Letter in the Herald Reviewed by genius of despair

Gimleteye is right. The letters in the Herald are the most interesting part of the paper some days.

In a letter to the editor Curb growth in today's Miami Herald, Eric Tullberg of Palmetto Bay said:

"The time has come to question the assumption and ask ourselves if there is an alternative to an ever-expanding population in South Florida. This (water reuse) plan and others are telling us that we have reached the natural limits of growth, and so the cost of additional growth will be steep."

He goes on to say:

"If developers and others insist on their right to expand, let them pay the true cost of development through fees that represent the true cost of the required infrastructure and take their hands out of the public's pockets.

There is a word for unrestrained growth -- cancer."

Have developers and their political puppets made the people angry? Is that why radical Nimbyism is on the rise? I called the ailment: growth without a conscience. I think we are going to see a revolt against unrestrained growth because it is happening in so many places and it is only making developers happy and strapping the average citizen with the results of their greed.

The FDOT "F" road rating on virtually every major road (speed under 15 mph) is going to put the County at a standstill. The revolt is slow but it is building; people will not tolerate the developer's greedy mantra of growth for growth's sake; growth at all costs. And, as Mr. Tullberg said, the TRUE costs of growth (the billions of dollars to build desalination plants and reuse plants) are passed on to all of us. The developers don't fork over a dime to building costly plants. They pay fees for hook-ups to the systems that are in place. And, although the costs are higher to bring services to sprawl areas, they don't pay that actual cost. Others in the inner city subsidize them -- paying the same fees for cheaper service.

People in the County can change things if only they would not give up. They have to vote. When 10% to 15% of voters are voting in our county commission elections, we can never change the status quo. What is wrong with us? Ask a few people who their county commissioner is. Nine out of ten don't know. That is the key to changing this rut we are in: Voting. Short term the Strong Mayor is all we have to work with. Vote for the Strong Mayor on the 23rd and sign a Florida Hometown Democracy Petition. That is my advice. Signing off in despair.