Labor Day then and now, the ongoing tax “holiday” for home improvement items, Babe Ruth’s first professional day, Darkness at Noon, Etta James.
Is Desalination the Way Through Droughts?
Despite growing water insecurity worldwide, desalination technology remains too expensive for widespread use. Efforts have been made to reduce its cost, with many showing promise. However, technological evolution takes time and it will be decades before costs fall to a level that facilitates the wider expansion of desalination.
Florida National Guard Could Be Used to Fill In at Short-Staffed State Prisons
As the state continues to struggle with a shortage of correctional officers, a legislative panel next week will consider a plan that would activate Florida National Guard members to help at prisons, according to a document published Friday.
700 Flagler County Residents, Mostly Kids, Participating in PAL This Summer
As part of its mission to serve the youth of Flagler County, the Flagler Sheriff’s Police Athletic League (PAL) welcomed over 700 people – mostly kids – to its various events during the summer of 2022.
Artemis Moon Shot, Twice Delayed This Week, May Have to Wait Until October
NASA now intends to roll the 322-foot rocket back to the VAB and to reset all systems. NASA requirements and launch window schedules suggests it will take at least 25 days to schedule the rocket for another launch.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, September 4, 2022
The sales tax break on home improvement items continues, a Spectrum story on Flagler Beach’s erosion, why Black people distrusted Ronald Reagan, Richard Wright.
Americans Think They Know A Lot About Politics. They’re Wrong. And It’s Hurting Democracy.
Political overconfidence can make people more defensive of factually wrong beliefs about politics. It also causes Americans to underestimate the political skill of their peers. And those who believe themselves to be political experts often dismiss the guidance of real experts.
What in Jesus’s Name? Saving the Savior from Christian Nationalism.
In their zeal to stoke the fires of a culture war, conservatives have drafted Jesus into their army, with some proudly espousing Christian nationalism, which combines two character traits: religious zealotry and fascism. Meanwhile charlatan theologians give the politicians religious cover enough so that they can be assured that Jesus would vote Republican.
Cities, Including Flagler Beach, Looking Into Banning Smoking and Vaping on Beaches
Several communities in coming weeks and months could move forward under a new state law that allows cities and counties to ban smoking cigarettes and vaping at locally controlled beaches and parks.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, September 3, 2022
Sales tax suspension on tools and home-improvement items, Sunshine and Sandals Social at Cornerstone, Qatar’s unfreedoms ahead of the World Cup, Mark Twain in King Arthur’s court, Charlie Sheen.
What Abortion Opponents Ignore: Most Embryos Die After Conception
An important biological feature of human embryos has been left out of a lot of ethical and even scientific discussion informing reproductive policy – most human embryos die before anyone, including doctors, even know they exist. This embryo loss typically occurs in the first two months after fertilization, before the clump of cells has developed into a fetus with immature forms of the body’s major organs.
Flagler Beach Commission Set to Approve Budget With 13% Tax Increase
The Flagler Beach City Commission is set to vote next week on a proposed budget that would raise the city’s property tax rate slightly and equate to a 13 percent tax increase for non-homesteaded property owners like businesses and renters.
Spared Life in Prison for Cooperating, Princess Williams Is Sentenced to 20 Years in Attempted Murder
Princess Williams was 20 when she conspired with three others, all of them about her age, in an armed robbery four years ago that resulted in the shooting and disabling of 19-year-old Carl Saint-Felix. Her sentence today closes the book on the cases, with all four conspirators now in prison. Williams got the heaviest sentence.
Daytona State’s Engineering Technology Program Re-Accredited by ABET
Daytona State College’s Bachelor of Science in Engineering Technology program has been re-accredited by ABET, a global nonprofit, non-governmental agency that accredits programs in applied and natural science, computing, engineering and engineering technology.
70% of Flagler County Students Fail Civic Literacy Test, 63% Fail Across Florida in Exam’s 1st Year
Just 30 percent of Flagler County students know the purpose of a constitution, understand the separation of powers, the concept of the rule of law, the reasons colonists rebelled against Britain, the Supreme Court ruling that ratified Jim Crow or what FDR meant by a New Deal. Students in a U.S. government course are required to take the new exam that covers everything from landmark Supreme Court cases to influential documents in American history to basic principles about how government functions.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, September 2, 2022
Princess Williams is sentenced for her role in a 2018 armed robbery and shooting, Clarence Murphy is back in court to argue he had poor counsel when he pleaded and was sentenced to life, First Friday in Flagler Beach, Jimmy Connors, James Agee on FDR’s death, Schubert’s 13th piano sonata.
Black Girls Are 4.19 Times More Likely to Get Suspended Than White Girls
And hiring more teachers of color is only part of the solution: a major barrier to intervention is the perception adults hold about Black girls. Instead of receiving developmentally appropriate and socioemotional support, many Black girls are adultified – a concept coined to describe how Black girls are disproportionately perceived as less innocent, needing less nurturing, less protection, less support.
Ex-Judges, Prosecutors, Police Chiefs and Legal Scholars Lambast DeSantis Suspension of State Attorney
More than 100 legal scholars and dozens of former judges, prosecutors and police chiefs are decrying Gov. Ron DeSantis’ suspension of Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren, arguing that the move runs counter to professional standards, sets a dangerous precedent and violates the constitutional separation of powers.
Supreme Court Urged to Take Up 15-Week Abortion Law Case
Attorneys for abortion clinics and a doctor Wednesday urged the Florida Supreme Court to take up a battle about a new state law that prevents abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The attorneys filed a brief arguing that the Supreme Court should review a decision by the 1st District Court of Appeal that tossed out a temporary injunction against the law (HB 5).
New Traffic Pattern Enforced Around Bunnell Elementary Starting Sept. 6 to Cut Down on Complaints
The new pattern was developed by Bunnell Elementary school and the Bunnell Police Department to alleviate issues that arose after the resumption of school in August, when the Police Department received complaints related to traffic safety during drop-off in the morning.
‘We Have Too Much Stuff’: Palm Coast Board Approves Key Steps for 3 More Self-Storage Facilities
The Palm Coast Planning Board last week approved in three successive unanimous votes different regulatory steps advancing the development of three self-storage facilities–on Old Kings Road North, on Old Kings Road south, and on Matanzas Woods Parkway near U.S. 1. In contrast with considerations of such items before local boards in recent months, the approvals, which point to a continuing bullish trend in self-storage businesses in the area, drew neither opposition nor any appearances from the public.
Leroy Sampson Jr, Repeat Offender on Probation, Arrested After 2-Hour Stand-Off With Deputies
Leroy Sampson Jr. was wanted on five warrants involving aggravated assault with a weapon and a repeat felony battery charge, among others, when detectives readied to pick him up in Palm Coast’s Town center, only for Sampson to barricade himself in an apartment he did not live in, for which he got an additional felony burglary charge. He surrendered after two hours.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, September 1, 2022
The Flagler County Canvassing Board conducts its legally required manual audit of the primary election, DeSantis’s weird woke obsession, Prostate Awareness Month, Ninon de Lenclos, old age as a massacre.
The World’s Retreat from Democracy Is a Boon to China
Only 8.4% of the world’s population lived in a fully functioning democracy, this shift is being referred to as a “democratic recession”. The gradual erosion of democratic values and freedoms and the slide towards authoritarianism is opening up more space for China to dominate the global agenda with its values.
Flagler Schools’ Budget Is Millions Short from 10 Years Ago as District Is Forced to Shift Tax Dollars to Private Schools
Historically lower taxes it has no control over, a state funding formula that cheats it of 5 cents of every dollar it sends the state, and a state-required $6 million transfer to pay for private education vouchers have again left the Flagler County school district scrambling to balance its budget. But it’s been an annual erosion of local dollars, entirely at the expense of public education.
Daytona Lagoon Offers Free Waterpark Admission to First Responders Sept. 10-11
Daytona Lagoon welcomes all active firefighters, lifeguards, emergency medical service (EMS) professionals and law enforcement to a free day at the water park. Daytona Lagoon’s Waterpark will be open from Noon to 6:00 p.m. on both Saturday, September 10 and Sunday, September 11.
Palm Coast Will Spend $6.2 Million to Buy 69 Vehicles and Heavy Equipment Items, Including 3 Fire Trucks
In one of the largest such expenditures in the city’s history at one time, the Palm Coast City Council on Tuesday gave its approval for spending $6.2 million to buy 69 vehicles and pieces of heavy equipment for various departments, including three fire trucks.
DeSantis Press Conference: Bash Biden. Praise Self. Bash Biden. Campaign Shrilly. Bash Biden.
Gov. Ron DeSantis’ “news conferences” are heavy on campaigning and Biden-bashing and light on actual policy announcements. The governor packs these events with supporters who cheer him plus local officials and administration figures who lavish him with praise.
Less Than Half of Flagler’s 10th Graders Pass English, Worst in 11 Years; FPC Down 9 Points, to 45%
On the heels of a year and a half of a dysfunctional school board riven by ideological battles, only 49 percent of Flagler County’s 10th graders last school year were reading English at grade level, the lowest proportion in over a decade and a decline from 53 percent in 2021. Flagler’s 10th grade reading scores have declined every year since 2018.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, August 31, 2022
The Flagler Youth Orchestra holds its open house at the Flagler Auditorium for all interested participants at 5:30 p.m., John Hersey’s “Hiroshima” on its 76th anniversary, and how this is not your life.
The Problem With Virtue Signaling
Virtue signalers are often inclined to pat themselves on the back for their moral insight and courage. This refuge doesn’t work: talking about virtue is useful, but real virtue requires work. It is far more demanding and is far harder to fake.
Woody’s BBQ Now Serving Ketchup with a Cause, Benefiting Families of Fallen and Wounded Soldiers
Woody’s Bar-B-Q is proud to announce that it is teaming up with Red Gold. Through Red Gold’s national “Ketchup with a Cause” partnership with the Folds of Honor Foundation, with every case of Red Gold ketchup Woody’s Bar-B-Q purchases to stock its restaurants, the Jacksonville, Fl.-based franchise will be doing its part to benefit the families of fallen and wounded soldiers.
County Attorney Al Hadeed Addresses Florida Tax Collectors Association on Short-Term Rentals
Flagler County Attorney Al Hadeed last week made a presentation about the proposed state preemption for advertising platforms for short-term rentals as part of the education forum for the Florida Tax Collectors Association. Tax collectors are responsible for collecting Tourist Development Tax – also referred to as resort tax, bed tax, local option tourist tax, or transient rental tax.
Florida Sets Limits on How Much Medical Pot Doctors May Order for Patients
The highly anticipated emergency rule sets a 70-day total supply limit of 24,500 mg of THC for non-smokable marijuana and establishes dosage caps for different routes of administration such as edibles, inhalation and tinctures.
Police Lock Down Bridgehaven Drive in Standoff With Suicidal Man
A law enforcement situation involving a person who’d barricaded himself on Bridgehaven Drive this afternoon led the Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies to close off streets in that neighborhood and divert a school bus from making its usual run and dropping off elementary age students at their regular bus stops.
On the Run from Charges for 2 DUI Crash Deaths, Randall Howard, 46, Is Arrested at Econo Lodge
Howard 46, originally from Gaston, S.C., was staying at the Econo Lodge on Kingswood Drive in Palm Coast., wanted on warrants stemming from the death of two people who were in his car when he crashed, allegedly high on meth.
Between Garfield and Reagan, Palm Coast OK’s 15% Tax Increase, Claiming It for Good of Future Residents
A 4-1 majority of the city council agreed to raise property taxes 15 percent for next year’s budget despite the highest year-over-year tax revenue increase in 16 years and the strongest growth in a decade and a half, all while claiming that the tax increase was necessary in order to lower taxes for a future generation. Mayor David Alfin bookended his argument with the peculiar evocation of Ronald Reagan and Garfield, the lazy and fat cartoon character, not the assassinated 20th president.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, August 30, 2022
The Palm Coast City Council get a presentation on the final $249 million budget proposal for 2022-23, the National Hurricane Center keeps an eye on a potential hurricane in the Atlantic, the Hellespont Swim.
Federal Judge Urged to Halt Law Muzzling Instruction on Gender and Sexual Orientation
The 26-page motion contends that the law, passed this year by the Republican-controlled Legislature and signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, “was enacted with the purpose to discriminate and has the effect of discriminating against LGBTQ+ students and those with LGBTQ+ family members.”
The Greenland Ice Sheet Is Losing Ice Faster Than Forecast
Even if all the greenhouse gas emissions driving global warming ceased today, we find that Greenland’s ice loss under current temperatures will raise global sea level by at least 10.8 inches (27.4 centimeters). That’s more than current models forecast, and it’s a highly conservative estimate.
Flagler Sheriff’s Cpl. Rob Myers, Who’d Been Drinking and Driving, Demoted Following Heated Stop
Flagler County Sheriff’s Cpl. Rob Myers, a nine-year veteran of the agency, was demoted to deputy and placed on 18 months’ internal probation following an internal investigation that found he had been drinking and driving and drove alarmingly close to a deputy who was conducting an unrelated traffic stop. He was only given a warning at the traffic stop, and had a ride arranged for him to get him home.
Fundraiser Gets Handyman and Everywhere Cyclist Frank Diaz, 79, New Bike 2 Weeks After Crash
Two weeks ago Francisco “Frank” Diaz was thrown off his bike, injured and hospitalized after an SR100 crash with a car that totaled the bike. Sheriff Rick Staly had responded to the call at the time, and was instrumental in a fundraiser by The Bike Man non-profit that raised $2,300, paid for a brand new bike and left some money over for Diaz to pay his medical bills and a $166 traffic ticket.
4 Years Later, Suspected Armed Robber of Kay Jewelers Near Target Is Booked at Flagler Jail
After spending the last four years incarcerated in Georgia, Tyrone Walker, now 29, was booked at the Flagler County jail on a first-degree felony robbery with a weapon charge dating back from 2018, when he is accused of robbing Kay Jewelers in Palm Coast’s Target shopping center. An accomplice remains at large.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, August 29, 2022
The school board discusses its service union workers’ contract in a closed session, Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes’s vapidity of values, Michael Jackson’s thriller birthday.
Violent Conspiracies and the Convictions of Michigan Governor’s Kidnapping Plotters
The verdict in the trial of co-defendants Adam Fox and Barry Croft Jr. comes after a previous trial ended in acquittals for two other co-defendants, Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta, and mistrials for Fox and Croft. Their two other alleged accomplices, Ty Garbin and Kaleb Franks, pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with the prosecutions against the others.
Marco Rubio and Rick Scott Fight Phantom Commies As the World Burns
Our two upper-chamber gents aren’t merely lobbing charges of Banana Republicanism at Democrats. At the recent CPAC meeting, Rick Scott gave a rootin’ tootin’ slap-your-dog-and-arrest-your-undocumented-mama speech warning, “The militant Left has now taken control of our economy, our culture, and our country.”
In America, Cancer Patients Endure Crushing Debt on Top of Disease
Medical breakthroughs mean cancer is less likely to kill, but survival can come at an extraordinary cost as patients drain savings, declare bankruptcy, or lose their homes, an investigation finds.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, August 28, 2022
Grace Community Food Pantry, composer Peter Boyer’s Fanfare for Tomorrow, when Orwell watched a man hanged, a few more days before the open house of the Flagler Youth Orchestra.
NASA’s Artemis 1 Moon Launch and Routine Exploration Ahead
NASA’s Artemis 1 mission is poised to take a key step toward returning humans to the Moon after a half-century hiatus. The mission, scheduled to launch on Monday, Aug. 29, 2022, is a shakedown cruise – sans crew – for NASA’s Space Launch System and Orion Crew Capsule. Here’s the significance of the mission.
Ex-Public Defender Matt Shirk of Jacksonville Suspended for Year
The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday approved suspending former Jacksonville-area Public Defender Matt Shirk from practicing law for one year. Justices unanimously approved a suspension recommended in April by appointed referee Kenneth James Janesk.