"leve" Wow, you just reminded me of something. When I was a little kid growing up in Cincinnati in the 50s, my mother and father piled us kids in the old '49 Plymouth and drove down to Florida. This was before I-75 was finished, so you had to take state highways and county roads most all the way down. We went the scenic route, came down through Frankfort, through Knoxville, across the Smokies to Ashville, and on southward. We had just entered South Carolina and were driving along some county road, when we came onto this little one-horse town, and wouldn't you know- the local motorcycle cop jumped out from behind a bush and pulled us over, said we were speeding. My father traveled a lot, so he knew enough not to argue with the guy, even though the "reduce speed" sign he was accused of ignoring was hidden out of sight somewhere behind the bush. The cop said, well, it will be a $10 ticket if you pay the magistrate, or $5 if you want to pay the ticket to me now, in cash, and save yourself all the trouble. My father said no, he'd just as soon pay the magistrate. So the officer gave us the directions to the local courthouse, where my father dutifully paid the fine. He was the most honest man I ever knew. When he got back in the car, though, it was obvious he wasn't too happy. When we pulled away from the curb, he said to us, well, it won't be long before they will be building a big, fast highway through here, and the whole country will be able to zip right through this whole state of South Carloina without ever knowing it's even here. And of course, he was right.

- Don B.