Posted: June 24, 2010

In today's paper, St. Petersburg Area Chamber President John Long says the Tampa Bay Rays leaving town would "really impact everyone." While I agree with John Long on that point, and am pleased to see our Chamber continually weigh in on such an important issue, I must express disappointment in the Chamber for its failure to weigh in on the issue of near-shore oil drilling, just a few miles off our coast.

I've met with John and members of his board twice, both before and after the disaster in the Gulf, yet they still fail to understand the economic and environmental impact this oil spill has had and the impact a future oil spill could have on the very economy and business interests they are supposed to represent.

As the CEO of the Chamber, one of John Long’s jobs is to protect and promote our local economy, and in doing so, I would expect him to encourage the Chamber to join the many other Chambers, businesses, cities and counties around Florida who have taken a formal position against oil drilling.

John is right; baseball matters, but losing it won’t destroy our way of life.