get a job for $30,000 is MAYBE NOT WORTH IT. GOD FORBID WE QUESTION THE CONCEPT! Parents are still encouraging/forcing their kids to go to college and incurring the debt because they haven't yet figured out IT'S NOT WORTH IT. this was NOT the case when I went to college. THINGS HAVE CHANGED EVERYBODY...STOP BEING SHEEP AND START QUESTIONING AND BOYCOTTING THE CRAPPY COLLEGE PRODUCT.

We are now entering an age where only the very rich will be able to go to college if the product is even worth it. Without a drastic change in the cost of college, we are marching much more quickly to becoming an aristocracy.

Written on Collier mover trapped in payment dispute between County Commission, Brock :

in response to feduptoo:

I work for a non-profit.
They pass up so many government grants BECAUSE of the clerk's office.
Brock makes it impossible to get paid.
As a non-profit, we can't afford to front the money.
In the past, Brock has held up our government funding for almost a year. He just keeps on asking for more and more paperwork.
Guess that justifies him keeping a big staff and having a big payroll.
It doesn't do any good for the taxpayer.
But, like other people are starting to notice, Brock is always the first one to jump in front of the press to tell us how he saved us the day ... once again.
I wish people could know the real story and see how he operates 'behind the scenes'.

People don't know that he requires non-profits to spend $10 to save 10 cents. They don't know that we spend HUNDREDS of $$$ on printed paper because they don't have systems in place. They don't know that it takes 9 people to review one grant expenditure of $100.

Why is Brock in the grant business anyway? He will single-handedly stop government funding from coming to Collier County because he and his staff do not have the competence to manage grants. My nonprofit also had to wait one year for funds ... they should be OUT OF THE NONPROFIT GRANT business. There's one for ya, Hiller... get him out of that business immediately.

Written on Ex-Orion CEO Jerry Williams loses $4M Grey Oaks home in auction:

he didn't "lose" the house....he stopped paying for it...why should he pay for it if he doesn't live here anymore, right?

can't believe that people get away with this...

Written on Collier commissioners look to wash hands of money-losing housing program :

in response to titanbite:

I agree,taxpayer funded corporate welfare in the form of tax dollars being applied exclusively for the development of certain business sectors should be prohibited,I'm sure every business in the county would like to have the same amount of advertizing money spent on their business or professional trade,can't the tourism industry apply it's own capital toward advertizing,so,when the tourism industry does well,everyone involved also does well,isn't that the goal anyway?

We need to stop handing taxpayer dollars over to private businesses (socialism!) private businesses that make private profits,of course,they wouldn't be in business otherwise,profit's are the heart of capitalism,that being said,why does the public shoulder the cost of a good portion of the tourism industry's advertizing expenses?

The hotel's,restaurant's,spa's,art and music venue's,the environmental research center,non or for profit,right on down the line to the convenience store owner and the A/C repairman,they all want to either turn a profit or gain revenue for their causes,they'll advertize,we don't have to do it for them,doing so promotes an entitlement mentality,we don't want any business hanging around the corporate welfare plantation,those subsidy cards take the humiliating sting out of being seen making purchases with welfare benefits,it's bad for their self-esteem and it's become thoroughly much too expensive for us,the folks who continually get stuck paying the bill,the taxpayer's.

I've been lead to believe that people want to see business fend for themselves,let the market rule,the government shouldn't be involved in picking winners and losers,let alone handing them hard earned taxes collected from the very same hard working people who earned the money.

We shouldn't cut programs that,if managed properly,will be a significant benefit to our veterans,not after fighting two wars for nearly ten years,$3 million in grant money is nothing to shake a stick at and veteran homelessness is a situation that just should not happen.

We should be concentrating on fulfilling our promises to our servicemen and women,promises that they would receive the help they need to transition back into civilian life,I have no problem at all with paying taxes for this purpose,as long as there is competent oversight of the program,I'm sure most people agree.

This brings me to my question to the NDN staff,why is there no mention of the business's responsible for illegally billing the county for work that was never performed?

I'm somewhat surprised that the business's involved aren't mentioned at all in this article,as well as quite a few articles about this blatant defrauding of county taxpayers.

these were taxpayers dollars but NOT COUNTY tax dollars...federal. Not that I am for wasting ANY tax dollars.

Written on 17 Collier school administrators advance their learning through UF doctorate program:

in response to cornandbeans:


you needed a doctorate to learn that the technology is useless if the teachers don't know how to use it? YOu needed a doctorate to learn that it's not the technology per se that makes kids smart, it's what they do with it. Really???

I have found it appalling that teachers as a group are techno-phobes. I know I'm painting with a wide brush but I have found this to be true not only in Collier COunty but in many other parts of the country. Ever heard of email?

Written on Brent Batten: Hiller's call for new blood makes Coletta's boil:

in response to TheLissack:

As everyone knows only too well I am not a Hiller fan BUT SHE IS RIGHT ON THIS ONE (hey I call em as I see em)

The "powers that be" have only produced bad ideas and missed opportunities


1) The old grand central site should be used for a real convention center and two hotels. Since tourism is our real industry let's capitalize on it.

2) Recruit a NORTHERN university to open a business school in Naples -- promise them access to the hundreds (or is it thousands) of present and former C level executives who winter here

3) Convert Mercato's unsold residences into time-shares (that wudl fill up instantly and make the place boom)

These ideas would turn our economy around. the same old same old sittinga nd taking about what might be will produce what they always produce -- idle chatter.

Georgia Hiller is right about this!!

great ideas!

Written on 18 Collier high school seniors named National Merit Scholarship semifinalists:

in response to jwb223#250552:

Unfortunately, wt4pc doesn't have a great grasp on statistics... the percentage of students achieving this honor is far more significant at Community than any of the public schools listed. Congratulations to all for the hard work, but to only have one student named from Barron is very disappointing.

...but not unexpected.

Written on Commissioners: Fluoride to stay in Collier drinking water:

in response to jim13a:

Here's the problem, there are 2 kinds of flouride, one is a natural occuring mineral and the other is a waste by-product of oil. the flouride in our water supply is the latter type which is deadly even in small quantities, if you doubt this, read your toothpaste label, it clearly states not to ingest toothpaste. our water uses the same flouride only in smaller quantities. Like mercury, any amount is hazardous to the human body. Bottom line, you have the right to poison yourself, but don't force it on me!

We are all sheep. Read this link:

Written on Collier housing policies allow convicted sex offender to work on projects:

there is no story here...just a desparate attempt to discredit HHVS. keep looking Brock

Written on Local couple foreclosing on Bank of America appears on 'Daily Show' :

in response to Patriot_1:

(This comment was removed by the site staff.)

I have the EXACT same story...they brought over 3 big kidding...asking me what I was going to do with my money, etc. etc. Be sure to put a BLOCK on your closed account because if someone tries to draft money from the account after it is closed, BOA will OPEN it back up and charge you overdraft fees,etc. etc. NO OTHER BANK DOES THIS!

Written on Krumbine says she was asked to step aside; Supervisor says not exactly:

still not looking in the right places...MK may not be the best manager but she is a convenient scapegoat in this particular scenario...starts at the top down

Written on Collier housing’s Krumbine had good reviews, but house sale under scrutiny:

in response to naplesregular1:

I don't know Krumbine from Adam but here's my take. With re: to the SHIP program being used by the purchaser of her home, I don't know what else she could have done to appease those of us who "have no faults" and posting on here. She listed her home for sale and the buyer decided to use SHIP for funds as detailed in the contract. Krumbine then contacted the County attorney for guidance. At the same time, Frank Ramsey contacted the State Housing Finance Director for guidance also. Seems to me that they were bending over backwards to make sure everything was copasetic.

As a Collier citizen, she is entitled to the services that the county offers just like any other citizen. Granted, there must be an overlay of security to ensure any conflict of interest must receive extra attention.

Regarding the pmt w/o invoice to contractors, that's another matter but the NDN and posters have skewered this woman on an issue that appears to me to have been handled with exacting care.

I agree...NDN: stop wasting time on a non-issue and focus on the contractors not doing their jobs, expecting to be paid, the dopes in county government going along with and facilitating payment, being lazy and not checking the work, etc. etc. etc.

Written on Brent Batten: Hiller strikes out at Tuesday's Commission meeting:

in response to Just1:

I am with you, Brock was not playing around with the Housing people. I think we are going to see a lot more of this mess. Approving invoices for work that was not done? How long has the "program" been going on? Good Old Boy at work!

Someone needs to take a long hard look at what's going on in Housing dept.

Written on In the Know: What happened to Luna Rossa restaurant in North Naples?:

in response to lovinaples:

When Luna Rossa first opened, we enjoyed eating there. The quality began to decline, and on one visit we mentioned to our server that the garlic had been burned. We told him we didn't want the meal comp'ed, or any freebies, but that he should just let the chef know. The chef came to our table and argued with us about whether it was burnt or not. Needless to say, that was our last visit...

had a similar experience....greeter and waitstaff acted like they were doing me a favor by serving me.

Written on Local charity founder on national TV show:

typical example of smoke and mirrors...this is just hype

Written on Collier seeks $30 million of federal projects as Congress trims earmarks:

Crackerjack reporting as usual:

"Collier County is asking for federal dollars in fiscal 2012 for nine projects, seven of which are continuing initiatives. The county has said the Everglades Boulevard interchange, which comes with a $4 million request for federal funding, is the most important project in the coming fiscal year".

What are the projects??????

Written on Despite high unemployment, Collier-Lee resorts, clubs bring workers in from other countries POLL:

in response to SwampRatt4:

Great post Bramble

I do not hate foreigners and I do not care about the color of anyone's skin. I will even be patient if one is having difficulty with the English language and I pride myself on my travels and global perspective. But I live HERE in Naples as a US taxpaying citizen and when there's a huge unemployment problem, I expect that we would take care of our own citizens FIRST.

I will not believe that all 12% (and we all know it is really worse than that) of the unemployed population feel "too good" to take these jobs.

The Publix policy comes from coporate in Lakeland and is forced on the local store managers. This may have been an ok policy when it wasn't sexy to work at a supermarket during the boom years and it was difficult to find workers for the stores during season but the economy has changed and Publix hasn't changed its policy.


Publix is also a large employer of these H-2B workers. In the stores during season, you'll find many part-time local Publix employees begging Publix for full-time hours but Publix hires these H-2B workers instead. Ridiculous.

Written on The end for Jackson Lab? Barron Collier withdraws donation of 50 acres for project:

in response to crazybutterfly:

(This comment was removed by the site staff.)

...and they will expect to hire a CPA with 10 years of experience for that wage. The wages here are disgraceful!

Written on Naples police motorcycles in custody of Harley Davidson for unsigned leases:

in response to SoMuchOlderThen:

An agency of local government, who are expert in bureaucratic red-tape, who insist on paperwork in triplicate, ad infinitum, for everything, and they forget to sign a leasing document.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Make all the derisive comments you want about New York and Boston and Chicago and all the other Northern metropoli -- Florida is like NO other place in the world. And Collier County is the zaniest room in the asylum. Maybe it's the Sun, maybe the water.

I have never, ever seen any place like this, anywhere on Earth. In a strange, twisted way, it's admirable. It's admirable that they can be that good at being incompetent. It's award-worthy.

Reading this paper every day is like catching a Marx Brothers / Three Stooges marathon.

You said it, brother!

Written on Brent Batten: Bands silent on idea of paying their way to Scott inauguration:

in response to ReaderResponse:

This trip was sprung on the band directors, boosters, and students very suddenly. At the last possible moment before winter vacation, these organizations were asked to put a trip which would normally take months to organize. There are so many logistics with even a "quick" trip like this. Students will likely still be charged some fees even with the school board and booster contributions, which must be explained and collected. Chaperons must be found, which includes parents taking off of work right with little notice directly after the holidays and clearing a background check in time to go with the students. Transportation, meals, lodging, timelines must all be determined. Parents have concerns and questions, especially with the political nature of the event. All of these issues had to be dealt with in approximately 3 days prior to the start of winter bread when bands were holding holiday concerts. Generally trips like this are placed on the band calendar the year before. These are simply logistics of the trip - this is not even to mention the fact that the bands and color guards need to prepare music and practice for the event itself. I highly doubt that ANY of the band directors or boosters of these band programs would have chosen to throw this trip together at the last minute and work through their own winter breaks to hash out details.

Your proposal might have worked well if local directors had months of time to meet, plan all the trip logistics mentioned previously, prepare audition music or a nomination process, select members for a balanced marching band, and meet with the students to practice and prepare. If the board wants Collier bands to represent us in the inaugural parade, they should offer an equal opportunity to every school. And if they want it done at the last minute, they should be expected to fund it themselves.

just say "NO THANKS"

Written on Collier Schools eye weeklong Thanksgiving break, early start to school year:

Shouldn't the schools who are NOT high-performing schools start early...I'm just saying....

Written on Naples-area restaurants undergo remake to remain competitive:

in response to HarryNuts:

"We lost some customers,” Sereno said. “But we brought in young people. Well, the new young people — 40- and 50-year-olds.”

Haha The reign of the Opulent Geriatrics is at a Death Toll in Naples FL. There are plenty of younger people who work all day and need a reasonable, decent place to have a drink and try a meal that doesn't taste like it was cooked at Shady Palms Retirement community.
5th Avenue is pretentious and booooring

I second that!

Written on Collier middle school students will be graded on homework this year:

in response to mombk:

Any parent or teacher who thinks that grading homework is an "option" is contributing to the mediocrity that has infiltrated this country from the White House to the PeeWee baseball league. Children who are not held accountable for completing assignments by the time they are 11 years old will never understand that they are responsible for paying their mortgage on time, keeping their appointments at the doctor or dentist and going to work EVERYDAY. This is what is destroying our country--we have generations of people who think they should receive an award for participation, not achievement.

...or receive a paycheck because they showed up. Parents are just as much to blame because they allow a few vocal jerks to put pressure on school officials for leniency in homework, grading, etc. because it's better for their schedules or their precious Johnny's abilities.


in response to Working4Peanuts:

Collier County Middle School's have a long WAY TO GO. Thanks for screwing up my kid so bad with your incomprehensible look the other way to bullying, gangs, teasing, harassment that my KID will NEVER step foot in a Middle School here-or ride the school bus. Paying for private out of county school, read the NDN article about WHO now are the "minorities" here in all the the police blotter on any given day. All of your school youth deputies should be FIRED. Never got the no homework thing last year that's like saying...why bother going to school? Hey great job preparing these kids for HS. Me on the other hand before you all post s----- comments will do whatever I need to do to

High school is not much better.

Written on Editorial: IRS rules for non-profits:

The problem is not because so few people know about the change....the problem is that so few people who are running non-profits pay attention to these matters. It is appalling to me that those who would take on the responsibility of starting a nonprofit would stick their head in the sand when it comes to running the organization in compliance with rules to maintain their nonprofit status. Let's place the blame on those who are responsible please.

Written on Arthrex founder proposes accelerated healing institute in Collier as alternative to Jackson Lab :

in response to Speakout70:

This all stinks. This isn't about Jax or Arthrex. What it should be about is making good educated decisions about what makes good economical sense for the diversification of our local economy. Frankly, just don't see how anyone could make a decision in just over 30 days from now with the limited business plans presented to tax our local citizenry. Coyle's exuberant push on the Jax project is more than suspect. Ave Maria? Bio-medical cluster? Adjacent to an unproven Catholic University? Listen Bugsy, I mean Coyle. This is not the Vegas desert and you aren't too smart. Keep pushing this mess on Collier Citizens and Oregon won't be far enough.

Got to agree with all points here. Where is the brainpower in this town? I have yet to see signs of intelligent life here. I think the sun & heat fries everyone's brains.

Written on Faces of the Downturn: Foreclosure crisis creates heartache, opportunity:

in response to Ironage:

I do wonder (based on the information in the story above) if Mr Carney would hold up to an IRS audit. His numbers do not add up, either he is telling some rather big lies to NDN in the hope of making his dubious business practice look good or hes on the edge of collapse. If he has the 70+ houses he says he does then the inventory alone must be costing him a fortune to maintain something that a %10 profit on the ones does sell cannot support. Of course what is not said is his turnover of property. How many does he sell a month to support his real estate habit? How much of the risk is bourne by other 'investors' rather than Mr Carney himself?

As for Mr Bruzzesi, just another AH. Caveat Emptor, buyer beware! I'd avoid these 2 clowns like the plague if I was a buyer. But then theres a sucker born everyday right?

Totally agree...his numbers don't add up.

Written on Naples couple cancels "Win My Townhome" contest after not getting enough entries:

in response to joeblow:

It's in the ghetto anyway.

you don't know what you're talking about.....loser


in response to ChefChris:

(This comment was removed by the site staff.)

you don't know what you're talking about....loser

Written on Collier school district lacks uniform policy to address injuries or hydration during practice:

in response to Watch50it:

Coaches don't always have common sense.
I know they push kids beyond their limits by making them run on injured feet,restricting water breaks (regulating them),making kids choose between a sport and band- when they can do both.
Coaches are not Gods- not even close...many coaches think they are - unfortunately...

The coaches do they best they can but they need more training and guidelines. My daughter started suffering asthma attacks during track practice. It was a new and very frightening situation for my daughter not to be able to breathe and the coach didn't 1) know what was happening to her and 2) didn't know how to help her and 3) did nothing. Luckily, one of the other kids recognized her problem and helped her.

Written on Collier commissioners reconsidering support for red light cameras after state passes ‘cash cow’ bill:

in response to ChefChris:

(This comment was removed by the site staff.)

If the red lights weren't so long...people would not want to run them. I've timed them and most are 2 minutes and 30 seconds but a few are a full 3 minutes. That is waaaaaaaaay too long.

Written on Collier district changed high school grading system, but not everyone was told:

in response to flvsmom:

Many public and private school students are turning to Florida Virtual School for AP courses as they have a high pass rate on the tests. Courses are free and open to any student in the State of Florida.

Just a thought.

Thanks for the suggestion but been there, done that. My daughter and I thought it would be a great solution, however, we've already had one bad experience. Not the teacher's fault necessarily but I was appalled that at the end of the course when my daughter was struggling to receive a passing grade of D (at BC she is a almost a straight A student)and she failed the final exam...the teacher gave her the answers on a re-take of the exam so that she would get a D. I have to believe that the FLVS teachers are evaluated on the grades their students receive.

But for me, here's the kicker...if she takes the class again at BC, her D grade won't be counted in her GPA. Great for my daughter BUT .....Do overs, re-taking tests...where's the accountability? What's the point?


in response to kidsay:

I agree sending your children to school in Florida is a big mistake. Our neighbor's son did extremely well here and went on full scholarship to a very impressive college up North. Unfortunately because of his poor education he only lasted two semesters before he lost his scholarship. We felt so bad for the boy but it shows that all A's don't mean anything if they are from this school district.

I, too, have personally seen this same situation with a couple of friends kids who lost their scholarships and now attend Edison. Not to knock Edison but it is not Boston College nor Penn. And to tell you the truth, neither of these kids are doing so well at Edison.

I am nervous for my daughter who is in all of the AP classes at BC she is allowed to take BUT the bar is still set very low. I have heard from these very same AP teachers not to expect our kids to pass these exams because "the exams are hard". Well, duh....the teachers pass out the exam books and tell them to study it but if they don't pass the exam...the teacher does not take fault.

I am not impressed.

Written on New citizens task force forms to steer economic recovery in Collier:

in response to ReinettePoisson:

Don't we *already* have an "Economic Development Council" - whose chief accomplishment over the past five years has exactly what? And yet, when asked for a comment on this FREE citizens task force, which will do her job for her - Mz. Nemecek can only reply “We are participating in it.” Shouldn't she be running it? Or at least doing what this task for is doing?

my sentiment exactly. there's a lot of talk, talk, talk in this town but no action. Tired of seeing everyone posturing so they can look like they are doing something about the economy. I would love to spend a month with that council to see exactly what they really do all day. And how much $$$ support has the EDC received over its lifespan?? did I recently see a figure of $6M?

Wake up Naples and Collier County. There is so much potential here. Stop throwing your money away and figure out how to make it attractive for businesses to thrive in order for ALL--not just seasonal-- people to spend their hard-earned dollars.

Written on VIDEO/PHOTOS: Flippers snap up foreclosures, remodel and resell for a profit:

It's great that anyone will fix up these homes but I will not believe that there is profit to be made. The article didn't mention that buyers of foreclosures ALSO have to pay all back real estate taxes AND all of the HOA or condo fees.

And 100 since 2009? Really?

Written on Phil Lewis: Red-light cams? Wait 'till you see speeding cams:

Yesterday, I sat at a red light and watched the camera flash FOR EVERY SINGLE CAR going through a GREEN light at the intersection of Immokalee & Livingston eastbound.