What started as a position statement on beach policy quickly degenerated into accusations–Commissioner Kim Carney accusing the administration of inaction, Commissioner Greg Hansen accusing Carney of “sabotage,” Commissioner Pam Richardson accusing Hansen of making things up (he wasn’t). The discussion uncovered the rifts that led to the collapse of the commission’s long-term beach-management plan, and the county with few options ahead and underscored the inescapable: Flagler County and its cities have no plan to save their beaches beyond a cluster of temporary and thinly funded stopgaps.
Palm Coast Relieves Itself 3 Years Late as Much-Needed $31 Million Sewer Plant Expansion Doubles Capacity
Almost three years late and 55 percent over the original budget, Palm Coast’s expansion of its Waste Water Treatment Plant Number 2 is now operational but for a punch-list, doubling the plant’s capacity to 4 million gallons per day and relieving the city’s older, overburdened WWTP1 in the Woodlands, which is getting its own expansion. When presented to the City Council in January 2020, the expansion was scheduled for completion by November 2022, for $20 million. Not including design, the project’s construction cost rose to $30.9 million.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, August 4, 2025
The Flagler County Commission meets, the Beverly Beach Town Commission meets, the geopolitical bigotry and economic suicide of tariffs in color, a Johnny Carson monologue, a sum-up of the so-called New South.
When Nazis Stole a Fragment of the Great Bayeux Tapestry
In March, it was reported that a fragment of the Bayeux tapestry had been discovered in Germany in the Schleswig-Holstein state archives. It has often been observed that art seems to have been of disproportionate concern to the Nazis. However, their manipulation of visual and material culture should be understood as central to – not separate from – Hitler’s genocidal regime and its efforts towards global domination.
New York Latest State to Offer Free Phone Calls from Prison
New York will offer free phone calls to people incarcerated in its state prisons starting Aug. 1, becoming the sixth state to do so. The change is projected to save roughly 30,000 families across the state an estimated $13.3 million per year in phone call fees, according to Worth Rises, a nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to dismantling the prison industry. New York joins California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Minnesota in offering free phone calls in state prisons.
Never as Powerful, Florida Republicans Warn Against Complacency and Ridicule Protesters at Orlando Forum
Several top-leading GOP leaders at the Florida Freedom Forum in Orlando on Saturday warned that complacency and infighting could give an opening to their political rivals even though the Republican Party of Florida has never been more powerful than right now. Gov. Ron DeSantis, Attorney General James Uthemier and others faced more than half-a-dozen outbursts that took place throughout the day at the Rosen Shingle Creek hotel.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, August 3, 2025
Palm Coast Farmers’ Market at European Village, Harley Schwadron on the Lunatic Fringe, lying about reading Tom Wolfe’s Bonfire of the Vanities and whether that’s such a bad thing.
Britain and France Are on Brink of Recognizing Palestinian Statehood
The UK will formally recognize the state of Palestine in September unless Israel acts to end the “appalling situation” in Gaza. The UK’s decision follows a pledge by French president Emmanuel Macron on July 24 to formally recognise Palestinian statehood in September. If this is acted upon, France and the UK would be the first G7 members and the first members of the UN security council to recognize the state of Palestine.
Keep Your ICE Raids Out of Our Schools
Immigration raids have escalated — often under questionable pretenses. This spring, immigration agents tried to enter two elementary schools in Los Angeles. At the door, agents said they wanted to determine students’ well-being and claimed to have authorization from the children’s caretakers. Administrators denied them entry — and when they spoke with caretakers later, they learned that agents had lied about receiving permission.
Vance 46 Points Ahead of DeSantis in Early 2026 Presidential Poll
Florida’s Governor continues to struggle in early surveys of what could be the 2028 Republican race to replace Donald Trump. Per a survey from Emerson College, Ron DeSantis has 7% support in North Carolina, well behind Vice President JD Vance’s 53%.
‘Yes, We Signed the Damn Thing Because We Really Had To,’ Orlando Mayor Says of Forced Transports for ICE
Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings signed an updated agreement with U.S. Immigration and Enforcement (ICE) on Friday, although he later said he did so under “protest and extreme duress.” It came days after Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier threatened the mayor and all six county commissioners that their failure to do so would result in their removal from office by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, August 2, 2025
The annual Back to School Jam is scheduled for 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Flagler Palm Coast High School 800 gym, the Flagler Beach All Stars hold their monthly beach clean-up, when Daniel Boorstin turned repulsive.
The Catholic Clergy Takes a Stand on Immigration
Catholic priests across the U.S. discuss immigration with their congregations more than leaders in many other faith traditions. Catholic priests also said they discussed immigration more than nearly all other political issues, including hunger in their communities, capital punishment, health care and the environment. Abortion was the only one priests discussed slightly more often.
DeSantis Sours on ICE Poaching Local Police with $50,000 Bonuses
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday encouraged sheriffs and police chiefs to fight to keep staff members as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement seeks to recruit Florida officers who recently completed immigration-enforcement training. DeSantis said he had not seen an ICE recruitment letter that offers a $50,000 signing bonus to recruits who work five years, but he questioned the need to “poach our people who are already in the fight.”
Zakrzewski Killed for Murdering His Family, and DeSantis Sets Modern-Day Record for Executions in a Year
Edward Zakrzewski was executed Thursday evening for the 1994 murders of his wife and two children in their Okaloosa County home, as Florida set a modern-era record for executions in a year. Zakrzewski, 60, was pronounced dead at 6:12 p.m. at Florida State Prison, according to the state Department of Corrections. He was the ninth inmate put to death by lethal injection this year. Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed death warrants for two more executions in August.
County Attorney Al Hadeed, Now a Flagler Sheriff’s Deputy, Is Regaled Into Retirement
The sheriff’s naming of County Attorney Al Hadeed an honorary sheriff’s deputy was among the surprises at Hadeed’s retirement party Thursday evening at the Government Services Building. There were numerous local tributes, a proclamation, the dedication of a bench in Hadeed’s name at Princess Place Preserve, recognitions wrapped in gifts and held-back tears and choked-up memories and overhead screens projecting a lifetime of pictures.
Palm Coast Council’s Charles Gambaro Announces Congressional Run Against ‘Outrageous’ Randy Fine
Palm Coast City Council member Charles Gambaro late Thursday announced he will challenge U.S. Rep. Randy Fine in the 2026 primary for the 6th Congressional District seat Fine won in a special election last April. With Council member Dave Sullivan’s plan not to run in the 2026 election, Gambaro’s decision creates the second open seat on the council–an opening that gives the embattled mayor a chance to make a play for a majority aligned with him.
U.S. Job Creation Stalls to Lowest 3-Month Total Since Covid, Bankruptcies Spike 27% in Florida’s Middle District
The national economy added 73,000 jobs in July and 106,000 in the last three months combined, the poorest quarter in job creation since the massive job losses of April 2020 as Covid shut down much of the economy. The unemployment rate edged up to 4.2. It has hovered between 4 and 4.2 percent for the past 14 months. In a related trend, personal and business bankruptcy filings rose nationally 11.5 percent in the last 12 months, and 27 percent in the Middle District of Florida that includes Flagler County, from 18,471 last year to 23,442 in the last 12 months. A bankruptcy attorney says the trend is here to stay.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, August 1, 2025
First Friday Garden Walks at Washington Oaks Gardens State Park, First Friday in Flagler Beach, confusing ethics and aesthetics, Walker Percy and Consumer Reports.
Supreme Court Justices’ Political Leanings
Politics has a much stronger presence in articles about the U.S. Supreme Court today than in years past, with a notable increase beginning in 2016. Across the five major newspapers, reporting about the court has gradually become more political over time. That isn’t surprising: America has been gradually polarizing since the 1980s as well, and the changes in news media coverage reflect that polarization.
Hires of Palm Coast Utility and Development Directors Termed Capstones of Mark Strobridge’s Brief Tenure
Flagler County Sheriff’s Chief Mark Strobridge considers the long-needed appointments of directors to two of Palm Coast government’s most important departments–utilities and growth management–as the capstone to his unusual tenure as an assistant city manager on loan to Interim City Manager Lauren Johnston. The city on Wednesday announced the appointments of Brian Roche as director of the Utility Department, and John Zobler as Community Development Director, a position vacant since Jason DeLorenzo was named chief of staff in September 2022. DeLorenzo left the city earlier this month.
Two Turtle Nests Halt Flagler Beach Pier Construction Until September as Workarounds Prove Impractical
The Flagler Beach pier demolition and reconstruction project is coming to a halt next Wednesday. Two new turtle nests burrowed in the path of the large trestle under construction are stopping work on the $16 million project. It will resume in about two months, after the turtles have hatched. The due date for the newest turtle nest is not before Sept. 10.
Committee’s 15-13 Vote Sends School Board’s Derek Barrs Nomination for Transportation Post to Full Senate
Flagler County School Board member Derek Barrs is a step closer to resigning the seat and leaving Flagler County to become the administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration in Washington, D.C. The U.S. Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee on Wednesday voted 15-13, strictly along party lines, to send the nomination to the full Senate, where Barrs is expected to be confirmed.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, July 31, 2025
Palm Coast Concert Series featuring Landfall, 6 to 8 p.m. at the Stage at Town Center, Model Yacht Club Races at the Pond in Palm Coast’s Central Park, reading the perplexing and sublime Andre Gide.
Ring of Fire: What the Strongest Earthquakes Ever Recorded Have in Common
The Pacific region is highly prone to powerful earthquakes and resulting tsunamis because it’s located in the so-called Ring of Fire, a region of heightened seismic and volcanic activity. All ten most powerful earthquakes recorded in modern history were located on the Ring of Fire.Here’s why the underlying structure of our planet makes this part of the world so volatile.
As Mayor Norris Misrepresents Ethics Complaint Dismissal, Council Focuses on Charter and Governor Action
The Florida Commission on Ethics tossed out a complaint filed by four Palm Coast City Council members against Mayor Mike Norris, citing “legal insufficiency.” Norris had said as much in a social media posting last Friday and at a town hall meeting Monday, misinterpreting the order as a victory. To the council members, the ethics commission’s decision is one more reason to revise the city charter to add disciplinary clauses that would enable a council majority–or a supermajority–to deal with a rogue or derelict member.
Flagler Turtle Patrol and County Fire Rescue Save 5 Hatchlings on A1A
Five leatherback sea turtle hatchlings are in the care of Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience following their harrowing journey across State Road A1A near Beverly Beach and became trapped in two storm drains at the Oceanside Condominiums.
16 Years in Prison for Justin Maddox, 32, in Overdose Death of Jeremy Kocorowski, 40
Indicted on a capital murder charge for his role in the drug-overdose death of 40-year-old Jeremy Kocorowski of Bunnell in March 2024, Justin Maddox, 32, of Palm Coast, was sentenced today to 16 years in prison in a plea deal that reduced the charge to manslaughter. “Addiction is a disease,” the victim’s mother told the court in a statement she read after the sentencing. “But exploiting someone who’s struggling is not. it is predatory. It is lethal. And in this case, it was murder.”
On Flagler County School Board, Competing Views Underscore District Tensions Behind Vouchers and ‘Choice’
At the end of a 15-minute hearing on Tuesday to approve Flagler County schools’ tentative property tax and budget for the coming fiscal year–a budget that includes the siphoning of $17 million to subsidize private school “vouchers” for almost 2,000 students, with the district’s dollars–School Board member Janie Ruddy delivered a brief speech decrying the erosion of public dollars for public schools, and addressing its consequences. Will Furry followed with a rejoinder, illustrating district tensions at the heart of the voucher and “choice” program. Both statements follow in full.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, July 30, 2025
Flagler Cares hosts its quarterly Help Night, Separation Chat, Christopher Weyant on Netanyahu, John Oliver on the Big Beautiful Bill, the decline and fall of X, Jeff Sharlet on the F word.
Citing Costs, Flagler Beach Commissioners Reject Design of New ‘Beachwalk’ on and Around Pier for 2nd Time in 4 Weeks
The design of a new “Beachwalk” and “Promenade” beneath and around the Flagler Beach pier drew raves from city commissioners. But what started as a $1.5 million project has ballooned to at least $2.8 million, with several design elements that were not part of the original concept as commissioners understood it, including a covered portion of the 4,200-square-foot promenade. Commissioners have tabled the project and asked for a third redesign.
The Smokescreen of Food Air Drops in Gaza
A third of Gazans have gone without food for several days and 90,000 women and children now require urgent care for acute malnutrition. Local health authorities have reported 147 deaths from starvation so far, 80% of whom are children. Air-dropping food supplies is considered a last resort due to the undignified and unsafe manner in which the aid is delivered. The UN has already reported civilians being injured when packages have fallen on tents. Air-dropped pallets of food are also inefficient compared with what can be delivered by road.
Justices Will Publicly Reprimand Broward Judge Stefanie Moon
As part of discipline that also included a 10-day suspension, Broward County Circuit Judge Stefanie Moon will go before the Florida Supreme Court on Sept. 9 for a public reprimand, the court said Tuesday.
DeSantis Signs 11th Death Warrant of Year: Curtis Windom, 1992 Murderer of 3
Continuing to quickly order executions, Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday signed a death warrant for a man convicted of killing three people in 1992 in Orange County. Curtis Windom, 59, is scheduled to be executed Aug. 28 at Florida State Prison. Windom would be the 11th inmate executed this year in the state — a record-breaking pace.
Janie Ruddy Rips Vouchers, Will Furry Defends Them as School Board Sees Erosion of Nearly 2,000 Students to Hand-Out
The Flagler County School Board in a 15-minute meeting this evening approved the tentative school property tax for the next fiscal year, a small decline from last year that continues a 20-year trend of cutting the school tax rate every year but in the three years of the Great Recession. Board member Janie Ruddy pointedly noted the discordance between falling tax rates and local needs, and between the expansion of vouchers–public funding for private education–at the public schools’ expense. Will Furry, who chairs the board, countered with a defense of vouchers.
At Mike Norris ‘Mayoral Town Hall,’ an Impressive Crowd Starring Cast of Familiar Faces, Fictions and Grievances
Palm Coast Mayor Norris’s self-vaunted, well-attended and uneventful “Mayoral Town Hall” at the VFW hall on Old Kings Road Monday evening was almost identical to a grousing public comment segment at a City Council meeting, but stretched to two hours, and with a larger audience primed by pizza, beer and wine on the mayor’s personal generosity. The two-hour event drew 154 people, based on a head count just before the halfway mark.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, July 29, 2025
Food Truck Tuesday this evening in Palm Coast’s Town Center at Central Park, Random Acts of Insanity Standup Comedy at Cinematique, the Yankees’ Ryan McMahon meets Bruce Dern of “The Cowboys.”
As Israel Starves Gaza
Already around 60,000 Gazans have been killed and growing numbers are now dying from hunger and malnutrition. More than 90% of the private homes in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. Israeli officials continue to speak of moving Gazans into what has been termed a “humanitarian city” but what former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert described as a “concentration camp”. In the same interview Olmert called decision to move Gazans into the camp as “ethnic cleansing”. All the while, the world’s leaders look on. Most are apparently content to condemn – but little action has been taken.
Flagler Sheriff’s Employees Donate $24,030 to the Florida Sheriffs Youth Ranches
Flagler County Sheriff’s Office employees donated $24,030 to the Florida Sheriffs Youth Ranches (FSYR), making FCSO employee’s total donations to the FSYR approximately $204,000 since 2017. Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly presented the latest employee donation check to FSYR President Maria Knapp today during the Florida Sheriffs Association semi-annual meeting.
Federal Judge Wants To Know ‘Who’s Running the Show’ at ‘Alligator Alcatraz’
A U.S. district judge on Monday pushed state and federal officials to provide a copy of an intergovernmental agreement showing “who’s running the show” at an Everglades immigrant-detention center, calling the situation “urgent” as at least 100 detainees have been deported amid legal wrangling over the remote facility.
Mayor Norris Files for Rehearing in Lawsuit He Lost Over Gambaro Appointment and Distorts Ethics Decision
Palm Coast Mayor Mike Norris through his attorney filed a motion for rehearing of his lawsuit against the city and Council member Charles Gambaro, who Norris still claims was illegally appointed despite a court order to the contrary. Separately, Norris, in a truculent social media posting replete with errors and mischaracterizations late Friday, claimed that the Florida Commission on Ethics “has officially dismissed” the complaint the City Council filed against him, and did so “due to insufficient legal standing.”
100 Cats Rescued from R-Section Home in Palm Coast Will Have Their Own Adoption Event
In a powerful show of compassion and teamwork, almost 100 cats were rescued this week from a single home in Palm Coast, thanks to a coordinated effort by city employees, local organizations, and dedicated animal lovers.
A Perplexed Flagler Beach Hears Vague County ‘Options’ to Pay for Beach Protection After Sales Tax Plan Collapse
Kim Carney, the county commissioner who played a significant role in defeating the proposed sales tax increase to finance a comprehensive beach-protection plan, went to the Flagler Beach City Commission Thursday with five options from which the city could choose to protect its own beach. Four of the options would require Flagler Beach to impose a new tax or fee on its residents. The fifth would have the city supporting a 2026 referendum to raise the sales tax–the very option the County Commission could have approved, and that Carney opposed.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, July 28, 2025
The Bunnell City Commission meets, learning all about Earth Overshoot Day, or how natural resources are eroding faster than they can be restored, an echo of the same from 10,000 years ago.
Is There Any Hope for the Internet?
As the internet has become more integrated in our daily lives, few would describe it as a place of love, compassion and cooperation. Study after study describe how social media platforms promote alienation and disconnection – in part because many algorithms reward behaviors like trolling, cyberbullying and outrage. Is the internet’s place in human history cemented as a harbinger of despair? Or is there still hope for an internet that supports collective flourishing?
Administration Releasing Billions in Federal Education Funding
To Flagler County Schools’ relief, the Trump administration said Friday it’ll soon release billions in Education Department funding that has been frozen for weeks, delaying disbursements to K-12 schools throughout the country. The funding — which goes toward migrant education, English-language learning and other programs — was supposed to go out before July 1, but the administration informed schools just one day before that it was instead holding onto $6.8 billion while staff conducted a review. Members of both parties in Congress objected to the move.
Trump Voters Wanted Relief From Medical Bills. For Millions, the Bills Are About To Get Bigger.
President Donald Trump rode to reelection last fall on voter concerns about prices. But as his administration pares back federal rules and programs designed to protect patients from the high cost of health care, Trump risks pushing more Americans into debt, further straining family budgets already stressed by medical bills. Millions of people are expected to lose health insurance in the coming years as a result of the tax cut legislation Trump signed this month, leaving them with fewer protections from large bills if they get sick or suffer an accident.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, July 27, 2025
Palm Coast Farmers’ Market at European Village, Gamble Jam at Gamble Rogers State Recreation Area, Richard Beck’s new book on the war on terror at home.
The Nostalgia of Comfort Smells from Fresh-Cut Grass to Hamburgers
Triggered by sensory stimuli such as music, scents and foods, nostalgia has the power to mentally transport us back in time. This might be to important occasions, to moments of triumph and – importantly – moments revolving around close family and friends and other important people in our lives. As it turns out, this experience is good for us.
Sen. Rick Scott Trolls New York’s Mamdani with Florida-Baiting Campaign
With New York City on the brink of electing a democratic socialist Mayor, U.S. Sen. Rick Scott wants New Yorkers escaping to Florida. The Naples Republican launched an ad campaign in the Big Apple encouraging just that, as first reported by the New York Post. The messaging will include a banner flown over New York City that reads: “Hate Socialism? Us too! Move 2 FL.”