This tomato scare would have pleased former East Side power broker, Sen. Sam Vadalebene, of Madison County. Sam was very proud of his tomato garden and often conducted meetings in the garden. If you wanted something from Sam, you would go on and on about how great his tomatoes were, how much bigger and juicier than the ones in the store, blah, blah, blah. If he offered you some to take home you knew you were getting what you wanted. I wish he was still here not just for the tomatoes, but there haven’t been nearly as many fistfights on the Senate floor since his passing. I think he was the best Senator we’ve ever seen in these parts, even though he was a Democrat.