UGLY MUST CERTAINLY BE IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER

Tampa Bay, Fl
Opinion by: E. Eugene Webb PhD
Author:  In Search of Robin, So You Want to Blog

Which one of these looks the most inviting to you?

It doesn't really matter much at this point. 

What this does show is what you get when the artsy and the politicians get in room with a large bag full of your money and little or no input from the general public.

If you are thinking about dropping by here are the details:

The new St. Pete Pier and Pier District will open Monday, July 6 at 5:00 P.M.

The wait is over. It’s time to exPIERience the new St. Pete Pier

In order to facilitate social distancing and open ‘The St. Pete Way’, reservations are required for opening week.

Tickets will be issued for Monday, July 6 at 5:00 PM through Sunday, July 12 at 8:00 PM. To reserve your complimentary tickets, visit the City of St. Petersburg Pier website at StPetePier.org, navigate to the events page, and follow the directions listed. There,you can select the day and time you would like to have your exPIERience.

It is the City of St. Petersburg's goal to provide a safe and entertaining exPIERience for all. We have limited reservations daily, so planning ahead is encouraged. Proof of a complimentary reservation by either phone or a printed document is required. The reservation will be processed through a touch-less scanning upon entry.

Parking Information:

On Monday, July 6th only, parking at the Dolphin and Pelican parking lots via 2nd Avenue/ Marina Way will be closed to the general public. Recommended parking for the pier's opening day is the Sundial Garage located at 117 2nd Street North. The St. Peterburg Looper Trolley (LooperTrolley.com) will also be in operation with a convenient stop near the St. Pete Pier. Drop-offs and rideshare will be at Beach Drive and 2nd Ave. NE, while those with handicap placards will be allowed through the Bayshore Drive closure checkpoint.

Starting on Tuesday, July 7th, parking will be available at the Dolphin and Pelican parking lots until full, with overflow parking at the Sundial Garage. Parking can be paid at any of the 13 “Pay Stations” located throughout the parking lots for $2/hr for the first 4 hours and then a graduated rate for the next 2 hours. There is a 6-hour max parking available in the lots. Credit cards, cash and the ParkMobile platform can be used to pay for parking. To pay for parking along Marina Way, visitors can pay the smart meters with a credit card or coins. ParkMobile is also accepted by selecting Zone 2005 on the ParkMobile App via a smartphone. The rate is $2/hr for the first 3 hours and then a graduated rate for the 4th hour. Alternative modes of transportation include the trolley and the Bike Share located throughout downtown St. Petersburg.

Safety Measures:

The Center for Disease Control and the City of St. Petersburg recommend wearing a mask or cloth face covering when social distancing is not possible. We encourage visitors to the pier to wear a mask whether indoors or outdoors; however, local directives require masks to be worn when inside places of public assembly, such as restaurants. This will be enforced within the St. Pete Pier District.

For latest Pier news and tickets for opening week, visit stpetepier,org

E-mail Doc at mail to: dr.gwebb@yahoo.com or send me a Facebook (E. Eugene Webb) Friend request. Like or share on Facebook and follow me on TWITTER  @DOC ON THE BAY.

See Doc's Photo Gallery at Bay Post Photos.  

Disclosures:

Please comment below.

New Pier – Old Pier In Case You Forgot About The Old Pier Here is a Look Back

Tampa Bay, Fl
Opinion by: E. Eugene Webb PhD
Author:  In Search of Robin, So You Want to Blog.     

 For more click here: Saying Good by to the Pier

For more click here: See More at Pier Demolition

Not really. 

E-mail Doc at mail to: dr.gwebb@yahoo.com or send me a Facebook (E. Eugene Webb) Friend request. Like or share on Facebook and follow me on TWITTER  @DOC ON THE BAY.

See Doc's Photo Gallery at Bay Post Photos.  

Disclosures:

Please comment below.

It is Time for a Societal Reboot

16% of The US population Is now driving 90% of societal change.

Tampa Bay, Fl
Opinion by: E. Eugene Webb PhD
Author:  In Search of Robin, So You Want to Blog.     

The recent events documenting police brutality and overstep are without question.

Cities have elected or appointed African American police Chiefs, counties have elected or appointed African American Sheriff’s, and most have been less than effective.

It has nothing to do with their race and in a lot of cases nothing to do with their ability it's just the overriding ingrained racial bias among white law enforcement personnel and the unions that protect them is overwhelming.

All of this has led to the riots, the looting, the protesting resulting in both hostile and positive calls for everything from defunding police departments to tearing down monuments to threats of “burning” it down. If we, and I'm assuming we is the white people, don't seed to the demands of the protesters.

There is one thing new about these protests, if you look at the makeup of the crowds at least the crowds that are shown by the media, there is a more homogeneous mix of minorities and white younger people attending if not supporting the protest.

Since most of the national media, and local media, for that matter, never met a protest they did not embrace regardless of the cause or its demands, the momentum generated by these unconscionable acts of police brutality has taken on a life of its own.

This society cannot function without governance; governance cannot function without rule of law; rule of law cannot function without enforcement, and enforcement requires some degree of policing.

The current social narrative of throw everything out including the police and everything else that provides order is being driven by a minority of the population. But, there's a significant portion of that minority that simply does not want law enforcement to go away because they know what the result  will be.

I am all about free speech you don't have to read very far in my blogs to see that. I am all about people being able to express their views. I do so regularly.  What I'm not all about, and neither should you be is allowing a left-leaning liberal media to adopt the cause of a minority of a minority and attempt to drive unconscionable social change into a culture that is a proven model for the world.

Not perfect, not always just, not always well run, not always well governed but still the model for the world.

It's time for a reboot; it's time that more emphasis is put on what needs to be changed and how it needs to be changed than we do on the sign waving crowd screaming obscenities at the top of their lungs demanding that we defund law enforcement.

So, here is a suggestion.

If you're a little uncomfortable with all the sign waving protesters and millennials that would rather run around in their shorts and T-shirts with signs than get a job, actually go to work and pay off their student loans, but you still have strong feelings about the brutality that you see from the policing we have established to maintain order in our society, then do something.

Get on Facebook. Get on Twitter. Get on your favorite social media platform, and let your feelings be known; but you will not, and do you know why you won't?

Because you are afraid.

You are afraid of what might happen to you. You are afraid of the mob mentality; you are afraid that they might show up at your door.

And now you have some good reason to be afraid if they did because, if you call for help, the police might not show up at all and if the police did show up, you might end up being the one blamed for whatever happened. For that you have the media to thank.

That is exactly what the people running these media circuses of protests want.

They want you afraid; they want you scared to death because when you are afraid to speak up, when you're afraid of standing up, they win. And if we cower in the face of this type of social pressure, the very fabric of our society will be completely ripped to shreds.

E-mail Doc at mail to: dr.gwebb@yahoo.com or send me a Facebook (E. Eugene Webb) Friend request. Like or share on Facebook and follow me on TWITTER  @DOC ON THE BAY.

See Doc's Photo Gallery at Bay Post Photos.  

Disclosures:

Please comment below.