http://naplesnews.com/news/opinion/columnists/naplesnews.com Stories: Columnistsen-usopinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/20/brent-batten-abcs-one-more-eco/I hear an ECO. Just like in the County Commission race in 2006 and the state House District 101 race in 2007, an electioneering communication organization with nebulous roots has injected itself into a Collier County election. This time the target of the negative ad campaign is School Board incumbent Linda Abbott. Wed, 20 Aug 2008 23:09:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/20/brent-batten-abcs-one-more-eco/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/20/martin-schram-cone-silence-silliness/The noise over the so-called “cone of silence” — and whether John McCain was really hermetically sealed in it during last week’s evangelical civility summit — grew in intensity and idiocy. Wed, 20 Aug 2008 20:47:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/20/martin-schram-cone-silence-silliness/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/18/brent-batten-fay-doesnt-qualify-olympic-event/You’ve stocked up on peanut butter and crackers. You have extra bottled water. Your stores of batteries, candles and toilet paper are sufficient. The hurricane shutters are up. OK, the hurricane shutters might not be up. We’re only looking at a cat one storm, after all. But generally speaking you’re ready for Fay. So what to do on a stormy Tuesday but take up a position in front of the TV and catch up on the Olympics. Mon, 18 Aug 2008 23:04:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/18/brent-batten-fay-doesnt-qualify-olympic-event/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/18/dan-k-thomasson-speaker-opts-politics-over-princip/ Never let it be said that Nancy Pelosi isn’t principled. Actually, her main principle seems to be that when politics dictate, give up the principles and go with the politics. Mon, 18 Aug 2008 20:25:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/18/dan-k-thomasson-speaker-opts-politics-over-princip/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/17/michael-peltier-bad-economic-news-prompts-state-ac/Florida officials are trying to turn lemons into lemonade after a bevy of sobering economic news befell the state of Florida last week. On Friday, a pair of economic indicators came out showing the state continues to suffer from a national economic malaise brought on by tight credit, high fuel prices and increasingly skittish consumers. Mon, 18 Aug 2008 01:22:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/17/michael-peltier-bad-economic-news-prompts-state-ac/floridahttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/17/dan-k-thomasson-fbi-mishandling-anthrax-case-leave/ The FBI’s mishandling of the anthrax case and its rush to claim it solved not only have made it doubtful the truth of the matter ever will come out, but it has turned this nightmare into a conspiracy freak’s dream. Sun, 17 Aug 2008 21:32:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/17/dan-k-thomasson-fbi-mishandling-anthrax-case-leave/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/16/brent-batten-whats-wrong-oil-painting/Brent Batten's column for Sunday, Aug. 17, 2008 Sun, 17 Aug 2008 01:22:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/16/brent-batten-whats-wrong-oil-painting/localhttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/16/phil-lewis-differing-opinions-sunshine-journalists/Last Sunday’s column dealt with Florida’s Sunshine Law and a long-standing attorney general’s opinion that newspaper reporters do not skirt the law when conducting interviews with elected officials. The legal opinion was from 1981 and was in response to questions from A.J. Galbraith, the attorney for the Boca Raton City Council. This past Monday, I got an e-mail from Galbraith, who now lives in Clearwater. We electronically exchanged thoughts. Sat, 16 Aug 2008 23:03:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/16/phil-lewis-differing-opinions-sunshine-journalists/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/16/jeff-lytle-road-you-should-travel-last-laugh/It is one of those roads that make a difference. It is a real eye-opener. Sat, 16 Aug 2008 23:02:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/16/jeff-lytle-road-you-should-travel-last-laugh/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/16/ben-bova-ads-reveal-lot-about-who-we-are/There’s an old trick that professional writers use when they want to slant a story for a particular magazine. They study the advertisements that the magazine carries.Those ads are an excellent insight into the magazine’s audience. Sat, 16 Aug 2008 23:01:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/16/ben-bova-ads-reveal-lot-about-who-we-are/opinion/perspectivehttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/14/farmer-file-part-two-slimming-dollars/Three months and seven days ago, a friend and I began a weight loss contest that will end with a final weigh-in 37 days from now. On that day, we’ll strip to our skivvies, exhale deeply and get on the scale. Fri, 15 Aug 2008 00:35:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/14/farmer-file-part-two-slimming-dollars/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/13/brent-batten-calabreses-sick-days-unlimited/Is Richard Calabrese, absent nearly three months from his post on the Collier County School Board as he recovers from a heart attack, being treated differently from other school employees similarly disabled? Yes. Thu, 14 Aug 2008 01:11:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/13/brent-batten-calabreses-sick-days-unlimited/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/13/dan-k-thomasson-obamas-fitness-presidency-may-be-d/ Peter Brown and Clay Richards have enough experience between them monitoring national politics to make their views stand out in the near deafening din of babble in the current presidential race. In fact, when it comes to putting things in perspective, the veteran reporters turned demographers are remarkably adept at distillation. Wed, 13 Aug 2008 22:42:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/13/dan-k-thomasson-obamas-fitness-presidency-may-be-d/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/12/jay-ambrose-obama-target-offshore-drilling-or-just/Polls taken months before an election strike me as being roughly as reliable as using your household thermometer to figure out the temperature three states away. Barack Obama may not feel that way. Tue, 12 Aug 2008 20:53:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/12/jay-ambrose-obama-target-offshore-drilling-or-just/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/11/brent-batten-lose-rhetoric-used-oil-debate/Top Democrats have been touting a “use it or lose it” policy when it comes to leases for offshore oil drilling. What has been lost, it appears, is track of what actually happens to those leases today. Tue, 12 Aug 2008 00:13:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/11/brent-batten-lose-rhetoric-used-oil-debate/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/11/thomas-sowell-our-gratingest-generation-babbles-ab/If our era could have its own coat of arms, it would be a yak against a background of mush. This must be the golden age of endless and pointless talk. Every sports events seems to be preceded by all kinds of talk — whether by athletes repeating cliches that we have heard a thousand times, announcers making pseudo-profound sociological observations, or fans rambling on incoherently. Mon, 11 Aug 2008 21:52:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/11/thomas-sowell-our-gratingest-generation-babbles-ab/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/10/michael-peltier-early-voting-begins-lee-collier-co/Early birds who want to get a jump can start voting Monday for primaries scheduled to take place Aug. 26. Early voting begins Monday at seven locations in Collier County and five in Lee County as a growing number of voters skip the ritual and cast their ballot early. Mon, 11 Aug 2008 01:14:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/10/michael-peltier-early-voting-begins-lee-collier-co/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/10/jay-ambrose-let-china-critics-roar/China clearly sees the Summer Olympics as a grand, glorious, $40 billion, 10,000-athlete, internationally telecast coming-out party, a chance to show off its modernizing achievements as it begins to emerge as a superpower. Sun, 10 Aug 2008 18:40:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/10/jay-ambrose-let-china-critics-roar/opinion/columnistshttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/09/brent-batten-answer-40000-question/Brent Batten's column for Sunday, Aug. 10 Sun, 10 Aug 2008 00:31:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/09/brent-batten-answer-40000-question/localhttp://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/09/phil-lewis-state-attorney-should-put-collier-board/Did Collier County School Board members exercise care last summer not to intentionally avoid the requirements of an open meeting? It’s not too late for the state attorney to find out. Sat, 09 Aug 2008 23:49:00 -0000http://naplesnews.com/news/2008/aug/09/phil-lewis-state-attorney-should-put-collier-board/opinion/columnists