Best Treasure Coast baseball players? How about these two?
Danny Klassen, former John Carroll High School student, is shown playing for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2002.
People would ask me what my favorite sport is and I would reply, “There’s a sport other than baseball?”
I enjoyed reading the recent article about the Treasure Coast baseball players who have made it to “The Show.” I read it twice just to make sure I didn’t miss anything.
I did miss something. I missed Rusty Meacham. Meacham was an outstanding pitcher for Martin County High School and Indian River Community College in the 1980s. He played Major League Baseball with five teams following his college career, including the Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros and Tampa Bay Devil Rays. He ended up with a respectable career won-loss record of 23-17, with 198 strikeouts to his credit.
He should not have been overlooked.
Another Treasure Coast baseball player to make the majors was Danny Klassen. He lived his young years in Port St. Lucie. In 1997, he was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks and spent four seasons as a shortstop with that team and one year with the Detroit Tigers. He finished up with 6 major league home runs and 23 runs batted in.
In 2004, he was part of the Summer Olympics, playing for Team Canada, which was his country of birth. Canada finished in fourth place that year. In 2006, he played again for team Canada in the World Baseball Classic.
Maybe there are other players I haven’t remembered, but somebody will. I was a teacher for 31 years in Martin County, and Meacham was my student in sixth grade at Murray Middle School in Port Salerno.
Klassen lived next door to me, and we used to play catch when he was 10 years old. Fond memories both.
Tom Prestopnik, Port St. Lucie
Longtime Stuart resident and former major league pitcher Rusty Meacham shows Mark Bartolotta, 13, the proper pitching grip during his summer baseball camp Wednesday morning June 27, 2012, at Wojcieszak Park in Port Salerno. The camp was organized by the Port Salerno Little League and included instruction from several former major league players.
Property insurance, not taxes, problem in Florida
Thank you to columnist Larry Reisman for ripping the Band-Aid off of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ plan to eliminate property taxes on homesteaded properties and really telling it like it is.
I’m stunned the Legislature voted to approve what it did for inclusion on the November ballot, with just three days of discussion. Though the governor spins it as “wonderful” (wow, no more taxes, great!), a stark reality may come into play. Those funds will either have to come from somewhere else or the services we now enjoy that are paid by those funds could be negatively affected, such as libraries, parks, road maintenance and trash pick-up.
Some suggest increasing the sales tax rate. These are not a stable revenue source as they ebb and flow depending on the economy.
Increasing property taxes elsewhere brings about its own set of problems. If non-homesteaded properties, such as rentals or businesses, have to make up the funding difference, residential rental costs could increase more than they already have, thus pricing more people out of a place to live — including seniors and young families — even with a cap of 5%.
I’ve owned my home (built in 1952) for 20 years and take advantage of the homestead exemption benefit as well as the Save Our Homes program. My property taxes have increased just slightly over the years.
I agree the real issue in Florida is not “sky high increases” in property taxes, but increases in property insurance. My homeowners insurance rates have doubled in the past year!
Eliminating taxes on homesteaded properties is one of the most irresponsible ideas the governor has had yet, now supported by our legislators. As they say, “be careful what you wish for.”
Helene Caseltine, Vero Beach
Vero Beach mayor right. Home rule essential
My hat’s off to John Cotugno, mayor of Vero Beach. His guest column said exactly what needs to be said for all of Indian River County ― cities and county ― and all of our citizens.
We need to maintain local control! Our two representatives to the Florida Legislature have failed us miserably in this situation!
Bob Bruce, Vero Beach
Port St Lucie on U.S. 1 ignored, looks awful
Is U.S. 1 in Port St. Lucie heading toward urban blight?
The Pizza Hut is abandoned. The restaurant next to Holiday Inn has sat empty for how many years? At least it still looks decent.
The former buffet next to Walmart closed several years ago even though it was always well-occupied. A new sign appeared promising fine dining and dancing, but it’s still empty.
And why would IHOP want to open right next to a Denny’s? They’d take each other’s customers! It’s not a profitable idea, and now it sits there like a bombed-out ruin, an eyesore.
Have them take it down and plant the lot green.
Beate Hunton, Port St. Lucie
Do billionaires really need to run our lives?
Kudos to R. Bruce Anderson for his column, “Who is rowing this ship? Billionaires vs. the common folk.”
Once again, he hit the nail on the head.
Too bad the Floridian in Mar-a-Lago doesn’t read our newspaper.
Carol Cardinale, Port St. Lucie
Taxes about far more than just the rate
In response to a recent letter on wealth inequality:
For a more accurate picture of historic tax rates, one must look to the effective (monies actually paid) tax rates not the marginal (sticker) rate. There are huge differences given the many tax loopholes that have actually been tightened or closed over the decades.
For perspective, the top earning 50% of taxpayers paid 95% of all taxes in 1965 and 97% in 2025 with little variance in-between.
Those same taxpayers over 1965 to 2025 have had an effective tax rate ranging from 14% in 1965 to 15% to 16% in 2025. The only way to pay down the nation’s debt is to go on a massive spending fast. Let’s not hold our breath.
Regarding inequality, it’s not the tax rate that should be targeted, but what is taxed.
The wealthiest 1% have amassed massive capital gains that may never be taxed until death. What sort of inheritance tax-avoidance schemes are in play?
We should keep in mind, however, that even if the net worth of all U.S. billionaires, $8 trillion, was 100% confiscated to pay down the U.S. debt, guess what … we’d still be in the hole $31 trillion!
While extreme wealth inequality is troubling, remember that wealth was first earned by someone then invested wisely for growth. It’s far easier to lose it.
Federal spending and continuing losses due to fraud is and has been out of control.
My AI tool provides a mid-range $375 billion estimate for losses due to fraud and improper payments.
Greg DeJohn, Sewall’s Point
Why do folks keep supporting Trump?
Occasionally, a letter writer complains that many people don’t appreciate President Donald Trump enough. These followers say non-believers suffer from “Trump Derangement Syndrome.” Are they embarrassed yet by these and other words and actions of their hero?
Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama resisted the sales pitch of Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, to do his desired dirty work in neutralizing Iran for him although Israel has long held a formidable air force and nuclear weapons. Trump fell for Netanyahu’s hustle and is wasting billions of dollars attacking a country that never attacked us.
Trump’s desire to please Netanyahu has caused worldwide inflation and economic loss. Thousands have died and it’s not over yet.
Speaking of world leaders, Trump picked an unnecessary argument with the pope, a man a hundred million people think of as “The Prince of Peace.” Trump misled about this holy man and refused to apologize. Is this not cringe-worthy enough for the MAGA folks?
Trump is the only person to openly campaign for a Nobel Prize and when he did not win one, got Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machadowho, actually awarded it, to give him hers.
Maybe next he will buy himself a Super Bowl ring.
Trump has demanded his picture on U.S. passports, famous art centers and classic buildings.
He has ordered a $250 bill with his image. Who among us can carry around such a huge denomination? Would this be convenient in the coffee shop? “Hey buddy, could you cash a two-fifty for me?”
Cash For Criminals: Trump initially authorized a controversial $1.776 billion taxpayer funded compensation tranche for Jan. 6, 2021, rioters and others convicted of crimes, but who are his loyal supporters. Might Trump award himself a large chunk of the fund as he describes himself as “the most unfairly treated man in U.S. history.” Embarrassing enough yet?
Bill Wink, South Hutchinson Island
Capitalism wins test of time. Why vote for socialists?
America is the land of opportunity. Work hard at your job, and good things happen.
But where do jobs come from? They come from business.
For example, a toolmaker makes airplane parts and delivers in two days, whereas his competitor takes two weeks. He gets more orders, buys more machines and hires more workers to run them.
To survive, every business must meet a demand; working independently, everyone makes the system operate. If a demand is unmet, an entrepreneur steps in to meet it.
Competition means doing your job better than the next guy. It’s part of the capitalist system and it has worked for 250 years. The United States is better at it than anyone else, and, as a result, we are wealthy.
Why? Because we encourage success by allowing successful people to keep a large share of the fruits of their labor. Non-competitive businesses either adapt or fail. We are a generous people, and we set aside part of our earnings for those who are unable to contribute.
Socialism has failed elsewhere because there is no incentive to work hard. No matter how hard you work, you still get the same share. And the government has to make sure all demand is met. This task is virtually impossible, the result being 1) rationing and 2) the maintenance of antiquated industries.
So if it doesn’t work, why are avowed socialists running for (and occasionally winning) political office? Let’s not become another Venezuela; why change a good system?
Tom Miller, Vero Beach
Trump right to deal with Castro scourge of evil
Unfortunately, I was very disappointed by the misplaced sympathy this paper published regarding Cuban Communist dictatorship.
It seemed the entire purpose of a recent USA Today article was to demonize President Donald Trump, that his efforts to rid the tyrannical Communist chokehold was to be admonished.
It was a less-than-subtle attempt to promote tears at the liberation of people suffering for over 67 years.
According to a New York Times article May 16, “The secret conglomerate of the Castro regime combined with the military control up to 75% of all Cuban income.”
On a personal level, I visited Cuba on a cruise in December 2017. A woman friend I went with brought about $20 worth of dollar-store items like toilet paper and cheap cosmetics. She gave them out to people on the streets of Havana, and they thanked her profusely. The people thought a blessing was reaped upon them in the way of a few rolls of toilet paper.
Another woman I knew ran away from Cuba to the United States at 15 years old. Recently, she went back to visit her sister whom she had not seen in years. The sister was an administrator who lived in poverty. Her husband had turned into a zombie who stared at a black and white TV.
A young tour guide had hope. He longed for the day he could run his own business. Other Cubans were driving old American cars from the 1950s and 60s. They restored them and drove these cars as guides for tourists. The Castro government made them pay $600 a month, most of their hard-earned income.
The writers of “Cuba being pushed into catastrophe” should ask the thousands of American Cubans what they think of Trump and Marco Rubio’s efforts to rid Cuba of the Castro scourge of evil.
Peter Degen, Port St. Lucie
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This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Vero Beach mayor. St Lucie blight. Tax woes. MLB men missing | Opinion