Dixie County Advocate, Cross City, Florida Thursday, March 10, 2005 lixie Countp Stbbotate PRINTERS & PUBLISHERS 174 NE 351 Hwy. P.O. Box 5030 Cross City, FL 32628-5030 Ph. (352) 498-3312 FAX (352)498-0420 E-mail: editor@dcadvocate.net $21.40.................. Tri-County Area $27.82..................Elsewhere Includes Tax Official Organ & Only Newspaper Published In Dixie County Sue Chewning........... ................... ...........Editor Terri Langford .................. .................. Reporter Joyann Rogers.........................Office Manager Louis Russell Dosh.......................Web Master The Dixie County Advocate is owned by H & L Media, LLC of Dixie County. Deadline for church news and announcements is 12:00 Noon on Monday. Deadline for advertising and classified ads is 12:00 Noon on Tuesday. Classified ads are $5.00 for 20 words or less; 100 each additional word. Classified ads are payable in advance. Please mail ad with check to the above address. All material published herein is the property of the Dixie County Advocate. Reproduction by commercial interests or for resale or distribution, in whole or in part; is forbidden without the permission of the publisher. Letter to the Editor Policy: In order to provide an open forum on issues and concerns to our readers, we publish (space permitting) every letter that we receive that is signed by the writer. Unsigned and "Anonymous" letters are discarded immediately, along with letters that are inflammatory, slanderous, or libelous. Letters promoting a commercial enterprise are not published. The Advocate reserves the right to edit all submissions. Committed to Accuracy: Errors of Fact appearing in news columns will be corrected if the error substantially affects the information contained therein. Call, email or write the Editor to report Errors of Fact. SInternet: Summaries of news stories along with selected pictures, legal ads, and classified ads are posted weekly to www.dcadvocate.net THE DIXIE COUNTY ADVOCATE (USPS 158-760) is published weekly for $21.40 Tri-County Area and $27.82 - Out of County, per year by the Dixie County Advocate, 107 South Cedar Street, Cross City, FL 32628. Periodical postage paid at Cross City, Florida. POSTMASTER: Send address changes 'to DIXIE COUNTY ADVOCATE, P.O. Box 5030, Cross City, FL 32628. by Jerry Prater :Commie reporter takes a cheap shot at our troops On February 4th, Islamic terrorists in Baghdad captured Giuliana Sgrena, a reporter for a communist newspaper in Italy that has vigorously opposed the Italian government's support of the -U.S. led war in Iraq. Later that month, Sgrena was released, presumably following t~he pavment of a large ransom by the It:alian government. Upon her release, her vehicle was fired upon by American troops while .approaching a checkpoint, reportedly at a high rate of speed. An -Italian security officer was killed and Sgrena herself was wounded. A most unfortunate incident, but such things happen in war zones. The fact is that a favorite terrorist tactic is to approach a checkpoint at a high rate of speed in order to get there and do as much damage as a car load of explosives can do without being stopped short of their deadly mission. These are suicide bombers, of which the terrorists seem to have no shortage-a testimony to the intellect of those who accept such assignments, perhaps, but that's another matter. : Nonetheless, Giulliana Sgrena is fielding the opinion that the American troops deliberately shot at her vehicle because the Bush administration objected to her government's paying a ransom for her release. There is, of course, a good reason for not paying ransom money to terrorists; you rescue one hostage, but you leave the terrorists with the means to intensify their activities, plus you encourage further hostage-taking. A sound policy overall, however it has no bearing on the incident in question, As for Ms. Sgrena, I have no doubt that her presence in Baghdad writing stories disparaging America's involvement in -Iraq, as well as Italy's, was a source of some minor irritation to the Bush administration, not to mention her own government. :However, it is an astronomical leap from' being annoyed by a journalistic urohymenopteron, to a politically motivated assassin- ation attempt. Giulliana Sgrena could not possibly have been that important to the Bush administration, though given her penchant for fanciful reporting, she might choose to indulge such a notion. Notice the reference to II// Manifesto, the newspaper where :Guilliana Sgrena is employed, as a communist publication. Please :bear in mind that, while Italy is not a communist country as such, 'the Communist party is viable and operates openly in Italian politicsc, as it does in certain other European nations. S It should have been no surprise, then, that Sgrena's absurd con- tention would have been published in a communist newspaper. We need to understand that communists have a very limited perception :of how things work in the real world. You may recall that Russian :President Vladimir Putin chastised President George W. Bush for :"getting rid" of CBS newsman Dan Rather. I certainly hope that .Mr. Bush took the trouble to explain that Rather did not work for :the government, nor were his efforts subject to government :approval. (Granted, Russia is not a communist country at the :present time; but it was during Vladimir Putin's formative years, and he no doubt has some difficulty in throwing off the politics he :was raised on.) : As for the incident wherein Guilliana Sgrena's car was fired :upon at a checkpoint, let us hope that Ms. Sgrena's absurd 'accusations are written off as a traumatic reaction to the situation, 'and that some bureaucrat doesn't decide to conjure up a show trial bfor the American GI's who were just doing their job. A & K Nursery "SPRING SPECIALS Blueberries 1 Gal.----3/$10. Roses 3Gal. $7. Bridal Wreath 3Gal.----------$7. NEW ITEM-DECORATIVE STONE Open Tues. -Sat. -- 9-5 Ph. (352) 356-1189 Letter To The Editor U.S. Postal Service Announces Program to Help Find Jessica Marie Lundsford HOMOSASSA, FLORIDA March 2, 2005 the United States Postal Service started their aid in the search for 9 year old Jessica Marie Lundsford. Following a press conference, letter carriers and rural carriers from the United States Postal Service delivered over 42,000 "Deliver Me Home Posters" to every household in 8 zip codes surrounding the area where Jessica was missing from. Jessica was last seen on the evening of February 23, 2005 when her grandmother tucked her into bed. Jessica was wearing a pink nightgown and white satin shorts. There were no signs of a physical break-in at the house where Jessica was missing from. The only other thing missing was a doll from her room. The USPS hopes that someone will see this flyer and remember seeing Jessica marie Lundsford or have information about Jessica's disappearance. People are encouraged to look around their property and in out buildings or other places on their property where a child might hide. Anyone with information is encouraged to call: The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1- 800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678) or the Citrus County Sheriff Office at 1-352-726-1121. In conjunction with the search, officials from the U.S. Postal Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) along with Sheriff Jeffrey Dawsy, today announced a joint effort to help find America's missing children. The announcement of the tri-agency Delivery Me Home Network ws made at an early morning press conference held at the Homosassa, Florida Post Office. By combining resources and coordinating efforts, the agencies hope to strengthen the chances that missing children like Jessica Marie Lundsford can be found and safely returned to their homes. When deemed beneficial to a Non-Family abduction or a Lost, Injured or Missing Child investigation, law enforcement request is made to a NCMEC TEAM.ADAM representative for a Deliver Me Home Flyer distribution. A flyer containing critical identifying information about the child will be printed and disseminated by the Postal Service to the targeted area requested. The delivery area can be displayed in neighborhood Post Offices and carried to hundreds even thousands of mailboxes in a targeted ZIP Code. "We are so pleased to be a part of this new program", said Postmaster Mark Latocki, Homosassa, Florida Postmaster, U.S. Postal Servide. "The Deliver Me Home Network certainly shows our commitment to the communities we serve, and further complements our corporate message, "We Deliver". To learn more about Team Adam, visit NCMEC's website at www.missingkids.com. Count Down To "Copyright Hurricane Season . Syndicate Hurricane Season is 90 days away & Consumers still A ia | frm mm have time to install effortless Available from Comme home hurricane protection Venice, FL, March 1, 2005 -- Hurricane season is 90 days away and if you've been thinking about securing your A TERRIBLE home with impact-resistant ^-F W windows, you still have time WHEN YOU DC before June 1. A typical replacement project of 10 to 12 t windows takes 'four to five weeks. The following guide prepared by PGTiri Industries, N Florida's leading manufacturer ' of impact-resistant windows -. - and doors, offers consumers tips to ensure a successful window replacement project. Q: What is the first step in "\ a window replacement project? A: Contact your local building department to find out ,. . what codes your windows and doors must meet. Choose only from products that have &, received Florida State or I V ,' '' Miami-Dade product approval. . Know that products with Miami-Dade approval offer the best protection available ' Q: How do I select a' \ contractor and products? A: For replacement projects, choose either a , remodeler or window replacement company. In either case, be sure to: 1. Get at least three estimates 2. Make sure your contractor is licensed. Get the contractor'sW license number and verify W licensure at http://www.state.fl.us/dbpr/ CaI 3. Ask for references and check them chi 4. Do research: look on the Internet, ask friends, contact the Of BBB, or speak to your building department, or the window ne manufacturer to make sure the company is reputable 5. Review your contract before signing and ask questions L Y D about any items you don't understand L 6. Make sure your contract specifies the manufacturer of the windows and type of windows you o S U 7. Read the product warranty carefully so that you understand exactly what is covered and for how long 8. Get copies of the product approvals and make certain that they meet the code requirements for your area 9. Make sure a building permit is obtained A Q: How long will it take A L for me to get new windows? A: Expect one or two days 2 M ,ie for installation alone. For the 2 M iles entire project, factor in ie i additional time for the window order, delivery and your contractor's availability. From start to finish, expect four to five weeks for a typical E V E replacement of 10 to 12 EV ER windows in a house. For more information, visit www.pgtindustries.com or call 1-877-550 6006. Stttnb Te CtIur4b o( our Cbofte ,."' ..t, 4 { :' *; 7 y s founded in 1977 to . *.,.'\ .;"* ; :* > l' t'::',* ;',"' "' '* , ; .= g ,? :... : .. ,. ;t .: M S. * founded in 1977 to re for the unfortunate ildren in society, many whom are abused, elected and unwanted. N BAPTIST CHURCH NDAY, MARCH 13th 7:00 P.M. ve Offering Will Be Taken Vorth of Cross City On Hwy. 19 LYONE IS WELCOME!