The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1951-06-20
This Rock
Of Ours :"
BY BILL GLIB

| was IN tne Office yesterday
| placed a six month subscription
for The Key West Citizen.
| We talked a few moment.
| about general conditions and i
turned out that he was very
much opposed to the incorpora
ton of Marathon. l won't men
ton his name because it NIGH
make him the target of unneces,
/ sary abuse But he gave a gooC
reason for his present attitude
He said, with the way prices
are at present, and living Sc
nigh, why should a hundred ode
freeholders take it upon them.
selves to support more politi-
clans and public officials?
We're getting along fine now
and there are no special prob
lens of vice, etc, that need the
stern hand of a local municipal
government"
Those words express the age
old sentiment of Americans-th
right to live Independently of
governing officials and politi-
clans wherever it's possible to do
so decently.
Any form of government is
necessarily an encroachment up
on the liberty and rights of the
individual. Where there are only
a few individuals living together,
their own moral codes are usual
ly sufficient to counterfeit any
forces of evil or any civic dis
putes that might arise. Such
seems to be the case in Mara
thon.
They have a little over a hun
dred freehold voters. 1t seems
that these few people could get
together and rule themselves
without taking on the heavy bur
den of supporting and enriching
politicians.
They tell me the dandelion
weed is the curse of the horti-
cultural world. The weed springs
up everywhere if given q
particle of a chance. If the world
of human beings has anything in
common with the world of
plants, it must be the similarity
of the dandelion weed and poll
ticians. For politicians also have
the pestiferous habit of springing
up at the slightest opportunity.
Oh, well-enough of this kind
of talk. I'll have to admit that
once in awhile. politician
comes along and does some good.
And for all | know there may be
some use. or good, in occasional
dandelion weeds.
BREAKING LAWS
A few weeks ago, the minis
tiers of this city were explicit in
their demands that all laws be
obeYed. Now comes the google
fishing law and the public is in
formed that it will be OK. if
divers inside the Navy Yard ig-
more this law, That it WASN'T
meant for them.
How about it, you ministers
and church-going people?
Is law a law, or is law
amt a law except according to
the Interpretation of the law
maker?
And since when has the State
of Florida permitted a private
individual to say that it will be
all right to break its laws in
specified instances?
Some sort of explanation
would appear to be in order
The excuse that fish are fright
ened away by divers can be ex-
ploded by any person who has
ever spent any time under water.
AS a matter of fact, fish display
curiosity and will swim up to
investigate a man under water.
/. still can't figure. out why a
law that is so apparently de
trimeAtaT to Monroe County and
its business interests was ever
passed up in Tallahassee.
MORE LOSSES TO CITIZENS
1t still looks like we will lose
our international, municipal air
Port to private interests. What's
more, there is every likelihood
that we will lose the bay bottom
land on the other side of the is
land to other private interests.
You Key Westers won't be able
to turn around if you don't get
up on your toes and start slug
ging for your rights.
General consensus among the
public is that any man who gets
this bay bottom land can figure
on becoming a millionaire with
in the next couple Of 'years. Yet
every penny of the m on y
should rightfully Jelong to the
people from whom the land was
taken. The people whose city has
been refused the right to pur-
chase this land!