The Talking Menu

Ordering off a menu in some restaurants can be a hassle. The small print and then there is just not enough light. Well a few restaurants in the Miami area have began using talking menus. These type of menus can be described as:

It’s a device about the size of a DVD with lighted, labeled buttons for each menu category — appetizers, sandwiches, salads, entrees, etc. Diners who can’t read the category names or the Braille imprints can tap the button once to hear the category name. Tap the button twice, and the talking menu reads all the menu items for that category. The device comes with a hearing aid-compatible earphone for diners who are hard of hearing or who are self-conscious about the talking menu.

The menu also comes in 8 languages and allows the restaurant to customize any other language. For five units it cost the restaurant $120 a month or to purchase them, it cost $3,500. This is a great idea considering we live in Florida where we get a large amount of tourist and a large amount of retirees. The best part of the menu is that it costs the diner nothing directly to use it.

Nope To A Second Job

Have you been looking for a job recently because you're considering leaving the one you have now? Maybe you don't have a job and you been looking. I currently have a job that I'm happy with, but I have been looking for a second job to earn so extra cash and to help me from becoming a couch potato.

I have looked on every website I know that provides job information. Each had jobs to choose from with the majority being healthcare positions. I didn't major in healthcare, I majored in tourist and now I am finding it hard to find a second job even with my experience. Due to me not being able to find a decent second job, I began researching to find out the state job numbers. What I found was not good and it shows our country is in recession. Tampa Tribune reported:

On Friday, the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation said it estimated that the state lost 27,700 nonagricultural jobs between February 2007 and February 2008. That is a loss of 0.3 percent of Florida's nonagricultural jobs. By comparison, the nation grew at a rate of 0.6 percent.

Until early this month, the state thought Florida's labor market was still gaining tens of thousands of jobs. However, revised numbers showed that Florida has been losing jobs since at least August.

After reading the first article, I linked to another article explaining that by the year 2014, 9 out of 10 jobs in Florida will not require a bachelor's degree. This is because employers will find new ways to find the right person for the job and discover new cost efficient ways to train the new person.

It frightens me to know I spent 4 years in school and in 6 years it may mean nothing. For me, getting a degree means I always have something to fall back on when I need it when looking for a job. For right now it looks like my time spend in college getting a Bachelors degree was a waste. In a few years, I hope I will not feel the same way.

A 6 Percent Increase Equals $200

Are you going to be a freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior in any Florida college next year? Maybe you’re considering going back to school to get a degree in Florida? Well, if your answer to any one of these questions is ‘Yes,’ then you need to be prepared for a
6 percent increase in your tuition.

Florida has decided to cut $185 million in recurring general revenue funds, and cut all nonrecurring dollars for the fiscal year that begins July 1. To make up for the shortfall, $168 million will come from lottery funding, lowering the cut of regular, ongoing spending from 6 percent to 1.6 percent and adding the tuition increase for higher education will help the state to almost break even.

So how much does a 6 percent increase equal? The increase equals $200 for a full-time student. Money a student could use on gas, food and other necessities. For some $200 may not sound like much, but for people already struggling to pay for college will have to face another set back.

Raising tuition is not going to solve the educational budget problems Florida has. It is only going to stop more people from going to college, or it may prolong how long it takes a person to obtain a degree. Also, raising the tuition will contribute more to student debts in Florida.

Maybe the solution to this budget problem is for the state to examine where they’re actually spending their money and cut from those areas that are less important. For instance, they could cut spending on repairing roads that were fine before they were torn up and replaced or they could cut spending on unnecessary landscaping throughout the state.

Increasing the tuition is not solving a problem, it is only creating one. Education currently is becoming a must have to survive. Without education, many people may not be able to take care of their family, let alone themselves. Why is the Florida government not concerned about this?

Live Blog: Informing myself about the Holocaust at Edison College

4:00P.M. It’s Done: The presentation is over and I felt like it was rushed. Some things I would have enjoyed to read myself from the screen instead of someone speaking them like their talking to save their life. I guess if the presentation would have started on time, I could have enjoyed it much more.

If any of you are interest in the Holocaust or would like to attend on of the presentations, please visit Edison’s website for the Holocaust Memorial Project. Also, there is a Holocaust Museum of Southwest Florida located in Naples.

3:52 A Powerful Poem: Jan Klein closes the presentation with the following poem written by Martin Niemöller (1892–1984):

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social
democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a
social democrat.

When they came for the trade
unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not
a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn't a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left
to speak out.

Even though I have heard this poem numerous times, I always feel the emotion behind. It makes me feel bad about what has happened and it makes me think about if one group of people had spoken up, the Holocaust may have stopped earlier and many lives could have been saved.

3:47P.M. The Question: She asks us the question she said she began asking at the beginning of the presentation, which I did not hear her say: Given the history of prejudice in the United States, could a holocaust happen here?

Many people answered and to myself I say, “It can happen again.” The other people in the room also agree.

3:41P.M. Facts on Hatred: She begins to discuss hatred crimes in schools across the country. Some include young children saluting a Jew peer like Hitler, wearing KKK to a Spanish club meeting and using the yearbook as a way to be racist. Some facts she states include:

§Every year half a million college students are targets of bias-driven slur or physical assaults.
§ Everyday at least one hate crime happens on a campus.

Blah, blah, blah is all I heard. I would like to hear more facts and take them in, but she is just talking so fast. “Slow Down” is what I want to scream out.

3:37P.M. Close To The End: We’re nearing the end of the video and Hitler engulfs the screen. Come to find out, the video was taped in 1969. Boy was I off because I did not know what 1960’s fashion looks like.

3:24 P.M. Video Time: Jan Klein introduces us to a video of a teacher attempting to get his kids more interested in the Holocaust. The video is title “The Wave – The After School Special.”

The video looks like it takes place in the 1980’s because of the hair and the clothes the actors are wearing. At first I don’t really pay attention, but a few minutes into the video I start to realize the point of the video.

I believe at this point, Ms. Klein wants us in the room to understand how easily young ones can be influenced. I encourage everyone to take a look at the video.

3:15P.M. We Have To Walk Around?: Jan Klein, the presenter tells us we’re doing an experiment. She gives us some rules and then hands us some cards. We can’t look at our own card and can’t tell the other people what type of card they have.

I begin walking around the room with the card stuck to our forehead feeling like a crazy woman. I can tell each person feels the same way because they’re not really moving and we’re laughing at each other. The point of the experiment is to walk up to the person who has a face card or an ace. We must stay away from anyone that has a 2 or 3 cards. I walk around for a few minutes and realize I have a low card because nobody wanted to talk to me. I must admit also that I took a peek after I got finished holding the card up to my forehead. Don’t worry, nobody aw me.

Us low cards are pulled to the side and I felt left out. I begin to think about society and how people are treated.

3:14P.M. It’s Starting: Finally the presentation begins, 14 Minutes late. She introduces herself and states she is a Prevention Specialist for the Lee County Board of Education.

3:08P.M. Let’s Start: I’m still waiting for the workshop to start. The presenter is walking around saying, “Where are all the people. For the ones already in here, move closer.” She is pacing back and fourth between the podium and a table. Glancing up from my computer, I find her wiping her nose with her hand a few times, but then I notice she has a napkin in her hand and she is not using it. I don’t think I will be shaking her hand.

While I wait, I place the yellow paper clip onto my shirt. It represents the 11 Million people who have died due to the Holocaust.

2:46 P.M. I’m Here, But Where Is It?: I have arrived on Edison College Campus and just got finish walking the hall trying to find the room the workshop is being held. I have found the room, but there are people in there. I guess I should wait until the workshop starts at 3:00p.m.

In the mean time, the workshop I am attending is pertaining to the Holocaust Memorial Project which was founded by Edison College in 1996. The presentation will be presented by Jan Klein and it is titled “Can It Happen Again? How easily influenced are young adults today?

A Millstone Marked

Ten years ago, women and African Americans were still working for prominent jobs in government. Today, both woman and African Americans still are fighting. This is sad to say considering the United States is the land of the free. Finally, the land of the free is evolving and beginning to make history.

Recently, Florida has marked a millstone. They have selected their first African-American female chief justice, Peggy Quince. It is not because she is African American and they want to make a statement, it is because she is well qualified with a college degree and ability to keep a court room in order. With her being selected, this makes her the second woman serving on the Supreme Court.

This is great news considering what’s happening with politics today. Today’s politics may mark the first woman or African American voted as President. Justice Quince being selected is great news for Florida. It is marking a millstone in history for Florida and showing that they are ready for change.

I am enthused to see how Florida is changing considering I am a native. I can’t wait to see what else Florida will mark as a millstone.

Fraud is Everywhere

Whenever a person leaves their home, they don’t think about their identity being stolen, their credit card information being hacked from a grocery store or someone digging through their thrash to find security information. Most of the time, people don’t even think twice before sliding their card at the gas station or handing their credit card to a server at a restaurant. Many people feel safe and rarely think about anyone ever stealing their identity or using their personal information illegally.

How can a person be safe when businesses across the country have reported the theft of millions of credit card information and other personal information of their consumers? Tampa Tribune published an article about The Hannaford Bros. supermarket chain asking their customers to be on fraud alert due to a security breach that led to the theft of 4.2 million credit and debit card numbers. The amount of stores involved include Hannaford stores in the Northeast and 106 Sweetbay stores in Florida. So far, about 1,800 cases of fraud have been linked to the theft and a representative from the company had to say this:

But Smith said "everything is safe" at Sweetbay stores. "This was a professional, coordinated attack that is being investigated by authorities," he said. "The hole has been patched. We have state-of-the-art systems in place and our stores are as safe as any retailer. Customers should absolutely feel safe shopping at our stores and using credit and debit cards."

Does anyone shop at Sweetbay? I do and I hate to think that my credit card information has possibly been stolen. After reading this article, I found myself at Sweetbay the next day purchasing groceries. Before I began my shopping, I took the extra time to go to my bank ATM and withdraw money to purchase those items. No way did I feel safe using any card to buy anything from the store, although they say they have the matter under control and state-of-the-art systems. How can a person feel safe when their personal information is stolen and the company says they have state-of-the-art systems? If they had that system at the beginning, how did the theft come to be? I am a little perplexed.

For people who don’t shop at Sweetbay, you should still be aware because your credit or debit card information can be stolen from anywhere. Here are a few tips from the Federal Trade Commission to help avoid fraud. Some tips include signing your cards as soon as they arrive, carrying your cards separately from your wallet in a business card holder, or another small pouch, notifying card companies in advance of a change of address and keeping an eye on your card during the transaction. One DON’T tip is not to give out your account number over the phone unless you're making the call to a company you know is reputable. If you have questions about a company, check it out with your local consumer protection office or Better Business Bureau.

If you do use steps to avoid fraud and you still don’t feel safe about your personal information being stolen, you can put a fraud alert on your credit file. Alerts start at 90 days and can be placed on a credit file for up to seven years. If you’re considering this option, the Fight Identity Theft website teaches you how to add a fraud alert to your credit file. This one thing could save you thousands of dollars.

With the number of ways for people to steal personal information increasing, there are no ways to completely stop this type of theft. All people can do is keep themselves safe by becoming aware.

Floridians Will Suffer In The Future

When you buy a bottle of water, have you ever thought about how much it cost to produce that one bottle of water? An article published by St. Petersburg Times discusses how much Nestle pays for raw materials. They pay nothing for pumping the hundreds of millions of gallons of water belonging to Floridians. They pay no taxes, no fees; all they had to do was purchase $230 permit to pump water until 2018. Nestle not only makes a profit from selling their own products, they also ship water out to private companies for additional profit.

Recently Florida has been having issues with droughts due to not enough rain and the increasing population. With the amount of water Nestle is drawing from the spring, it may cause a shortage of the water supply. Local water management district staff of Madison Blue Spring has stress the need for Nestle to cut the amount of water they draw by more than two-thirds. Nestle response to this issue is:

Nestle says Floridians should be grateful. Its bottling plant has generated taxes and created jobs. "You're talking about millions and millions of dollars in tax benefit,'' said spokesman Jim McClellan.”It's a very good deal for the state of Florida.''

Nestle and other large companies in Florida are not worried about the future. All they seem to worry about are their profits. With the amount of water they’re drawing from the spring, soon many Floridians will have issues with their water supply because the state chooses to do nothing. After many years of continuous droughts and people not having water for everyday tasks, I wonder if the state will step in and attempt to solve this problem.

A Saturday Spent With Readers

Being a Florida Native, I have attended a number of festivals. Today I decided to attend the 9th Annual Southwest Florida Reading Festival, a festival I have never attended considering I have lived in Fort Myers, Florida all my life. When I arrived in Downtown Fort Myers, I was amazed to see how many people were there. I was especially amazed at how many children were there laughing and dragging their parents from booth to booth.

I have never attended a reading festival as a child or at anytime in my life with my parents. My parents have never been interested in reading or purchasing a book, they have always had other things on their mind.

I was at the festival about two hours walking around; tasting some of the food from local businesses and hearing authors speak. I also got a chance to meet some native Floridian authors. One author, Brenda Jackson was a pleasure to meet. She has written a number of novels while having a full-time job. In our little meeting, she inspired me, considering I would like to write a novel or two in my lifetime.

I enjoyed the festival and everything it had to offer. Next year I see myself attending the festival and meeting a different bunch of authors and enjoying different types of food.

They’re Considering That Image on a License Plate?

At a stop light, how you ever looked over your steering wheel and looked at the license plate in front of you? Other than the usual license plate, there are some that are personalized. A personalized plate either reads something like CRUSN 1 or either supports an organization such as the military.

What if you looked over the steering wheel and the license plate supported something such as the KKK or the death of any person for that matter? How would you react to seeing that plate? Would you think about it after you drove off and no longer could see the car?

Recently, a state lawmaker wants to allow people to buy a 'Southern Heritage' specialty license plate. A specialty license plate showing the 'Stars and Bars' of the Confederate flag, an image igniting many unpleasant responses from people. In an article by Wink news, they interviewed a radio talk show host and got this response:

"Wherever you are in talk radio, the Confederate flag gets people fired up," says Mandy Connell. Connell, the morning host on WINK NEWS RADIO, found that out. She says, people perceive the display of "Stars and Bars", as racist or redneck. She got dozens of calls. "That flag is such an emotional issue. And it invokes such strong reactions from people, that you can not expect to fly that flag with impunity," said Connell.

When I first heard of the story, I was upset that anyone would consider allowing such an image on a license plate. As I read more of the article, it discussed what the license plate is for and what it is supporting:

“The Sons of Confederate Veterans would get $25 dollars for every plate sold. The group would use the money to restore cemeteries of Confederate soldiers, and for Civil War displays in museums.”

For what the group is supporting, does it make the license plate acceptable to be on the road? I don’t believe that a certain license plate with that image should be on the road because it ignites many responses. What if the group changed the image on the flag, then would it be acceptable to put the license plate on the road? It would be acceptable considering what they’re supporting and I believe what the group is supporting should be shown on the license plate in a different manner.

Keep Alert. There May Be Gunshots

Violence has become widespread in Florida, making there no safe place to avoid potential death. Violence has entered schools, entered the privacy of many people’s homes and now fast food restaurants. Usually violence at a fast food restaurant happens because the robber wants the money out of the cash register.

On March 03, 2008, a man opened fire in a Wendy’s in West Palm Beach, Fl. It was not for money, but just to shoot. He killed one person, injured five others and then turned the gun on himself. In the article it states, “The shooting occurred on a major suburban road lined with strip malls, car dealerships and fast food restaurants, about five miles from downtown West Palm Beach. Just behind the Wendy's was a billboard advertising an upcoming gun show.”

After seeing this story, I no longer felt safe. The advertisements of the gun show on the billboard behind the restaurant disgust me. If a person wants to attend a gun show, I know they can find out where it is being held. Large billboards with a gun and the gun show information should be prohibited because it might give the wrong person a stupid idea.

What is happening with Florida and violence? Eating out is no longer safe. You never know when someone might open fire and attempt to kill everyone in the restaurant. I believe there needs to be stricter gun laws. The current gun laws are not keeping people safe. I know making stricter laws will not stop violence, but it may help reduce the number of guns being given out to unstable persons and the banning of gun show information on a billboard might save a life.