Florida’s worst campaign offenses, BP dispersants’ ill effects, the privatization-industrial complex, energy bracelets’ bullshit watch, John Candy and more.
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Lowe’s Ups Drywall Settlement to $100,000 Per Victim, Closing Gap With Lawyer Payouts
The home-improvement Lowe’s chain had previously offered no more than $4,500 in cash and gift cards to victims whose health or homes were hurt by defective drywalls bought from Lowe’s stores, and much more to lawyers. The new agreement evens out the potential payments.
Marineland’s John Hankinson Appointed Director of Obama’s Gulf Recovery Task Force
John Hankinson, chairman of Florida Audubon, has an environmental consulting office in Marineland and was the Southern Region’s EPA administrator during the Clinton administration.
Feared Weapon Never Made It Onto Indian Trails Campus; School Has Normal Friday
A report of a student planning to bring a weapon to Indian Trails Middle School surfaced Thursday evening. The school administration and law enforcement intervened, the family of the student cooperated, and the weapon never appeared.
The Live Wire, Oct. 28: Clinton Gives Meek the Best Advice of the Year
Bill Clinton gives Kendrick Meek advice he could do something with, Obama makes a defensive appearance on the Daily Show, woman to woman in Afghanistan, and more.
Stalemated Flagler Beach Opts for Bruce Campbell As Acting Manager Beginning Jan. 2
In yet another raucous meeting, the Flagler Beach city commission couldn’t muster the votes to hire Bruce Campbell outright, so it settled for hiring him as acting manager beginning in January.
Campaign Notes: Dwyer Backs Craig, Sword and Fischer Vie for Teachers’ Attention
Craig and Horrox in the circuit court race and Sword and Fischer in the school board race make their final pitches with radio appearances and a television ad from Sword, while others continue to press for the ballot measure on continuing the .25-mill school tax.
7-Year-Old Nate Truelove, Old Kings Wreck Victim, Is Going Home
Nate’s rehabilitation at Brooks Rehab in Jacksonville did not produce the desired results. He is still mostly unresponsive, though awake. His family hopes that back home in DeLand, he will begin to progress better.
Florida State Intervenes As More Soldiers Die from Risky Behavior than Combat
In 2009, more soldiers died from suicide and high-risk behavior than in combat. The Pentagon is drafting Florida State to fight the epidemic.
Bowing to Pressure, Transportation Department Scraps Plans for a Weigh Station on U.S. 1
Every local government had opposed a proposed $11 million weigh station that would have taken up the median of U.S. 1 at Royal Palms Parkway, at the intersection of Palm Coast and Bunnell. Opposition worked.