Maj. Sullivan Ballou’s letter to his wife, written a week before he was killed at Bull Run in 1861, is one of the great eulogies of sorrow and divided duty to nation and family. As a memorial to the victims of war, who include survivors, especially civilians, the letter has few equals.
Beyond
Voices From the Grave
Florida Senate Backs Arming Teachers And Rejects Assault Weapons Ban
The Senate plan and a similar House proposal would allow school boards to decide whether they want to implement a “marshal” proposal to arm certain teachers.
Palm Coast Resident In New York For Friend’s Birthday Party Is Murdered Outside Pizzeria
Hakeem Javon Griffin, a 22-year-old resident of Ryan Drive in Palm Coast, was killed in an argument on a street in Queens, N.Y. on Feb. 28.
Does Palm Coast Have a Panhandling Problem? Council Member Thinks So, But Legal Options Are Limited
Palm Coast City Council member Heidi Shipley, citing “regulars” panhandling on Old Kings Road and Palm Coast Parkway, wants an anti-panhandling ordinance.
Inside Atomwaffen As It Celebrates a Member for Allegedly Killing a Gay Jewish College Student
When Samuel Woodward was charged with killing 19-year-old Blaze Bernstein last month, Atomwaffen members cheered the death, concerned only that the group’s cover might have been blown.
Bill To Keep Florida On Year-Round Daylight-Saving Time Advances Easily
A proposal to shift the Panhandle to Florida’s eastern time failed, but that of keeping the state on daylight saving keeps clearing committees with unanimity.
Military Inferiority Complex:
Dear Leader Wants A Parade
The military doesn’t need parades. It needs to come home. Worshipping it in time of endlessly losing wars only locks and loads more cannon fodder.
Supreme Court Hears Latest Red Light Camera Case, But Justices Skeptical of Illegality
Several justices appeared skeptical as that the way a Florida city handles citations issued to motorists caught on camera is unlawful.
Pianist George Winston, a Stetson Alumni, Returns For a Benefit Concert Feb. 25
The intimate evening of music with George Winston supports Stetson’s School of Music Scholarship Fund. Stetson dropped out of studying sociology at Stetson in the 1960s, but got an honorary doctorate in 2004.
Russian Rotarian Drops By Flagler Beach Rotary in Midst of Worldwide Cycling Tour
Ildus Yanyshev, a 56-year-old Russian Rotarian from the city of Kazan in the true heart of Russia, is on a global “Rotary Peace and Good Will Bike Tour.”
Jacksonville Sheriff Criticizes “Walking While Black” Reporting. Editors Respond.
Reporting has shown that disproportionate numbers of the tickets in Jacksonville and elsewhere have gone to blacks, prompting a critical response from Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams–and a corrective retort from editors.
Facebook’s Uneven Enforcement of Hate Speech Rules Allows Vile Posts to Stay Up
Asked about its handling of 49 posts that might be deemed offensive, Facebook, acknowledged that its content reviewers had made the wrong call on 22 of them.
3 Reasons The Trump Tax Plan Is a Disgrace
Robert Reich’s three-step guide on the rubbish of the Trump-Republican tax plan for when you confront your Republican Uncle Bob during the holidays.
Statue of Mary McLeod Bethune May Replace That of Confederate General in U.S. Capitol
Over the objection of a senator who decried “cultural purging,” a Senate panel approved 18-1 replacing the statue of Gen. Edmund Kirby Smith in the National Statuary Hall in Washington.
KKK Fliers Targeting Jews Dropped in Front of Flagler Beach Homes, Latest in Multi-City
Rash From Same Hate Group
The KKK flier attacks Jews and warns of “white extinction,” and is from the same group that’s been dropping fliers in Florida, North Carolina and Virginia since the Charlottesville rally of white supremacists.
Treatment Overkill: Unneeded Scans, Therapy and Surgery Only Add To Patients’ Ills
Though ample evidence shows breast-cancer radiation treatment for many can be drastically cut down, less than half those eligible received it despite the additional cost and inconvenience.
Washington, Jefferson, Madison: There’s No Defending Founders Who Practiced Slavery
It is still common, if not a norm, to hear founders’ ownership of slaves excused as part of the prevailing practices of their times rather than a contradiction with founders’ ideals.
Racist, Violent, Unpunished: A White Hate Group’s Campaign of Menace
the Rise Above Movement, one of whose men beat up protesters in Charlottesville, train to fight. They post their beatings online. And so far, they have little reason to fear the authorities.
How One City Gets Its Guns: Not Big Trafficking Rings, But Mostly Through Little Guys
Unlike the drug trade — often dominated by powerful cartels or gangs — illegal gun markets operate more like the way teenagers get beer, “where every adult is potentially a source.”
Stop Playing The National Anthem At Sports Events
The anthem is being used to make statements that reflect anger and divisiveness instead of pride, but primarily so because it’s being performed where it shouldn’t be, argues Nancy Smith.
Pride In “Our Country”? Count Me Out.
There’s no contending with a president who speaks of his pride in this country in serial tweets even as his every other pronouncement is a cleave, a slur, a boast, a lie or a disgrace.
Yet Another Tropical Storm With Potential Florida Landfall Brews Up Concern
Eventual Tropical Storm Nate has the potential to become a hurricane and impact the Florida Panhandle this weekend, and families must be ready, the governor said.
`Where the Hell Is the Cavalry?’ As Puerto Rico Suffers, Florida Prepares for Influx
From schools to shelters, Florida is readying for an influx of people struggling for food, water and power in hurricane-damaged Puerto Rico.
Unidos Por Puerto Rico:
Palm Coast’s Hispanic American Club Organizes 2-Day Drive For Devastated Island
The Hispanic American Club of Palm Coast is organizing the two-day drive to fill a container that would be shipped to Puerto Rico from Jacksonville for an increasingly desperate population on the American island.
How Health Insurers Fuel Opioid Crisis By Denying Claims For Less Addictive But More Expensive Drugs
Insurers limiting access to drugs with a lower risk of addiction or dependence. Why? Opioid drugs are generally cheap while safer alternatives are often more expensive.
Florida Shellshock: Blanket Outages, Floodwaters, and This: Irma Could Cost “Billions Upon Billions”
Millions of people continued to lack electricity as cleanup work expected to reach into the billions of dollars began in the wake of deadly Hurricane Irma.
What To Expect in Flagler In Next 48 Hours on Shelters, Evacuations, Storm Effects and Hunkering Down
As Hurricane Irma approaches, a complete run-down of what you should expect from emergency responders and what you should do in the next 48 hours.
Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Second Bill of Rights: For Workers
At the end of his last State of the Union message to Congress in 1944, Franklin Delano Roosevelt outlined an ambition plan for a “Second Bill of Rights” to ensure “”economic security and independence.”
White Supremacists Joked About Using Cars To Run Over Opponents Before Charlottesville
Leaked chat room conversations by white supremacists reveal expectations of violence — along with detailed planning and intelligence gathering on left-wing adversaries.
Proposal To Replace Statue of Confederate Gen. Smith With One of Mary McLeod Bethune
State Sen. Perry Thurston proposed a resolution to have Bethune replace Gen. Edmund Kirby Smith as one of Florida’s two representatives in the National Statuary Hall in Washington, D.C.
How One City Took Down Its Confederate Monuments: A Stealth History Lesson
After Charlottesville, Baltimore’s removal of Confederate statues in the dead of night was the city’s latest attempt to make peace with the ghosts of the Civil War. Other cities may be taking note.
A New Generation of White Supremacists, Better Organized, Emerges in Charlottesville
A group that included many people who were college-educated or ex-military displayed effective planning. “White people are pretty good at getting organized,” said one.
Between Umbras and Penumbras, Flagler Schools and Others Ready For Great Eclipse
The greatest solar eclipse to cross the United States since 1918 on Aug. 21 has the Flagler school district and others talking safety, best viewing practices and Palm Coast time checks.
Three Ways the Trump Administration Has Downplayed White Supremacy
In the weeks leading up to the protests, Trump and those close to him have often played down the real threat of violence being committed by white supremacists on a regular basis across the country.
McCain’s Brain Cancer Draws Renewed Attention to Possible Agent Orange Connection
For years, Vietnam vets and their widows have been pushing the VA to extend benefits to those exposed to the toxic herbicide and later stricken with glioblastoma. The VA has said no.
It’s Not Just Palm Coast: Credit Card Skimming at Gas Stations Up 160% in Florida
State figures show 315 skimmers had been discovered at Florida gas pumps through July 18, compared to 120 skimmers discovered through the first seven months of 2016.
Democrat Nancy Soderberg, Ambassador From Departed Era, Wants to Represent Flagler In Congress
Nancy Soderberg, a foreign policy expert and top aide in Bill Clinton’s presidency, wants the seat held by Republican Ron DeSantis. She has a lot to learn.
Prescription-Drug Overdoses Swamp Medical Examiners, Putting Accuracy In Question
The concern is that performing more than the recommended limit of 325 autopsies in a year, in addition to other duties such as testifying in court, could result in errors.
Trump Lawyer Marc Kasowitz Threatens Stranger in Emails: “Watch Your Back, Bitch”
Marc Kasowitz, President Trump’s personal attorney on the Russia case, threatened a stranger in a string of profanity-laden emails Wednesday night.
Your Papers Please: Trump Commission Demands Massive Amounts of Voter Data
A Trump commission has asked all 50 states for copies of their voter records which often include names, addresses and ages. The commission has said it intends to make the information widely available.
Non-Partisan Analysis of 22 Million More Uninsured Deals Blow to Senate Health Bill
By 2026, an estimated 49 million people would be uninsured, compared with about 28 million who would lack coverage under current law.
Trump Administration Quietly Rolls Back Civil Rights Efforts Across Federal Government
Previously unannounced directives will limit the Department of Justice’s use of a storied civil rights enforcement tool, and loosen the Department of Education’s requirements on investigations.
50 Years Later, Israel’s Attack on the USS Liberty Still Provokes Unsettling Conclusions
On June 8, 1967, during the Arab-Israeli war, Israeli jets and gunships attacked the USS Liberty in the Mediterranean, killing 34 Americans. Israel called it an accident. Survivors doubt it to this day.
In American First, Scott Signs Bill Providing for Birth Certificates In Cases of Miscarriage
The bill, which easily cleared the Senate and House in early May, makes Florida the first state in the nation to issue birth certificates for miscarriages. The implications of the bill are unclear.
GOP Defends Health Bill With Euphemisms, False Statements and Deleted Comments
Since the passage of the American Health Care Act, Republican members of Congress have tried to swing public opinion to their side, but through deceptive means.
Whiplash
Donald Trump is rewriting the rules of politics, of time and of the English language, but the resulting explosions are as false a dawn as those of nuclear blasts.
Gov. Scott Faces Increasing Pressure to Veto Education Bill, Including From Flagler District
The Flagler County School Board joined its voice to a growing chorus of demands from across the state that Gov. Rick Scott veto a massive education bill opponents consider damaging to school districts.
The Problems With the FBI’s Investigation of Clinton’s Emails Went Well Beyond Comey
A close examination of the FBI’s handling of the Clinton emails reveals a very different narrative that places previously undisclosed judgments and misjudgments by the Bureau at the very heart of what unfolded.
La Différence
France’s Answer To Trumpism: Non, Merci
Emmanuel Macron’s election as President of France Sunday repudiates angry, anti-democratic tribalism represented by Marine Le Pen and Donald Trump. But it’s only a qualified win.
Flagler County Will Declare a Burn Ban Effective Monday and For Foreseeable Future
Flagler County is joining at least 21 other Florida counties with an open-ended burn-ban declaration, mostly as a precautionary measure as upwards of 100 fires burn statewide and the local drought index continues to rise.