Narratives reduced to a focus on heroism and simplistic interpretations of good and evil do not help students reflect on the many controversial decisions made by the U.S. and their allies after 9/11, such as using embellished evidence to justify the invasion of Iraq in 2003. And they potentially reinforce political rhetoric that paints Muslims as potential terrorists and ignore the xenophobic attacks against Muslim Americans after the 9/11 attacks.
Carousel
Florida Is Among World Leaders in Mass Incarceration
Florida and a dozen other states imprison people at the highest rates in the world, without demonstrating that incarceration reduces crime, says the Prison Policy Initiative, a non-partisan research and policy advocacy organization.
Over 1,600 Pounds of Trash Collected During 14th Annual Intracoastal Waterway Cleanup
Since 2008, volunteers participating in the event have collected over 20,000 pounds of trash. This year, over 250 volunteers participated in the event and recovered over 1,600 pounds of trash!
9/11: The Road Not Taken
The military and political misuses of the 9/11 terrorist attacks were bound to have bewildering consequences for the nation’s budget and its sense of itself as a free and peaceful society, absent the prevailing of wise, more prudent choices. Those choices did not prevail.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, September 11, 2021
A day and evening of 9/11 commemoration ceremonies from the Elks Lodge to Hammock Beach Resort to Heroes Park in Palm Coast, with a few words from Don DeLillo’s “Falling Man.”
Black Lives Matter: Where We Stand
Black Lives Matter has been called the largest civil movement in U.S. history. Lately, the movement and its leading organizations have become more traditional and hierarchical in structure. Two scholars of worldwide African communities and cultures – Kwasi Konadu and Bright Gyamfi – discuss BLM as both a movement and an organization.
Number of Potential Victims Up to 57 in Bob Newsholme Tax Fraud Case as Slew of Schemes Involving Big Sums Emerge
Innumerable reports by his clients pointing to hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraud paint a picture of Bob Newsholme, the long-time owner of Flagler Tax Services, as a versatile but clumsy schemer. Newsholme seemed to have boxed himself in in a Ponzi scheme of his own making, hoping to stay ahead of the inevitable reckoning by enlarging his circle of fraud. But as it began to unravel, it unraveled very quickly. But his clients are now left to pick up the pieces–and pay what they owe to the IRS.
Palm Coast Fire Department Hosts September 11 Remembrance Ceremony and Survivor Tree Dedication at Heroes Park
The community is invited to attend the September 11th Remembrance Ceremony on Saturday, September 11, 2021 at 6:30 p.m. at Heroes Memorial Park in Palm Coast.
Challenge to DeSantis’s Ban on Mask Mandates In Doubt Again as Appeals Court Reinstates Stay on Judge’s Decision
Pointing to “serious doubts” about the lawsuit, an appeals court Friday put on hold a circuit judge’s ruling that said Gov. Ron DeSantis overstepped his constitutional authority in a July 30 executive order aimed at preventing school mask mandates.
Set in Tallahassee, Flagler School Tax Rate Declines for 7th Year in a Row, and to Another Historic Low
The Flagler County School Board on Sept. 7 adopted its property tax rate and $212 million budget for 2021-22. The tax rate, set by lawmakers in Tallahassee, continues a two-and-a-half decade downward trend, to $5.865 per $1,000 in taxable value, down from $6 last year.
Sharp Drop in Covid Cases at Schools, Hospital and Community, But Flagler Deaths Have Nearly Doubled to 201 in 4th Wave
The fourth and gravest wave of the Covid pandemic has crested in Flagler County, with case loads in schools, at the hospital and in the community falling sharply, but at a heavy price: deaths from Covid-19 in Flagler have reached 201, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The county has coordinated a video PSA to push vaccinations, with the cooperation of every local government.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, September 10, 2021
A busy Friday with L’Darius Smith’s sentencing in court, the Palm Coast Senior Games kicking off, “Godspell” at the Daytona Playhouse, “Frozen 2” in Movies in the Park, a chamber music concert at Stetson, and Lawrence Wright on time unspooling.
Federal Judge Issues Injunction Against Florida’s Protest Law, Calling It ‘Vague and Overbroad’
Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker on Thursday blocked a controversial state law that enhances penalties and creates new crimes in protests that turn violent. Walker, who has frequently clashed with the DeSantis administration and the GOP-controlled Legislature, granted the plaintiffs’ request for a preliminary injunction blocking DeSantis and three sheriffs from enforcing the law.
Why Israel’s Vaccine Rollout Faltered After Early Successes
After its fast start, Israel’s rollout slowed. There have not been any clear interruptions to vaccine supply, so factors such as hesitancy or access to healthcare may have been an issue. For example, there’s evidence of uptake being lower among Arab and ultra-Orthodox Jewish groups.
Palm Coast Policing Budget Will Jump 42% with 10 New Deputies, Tax Rate Will Dip a Smidge, but at Reserves’ Expense
The Palm Coast City Council Thursday evening ended weeks of wrangling over its budget and tax rate and voted 3-2 to approve awarding the sheriff all 10 requested additional deputies and reduce the tax rate enough to save the average homesteaded homeowner about $11, while using $530,000 from city reserves to make the numbers work.
As Tempers Flare, Attorney and Flagler School Board Members Attempt Unprecedented Ban of Meeting’s Recording
Flagler School Board Attorney Kristy Gavin, School Board members Janet McDonald and Jill Woolbright attempted to ban recordings by a reporter and others of today’s daylong training workshop. A lawyer with the Attorney general’s office prevented the ban after a nearly 30-minute recess of the workshop.
Realtors Abandon Ballot Initiative that Would Have Ensured Funding for Affordable Housing
Realtors are halting an effort to pass a constitutional amendment to ensure funding for affordable housing, saying they will work with legislative leaders to create a program to help people such as nurses, police officers and firefighters buy homes.
27-Year-Old Man Arrested for Child Kidnapping and Grand Theft
Andrew T. Allen is a 27-year-old transient. Wednesday night, he was arrested and charged with kidnapping of a minor, a first-degree felony, grand theft and battery as a result of an incident that began at the Circle K at 890 Palm Coast Parkway.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, September 9, 2021
The school board holds a day-long “training” session that may get a bit messy if board members veer toward discussions of meetings’ content. The Palm Coast City Council at the 11th hour hopes to find the votes to pass its coming year’s budget and tax rate.
Nomophobia: Can You Bear to Be Without Your Phone?
The anxiety felt when people are unable to use or be in contact with their smartphones is known as nomophobia, or no-mobile phobia. It is thought to be a product of the intense attachments to our devices, and is believed to be strongest among people who use their phone the most, like teens and young adults. And it’s not good.
Students Now Begin the Day With 1 to 2 Minutes of Silence, Costing Teachers Up to 6 Hours of Instructional Time
Public schools across Florida are under a new requirement to hold a daily moment of silence for at least a whole minute and up to two minutes, according to a law signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in June. How that plays out could mean less instruction time for teachers, improved mental health for students or maybe just a waste of time.
Tropical Storm Mindy Projects Quick, Messy Slog Across Northeast Florida, Up to 1″ of Rain in Flagler
Tropical Storm Mindy formed late this afternoon over the northern Gulf of Mexico and veered east in a rapid trek expected to take it from Florida’s Big Bend through the northeast portion of the state over the next 24 hours. Impacts in Flagler County are expected to be limited to rain and some wind, but the county’s emergency chief cautions about rapidly changing patterns.
Partisanship First, Good of Country Last
The change in who we are as a country has been caused by partisan leaders being willing to rally their minions for any purpose so long as it might lead to demolishing their opposition. The good of the country no longer is even part of the goal, argues Irwin Connelly.
Rezoning Near Integra Woods and U.S. 1 Clears the Way for Up to 650-Unit Apartment Complex, or ‘Attached’ Homes
The Palm Coast City Council approved the rezoning of 72 acres between U.S. 1 and Seminole Woods Boulevard, clearing the way for a multi-phased development of up to 650 apartments, what the developer’s attorney describes as “attached single-family home-like” apartments rather than traditional, multi-story apartment buildings.
Stay on Mask Ruling Is Lifted, Enabling Local School Boards to Impose Mandate–Until the Next Ruling
Leon County Circuit Judge John C. Cooper today lifted the stay on his own ruling that declared illegal Gov. Ron DeSantis’s executive order banning mask mandates in schools. That opens the way for school districts to impose mandates if they wish–at least until the next step in the case’s legal journey.
Gov. DeSantis, in Palm Coast, Opens Federally-Funded Monoclonal Center at Daytona State College Campus
Continuing his tour across the state, Gov. Ron DeSantis this morning stopped at Daytona State College’s Palm Coast campus to announce the opening of a free monoclonal treatment center made possible by federal funds. The treatment will be open seven days a week starting Thursday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The treatments do not require a prescription.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, September 8, 2021
L’Darius Smith is back in court ahead of his sentencing on Friday to argue, with a fair amount of evidence on his side, that he was wrongly found guilty by a jury of aggravated assault. The County Commission meets for the first time in an eternity. Arundhati Roy on America’s fiery, brutal impotence.
Next Assault on Affordable Care Act: Preventive Care
The preventive health provision of the ACA has resulted in significant reductions in patient costs for many essential and popular services. But a court case is targeting preventing care, and appears headed for the Supreme Court.
Palm Coast Council All in for 10 More Cops, But the Votes for a Budget and Tax Rate Aren’t Lining Up, Setting Up Showdown
The Palm Coast City Council in a disorderly special workshop meeting this evening agreed to fully fund the Flagler County Sheriff’s request for 10 additional deputies for city policing, four more than it had originally budgeted. But that’s as far as it got in agreeing to a new budget. The rest remains a churn of conflicts, setting up a potential showdown between council members at a public hearing on Thursday.
After 2,234 Students’ Quarantines, Flagler Medical Director Urges Masking in Schools. Board Still Refuses.
Dr. Stephen Bickel, the medical director at the Flagler Health Department, discussed stronger covid-safety measures with the Flagler County School Board today, but in the end a majority of the board, citing the governor’s executive banning mask mandates, showed no inclination to adopt such measures as mandatory masking.
Can There Ever Be Common Ground in Communities Torn by Polarization? A New WNZF Show Attempts an Answer.
Flagler NAACP Branch President Shelley Ragsdale is hosting a new weekly show on Flagler Broadcasting’s WNZF called “Common Ground,” an exploration of bridge-like themes that may narrow the deep divisions cutting through communities.
Flagler Tiger Bay Club’s Free 9/11 Program Features Ex-Chief of Border Patrol Michael Fisher
The Flagler Tiger Bay Club welcomes Chief Michael Fisher for a 9/11 Commemorative 20th Anniversary public program at 4 p.,. at the Flagler Auditorium.
Bob Newsholme, In Apparent Attempted Suicide 2 Weeks Ago, Investigated for Fraud in Tax Business
Flagler Sheriff’s and IRS agents served a search warrant on Robert “Bob” Newsholme’s Flagler Tax Services business in Bunnell two weeks after Newsholme shot himself at his home in an apparent but failed suicide attempt. He faces at least a dozen investigations for fraud.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, September 7, 2021
The Flagler County School Board holds a 3 p.m. workshop that could draw another round of anti- and pro-masking militancy. The Palm Coast City Council for a final time hashes out ways to approach the sheriff’s request for 10 more deputies. Mme de Staël on the pleasures of opposition.
Children’s Pandemic Concerns Are Usually Ignored in School Planning
We are choosing to view the pandemic-derived challenges surrounding childhood through an adult lens. In other words, we are re-inscribing western colonialist ideology on children, in the way we choose to understand their struggles and their need for education and socialization.
Outgunned, Outplayed and Frustrated, Reilly Opelka Is Knocked Out of U.S. Open: ‘I’m Not There Yet’
Reilly Opelka lost his fourth-round match to South Africa’s Lloyd Harris, who was almost impossible to deal with. His service games in the final two sets flew by faster than a reality TV star’s career, while Opelka’s serve and net play deserted him.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Labor Day, September 6, 2021
Reilly Opelka attempts to get into the US Open’s quarterfinals in his fourth-round match today, a farewell to Michel Corboz, Joseph Heller’s “Something Happened.”
People Don’t Want to Work? Wrong. They Just Don’t Want to Work for Your Kind of Substandard Workplace.
After an earth-shattering 16 months that have seen hundreds of thousands of our family members, friends, and neighbors die at the hands of an implacable and indiscriminate foe, there’s just a genuine question of whether grinding it out for 40 hours a week at a job with substandard pay, low benefits, and little work-home balance is really worth it.
Palm Coast Government Receives the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award
The Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) announced that the City of Palm Coast has received GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for its Fiscal Year 2021 budget.
How Election Deniers Are Organizing at Local Levels to Seize Control of the GOP and Reshape America’s Elections
The stolen election myth is inspiring thousands of Trump supporters to take over the Republican Party at the local level, from city councils to school boards to county commissions, as fact-denying extremists and militants exert mounting partisan influence on how elections are run.
Embrace ‘Prepare to Protect’ National Preparedness Month
Flagler County urges residents to do as it has and recognize September as National Preparedness Month, which is done to raise awareness about the importance of preparing for disasters and emergencies that could happen at any time. This year’s theme is “Prepare to Protect.”
41 Errors and $10,000 Fine in the Bag, Reilly Opelka Still Cruises Into 1st-Ever 4th Round of U.S. Open
Palm Coast’s Reilly Opelka overcame 41 unforced errors in an uneven match to still win his third-round U.S. Open match in straight sets against Nikoloz Basilashvili under the lights Saturday night, while making light of a $10,000 fine for carrying a pink tote bag with a non-regulation logo.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, September 5, 2021
Hurricane Larry heads for Bermuda, the second annual Pet Parade at the Florida Agriculture Museum, and Arthur Koestler’s life and death: “I plead guilty to having placed the idea of man above the idea of mankind.”
Millions of Unemployed Are About to Hurt a Lot More as Benefits Run Out
An estimated 8.8 million people will stop receiving unemployment insurance beginning on Sept. 6, 2021. Millions more will no longer get the extra US$300 a week the federal government has been providing to supplement state benefits.
Defiant Florida School Districts Standing By Strict Mask Mandates as Legal Battle Continues
Some school districts will continue to impose their strict mask mandates, even though a key court ruling has been appealed and the legal battle continues over who has control over mask-wearing at public schools — local boards or the DeSantis administration.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, September 4, 2021
Reilly Opelka at the U.S. Open is in his third-round match roughly around 5 or 5: 30 p.m. He faces 29-year-old Nikoloz Basilashvili, of Georgia (the country, not the state), ranked 39 in the world. Jonathan Franzen on freedom.
Report Warns of Extreme Heat Ahead as Climate Warms: ‘Florida Is in the Bullseye’
The heat will get much worse, warns the Union of Concerned Scientists in a new climate-focused report titled “Too Hot To Work.” The report says 2 million outdoor workers in Florida, about one-fourth of the workforce, could lose more than $8 billion in annual earnings over the next four decades due to inability to work in increasingly dangerous heat.
Half of Flagler’s Covid Case Load Driven by School Infections as Physicians Urge More Focus on Science and Safety
Flagler County’s weekly case load fell from a pandemic high of 936 last week to 789 this week, as of today, still the second-highest total of the 20-month crisis. Nearly half the total number of infections is among students and employees of Flagler County schools.
An Arsonist’s Redemption: How Daniel Da Costa Avoided 35 Years in Prison on the Strength of His Own Recovery
Daniel Soares Da Costa, now 27, was facing 35 years in prison for setting fires outside a Publix off Belle Terre Parkway in Palm Coast 16 months ago. The story behind Da Costa’s act–his addiction, the loss of his father, and his recovery since his arrest all played into the prosecution’s and the judge’s leniency in a case illustrative of the judicial system’s rehabilitative side.
Prank 911 Call Claiming School Shooting at Rymfire Elementary Nets 2 Felony Charges for 11-Year-Old Girl
An 11-year-old girl was booked at the Flagler County jail on two felony and a misdemeanor charge after allegedly placing a 911 call on Thursday claiming there was an ongoing shooting at Rymfire Elementary, the school she attends.