St. Petersburg firefighers back Flowers

Pinellas County District 3 Democratic County Commission candidate Rene Flowers, who's facing Republican School Board member Nancy Bostock, has announced her endorsement by the the St. Petersburg Association of Firefighters IFF Local 747.

"We may not have always agreed and we may not have always gotten what we asked for," Local 747 president Winthrop M. Newton says in a Flowers campaign release, "but she has been, and, we believe, will continue to be fair when looking at all issues surrounding the county and its fire services!"

Another note for those who may not be familiar with St. Petersburg politics: Winthrop is the brother of St. Petersburg City Council member Wengay Newton, who succeeded Flowers after she left the council.

Will Van Sant, Times staff writer

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Comments

[George]

Flowers will fight for us! Plus we love flowers!

I think Rene is hot!

GO RENEE!!!!

I bet the police officers will endorse her to! Renee is going to be a wonderful addition to our county commission.

We love flowers? What is she running for, a vase?

I'll take Bostock in this race. Good news is she will be the better County Commissioner.

[Paul]

Back Bostock, Back Bostock, Back Bostock, Back Bostock If I hear her say that again I will jump up and pass gas......

Will Flowers concede that she will have to support tax increases to meet the union's astronomical demands? Bostock is the better financial steward and will win!

The county needs to show fiscal discipline. Bostock has a track record of keeping spending under control at the PCSB.

What spending did Bostock control?

8:35, er uh, Mr. Bostock, telling the same lie over again does not make it true.

Open: One County Commission seat-

School board ninnies need not apply.

Bostock's leadership was the reason the PCSB did not get to increase property taxes as much as they wanted.

I'll take Bostock anytime over Raise-My-Pay-Rene.

12:48, You are misinformed.

The only thing Bostock led on the school board were efforts to ban library books, wave confederate flags and exclude gay people from existence.

Oh, she also worked to eliminate "social programs" paid for with tax payer dollars. You know, like the ones she wants to pay for her son now that he is in his real "forever home" a state run program.

Bostock blocked efforts to lower property taxes and fought against teacher pay raises via voter referendum. Until, of course, it was time to collect campaign contributions the next time around.

She did nothing to get the district's budget in line to pay teacher salaries (a reoccuring expense) through the district's regular operating budget. Bostock had four years to "lead" the charge of realigning the district's 1.6 billion dollar budget so tax payers did not have to bear the burden of a second referendum.

Bostock raised her pay for TWELVE straight years!

Oops, TEN years. I forgot, she failed to keep her promise to "serve" for four years.

Bostock took raises when teachers did not get them. If you remember, several board members did not take raises, but Bostock did.

The teachers union, just like the firemans union, was asking for exhorbitant pay increases in the face of a slowing economy. Bostock stood up to them and that is true leadership. Flowers does not have the backbone to say "no" to them...and that's why the firemans union endorsed her

Bostock did not stand up to them. She backed the second referendum all the way. AFTER having four years to "lead" the charge against the second referendum.

Bostock spend so much money she couldn't afford not to tax the people.

Just like her home life. Someone else will pay her bills.

5:58- I call bullsh*t! when did the teachers union ask for exhorbitant raises? I don't remember N. Bostock ever standing up against the union...

The average teacher salary is over $46,000 and the unions wanted more in a slowing economy....Bostock was right in protecting the taxpayer.

If Bostock wanted to protect tax payers she would have lowered millage rate. She would have asked for a audit of the school system budget.

Bostock was instrumental in giving Hinesley a big fat raise when 400 clasroom aides lost their jobs and special education kids lost services.

Now I remember what Bostock led on the school board. She was a huge fan of Wilcox. Bostock called Wilcox a rising star! Bostock bargained for Wilcox to get a bigger car allowance and a contract where the board had to give him 3 years notice to fire him.

Bostock also saw a lot of potential in that Miami Dade guy.

Bostock has very poor judgement. Both personally and in the professonal arena.

People who know Rene and have worked with her do not like her. She is not respected and she is unprofessional.

Blogs allow people to post complete nonsense devoid of any facts. This particular blog contains many of those but 2:12 and 2:15 are the poster children for ignorant bloggers.

“The only thing Bostock led on the school board were efforts to ban library books, wave confederate flags and exclude gay people from existence. “
A lie – no bans and protected free speech. “Exclude gay people from existence” is just an idiotic statement by 2:15.

“Oh, she also worked to eliminate "social programs" paid for with tax payer dollars. You know, like the ones she wants to pay for her son now that he is in his real "forever home" a state run program.” The school does not have the same responsibility as DCF. This is just a stupid statement meant to smear.

“Bostock blocked efforts to lower property taxes” –Are you really serious? Bostock block efforts to lower property taxes? What planet do you live on?

“Bostock raised her pay for TWELVE straight years!” She has only served 10.

“Oops, TEN years. I forgot” -- see I told you

“She failed to keep her promise to "serve" for four years” She never made such a promise. Good attempt at a fabrication though.

“Bostock took raises when teachers did not get them. If you remember, several board members did not take raises, but Bostock did.” Bostock took the state proposed increase each year as did the majority of the board members. You are not really fooled by the stupid gimmick of not accepting a pay raise for a year and then receiving double the next are you? Over the past 10 years the teacher salaries have a higher average increase than the school board. Get your facts straight!

6:22 You could not be more wrong if you tried! But it would be fun to watch. If ignorance is bliss you are the happiest person on the face of teh earth!

Hey 11:23 Join the Majority...Back Bostock!

[Pinellas Teacher]

A certain defeated former school board member sure has lots of time on her hands! Get over it, get a life and quit fabricating untruths about Bostock!

[Everett]

I can't imagine fighting a fire on a Florida summer day. I don't know what demand the Firefighters had that someone considered "astronomical" but it must have been trillions because that's about what it would take to get me to do that.

By just saying no Bostock lost a chance to be innovative and find funding some other way. We someone to look at things with a new mindset.

[Tell the Truth]

Interesting-- someone posts a bunch of misinformation designed to slam a candidate and then other people go on back and forth about it. This would be a whole lot more productive if it were based on the facts. Seems to me this thread is now three or four steps removed from the origianl misinformation-- kinda like the kids' game of telephone-- except we never even started with the accurate information.

As far as I can tell, Bostock must have done some good things in government to have developed such deep resentment from "the other side."

Oh-- and leave her family out of it. I will never vote for the side who talks trash about a person's family.

Bostock keeps winning countywide elections because the people of Pinellas County respect and appreciate her leadership.....this election will be no different!

7:24, You may recall a little publicity stunt by Bostock and her holy roller friend across the bay where Bostock took her personal life public.

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/10/23/Northpinellas/To_aid_her_son__board.shtml

For a couple of ladies with such strong faith, you would think Storms and Bostock could pray hard enough to get their church to help pay expenses.

Both of them back public policy that funnels tax dollars to churches because "faith programs work" according to their doctrine. Yet, when push comes to shove, the two most prominent members in the church can't get their pastor to pass around a plate to keep a family intact.

Sad.

But, true.

Bostock put details about this child out in public. Details the press would not (and should not have without the birth mother's consent) normally print because of his age. Bostock accused the minor of crimes and questioned the mental capacity of the minor.

Both accusations provide grounds for defamation under normal circumstances.

Bostock accused the minor of choking her with a seat belt, but if you go here http://www.pinellasclerk.org/aspInclude2/ASPInclude.asp?pageName=traffic.htm and check her driving record, maybe you could come to a different conclusion. Maybe the minor was tugging at he seatbelt trying to stop her from driving like crazy person.

6:46 You are truly clueless and not afraid to show it.