We all have biases to some degree, whether we care to admit this or not. Our biases remain innocuous until our assumptions impact our behaviors toward other people. By acknowledging our biases we can find ways to mitigate their impact on our decision making.
Palm Coast at a Crossroad: Assassins of Civility or Governance
Ed Danko and Victor Barbosa since their election have turned the Palm Coast council into an embarrassment. The two are vying for a third vote in Alan Lowe and the mayor’s seat. That potential majority risks turning the city into a mirror of the toxic trio.
Palm Coast Council Defers Decision on Commercial Vehicles in Driveways to Next Mayor, Who’ll Break Deadlock
The Palm Coast City Council is split 2-2 on allowing commercial vehicles to park in driveways uncovered, in what has turned into one of the more contentious code enforcement matters on the council’s agenda. Council members Ed Danko and Victor Barbosa want the rule relaxed, Mayor Eddie Branquinho and Council member Nick Klufas are opposed.
Former Florida Chief Justice Kogan: Why Florida Should Abolish the Death Penalty
In a compelling new interview conducted by attorney and filmmaker Ted Corless, the late Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Gerald Kogan lists the numerous reasons why he believed Florida’s death penalty should be abolished.
Flagler’s Unemployment Rate Jumps a Full Percentage Point, to 6%, as Florida’s Only Ticks Up by Decimal
Flagler County’s unemployment rate jumped by a full percentage point in June, to 6 percent, from a revised 5 percent in May, reaching its highest level since August 2020. The rise appears to be a direct result of an economy unable to keep up with the return of people to the workforce.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, July 19, 2021
Early voting for the Palm Coast mayoral race is in its third day at three locations, the Mosquito Control board meets, the relationship between witchcraft and UFOs.
Most Covid Deaths in England Now Are in the Vaccinated. Here’s Why That Shouldn’t Alarm You
The fact that more vaccinated people are dying than unvaccinated people does nothing to undermine vaccine safety or effectiveness. In fact, it’s exactly what we’d expect from the excellent vaccines, which have already saved tens of thousands of lives.
For Palm Coast Little League, Years of Advocacy Culminate with Hosting State Championship, and a DeSantis 1st Pitch
Palm Coast Little League this weekend marked its 20th anniversary by hosting the state championship, featuring a first pitch by Gov. Ron DeSantis. Hosting the tournament is a remarkable turn-around from a time a decade ago when Little League and the city were at loggerheads. The relationship turned around several years ago, and has flourished since, culminating with the championship event.
Robert Cuff: Palm Coast’s Choice for Mayor Is Between Competent Leadership and Truly Dangerous Dysfunction
Robert Cuff, the former Palm Coast city councilman, warns that the July 27 special election for mayor will need a large turnout from voters who seek smoothly functioning government and serious leadership. The alternative is partisanship, division, and dysfunction for the next three years, endangering the city’s future.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, July 18, 2021
Palm Coast Little League’s hosting the state championship concludes, and it’s Nelson Mandela’s birthday: ““Let the strivings of us all, prove Martin Luther King Jr. to have been correct.”
Why Some Younger Evangelicals Are Leaving the Faith
The institute’s study found that only 14% of Americans identify as white evangelical today. This is a drastic decline since 2006, when America’s religious landscape was composed of 23% white evangelicals, as the report notes.
Early Voting Begins in Election for Palm Coast Mayor, Shifting Contest’s Virulence to Voters’ Judgment
Early voting started today (July 17) in the special election for Palm Coast mayor, continuing until July 24. In-person Election Day is on July 27, when, based on recent-year elections, only a minority of voters will actually cast a ballot. By then, most will have voted either by mail or in early voting. That’s been the case even in recent elections pre-dating the pandemic.
Contrary to Viral Posts, Head Injury to 13-Year-Old Boy in Palm Coast’s R-Section Attributed to a Fall
A social media post that went viral about a 13-year-old boy getting severely hurt near Rymfire Elementary Friday was traced to an injury to Jacob D. Pelton, a resident of Palm Coast’s P Section, who told authorities he fell off his bike, but in murky circumstances.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, July 17, 2021
Palm Coast Little League continues to hosts the 2021 Little League Baseball Florida Championships at the Indian Trails Sports Complex, auditions for Neil Simon’s “Rumors” at the Flagler Playhouse.
High-Tide Flood Risk Will Increase 5 to 15 Times Over Next 15 Years, Putting Coastal Economies at Risk
The frequency of high-tide flooding along the U.S. coasts has doubled since 2000, and it’s expected to increase five to 15 times more in the next 30 years, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration warns in a new report released July 14, 2021.
Danko-Lowe Campaign Fabrications: Governor’s Office Refutes Incendiary Claims About Holland “Criminal Charges”
Ed Danko, the Palm Coast City Council member working on behalf of Alan Lowe to get him elected mayor, has been making misleading or baseless statements, including outright lies, and leveling false and potentially defamatory accusations about former Mayor Milissa Holland, her ailing daughter and to some extent former City Manager Matt Morton, a FlaglerLive investigation found.
End of an Era: Flagler Beach Might Let Palm Coast Take Over July 4 Fireworks and Shift Its Own to New Year’s Eve
The Flagler Beach City Commission has agreed to an explosive idea–explosive in the best sense and, potentially, in the worst sense: ending the July 4 fireworks, the single-most recognizable and beloved tradition associated with Flagler Beach. Instead, the city will shift its fireworks to New Year’s Eve as a way of helping business in slow winter months.
A Qualified Defense of Trump Supporters’ Obscenities in Flagler Beach
Obscene pro-Trump demonstrators’ signs now flashing regularly in Flagler Beach are no different than signs using similar language at BLM marches. The fact that BLM marches have justice on their side, as Trump demonstrators do not, does not diminish the goons’ First Amendment rights.
Citing History, Gov. DeSantis Urges Cuban Military to Overthrow Its Government
Gov. Ron DeSantis told young members of Cuba’s military to “live in the history books” by overthrowing their nation’s communist leadership, as he pushed President Joe Biden to bring Wi-Fi access back to people protesting on the island nation.
The Weekend Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, July 16, 2020
Parents’ Nights Out via the Palm Coast Community Center, Teen Chill Zone at the city’s Aquatic Center, auditions this weekend at the Flagler Playhouse for Neil Simon’s “Rumors.”
The Inherent Racism of Anti-Vaxx Movements
While many accuse anti-vaxxers of a selfish disdain for the health and safety of others, there is a underlying aspect of these movements that needs to be more widely recognized. Vaccine resistance movements have always been led by white, middle-class voices and promoted by structures of racial inequality.
Delta Variant Attacks Vaccineless in Flagler and Florida as Covid Cases and Hospitalizations Shape into 4th Wave
Covid-19’s extremely infectious Delta variant is zeroing in on those without vaccines, who make up the entirety of the 430 hospitalizations in Central Florida’s AdventHealth hospitals alone. The proportion of those vaccinated in Flagler and Florida remains below 50 percent.
Palm Coast Art District Chalks Up New Festival During Food Truck Tuesday
During Food Truck Tuesday on July 20, Palm Coast’s Parks and Recreation Department will also host a Chalk Art Festival. The event takes place at Central Park in Town Center from 4:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and is open to all ages. The festival is hosted by the city’s Jared Dawson.
Supervisor of Elections Kaiti Lenhart Issues Statement on Election Security
Flagler County Elections Supervisor Kaiti Lenhart issued the following statement this morning, in light of the ongoing special election for Palm Coast mayor, which culminates with in-person voting on July 27. Mail balloting has been ongoing, and early voting begins Saturday and runs until July 24.
FPC’s Shauntiana Stafford, 17, Killed Herself in 2019. Her Mother is Suing Flagler Schools, Charging Wrongful Death
Seemingly the first such lawsuit in recent decades in Flagler, the case opens a rare window into bullying issues behind normally restrictive student privacy laws, potentially revealing in detail the psychological and mental context of a student in the weeks and months leading up to her death, her relationship with school staffers, and the district’s responses in all its intricacies.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, July 15, 2021
A wrongful death case in civil court, Rembrandt’s birthday, and “one of the few things that stands between us and an accelerated descent into darkness”: The Enlightenment.
Renner and Other GOP Leaders Launch Digital Ad Promoting Conservative Ideals; Democrats Push Back
GOP state leaders are utilizing social media for their 2022 campaign efforts to promote conservative policies that they say have helped Florida to recover from Covid-19 and protect Floridians’ freedoms — though Democrats disagree.
Cuba Protests: 4 Essential Reads on Dissent in the Post-Castro Era
Street protests erupted across Cuba on July 11, 2021, with crowds of Cubans demonstrating against food scarcity, medicine shortages and economic misery in their island nation. Here are four stories that describe current conditions in Cuba and the recent history behind this rare public outpouring of anger.
Their Boat Sank in Minutes 10 Miles Offshore of Flagler Beach: How 4 Men and 2 Boys Kept Their Cool Until Rescued
A group of six Palm Coast boaters off on a snapper fishing trip Saturday (July 10) rapidly sank two hours into their trip, 10 miles offshore. Quick action, level heads and a series of fortunate events led to their rescue by another fishing boat, then the Coast Guard. here’s their story.
Palm Coast’s Joseph Carroll, 42, Indicted on 1st Degree Murder in Overdose Death of Michael Burnett Jr.
Michael Burnett Jr. was 31 when he overdosed on drugs allegedly sold to him by Joseph Carroll, 42, and Allyson Bennett, 39, in 2018. Bennett this week pleaded to manslaughter, and faces up to 15 years in prison. Carroll was indicted on the first-degree murder charge, a capital felony, on Tuesday.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, July 14, 2021
The joys of living in a state that cares for its residents, Bastille Day, the many pleasures of studying the Enlightenment, and J.D. Vance’s lineage from Flannery O’Connor.
63% of Workers who File an EEOC Discrimination Complaint Lose Their Jobs
People who experience sex discrimination, race discrimination and other forms of discrimination at work aren’t getting much protection from the laws designed to shield them from it, researchers found.
Palm Coast Fire Department and Mayor Recognize Firefighters who Saved Teen
The Palm Coast Fire Department (PCFD) recently recognized the efforts of firefighters for their actions in helping to save the life of a juvenile who had climbed onto the overpass of Palm Coast Parkway & I-95 bridge on Father’s Day. The teen was having a mental health crisis and was a threat to herself.
State Board of Education Considers Overhaul of School Standards, Including Civics and U.S. ‘Exceptionalism’
Florida’s State Board of Education on Wednesday will consider adopting a wide-ranging overhaul of curriculum standards across multiple subjects in public schools, including guidelines for teaching civics and government courses and Holocaust education.
As If Global Warming Weren’t Enough: Rupert Murdoch Is Launching Fox Weather
A prominent media analyst, said it best the other day: “How do you address the fact that weather changes are caused to some degree by humans when you have a media property with a history of challenging that fact?”
Flagler Free Clinic Receives $75,000 Donation, Largest-Ever Gift, as AdventHealth Auxiliary Sunsets
The non-profit Flagler Free Clinic has been providing poorer residents free healthcare since 2005. Friday the clinic received its biggest donation ever, from the AdventHealth Palm Coast Auxiliary.
‘It’s News to Me,’ Barbosa Tells Council of His Alleged Fugitive Status, Before Meeting Tips Into Brawl Again
The Palm Coast City Council’s five-hour workshop today had its share of tense moments before devolving again into a verbal brawl as Victor Barbosa professed ignorance about the allegations behind his apparent fugitive status before verbally dueling with Mayor Eddie Branquinho again.
Sheriff Requests 10 Additional Deputies for Palm Coast, a 28% Policing Budget Increase Posing Dilemma for City
The Sheriff is asking for 10 deputies from Palm Coast and 15 from the county in line with a staffing analysis he commissioned last year. But Palm Coast’s budget for next year includes other costly priorities and assumes a slight tax increase as it is. The Sheriff’s request is complicating the city’s math and council members’ already strained dynamics.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, July 13, 2021
Put your seat belts or HazMat suits on: the Palm Coast City Council meets in workshop this morning at 9 at City Hall, though misbehavior is unlikely: the place will be crawling with top cops: the sheriff is making a pitch for policing in the years ahead.
Nobles’ Resignation Added to Baxley’s, Bunnell Invites Residents to Apply for 2 Commission Seat Appointments
The Bunnell commission decided on seeking two appointments within the month in an evening of farewells and surprises, with Commissioner John Rogers revealing that he had just been battling Covid-19, and had been gravely ill, and former County Commissioner Nate McLaughlin, looking fit and conversant, making his first public appearance in a government setting since he suffered a stroke in February.
Zaila Avant-garde, 2021 National Spelling Bee Champ, Stands Where Black Children Were Once Kept Out
When Zaila Avant-garde, 14, won the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee on July 8, 2021, she became the first Black American to win in the competition’s history. Shalini Shankar, a scholar of spelling bees, breaks down the importance of this historical moment.
Flagler Beach Mayor Throws Marker Against Supporting Organizations Appearing on Joe Mullins Infomercial
Flagler Beach Mayor Suzie Johnston, with fellow-commissioners’ support, severed her support for the Family Life Center, the shelter for abused people, after the center’s director appeared on Joe Mullins’s partisan infomercial on WNZF, what Johnston described as crossing a line. Mullins recently had slurred Flagler Beach commissioners as “cowards” and has been in an open feud with Commission Chairman Eric Cooley.
When It Absolutely, Positively Doesn’t Have to Lead to This: Gun-Toting Road Rage Incident Lands Man in Jail
A 32-year-old delivery driver for FedEx was making deliveries in Palm Coast Thursday afternoon when, passing by the Brass Tap in the Island Walk shopping center, his way was blocked by another vehicle idled in the middle of the road. The man blocking his way then allegedly flashed a gun.
As Condo Tower Death Toll Reaches 90, Renner Says No Need for Immediate Changes to Building Codes
Rep. Paul Renner, a Palm Coast Republican set to take over as House speaker following the 2022 elections, pointed to the inability of the Champlain Towers South condo association to quickly address safety and structural repairs needed for the once 12-story building.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, July 12, 2021
The Flagler County Commission may settle its differences with Whispering Meadows Ranch and will discuss impact fees, and the Bunnell City Commission will bid farewell to Bill Baxley, the senior-most member of Flagler County’s elected officials, as he retires.
Trump Before Trump: When Nixon VP Spiro Agnew Attacked News Media
In 1969 Spiro Agnew in a speech written by Patrick Buchanan attacked the press with almost unprecedented venom, anticipating a run of anti-media presidents that culminated with Trump. Buchanan later remembered that as Nixon read his proposed draft, he heard him mutter, “This’ll tear the scab off those bastards.”
Proud Boys and Other Extremists Rally at Florida’s Old Capitol to Demand Release of Jan. 6 Insurrection Lawbreakers
About 100 people rallied on the lawn of the Historic Capitol Museum in Tallahassee. They flashed signs at passersby and chanted, “Let them go,” in reference to people arrested during the Jan. 6 attack.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, July 11, 2021
England gets its greatest chance yet to end its 55-year drought of championships in international soccer competition when it meets Italy at Wembley in London at 3 p.m. Palm Coast time, in the final of Euro 2020.
Five Lessons on Bringing Truth Back to Politics
Democracies have felt precarious – in the US, during the Trump presidency, and in countries like Brazil, Hungary and Poland currently. Integral to such corrosion of democracy (as George Orwell made clear in his novel 1984) is the distortion of truth and facts in favor of a particular agenda.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, July 10, 2021
Vaccine resistors, Cathar country for the Tour de France–those heretics the Catholic Church attacked and decimated in one of the forgotten genocides of history–and advice from Flaubert about the inane.