A 6-foot alligator made a house call at a Brookhaven Court residence Sunday evening. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission personnel and Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies captured and released the alligator in a 65-minute operation. There were no injuries.
City of Flagler Beach and Golf Course Company Duel with Lawsuit and Eviction Notice
Flagler Golf Management, the company running Ocean Palms Golf Club in Flagler Beach since 2015, has sued the city just as the city has filed an eviction notice in circuit court, and six weeks since the Flagler Beach City Commission voted to end its 35-year lease with the company.
Gas Prices Averaging $4.10/gal. in Florida as Oil Execs Rake In $45 Million More in Compensation
Florida gas prices are gradually moving lower after rising 10 cents last week. Florida’s state average rose from $4.01 to $4.11 per gallon. Drivers are now paying an average price of $4.10 per gallon.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, April 25, 2022
The Flagler Youth Orchestra is in performance for its season-ending concert tonight, the Bunnell State of the City address by the mayor, a potential animal cruelty trial on circuit court’s docket, Kafka’s Great Wall of China.
If Elon Musk Takes Twitter, Free Speech Would Lose
While making Twitter free for all “within the bounds of the law” seems like a way to ensure free speech in theory, in practice, this action would actually serve to suppress the speech of Twitter’s most vulnerable users.
What Are Book Bans Really About? Fear.
While those behind these campaigns hide themselves behind the mask of “parental control,” they’re really concealing fear: Fear of a country and world that’s changing around them; fear of voices that were kept silent too long who are now speaking up and demanding their seat at the table of power, and, mostly, fear of the erosion of their own privilege.
59-Year-Old Woman Killed, Two Critical in Head-On Crash on SR 11 Just Past Center of Bunnell
A head-on crash on State Road 11 just past the center of Bunnell took the life of one person and required two patients to be trauma-evacuated late this morning. The crash today brings the number of road fatalities to nine this year in Flagler County, matching the total number of road fatalities last year.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, April 24, 2022
Splish Splash: A Bobby Darrin Tribute, at te Flagler Auditorium, two well-known guest preachers at First Church of Palm Coast, including Rev. Dr. Clifton Davis, who played Rueben Gregory on the popular NBC TV series, “Amen,” and a few words about Latitude Margaritaville Daytona Beach.
French Voters’ Blank-Vote Rejection of Macron and Le Pen
France elects its next president on Sunday. The election as a whole has failed to spark widespread enthusiasm among many disappointed and often apathetic voters, despite the starkly different visions for France displayed by the candidates.
Haw Creek and Rima Ridge Get Weather-Monitoring Stations
Flagler County has two new hurricane wind rated weather-monitoring stations in Haw Creek and Rima Ridge thanks to coordination between Emergency Management and WeatherSTEM through grants provided by the State of Florida.
Say It Ain’t So, Jacob: Why Is Flagler’s Former Star Superintendent Drinking the Reactionary Kool-Aid?
Jacob Oliva went from being one of the most progressive, innovative and inclusive superintendents in the history of Flagler County to a shill, as one of two Florida senior chancellors of education, for the single most regressive, reactionary and just plain mean state departments of education in the nation. Something isn’t adding up.
Palm Coast Songwriters Festival Is Set for April 29-May 1
The Palm Coast Songwriters Festival returns in 2022 with nearly 40 HIT songwriters performing over 125 #1 HITS during the three-day ticketed festival, April 28 thru May 1 at Daytona State College Palm Coast Amphitheater.
DeSantis Signs Bill Restricting Discussions of Race and Gender in Workplace as Critics Call It Unconstitutional
The culture-war bill HB 7, described as “Individual Freedom,” restricts conversations about race and gender in schools and workplaces. State Sen. Manny Diaz Jr. was a Senate co-sponsor of the bill and voted for it. (He’s now up for the Florida Education Commissioner job.)
60-Year-Old St. Augustine Man Dies in Single Car Crash on U.S. 1 Near Matanzas Woods Parkway
A 60-year-old St. Augustine man was killed in a single-vehicle car crash on U.S. 1 in Palm Coast Friday afternoon. The crash took place just north of the roundabout at Matanzas Woods Parkway.
GOLA in Flagler Beach Dons ‘The Face of Ukraine’ for Benefit Art Show
The Gallery of Local Arts’ “Face of Ukraine” show will benefit World Central Kitchen, an aid organization whose website, wck.org, says it is “first to the frontlines, providing meals in response to humanitarian, climate and community crises.” The show will be accepting monetary donations from patrons who do not wish to purchase art.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, April 23, 2022
The Hispanic American Club of Palm Coast Hosts its 35th Anniversary Dance, Victoria Machado at the Palm Coast Historical Society, a Dave Bowers Photography Exhibit, Federico Pulina’s Chopin etudes, Orwell deals with the police rounding up his books.
Clarence Thomas and the Supreme Court’s Missing Ethics Rules
In the past, the Supreme Court of the United States has cast aside pleas to adopt an ethics code for the justices. The actions of Justice Clarence Thomas’ wife, Virginia – who pushed the White House to overturn the 2020 presidential election – have once again thrown light onto this long-standing conflict: How accountable should the justices be?
It’s Not Mayberry Anymore: A Matanzas High School Student on Bridging Community, Police and Mutual Trust
Kadance Nickmeyer, a student at Matanzas High School, entered and won an essay contest through her Criminal Justice class, devoting her essay to pragmatic ways schools, the community at large and law enforcement can build mutual trust in a difficult age.
Flagler Youth Orchestra’s 17th-Year Roller Coaster Ride in Season-Ending Concert Monday, and Away from the Stage
The Flagler Youth Orchestra’s 200 performers are on stage at the Flagler Auditorium Monday evening for the 47th all-ensembles concert in the organization’s 17-year history, with surprise solo performances in the season-ending event, and a wide range of musical offerings.
Federal Appeals Court Strikes Down UCF’s ‘Discriminatory Harassment’ Policy as Chilling Free Speech
The 38-page opinion by a three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals backed arguments by the group Speech First, which has represented students at universities in various parts of the country. Judge Kevin Newsom wrote that the UCF policy “objectively chills speech because its operation would cause a reasonable student to fear expressing potentially unpopular beliefs.”
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, April 22, 2022
Violectric: Classical Musicians Who Rock, at Palm Coast Arts Foundation’s Big Tent tonight, Community Cats of Palm Coast’s Meowy Hour BBQ, reopening “Fawlty Towers,” the arrogance of adults.
How Russia Does ‘Patriotic Education’
The Russian government has launched a series of patriotic education campaigns aimed at Russia’s youth to encourage them to regard the war in Ukraine as a continuation of the second world war and to feel a personal connection to the Russian soldiers fighting there.
House Republicans Jam Through Redistricting Bill as Democrats’ Black Caucus Protest
After abandoning the chamber for a little more than an hour, Speaker Chris Sprowls and his fellow Republicans returned and called the vote on the DeSantis map, which eliminates Black “access” seats in North and Central Florida, cutting Black Democratic representation in half.
Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried Sues Feds Over Gun Restrictions for Medical Pot Users
Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried on Wednesday filed a lawsuit challenging federal restrictions that can prevent people from buying and possessing guns if they obtain medical marijuana in Florida.
Democratic Black Caucus Formed in Flagler County
On Saturday, April 9, 2022 at 9:00 AM at the African American Cultural Center and Museum history was made. The Democratic Black Caucus of Flagler County (DBCFC) was formed.
Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin’s State of the City Address Focuses Unyieldingly on the Upbeat
Hewing to tradition, Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin’s State of the City Address, his first, highlights the city’s shinier accomplishments, focusing exclusively on the bright and sunny and leaving silent all things politics and all controversies. Here’s the full text and three videos for the event.
Flagler Beach’s ‘Big Blue’ In Business as Glass-Crushed Recyclables Will Decrease Dumping and Increase Uses
Scores turned up Wednesday morning at Flagler Beach’s aromatically breezed sewer plant to see the sanitation department’s new, $200,000 glass-crushing, glass-recycling machine that will turn tons of glass into re-usable sand for public works, drainage or home uses, at $2 a pound.
East Flagler Mosquito Control Offers Free Tire and Bromeliad Plant Disposal Day May 22
The East Flagler Mosquito Control District will be accepting waste tires and bromeliad plants for disposal at our District Headquarters (210 Fin WAY, Palm Coast) on Sunday May 22 from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. This event is free to all Flagler County residents.
Between Missing Toes and Blood Spatter, the Play’s the Thing at AdventHealth Palm Coast’s $1 Million Simulation Center
The $1 million simulation center at AdventHealth Palm Coast’s campus on State Road 100 uses high-tech, interactive, realistic mannequins, flesh-and-blood actors, makeup artists whose creations rival anything concocted by Hollywood splatter films, sophisticated computer equipment, and seasoned medical personnel to simulate a variety of health conditions and scenarios. The center provides realistic training for AdventHealth nurses of all skill levels, as well as nursing students from the University of North Florida and Jacksonville University studying in Palm Coast.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, April 21, 2022
The Flagler Beach city administration shows off its new glass-crushing recycler, Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin delivers the State of the City address, Dostoevsky on laughter and character.
The Visceral Trouble with Beer
Drinking beer and spirits is linked to elevated levels of visceral fat – the harmful type of fat that is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, and other health complications – whereas drinking wine shows no such association with levels of this harmful fat and may even be protective against it.
Mistrial in Case Against Kwentel Moultrie, Accused of Raping 16-Year-Old Girl, as Jury Deadlocks
An all-white jury of five women and one man could not agree on a verdict on the charge against Kwentel Moultrie, now 23, of raping a 16-year-old girl when he was 20 in a P-Section house in Palm Coast. The three day trial hinged on whether the sexual encounter was consensual or forced. Moultrie remains in jail on this charge and on unrelated second-degree murder and burglary charges resulting from a December alleged home invasion in the R-Section.
Snubbing Parental Authority, DeSantis Administration Now Targets Youth Transgender Treatment
The Florida Department of Health on Wednesday released guidance that said treatment such as puberty-blocking medication and hormone therapy should not be used for transgender youths, clashing with federal officials over the issue.
Flagler School Board Will Clarify Student Demonstration Policy to Balance Rights and School Operations
With some of its members still smarting from the “Don’t Say Gay” student walkouts at Matanzas and Flagler Palm Coast High School last month, the Flagler County School Board agreed to clarify a policy addressing boycotts and walkouts, both to preserve the rights of students to free expression and to protect school functions from disruption.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, April 20, 2022
The Tourist Development Council, the Flagler County Technical Review Committee, the Contractor Review Board and the Palm Coast Planning and Land Development Board all meet today, and Kwentel Moultrie’s trial will head for jury deliberations.
Can Jaguars Make It Back to the United States?
There are only two main corridors in the western borderlands that jaguars could use to get into the U.S. Maintaining these corridors is crucial to connect fragmented habitats for jaguars and other mammals, such as black bears, pumas, ocelots and Mexican wolves.
Flagler Sheriff’s Corrections Deputies Are Being Trained to ‘Rebuild Inmates’ Battling Addiction
In partnership with the Opioid Response Network (ORN), the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO) and C4 Innovations are delivering a two- phase training program to deputies working within the walls of the county jail. They are teaching a spring and fall training session to jail staff in order to provide education about addiction, its impact and to help them to be supportive to inmates in treatment programs during their recovery.
Moultrie’s Defense in Rape Trial: He Was Framed in ‘Cover-Up’ By 16-Year-Old Girl, But His Lies Uncloak Him
Kwentel Moultrie’s defense attorneys argue the sex with a 16-year-old girl was consensual, but was followed by a “cover-up” by the girl and a friend who did not want to be found out after partying with Moultrie and others. Moultrie, in his trial’s second day, faces a first-degree felony rape charge in the 2019 alleged incident in a P-Section house in Palm Coast.
DeSantis Opens Special Session with Retaliatory Salvo Against Disney Over ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Stance
Ratcheting up a fight with Walt Disney Co., Gov. Ron DeSantis expanded a special legislative session to consider eliminating a decades-old governing district set up for Disney World and nearby properties.
Palm Coast Council Votes Itself 151% Pay Hike Plus Benefits Plus Annual Raises
Council members’ salary will rise from $9,600 a year to $24,097, a 151 percent increase. The mayor’s salary will go up from $11,400 a year to $30,039 a year, a 164 percent increase, substantially less than the more than 300m percent increase Mayor David Alfin originally sought, but still equally costly to taxpayers as the original proposal, since benefits are now part of the compensation package.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, April 19, 2022
The Palm Coast City Council takes up its gargantuan self-raise again, Day Two of Kwentel Moultrie’s trial, Food Truck Tuesday, Thomas Mann’s Dilettante, Bach’s great English Suite.
Andy Warhol’s Marilyn Monroes and the Darker Side of the 60s
There is a sinister edge to Andy Warhol’s pop art portraits of Marilyn Monroe because many were produced in the months following her unexpected death in 1962. On the surface, the works may look like a tribute to a much-loved icon, but themes of death, decay and even violence lurk within these canvases.
Education Department Still Mum About Rejection of Textbooks as DeSantis Invokes ‘Proprietary Information’
After a high-profile announcement Friday about rejecting math textbooks submitted for adoption by the state, Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Department of Education are providing few details about how the books violated state academic standards.
At Twice the Cost a Year Later, $6.5 Million T-Hangar Project Advances at County Airport as Terminal Lags
Delaying the construction of a new terminal building at the county airport, the County Commission today approved building 42 T-hangars at the airport at a cost double its original projection just a year ago, with the county picking up 29 percent of the cost for now, and hoping that state dollars will shoulder a larger share in coming months.
Moultrie’s Trial on Rape Charge Begins After He Rejected a No-Prison Deal, and Got Charged With Murder
Kwentell Moultrie turned down a no-prison deal on a first-degree felony charge of raping a 16-year-old girl, then got charged with second degree murder. His trial on the rape charge began today. He faces up to 30 years in prison if found guilty.
Gas Prices Drop 25 Cents in Two Weeks
Florida gas prices dropped another 7 cents last week. The state average has now declined nearly 25 cents per gallon over the course of a little more than two weeks.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, April 18, 2022
Kwentel Moultrie goes on trial on a first degree felony charge of sexual battery, the Flagler County Commission considers a noise ordinance and a $6.2 million hangar project at the airport, Dostoevsky’s Raw Youth, and it is also World Heritage Day.
‘Every Day Feels Unsettled’: Educators Decry Staffing Shortage
A shortage of teaching staff affects every student. One principal explained that learning stalls when “students in classes with revolving subs may spend the hour playing video games with no structure or learning happening.” Administrators describe waking up with dread knowing they’ll have to scramble to find coverage for absent staff.
School Appeals Pre-Game Prayer Ruling
A Tampa Christian school is appealing a federal judge’s ruling that backed a decision by the Florida High School Athletic Association to prevent a prayer over a stadium loudspeaker before a 2015 state championship football game.
Claiming ‘Indoctrination,’ Florida Education Department Rejects 41% of Math Textbooks Submitted
Friday afternoon heading into a holiday weekend, statewide education officials announced that they rejected 54 math textbooks out of 132 — that’s 41 percent — claiming that some of the materials attempt to “indoctrinate” kids with references to so-called critical race theory.