Keep an eye out for Fred, the indecisive storm. The Health Department’s two locations for rapid testing and vaccinations are operating from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.–at the county airport and at the department’s headquarters in Bunnell.
Millions of Working Americans Still Can’t Afford Food and Rent
The economy runs better when people aren’t forced to choose between paying rent, buying food or getting medicine. Yet too many are compelled to do just that. The average American city has a cost of living of around $30,000 a year for a single person.
DeSantis Administration Threatens to Dock School Officials’ Pay Over Masks. White House Says It May Cover Paychecks.
Most districts have reluctantly acceded to the rules, requiring kids to wear masks but offering opt-outs at the request of parents or guardians. Broward County school officials voted Tuesday to mandate masks and if necessary challenge DeSantis in court. The Flagler school district is not going so far as to mandate, even with an opt-out. Reports from schools today indicate that only a minority of students masked up, while top school officials visiting the schools did so unmasked.
Again Indifferent to Process, Colleagues Dismiss Andy Dance’s Concern About County Commission’s Lack of Transparency
County Commissioner Andy Dance is concerned about the commission’s habit–unique among local governments–of holding special meetings and votes immediately after workshops, a habit that lacks transparency. As they have when he’s raised procedural issues before, Dance’s colleagues shrugged off the concern.
Flagler Gets the Message as Vaccines Quadruple in 4 Weeks, and Councilman Barbosa Declares Himself a Convert
As vaccine shots have quadrupled in Flagler in comparison with four weeks ago and covid hospitalizations have continued to rise, Palm Coast City Council member Victor Barbosa, just back from being hospitalized for covid, is now urging to get the vaccine he had previously resisted.
A Preparatory Caution as Fred, Mulling Tropical Storm Status, Curves Around Florida Peninsula Over the Weekend
For now, Fred–the name, short for Frederick, means “peaceful ruler”–is some 350 miles southeast of Puerto Rico, with maximum sustained winds of 35 mph. The National Hurricane Center gives it a 90 percent chance of becoming a tropical storm “later today or tonight,” but its further track is very uncertain.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, August 10, 2021
It’s back to school for what the district hopes is 13,000 students or more, almost entirely as as normal. The Palm Coast City Council meets in a long workshop talking on budgeting, garbage, street paving and many other issues.
Understanding the IPCC Climate Report’s Dire Warnings
Humans are unequivocally warming the planet, and that’s triggering rapid changes in the atmosphere, oceans and polar regions, and increasing extreme weather around the world, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warns in a new report issued today.
Flagler Commissioners Want to Cut Tax Rate, Give Sheriff 15 Deputies And Force Staff to Cut $2 Million in County Services
A majority of Flagler county commissioners ignored their administrator’s and finance director’s numbers and proposals today and told their staff to find ways to cut $2 million from the county’s own budget while ensuring that the sheriff and other constitutional officers, such as the clerk of court and supervisor of elections, get all the budget increases they’re asking for.
Rule Clarified: In Flagler Schools, the Vaccinated Exposed to Covid Don’t Have to Quarantine; Others Must at Least 4 Days
Unvaccinated students and teachers who have been exposed to Covid must quarantine at least four days before they are eligible for rapid-testing and, if asymptomatic, a return to the classroom. But the vaccinated, and those who have been Covid positive in the previous 90 days, and show no symptoms, can stay in school even after exposure, according to a new state rule.
A Trip Between ‘Friends’ Through Palm Coast Turns Into a Carjacking, and an Arrest on 1st Degree Felony Charge
Stephen Morel, 36, was driving with a friend through Palm Coast when the car overheated, and Morel got upset that the driver pulled over, so Morel allegedly carjacked the vehicle, and was soon afteward arrested at the Flagler-St. Johns County line.
St. Johns School District Again Fighting Ruling Allowing Transgender Students to Use Bathroom of Their Choice
The St. Johns County School Board is asking a federal appeals court to again consider a years-long battle about whether a transgender male student should have been allowed to use boys’ bathrooms.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, August 9, 2021
The Flagler County Commission debates the sheriff’s request for 15 additional deputies (in addition to the 10 he’s requested from Palm Coast). The reconstituted Bunnell City Commission meets at 7 p.m. Circuit Judge Terence Perkins holds bond, status, and sentencing hearings. A few words from Richard Nixon about his resignation.
For Palestinians and Israelis, Human Rights and Another Grand Bargain
The recent flare-up in the unresolved Israeli-Palestinian conflict shows both that the issue is not going away and that prospects for real progress remain bleak. Two perspectives offer a way to see anew a solution to the conflict.
Now That It’s Cleared, a Massive Gambling Compact Is About to Change the Florida Landscape
It’s official. Federal authorities green-lighted Florida’s gambling compact with the Seminole Tribe of Florida on Friday, marking the start of a new cultural era by allowing digital gambling statewide for the first time in Florida history. The 30-year compact is worth $2.5 billion to the state of Florida in just the first five years.
As Virus Rages, It’s Back to Long Delays to Get a Covid Test
As the nation confronts its latest and worsening surge of covid cases, consumers are again facing delays getting tested, many turning to social media to complain. The problem appears mostly in the South and Midwest, where infections driven by the virus’s delta variant are proliferating the fastest.
How Unemployment Insurance Fraud Exploded During the Pandemic
Bots filing bogus applications in bulk, teams of fraudsters in foreign countries making phony claims, online forums peddling how-to advice on identity theft: Inside the infrastructure of perhaps the largest fraud wave in history.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, August 8, 2021
City Repertory Theatre’s “Twisted”, a comic adult musical with adult themes and language, directed by Beau Wade, closes out its run with a 3 p.m. matinee. The Borowitz Report on DeSantis. Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings remembered.
Cults and Cultism
It’s certainly true that the word cult grabs our attention. But what exactly does it mean when we use words like cult or “cult leader”? The problem is the popular use of the word is often used to describe authoritarian groups that practice mind control or brainwashing.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, August 7, 2021
The annual Flagler County School District-sponsored Back to School Jam is back this year, at Flagler Palm Coast High School, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Please wear masks. CRT’s “Twisted” is tonight.
Atomic Bomb Foresight Exploded Long Before Hiroshima
So many writers explored the idea that the early 20th century is sometimes called the “Radium Age” of science fiction. Prominent scientists wrote popular books on how to experiment with radioactive substances at home. It was a concept as widely known as the Star Trek warp drive might be today.
Contradictory State Rule Upends Flagler Schools’ Plans for Rapid Testing of Teachers and Students
Plans by Flagler schools and the Health Department to minimize quarantines through rapid testing were upended by an emergency rule issued by the state on Friday. The rule appears to pre-empt the right of local authorities to use rapid testing for at least four days, and up to seven days, during which individuals must quarantine regardless.
Back at Work, an FPC Teacher Worries About an Unmasked School and a District Unprepared for the Unexpected
A Flagler Palm Coast High School teacher describes a lack of information from the school board concerning Covid protocols, no discussions of contingency plans in case of breakouts, and no clarity about quarantines even involving staffers who are vaccinated but experience breakthrough infections.
To the Dismay of Some, and Against Public Health Guidance, It’ll Be School as Usual in Flagler Come Tuesday
The Flagler School Board will not buck the governor’s order against masking requirements, while schools will resume Tuesday under almost entirely normal conditions. But local physicians and the health department chief are concerned that the ongoing covid surge across the county will replicate in the schools.
Flagler Health Department’s Covid Testing and Vaccination
Free Testing and vaccination will be offered five days a week from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Health Department in Bunnell, but plans to start offering rapid testing to school staff and students are in limbo following the state health department’s issuance of a rule Friday that may pre-empt rapid testing at least in the first four days of exposure.
A Flagler Beach Man Is Accused of Statutory Rape of a Minor Visiting Flagler
Justin M. Wallace, a 21-year-old new Flagler resident, from Massachusetts, faces three second-degree felony counts involving a minor who’d been visiting Flagler Beach with her parents.
Flagler County Fire Rescue Lt. Andrew Keppler of Storied Local Family of Firefighters Retires
Fire Rescue Lt. Andrew Keppler recently retired after a 28-year career that began in 1993 with the St. John’s Park Volunteer Fire Department, which is now Flagler County Station 71.
U.S. Economy Adds Nearly 1 Million Jobs for 2nd Month in a Row, Lowering Unemployment to 5.4%
The national economy added 943,000 jobs in July, building on the 938,000 jobs in June and lowering the unemployment rate by 0.5 percentage points, to 5.4 percent, reducing the number of officially unemployed people to 8.7 million.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, August 6, 2021
City Repertory Theatre’s “Twisted”, a musical directed by Beau Wade, continues its four-day run at City Repertory Theatre in City Marketplace. It’s Hiroshima Day, calling for remembrance.
Narcissists
Some people are more narcissistic, others less so. Narcissism typically involves an inflated view of oneself, a sense of superiority and entitlement and a lack of concern for others. It’s a familiar portrait. But it isn’t the only one.
Flagler Records 154 Covid Infections Today as AdventHealth Palm Coast’s In-Patients Soar to 86, Another Record
The 16-hospital AdventHealth network in Central Florida has 1,350 in-patients with covid, 400 more than it had during the highest previous peak of the pandemic last January. Patients who survive stay an average of 14 to 21 days at the hospital, averaging in age between 50 to 55–younger than in previous waves–but all ages have been seen in hospitals. Of the 1,350, some 350 are in ICU and on ventilators.
Ramping Up Campaign Against Covid Safety, DeSantis Now Opposes Hospitals Requiring Vaccines of Staff
Florida reported an additional 20,133 new COVID-19 infections on Wednesday, making the state responsible for about 22 percent of the new cases reported nationwide for the day, according to data posted Thursday by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In a Boost for Its Palm Coast Hub, UNF President David Szymanski Stepping Down to Become CEO of MedNexus
Szymanski’s decision signals the breadth and weigh of UNF’s investment in MedNexus and now places the person most responsible for it behind its development, in Jacksonville and in Palm Coast, where it came about through the lobbying of former Mayor Milissa Holland.
Citing DeSantis’s ‘Baseless and Dangerous Claims’ About Children Wearing Masks, Senator Calls Rulemaking Illegal
In a letter to Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran, Sen. Gary Farmer Jr., the Broward County Democrat, says the department’s move to enact an emergency rule banning school districts from enacting masking requirements is outside both the governor’s and the Education Department’s authority under law.
Palm Coast Council Clears Way for a 240-Apartment Complex Just North of RaceTrac on Old Kings Road
The developer of Tuscan Reserve apartments in Palm Coast is proposing to develop a 240-unit apartment complex on Old Kings Road, just north of State Road 100, called the Tribute. The Palm Coast City Council on Tuesday approved the rezoning that clears the way for the development.
Sheriff’s Office Seeks Public’s Help Locating Fugitive in Grand Theft Case
The FCSO General Assignment Unit obtained an arrest warrant for Gonzalez-Merlo. Gonzalez- Merlo has a criminal history in Duval County. He’s been previously charged with Grand Theft of a Motor Vehicle and Resisting Officer Without Violence.
Students Who Oppose Masks Could Qualify for Vouchers to Transfer to Private Schools, at Public Expense
The State Board of Education is set to hold a conference call Friday, in part to consider an emergency rule that would expand the state’s Hope Scholarship voucher program to allow students who don’t want to wear masks to transfer to private schools.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, August 5, 2021
City Repertory Theatre’s “Twisted” begins its weekend run. Both Buddy Taylor Middle School and Indian Trails Middle School, both under new principals–Cara Cronk at Buddy Taylor, Ryan Andrews at Indian Trails–host student orientation ahead of the new schoolyear starting Aug. 10.
Covid-19 Vaccine Breakthrough Cases: Data from the States
The rate of breakthrough cases reported among those fully vaccinated is well below 1% in all reporting states, ranging from 0.01 percent in Connecticut to 0.29 percent in Alaska. The hospitalization rate among fully vaccinated people with COVID-19 ranged from effectively zero to 0.06 percent, and the rates of deaths were even lower.
Is It Time to Retire the ‘My Body, My Choice’ Slogan?
Whether talking about reproductive health or COVID-19, choices involving health care are not only freedoms from external control. They also rely on the ability to access necessary care. As abortion rights make their way back to the Supreme Court during an ongoing global pandemic, it is a good time to reconsider whether “my body, my choice” is the right slogan for a right to health care.
Expansion of Mosquito Spraying in Plantation Bay and Sawmill Creek Draws Mixed Reactions
A workshop intended to gauge public sentiment about modestly expanding the East Flagler Mosquito Control District to Plantation Bay and to a small area west of U.S. 1 drew just 10 people Wednesday evening, some fiercely opposed, some wager for the spraying.
Robert Batie, Accused Rapist of 16-Year-Old Patient, Was Employed By Practice Working With Flagler Schools
Therapist Robert Batie was arrested on four charges of molesting and raping a 16-year-old patient at his office on Hargrove Grade in Palm Coast. He had worked with Palm Coast Counseling, engaged by Flagler schools since 2020 to provide mental health services to students at the practice or elsewhere.
In Florida Covid Crisis, Politics Define Gov. DeSantis’s Decisions from Barring Mask Requirements to Vaccine Passports
Elected officials’ attitudes and actions about masks and vaccinations have become a flashpoint in the increasingly tribal nature of partisan politics. The ideological schism over preventive protocols in Florida has aided DeSantis’ rise as a national presidential contender and, at the same time, become a cornerstone of Democrats’ efforts to oust him.
Catholics for Choice Condemns U.S. Bishops for Urging Supreme Court to Restrict Abortion Rights
Catholics for Choice, which uplifts and amplifies the voices of the majority of Catholics who believe in reproductive freedom, denounced the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) today for asking the Supreme Court to uphold a Mississippi law banning abortion after 15 weeks.
In Mayoral Election Audit, Lowe Partisans’ Hunt for Perfidy Disappoints as Results Are, As Expected, Confirmed
The audit of the July 27 special election for Palm Coast mayor showed 100 percent accuracy, though partisans of Alan Lowe, one of the losing candidates, have continued to make baseless allegations of irregularities.
Back from Boys’ Camp, Palm Coast Council Adopts Tentative Tax Rate, But Policing Budget Is Contested
The Palm Coast City Council on Tuesday broke its impasse over a tentative tax rate, approving what for now is the same rate that’s been in effect since 2019, with council members’ pledge to look for ways to reduce it. But that may be difficult with a slew of competing demands in services, including additional sheriff’s deputies, street paving, and other administrative requests.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, August 4, 2021
The Canvassing Board of the Palm Coast special election for mayor meets for the last time to conduct a legally-required manual audit of one precinct in the election. A community meeting about Cimarron Drive, and a good word from Ninon de Lenclos.
Trump Endorsements Make a Difference, But Not the Way Candidates Hope They Do
During the 2018 midterm elections, President Trump’s endorsements helped Republicans he endorsed raise money, but ultimately were more detrimental than helpful, leading to an increased vote share going to the Democratic opponent of the candidate Trump endorsed.
David Alfin, Making a Point of Facing the Public on a Level Plane, Is Sworn-In as Palm Coast’s 4th Mayor
David Alfin was sworn-in as Palm Coast’s fourth mayor this evening in a simple ceremony and a well-attended meeting in which he made a point of defining his tenure as a service to residents, but also as a mission to bring civility and consensus to a sharply divided council. There was pointed symbolism and a few pointed remarks during the meeting.
James Harris of Jimmy’s Hang 10 Will Remain in Jail Pending Trial as Judge Denies Motion for Bond
Circuit Judge Terence Perkins this afternoon denied a motion by James Harris’s attorney to release Harris from jail, on bond, pending trial on three charges of molestation involving his stepdaughter over what she says is a period of five years. She is 14. Harris is the 61-year-old owner of Jimmy’s Hang 10, the Flagler Beach restaurant, who was arrested on July 2.