Whichever way you look at it, the Flagler County Commission’s and its administrator’s letter to the school district calling for a plan to defund the county’s portion of money for school deputies was clumsy, terribly timed, and an unnecessary invitation to political grandstanding in an election year. Deputies aren’t going anywhere, nor is the county’s funding. But nor should this be another invitation for the School Board to consider harebrained ideas like arming staffers.
Mom Who Let Her 6-Year-Old Daughter Wander Onto CR 305 Is Sentenced to a Year in Prison
Circuit Judge Terence Perkins on Wednesday sentenced Sarah Anne Welker to a year in prison followed by four years on drug-offender probation. The 36-year-old mother left her 6-year-old daughter unsupervised for almost three hours until she wander unaccompanied on County Road 305, where she was seen flagging down passing cars for help. The sentence is to run concurrent to a case in Volusia County where she pleaded guilty to an identical charge in October and been placed on probation.
Vacation Rental Bill Scaling Back Local Control, Opposed by Flagler County Government, Heads to House Floor
The House Commerce Committee today approved a bill on a 10-4 vote pre-empting most vacation-rental authorities to the state. The bill heads to the House floor for a vote and reconciliation with the Senate’s version. It is the closest a pre-emption proposal has come to enactment in the dozen years that the vacation rental industry has pushed them.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, February 22, 2024
The Flagler Beach City Commission meets, Daniel Wagner at Tiger Bay, Forever Fab and Sixtiesmania at the Auditorium, Sadie turns 30, The New Sigmund Romberg Orchestra’s Musical Journey to Broadway, and It Happened One Night, in full.
Are Children Bad for the Environment?
Procreation is often viewed as a personal or private choice that should not be scrutinized. However, it is a choice that affects others: the parents, the children themselves and the people who will inhabit the world alongside those children in the future. Thus, it is an appropriate topic for moral reflection.
Controversial Bill Allowing Lawsuits Over Wrongful Death of an ‘Unborn Child’ Advances
The proposal, now ready to go to the full House, would add “unborn child” to a law that allows family members to seek damages when a person’s death is caused by such things as wrongful acts or negligence. The bill (HB 651) has drawn intense pushback from abortion-rights advocates, who argue the proposed changes could put abortion providers and people who help women obtain abortions at risk of being sued.
Flagler County Local Government Leadership Academy Graduates 14 from 7 Agencies
Fourteen executives, managers, and professionals graduated from the Flagler County Local Government Leadership Academy at a special ceremony at the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office Operations Center on Feb. 15.
Charles Kidd, Facing Murder Charge in Woodlands Killing, Was Suffering from Dementia and May Not Stand Trial
Charles Kidd, the 86-year-old former resident of Blare Drive in Palm Coast who shot and killed 36-year-old Mark Ruschmeier in August, was suffering from dementia severe enough at the time that two psychologists have concluded he is not competent to stand trial.
Three School Board Members Are Champing at the Bit to Close Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club to the Public
If they could have voted on it Tuesday, Flagler County School Board members Will Furry, Christy Chong and Sally Hunt would have closed the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club to the public. They would have turned the 11-acre club gifted to the school board by ITT in 1996 into a facility for students and school programs only, with the exception of swimming pool rentals to other clubs or parties.
School Board and Parents Grapple with County’s ‘Blindsiding’ Call To Defund Its Portion of School Deputies
Flagler County School Board members and parents spoke of surprise, concern and “blindsiding,” in the words of the board’s chair, in reaction to a Feb. 13 letter from County Administrator Heidi Petito to the superintendent saying the county had reached “an important decision” to “gradually transfer the financial responsibility” for $1.4 million in “these legacy expenditures to the school district,” including the county’s more than $1 million commitment to school resource deputies.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, February 21, 2024
The Palm Coast Planning Board meets, chess club at the public library, correcting an Economist editorial on Palestinians and Israelis, Jeff Sharlet reflects on the routine betrayals of journalists, Jon Stewart’s return.
Mexico is Suing American Gun Makers for Arming Its Gangs
The lawsuit seeks US$10 billion in damages and a court order to force the companies named in the lawsuit – including Smith & Wesson, Colt, Glock, Beretta and Ruger – to change the way they do business. In January, a federal appeals court in Boston decided that the industry’s immunity shield, which so far has protected gun-makers from civil liability, does not apply to Mexico’s lawsuit.
Florida Moving To Ban References to Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Florida lawmakers are moving toward approving an overhaul of state energy laws, including eliminating references to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and imposing a ban on offshore wind-energy generation.
Proposal to Allow Chaplains in Florida Schools Advances
A proposal continued advancing Tuesday in the Senate to allow school districts to authorize chaplains to provide services for students. Under the bill (SB 1044), districts and charter schools could adopt policies to allow volunteer school chaplains “to provide supports, services and programs to students as assigned by the district school board or charter school governing board.”
Sally Hunt Is Again a No Show, Raising Questions Among Her School Board Colleagues and Her Seat
School Board member Sally Hunt’s “chronic” absences drew criticism from fellow-Board member Cheryl Massaro at today’s meeting, concerns about the functioning of a board that, without a majority, could see many of its actions fail (a 2-2 vote is equivalent to the death of a motion) and questions about Hunt’s seat when she resign, as she said she will.
Palm Coast Council Postpones Water Rate Increase in Face of Opposition, But Raises Utility Impact Fees on Builders
There will be no water and sewer rate increase in Palm Coast for now: the Palm Coast City Council today voted 4-1 to postpone a rate increase, while significantly raising “capacity,” or utility impact fees, the one-time levy on builders of new homes and businesses. That revenue is used to defray the cost of growth on the city’s utility infrastructure.
Feral Hogs Are Trampling Residents’ Properties, But County’s Containment Capabilities Are Limited
As feral hogs continue to trample all over private property in what residents say are increasing numbers spurred by development and a diminishing habitat, the Flagler County Commission is proposing to increase traps, encourage more volunteer to join a corps of hog-hunters, repair fencing along county roads, and work with homeowner associations on their own hog-management plans. But a solution remains elusive.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, February 20, 2024
The cold-weather shelter opens again tonight, the School Board has a trio of meetings, starting with one it would rather you did not attend, the Flagler Beach Library Writers’ Club meets, Thomas Mann’s Dilettante, electric vehicles.
Trump Faces Half a Billion Dollars of Debt and Several More Court Cases. It Won’t Stop Him from Becoming President.
Trump’s ability to tap into a particularly American form of racial revanchism – his political acumen in marrying conspiracy, racism, and political grievance in an increasingly unequal society – is what brought him to power. It is what sustains him still.
Sheriff Staly to County: ‘Defunding School Resources Deputies Is Fundamentally Wrong’
When the the County Commission first raised the possibility of ending its contribution to the Flagler County school district’s school resource deputy program a year ago, Sheriff Rick Staly wrote the commission chairman a four-page letter sharply criticizing the possibility and explaining why. Now that the County Commission is pushing that possibility further, Staly’s letter is relevant again, and presented here in full.
Palm Coast P-Section’s Last 35 Acres of Trees Leveled to Make Room for 74-Home ‘Ponce Preserve’ Gated Community
The 74-home gated community of Ponce Preserve will be built by in a 35-acre expanse–the last undisturbed expanse in the P-Section–between Point Pleasant Drive, Ponce de Leon Drive, Pony Express Drive and Port Royal Drive. Because it’s under 100 homes, the development did not need to go before either the planning board or the City Council.
Flagler County Plans to End $1.4 Million Contribution for School Deputies, Administrator Tells Superintendent
Flagler County Administrator Heidi Petito last week wrote Superintendent LaShakia Moore that county government will no longer pay the $1.4 million a year in subsidies for the school district’s School Resource Officer, ending a 50-50 cost-sharing agreement that’s been in place for a decade. The county is not required by law to share the district’s security costs.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, February 19, 2024
The cold-weather shelter opens tonight. The Flagler County Commission meets in workshop to discuss the county’s feral hog problem, and meets again in a regularly scheduled business session, a new Bach French Suite recording, an excerpt from Darin Strauss’s “Half a Life.”
Dearborn, Michigan: A Brief History of the 1st Arab-American Majority City in the US
Dearborn, Michigan, is a center of Arab American cultural, economic, and political life. It’s home to several of the country’s oldest and most influential mosques, the Arab American National Museum, dozens of now-iconic Arab bakeries and restaurants, and a vibrant and essential mix of Arab American service and cultural organizations.
Jimmy Carter in Hospice Is Still Better than Trump in White House
Biden is old. He’s slow. He’s forgetful. He trips all over the place, he’s in hiding, and the Democratic Party is a pitiful band of backbenchers who couldn’t give us a more convincing alternative. For all that, compared to Trump he’s still the only credible choice, if it’s a republic we still want.
Moms for Liberty’s Book of Morons
The moms of Moms for “Liberty” are feeling a little touchy, put-upon, even diminished. Their do-boy DeSantis crashed out of the presidential race. They’re losing school board elections. They’re making idiots of themselves in the national media, as when Moms co-founder Tiffany Justice simultaneously defends taking books off school library shelves while denying that Moms want books taken off school library shelves, unless they’re by Black writers or gay writers, or ones dealing with the Holocaust, racism, or any sex.
Buddy Taylor Middle School 7th Grader Douglas Seth Breaks Florida Record for 3,000 Meter
Buddy Taylor Middle’s Douglas Seth competed at the State Indoor Middle and High School Track Championships at the Alachua County Sports Complex in Gainesville. His time of 9:33.40 earned him the number one ranking among Florida middle school competition. His time was the fastest ever recorded for a Florida middle school student-athlete, as well as being the 13th fastest ever in the nation on the middle school level.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, February 18, 2024
The Palm Coast Open final, ‘Tuck Everlasting,’ at Limelight Theater in St. Augustine, Woody Allen’s ‘Don’t Dring the Water,’ at Daytona Playhouse, and the pleasures and long history of the word “irregardless.”
Navalny’s Death Leaves a Blueprint for Anti-Putin Activism
While Navalny languished in prison camps following his arrest on charges of violating parole during his recovery in Germany, many of these activists in exile continued to operate outside of Russia. This new generation of Russian activists – whether those in exile advocating for change or those risking their well-being in Russia to support anti-war candidates – is Navalny’s legacy.
Ralph Carter Park Community Meeting and Update
The City of Palm Coast will host a Ralph Carter Park Community Update meeting for residents of the R-Section and users of Ralph Carter Park on February 28th at 6 p.m. The meeting will be held in the community wing of City Hall at 160 Lake Avenue.
Equal Justice Initiative Unveils Statue of Rosa Parks
The Equal Justice Initiative has unveiled a statue of Rosa Parks at its Legacy Museum in Montgomery, Ala., on Wednesday, part of a broader effort to memorialize civil rights icons.
In the coming months, statues for Martin Luther King Jr. and John Lewis will also be erected at the museum, connected with the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, also known as the lynching memorial.
Senate Backs Paul Renner Initiative Banning Children Younger Than 16 From Social Media, With Caveats
The House overwhelmingly passed the initial version last month, and the newly revised version does not change the basic components. It would prevent children under 16 from creating accounts on at least some social-media platforms; require platforms to terminate existing accounts that they know or have “reason to believe” are held by minors younger than 16; and allow parents to request that minors’ accounts be terminated.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, February 17, 2024
The Palm Coast Open nears its culmination, Live From the Waterworks, Rachmaninoff’s Second Symphony, at the Jacksonville Symphony, the Library of America announces its forthcoming 2024 titles.
Five Signs that You Might Be Rightwing
The United States has the greatest gap between left and right for 50 years. Europe is anticipated to take a sharp right turn in this year’s European parliament elections. The past decade has already seen a rightward shift in India. In light of these global trends, it’s crucial to understand what being “rightwing” actually means, rather than simply using the term as an insult.
Sabotage of Biden’s Compromise Border Bill Proves It: GOP Wants Chaos, Not Solutions
Right-wing Republicans have squawked since forever that the only way to save this country from being overrun by non-white immigrants is to enact tough enforcement at the southern border. But now that they’ve finally gotten what they’ve always professed to want – a bipartisan Senate bill, with President Biden moving rightward in the spirit of compromise – Johnson and the rest of his MAGA misfits are decreeing that the whole package is DOA in the House.
Superintendent Moore Rededicates ‘Our House’ in Bunnell
This Valentine’s Day, Flagler Schools Superintendent LaShakia Moore and Flagler County Education Foundation Executive Director Teresa Rizzo, along with others from Our House and from within the community, helped cut the ribbon on the rededication of the 502 South Bacher Street facility.
Palm Coast Has No Money to Pave Your Neighborhood Streets. It’ll Apply a Cheap Sealant and Hope for the Best.
Facing a $10 million deficit in road repairs and no new revenue identified, the Palm Coast City Council approved a diminutive $1 million plan to “microsurface” 29 neighborhood roads and $2.7 million to resurface a few arterial roads. Microsrufacing is not traditional paving. It’s more like a tooth sealant, but for roads: cavities aren’t fixed. They’re covered up. The tentative approach points to the consequences of a council deferring infrastructure needs while rolling back the tax rate.
Immigrant Activists Rally Against ‘Consistent Dehumanization’ in Florida as They Face More Bills Targeting Them
Seven months after one of the strictest immigration laws in the nation went into effect, dozens of immigrant rights activists gathered in the state Capitol building on Thursday to speak out about what one person called the “never ending attacks on immigrants” in Florida.
Flagler Beach Steps Back from Pushing Changes to Mayor’s Powers, Opting for Charter Review Instead
With a majority of city commissioners and the public speaking their skepticism about changing the make-up of the Flagler Beach City Commission, giving the mayor more voting or veto power, or changing the lengths and limits of commissioners’ terms, a proposal to go down that road appears to be teetering on the edge of a failing vote, if it comes to that. But it won’t.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, February 16, 2024
The Palm Coast Open continues, Annual Health and Fitness Fair at the Palm Coast Community Center, Darryl Worley and Anthony Smith, at Flagler Auditorium, Woody Allen’s ‘Don’t Dring the Water,’ at Daytona Playhouse, Rachmaninoff’s Second Symphony, at Jacksonville Symphony, a detour to Nigeria.
Gershwin’s ‘Rhapsody in Blue’: Jazz, Race, and That Problematic Melting Pot
Programming “Rhapsody” for concerts today has become somewhat of a double-edged sword. A century after it premiered, it remains a crowd favorite – and almost always guarantees a sold-out show. But more and more scholars are starting to see the work as a whitewashed version of Harlem’s vibrant Black music scene.
Jury Finds Andrew Sharp, 22, Guilty of Raping His 9-Year-Old Cousin and Faces Life in Prison
A jury found Donald Andrew Sharp, 22, a former Palm Coast resident, guilty of raping his cousin when she was 8 and 9, and of directing her brother to molest her, in case Sharp needed a scapegoat if he were ever accused of improprieties. He will be sentenced to life in prison.
Before Ordering a Costly and Likely Unnecessary Forensic Audit, Palm Coast Will School Itself on Process
The Palm Coast City Council is hesitant to give in to vague and unsubstantiated calls for a forensic audit without first knowing more clearly what such an audit entails, what it will cost the city, and whether it is even necessary in the absence of accounting red flags. The city is soliciting firms to provide that schooling.
GOP Proposal to Teach Tendentious ‘History of Communism’ in K-12 Draws Heated Debate
An at-times tense meeting of a House panel exposed a simmering debate about whether a proposal to teach about the history of communism in grades as low as kindergarten is a polarizing idea or, as a supporter said, “not divisive in any way.”
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, February 15, 2024
The Palm Coast Open, ‘Tuck Everlasting,’ at Limelight Theater in St. Augustine, the day the world almost ended in 2013, an Abba tribute at the Peabody Auditorium, a few lines from Salman Rushdie.
Babysitter Accused of Turning Predator Against Children in His Care Confronts His Most Damning Witness: Himself
Donald Andrew Sharp took the stand in his own defense today in his trial on numerous capital sex charges of raping a child. But he was ineffective in countering his own recorded confessions, in a conversation with the child’s father and with detectives, that he had committed the very acts he is accused of.
Flagler Sheriff’s Deputies Arrest 31 in Year-Long Undercover Operations Targeting Illegal Drugs
Over $746,000 of illegal drugs and 31 drug dealers are now off the streets after a nearly year-long countywide undercover operation targeting drug dealers in Flagler County by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Above-Average Rainfall Dominates Most of the Region in January
In January, the 18 counties forming the St. Johns River Water Management District, including Flagler, continued its trend of above-average rainfall, mainly due to frontal systems, a common occurrence during this time of the year. Eleven counties received between half an inch to an inch more rainfall than their usual monthly average.
Flood-Causing Or Not, Homes Built at Higher Elevations Are Way of the Future, Jonathan Lord Tells Palm Coast
For months, residents of Palm Coast’s older sections have been complaining about new homes rising next to them at sharply higher elevations, and seemingly causing flooding on their own lots. Flagler County Emergency Management Director Jonathan Lord, however, told the city council that, in a time of climate change and more pronounced flooding risks, those higher elevations are the way of the future.
The Myth of Men’s Full-Time Employment
Men’s labor force participation has been steadily declining since the 1970s, and workers are experiencing greater labor market precarity – that is, shorter job spells, greater job insecurity and more long-term unemployment. Only 41% of late baby boomer men – those who were between 14 and 21 years old in 1979 – worked steadily and continuously, which we defined as working almost every week of the year between ages 27 and 49.