If we want to transform American society for generations to come, tinkering with our existing patchwork quilt of federal, state, and municipal laws dealing with firearms is a waste of time. The only transformational vehicle for meaningful action, writes Angel Castillo, is to change the Constitution.
Guest Columns
Time to Get Serious About
Mental Health in Florida
Florida ranks near dead last nationally in the level of expenditures for front-end community-based mental health services. Let’s not be penny wise and pound foolish when so many precious lives are at risk, argues Paula Dockery.
Title IX Lets Girls Be Both Quarterback and Homecoming Queen
Erin DiMeglio made history as the first female in Florida to play quarterback in a varsity high school game, and was elected South Plantation High’s homecoming queen. That wouldn’t have happened without Title IX, the landmark legislation assuring females the same opportunities as boys at both the high school and college levels.
How Legal Weed Might Wash in Florida
Full marijuana legalization is coming, eventually. But if you’re planning to go into the marijuana business, Bill Cotterell argues, you might want to ask Joe Camel what happens a few years down the road.
Civil Citations for Non-Violent Offenses Can Reduce Jail Needs, Court Costs, and Undue Arrests
Even with no criminal intent, we can easily be caught breaking a law. Until now, law enforcement officers in Florida have had only two choices in these circumstances: let you go or arrest you. Civil citations are the smarter alternative, argues Mark Flynn, CEO of the Florida Smart Justice Alliance.
Bullish on 2013: Palm Coast and Flagler Housing Markets in Full Recovery
Have we returned to a normal market? No yet, writes Toby Tobin, but in a bullish analysis of Palm Coast’s and Flagler County’s current housing markets, he expects momentum to build into 2013, with all segments of the market are rising.
Lone Star Reds: The Secessionist Tempest From Texas
Once again, there’s a tempest brewing in the national tea pot. We’re talking secession. Well, some of us are, writes Jim Hightower. Actually, very few are — and some of them aren’t too tightly wrapped.
For African-American Voter Turnout, a New Normal
Ever since the process toward full citizenship of African Americans began with the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation, politicians and others have been trying to stop us from exercising the hard fought, hard won right to vote, writes Leslie Watson Malachie. It’s not working anymore.
Donald Trump’s Disciples: Obama’s Victory Still Birthing Dispute in a Tallahassee court
In a largely forgotten court case being litigated in Tallahassee, lawyers are still arguing about whether President Barack Obama was qualified to run for president in the first place.
Jeb Bush Redux: Defeated and Deflated, Republicans Look for Viability in 2016
Early Republican favorites for 2016 include Marco Rubio, Chris Christie, Paul Ryan and Jon Huntsman, but the most formidable — and electable — candidate for the Republican Party right now is former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, argues Steven Kurlander.
The Conservative Case Against Compromise
A Democrat and one a conservative say Republicans in Congress need to compromise so the government can “get things done,” and that it is better to do something than nothing. No. It is not, argues Lloyd Brown.
Election Post-Mortem
Democracy, or Rule of the People, is still the name of the ridiculously idealistic vision of organizing all of the infinite variations of the delightful human tadpole into a semblance of a community that functions nearly as well as a coterie of Prairie Dogs. We aren’t there yet, but we’re working on it.
Do Prisoners Have a Constitutional Right to Dental Floss?
In Florida, five inmates have separately sued Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw in federal court, claiming deprivation of federally protected civil rights through the denial of dental floss. The sheriff is denying it to them. Angel Castillo argues the sheriff is wrong.
Corporal Punishment: When a Religious Exemption Becomes a License to Brutalize
A harrowing recent series in the Tampa Bay Times detailed how for 30 years a handful of homes for troubled youth have used a misguided exemption in Florida law to get away with all manner of abuses by using religion as a shield.
Dan Gelber: Time for a Constitutional Amendment to Ensure Voter Access
It’s very sad that the citizens of Florida need their rights protected from their own government. But if there is anything this last election has taught us, it’s that our right to vote is clearly imperiled in Florida, argues Dan Gelber.
Global Warming and Hurricane Sandy’s Wake-Up Call
The frightening consequences of climate disruption that scientists have warned us about for decades are already here. Sandy is only the latest and most devastating incident in a pattern of extreme weather that’s become impossible to ignore, argues the Sierra Club’s Michael Brune.
Free Morgan: A Killer Whale’s Punishing Captivity Gets Its Day in Court
In June 2010, Morgan, an orca, or killer whale, was captured from the North Atlantic and rehabilitated, but instead of being returned to the wild, was sent to an amusement park. A judge may decide its fate on Nov. 1.
Atack vs Moore-Stens: An Attorney’s Evaluation Of the County Judge Race, and a Response
In the Flagler County Court Judge election, Paul Guntharp, a Palm Coast attorney, evaluates the candidacies of Craig Atack and Melissa Moore-Stens, and Atack replies.
Snap, Crackle and Reef:
Oyster Restoration in Northeast Florida
Oysters play an critical role in filtering pollution and maintaining the coastal marine system, but their disappearance along the barrier island north of St. Augustine has created a kind of domino effect of environmental destruction. One local project involving restaurants seeks to restore oyster reefs.
A Radio Voice of America from Palm Coast: Mario Jr. Alive and Green, and National
Palm Coast’s 14-year-old Mario Ridgley has been hosting “Mario Jr. Alive and Green,” a radio show on Voice of America Kids, since he was 10. Columnist Frank Gromling was a guest on his show, and relates the tale.
The News-Journal’s Predatory Sensationalism On Sex Offenders Near Local Schools
A News-Journal article on 445 registered sex offenders living near Flagler and Volusia elementary schools was dangerously alarming and misleading, argues George Griffin, and perpetuates numerous myths about sex offenders, encouraging bad laws.
Mitt Romney’s Dangerous Game: Making Israel a Wedge Issue in Florida
The Florida Jewish community should see through the false premise that Obama is anything less than stellar on Israel, as Mitt Romney, hoping to score partisan points with Florida’s Jewish vote, has attempted to claim, Dan Gelber argues.
Deeper Knowledge from an Ocean of Films
Ocean film festivals are venues for knowledge, understanding, networking and, of course, the viewing of beautiful and important films, and they’re vital for those who want to be involved in ocean conservation, writes Frank Gromling.
Those 11 Constitutional Amendments on November’s Ballot: Women League Says Just Vote No
Florida voters will see 11 of the most confusing, complex and sometimes misleading state ballot amendments ever proposed, and voters will need to decide: Do I want this in our state constitution? Deirdre Macnab, state president of the League of Women Voters of Florida, says No.
Matanzas Pirates’ Mission: A Senior Rallies Students and Faculty For a Teacher’s Survival
Juan Pablo Torres, a senior at Matanzas High School, decided to repay his English teacher, now undergoing cancer treatment in Gainesville, by showing her how students and teachers at Matanzas take care of their own.
Shark Finning, Carnage of Luxury
Shark fin soup is considered an aphrodisiac and sign of wealth. Asia’s exploding middle class is resulting in a carnage of some 70 million sharks a year, killed just for their fins.
Florida’s Gang of 10: How You Got Robbed of Representation by Lawmakers’ Rubber Stamp
Just 10 of Florida’s 160 legislators voted recently on a $58-million budget amendment that carries large policy implications for citizens across the state. Few citizens were representedby this or any other decisions passed by the Legislative Budget Commission.
Ocean Publishing’s Gromling Speaking at BLUE Ocean Film Festival
Frank Gromling, owner and publisher of Ocean Publishing in Flagler Beach, will present a talk at the BLUE Ocean Film Festival and Conservation Summit in Monterrey, Calif., on Sep. 25, entitled “Films to Books, How to Do It Without the Pain.”
Emory Will Close Its Journalism School. Good Riddance.
Journalism education is nice, but beyond the basics, not necessary, argues Bill Cotterell. Anyone who’s smart, cares about news and works hard can learn the five Ws — who what, when, where and why — in a couple weeks. Then, if they learn from their mistakes, they can get good at telling you what’s really going on.
Memo to Lance Armstrong: Enough is Enough, So Please Shut Up
The gig is up now, Tom O’Hara, a testicular cancer survivor, tells Lance Armstrong, referring to his doping issues. If you want to continue to raise money to fight cancer, I applaud you. But, please, try being a quiet and humble philanthropist from now on.
Russian Roulette With MSG
In today’s American restaurants, MSG has become so prevalent that it is in practically every kind of food. It’s no longer isolated to Chinese cuisine. And it can be very dangerous to eat, making eating out a gamble.
Follow the Lead of Flagler Beach’s Restaurants: Trash the Styrofoam
Restaurants in Flagler Beach, among them the Turtle Shack and the Flagler Fish Company, decided to drop the use of Styrofoam and adopt all-recyclable containers, taking a lead other local businesses should follow, Frank Gromling writes, given Styrofoam’s polluting and carcinogenic properties.
Raped, Pregnant and 11 Years Old: The Problem with the “Right-to-Life” Movement
In Pinellas County, an 11-year-old girl, pregnant after her rape by her mother’s 42-year-old boyfriend, is a stark rebuke to the right-to-like and personhood movement, argues Mary Jo Melone.
Prodigal Turtle: Kemp’s Ridley, Smallest of the Seas, Digs First-Ever Nest in Flagler Sands
Once endangered, Kemp’s ridley turtles, usually nesting in the Gulf of Mexico, have flourished, and one made a landing in Flagler Beach, digging only the sixth documented nest in Florida, and the very first in Flagler County.
What Makes Us Exceptional
It is not that American Exceptionalism is being lost, it’s that those who want to “tabe back America” have lost sight of what has made America exceptional, argues Dan Gelber after watching the Republican National Convention.
The Tea Party, Missing from the Republican National Convention’s Big Tent
Despite cluelessness by liberals and Democrats, those outside the tea party movement still don’t grasp that “people like me are the absolute last folks who would be invited to the RNC,” argues tea party leader Henry Kelley.
A Few Florida Facts for Republican National Convention Delegates
Florida under the leadership of Republican icons like Bush, Scott and Rubio, and supported by proud and unthinking GOP legislatures for the last 15 years, has happily served as the grow house for Republican policies. The results are stunning, writes former lawmaker Dan Gelber.
Lessons from a Storm: How to Prepare for Hurricanes
From living through Hurricane Andrew at Ground Zero 20 years ago to rebuilding a home and a business in its wake, Frank Gromling shares lessons learned and advice for Flagler County and Florida residents, applicable in any hurricane emergency.
An 11-Year-Old Girl Begins Middle School on the Wings of Her Grandmother’s Legacy
Andrew Skerritt’s grandmother never went further than the third grade before she dropped out to help raise her younger siblings, yet the educational values she gave him will be passed down for generations, he writes.
At the University of Florida, a War Over the Alligator’s Newspaper Racks
The University of Florida wants the independent Florida Alligator newspaper—which it does not own–to remove its orange racks from campus, and replace them with non-descript plastic bins. Bill Cotterell argues it’s not a First Amendment issue.
Pit Bull Ban and Common Sense Prevail in South Florida Referendum
In overwhelming fashion, Miami-Dade voters decided Tuesday to continue to ban pit bulls from the county. The results show common sense still rules strong, argues Steven Kurlander.
Hurricane Andrew 20 Years Later: Memories of Resilience in a Storm’s Wake
Frank Gromling, who lived and worked in the path of Hurricane Andrew 20 years ago, remembers the days of the storm and its aftermath in a South Florida ravished beyond recognition. A spirit for rebirth was left intact, however.
Chronic, Scandalous Abuse and Worse at a Florida Brain-Injury Center Demands Attention
It is impossible to look at the pages-long list of abuse allegations at the Florida Institute for Neurologic Rehabilitation and not wonder how it is allowed to remain open: Sexual abuse. Mental abuse. Burns. Broken bones. Bruises. Cuts and punctures. Bizarre punishment. And much worse.
Undiscovered Country: A Census of the Seas
Over a ten-year period, a group of international scientists studied the oceans and their inhabitants in an effort to, in part, answer the question Frank Gromling poses: how many animal and plant species live in the sea?
Small Business Saturday: Community Building One Mom and Pop Store at a Time
Small Business Saturday is about changing mindsets, supporting community businesses and keeping dollars local, writes Carol Fisher, owner of the Beachhouse Beanery in Flagler Beach.
Andy Dance: Why You Should Support Flagler Schools’ Renewal of the Half-Penny Sales Tax
Andy Dance, the school board member, explains why your vote approving the renewal of the half-penny sales tax in the Aug. 14 referendum is critical for Flagler County schools. All registered voters may cast a ballot regardless of party affiliation.
Whistleblowing Coach Worship: How Neil Reed Ended Bobby Knight’s Bullying
Steve Robinson, the CNN/SI managing editor who coaxed Neil Reed into blowing the whistle on coach Bobby Knight’s violence, reflects on Reed’s death and the refusal of people–from Knight’s apologists to Joe Paterno’s–to take action when they see power being abused.
Slipping the Surly Bonds of Earth On the Hovers of Ospreys
Watching wild birds, ospreys especially, is one of Frank Gromling’s favorite things to do, linking back to a romance with the thrill of flying flying that takes its inspiration from John Magee’s “high untrespassed sanctity of space.”
When Bankruptcy and a Second Mortgage Combine Into an Opportunity for Florida Homeowners
“Bankruptcy” and “exciting news” don’t usually go together well in the same conversation. But a recent ruling by a federal court is giving Florida homeowners a window of opportunity to strip off a second mortgage, argues consumer attorney Lewis Roberts.
Picking Up Trash on A1A: A Harvest Of Sloth You Can Do Something About
Frank Gromling’s Ocean Publishing adopted a 2-mile stretch of A1A to keep clean of trash–cigarette butts, soda and beer cans, food wrappers–people are too slothful not to drop on their way. Gromling tells of the experience of periodically picking up after you.