The Flagler Beach City Commission may approve a contract with Larry Newsome, its new city manager, this evening. Commissioner Nate McLaughlin takes over chairmanship of the county’s economic opportunity council.
Backgrounders
Tuesday Briefing: Justin Boyles Guilty of Murder, Coming Years’ School Calendars, Wadsworth Park Closure
Justin Boyles was convicted of second-degree murder and faces life in prison for the murder of Hammock resident Ed Mellener in 2013, the Flagler School Board takes up calendars for the next two school years.
Donald Trump’s Funeral
If Donald Trump were to drop dead tomorrow Democrats would grieve, Republican candidates would celebrate, but Trump’s neo-fascism will have already damaged the nation beyond recognition.
Look Closer: Student Art Upstages Grown-Ups in Pair of Flagler County Art League Shows
Startling juxtapositions abound in “Look Close” and the “High School Student Art Exhibit,” two shows that open Saturday December 12 at the Flagler County Art League in Palm Coast.
Weekend Briefing: Community Chorus, Starlight Parade, Holiday Pops, Chess in Jax, Lotsa Schubert
The Community Chorus of Palm Coast in concert at Trinity Presbyterian Friday, Palm Coast’s Starlight Parade and preceding events start Saturday afternoon, The St. Augustine Orchestra at the Flagler Auditorium Sunday, and a whole lot more.
Santa Claus Meets His Match: “A Mark Twain Christmas” at City Repertory Theatre
Like the other one-man Twain shows Robert Gill has created, “A Mark Twain Christmas” is composed of about 75 percent of the author’s monologues and writings recited verbatim, and about 25 percent is Gill‘s creation.
It’s Finally Safe to Drink the Water in Bunnell as City Marks Opening of $4.8 Million Plant
Bunnell city government on Wednesday commemorated the opening of a water plant that ends a difficult and expensive journey for the city, from deficits and dirty water to clean water.
Ex-Clerk Dan Davis Is Appointed City Manager in Bunnell in 3-2 Vote, Ending Swift Course
The Bunnell city commission took less than a month from the time Larry Williams announced his resignation, looking internally and choosing from three candidates. Davis had been the deputy clerk after a much-publicized angry resignation two and a half years ago.
Hunting Undocumented Immigrants,
Travis Hutson Discovers His Inner Jim Crow
Sen. Travis Hutson filed a pair of bills that would criminalize undocumented immigrants in Florida. The bills are unconstitutional, bigoted and unnecessary.
Stillbirth: FPC Art Student May Show His Class Work at a Gallery, But Not At His Own School
A provocative painting by Patrick Conklin, a senior at FPC, was banned from display at his school but allowed at an art gallery, triggering a broad discussion on the lines between expression, censorship, fear and propriety.
Man Found Dead and Bloodied Outside Drain Street House: Police Investigating Homicide
John Robert Stubbs, a 46-year-old resident of Hymon Circle in Bunnell, was found dead outside a house in Bunnell this morning, soaked in blood. City Manager Larry Williams described it as “what appears to be a homicide.”
The Live Profile
Jim Guines, Smokin’ Shock to the System and Now 83, Will Be Celebrated Sunday
Jim Guines, the forceful and unpredictable member of the Flagler County School Board for 11 years until 2007, will be at the center of a community tribute Sunday at Flagler Palm Coast High School, at 3 p.m.
Crime Rises 2.4% in Flagler in Mid-Year Report, First Increase Since 2009
A spike in burglaries and larcenies sent Flagler County’s overall crime rate up 2.4 percent in the first six months of 2015, in contrast with crime in Florida as a whole, where it has fallen 2.2 percent.
Syrian Refugees, ISIS, the Attacks to Come and What To Do: A Grim Q&A
Tom O’Hara’s sobering answers to basic questions on the next ISIS attack, the refusal to take in Syrian refugees, what ISIS wants and whether an invasion of Syria and Iraq can work.
We Are At War
No one wants to repeat the errors of the US under President George W. Bush; but to use those errors as an alibi to avoid confronting the world as it is would merely be an error of a different sort.
As Paris Bleeds
The Paris attacks strike at the mother democracy and culture, but they’re the continuing consequence of 15 years reckless militarism in the Middle East. More of the same will solve nothing.
Thursday Briefing: Flagler Beach Rezones, Dick Cheney at Sunshine Summit, Homecoming at Stetson,
Flagler Beach takes on rezoning 3 acres it doesn’t want to rezone, Dick Cheney opens the GOP’s Sunshine Summit at Disney’s Contemporary, Stetson celebrates homecoming.
Weekend Briefing: AJ Fernandez Skate Competition, Siberian Dancers, Carnage, Greetings and Poker Run
A busy weekend in Flagler with plays at City Rep, FPC and the Playhouse, the AJ Fernandez benefit skate competition at Wadsworth Park, Palm Coast Rotary’s Poker Run, the Auditorium’s Disco Gala, and a lot more.
For Flagler’s NAACP, More Trust Than Fear of Local Police as Body Cams Clip On
Flagler NAACP members were mostly reassured by use-of-force evidence that, according to the Sheriff’s Office, has declined in Palm Coast, thanks in large part to police body cameras.
Long Creek Preserve: For Palm Coast, a Chance to Restore a Vast, Lucrative History
Beyond the Long Creek Nature Preserve, Palm Coast has an opportunity to revive the state and national importance the area of the preserve played in the plantation system of the 18th and 19th centuries, says County Attorney Al Hadeed.
AJ Fernandez, Felled by Schizophrenia, Is Celebrated With a Skateboard Competition at Wadsworth Park
24-year-old AJ Fernandez of Palm Coast, diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 2010, took his life on Aug. 26. The Nov. 8 skate competition is a memorial benefit event for the Johns Hopkins Schizophrenia Center in Baltimore.
A Third Palestinian Intifada Is Inevitable. Intransigence and Extremism Make It So.
Israel’s occupation policy has undermined the state’s political and ethical foundations, while turning Prime Minister Netanyahu into a hostage of forces even more extreme than he is.
Voodoo Man Found Not Guilty in Machete Attack But Still Faces Murder Conspiracy Charge
Jurors found Roodlyn Mompremier not guilty in an alleged attack on his girlfriend’s brother two years ago in Palm Coast, but the two-day trial didn’t end it for him: he still faces a charge of conspiring to commit second-degree murder.
Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Advisory Club Committee: Why We Should Run the Facility
The Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club Advisory Committee makes the case to run the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club, ahead of next Tuesday’s decision by the Flagler County School Board on the fate of the facility.
Professional Pathways: Why We Should Run the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club
Professional Sports Pathways, a private sports academy that runs the Center for Excellence soccer school in Palm Coast, makes the case to run the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club.
2.8 Million Floridians Still Uninsured Even as Just 20% Fall in Medicaid Gap
It’s 1.1 million fewer than in 2013, but almost a third of the uninsured are eligible for Obamacare but haven’t enrolled, 15% have chosen not to enroll in employee-provided health care, and the rest are uninsured for a variety of other reasons.
A Ben Carson Reading Room at Old Kings Elementary: What’s the School Board Smoking?
The school board this week approved a privately funded $15,000 Ben Carson Reading Room for Old Kings Elementary, dismissing Carson’s political candidacy as a non-issue and ignoring his Islamophobia. It’s a serious mistake.
Psychiatry as Industry of Death: Scientology Blitzes Shrinks in New Clearwater Museum
The museum, “Psychiatry: Industry of Death,” occupies most of the 1st floor of new headquarters for the Citizens Commission on Human Rights in Clearwater. The Church of Scientology has long been at odds with the field of psychiatry.
Weekend Briefing: Guns’ 36-Kills-a-Day U.S. Habit, Hurricane Joaquin’s Waves, Godspell at CRT, Matt Beyrer at Ocean Art
Beyond the routine of the latest mass-shooting, Joaquin is moving away, Godspell should not be missed at City Repertory Theatre, Paul Krugman picks up on the resilience of vodoo economics.
Flagler County Youth Center Marks 10 Years in Continuing County-School Board Partnership
Flagler County government built the $1 million youth center as part of a tax-supported referendum 10 years ago. The school board staffs it, under the leadership of Cheryl Massaro, its one and only director.
Rick Scott, Who Made Millions as Hospital CEO, Now Faults Hospital Costs
The proposals are the latest in a series of moves by Scott, who made millions as CEO of HCA/Columbia, to revamp the hospital industry. The Legislature will have to enact his proposals.
Police Body Cams: Exemptions From Public-Record Disclosure Belie Intended Transparency
Police body cams were intended to improve accountability and public access to cops’ work. Access exemptions in Florida and many other states are instead countering their intended purpose.
“He Kept Pushing Me Mentally”: Anna and John Pehota’s Life Before She Shot Him
Anna Pehota shot dead her husband John in their Hammock trailer Sept. 23. John’s best friend recalls four decades of knowing the couple he calls “the sweetest in the world.”
New Laws Next Week On Revenge Porn, Domestic Violence, Trafficking, Cop Funerals
Among 27 new Florida laws starting next week, it’ll be illegal to post sexually explicit material without the knowledge of people identified in the images, criminal penalties will increase on sex trafficking, the state may spend $5,000 on cop funerals.
Weekend Briefing: Godspell at CRT, Jeb Bush Channels Romney’s “Free Stuff,” Drug Take-Back Saturday
Jeb Bush puts Mitt Romney’s foot in his own mouth with his latest insult to minorities, “Godpsell” continues at Palm Coast’s City Repertory Theatre, drug take-back Saturday in Palm Coast.
8.8 Million More People Got Health Insurance Last Year, Largely Due to Obamacare
The increase, due to the Affordable Care Act, is unprecedented since the creation of Medicare and Medicaid 50 years ago. Expanding Medicaid–as Florida did not–would have added to the ranks of the insured even more.
Everybody Likes Pre-K. Defining It Is Another Matter.
While there’s a growing consensus on the value of preschool, states disagree on where the programs should be based, who should run them, or how the government should support them.
For Every US Soldier Killed in Afghanistan, 13 Children Were Shot and Killed in America
Between 2002 and 2012, at least 28,000 children and teens 19-years-old and younger were killed with guns. Teenagers between the ages of 15 and 19 made up over two-thirds of all youth gun deaths in America.
Privatize the Flagler Beach Pier? Commission Says Yes to 6 Events Per Year, to Make Money
The Flagler Beach pier already generates well over $300,000 a year for the city, and rising, but commissioners want more: they’d close off the pier to private parties six times a year, for $155 an hour plus additional fees.
Flagler, Among Top 10 Counties With Most Concealed-Weapon Licenses, Will Fast-Track Permitting
Flagler has 8.24 concealed carry permits for every 100 residents. Starting Jan. 1, the Flagler Tax Collector’s office will accept concealed-weapon permit applications for $134 and renewals for $72.
With Florida Leading U.S. in Child Drownings, States Are Pressed to Improve Prevention
Florida had 50 drownings of children 15 or younger last year, by far the most in the nation. California was second with 36. Better pool-safety regulations help.
SLAPP This: Florida Scores a Big Free Speech Victory Against Intimidation Lawsuits
It was a rare success in the last Florida Legislative session: a new law protecting the public from frivolous corporate or otherwise intimidating lawsuits intended to silence public expression in government issues.
Disaster Economics 101: Flagler Businesses Are Made Part of County’s Recovery Plans
Kevin Guthrie, the county’s emergency services director, told some 80 Flagler business leaders what role they must play in the immediate recovery after a disaster to ensure that the local economy returns to normal.
Cashing In on Pot: How Business Is Getting High on Marijuana’s Potential
The industry totaled $2.66 billion in U.S. sales in 2014, up 74 percent from $1.53 billion the year before, with expectations that the market will expand exponentially as more states legalize marijuana for both medical and recreational use.
Entrapments of Color Blindness: Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” Chapter 10
There’s a bit of vomit to start off Chapter 10 of Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” much of it from our contributing writers, who have a hard time understanding how it takes Scout 25 years to discover what her father is about.
2nd Only to Texas With Military Retirees, Florida Facing Stiff Competition For Them
Military retirees are some of the best-educated, best-trained and youngest retirees around. Florida has nearly 200,000 of them. States are using their tax codes to lure them.
Scout’s Dishonors: Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” Chapter 9
In Chapter 9 of “Go Set a Watchman,” Harper Lee gives us a short biography of Scout’s past between various deaths and blood flows, without as yet revisiting her recent discovery about a bigoted father.
Atticus Finch, Grand Wizard of the KKK: Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” Chapter 8
In Chapter 8 of “Go Set a Watchman,” Scout discovers that her father Atticus is the leader of a KKK-like organization, and her boyfriend is just as much as a white supremacist.
Flagler Live-Blogs Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” Chapter 7: Doxology Sings Dixie
In Chapter 7 of “Go Set a Watchman,” a church service turns into an example of Northern aggression against Southern hymnals and Doxology.
In Walton, One Confederate Flag Replaces Another as “Compromise” Is Termed a Cop-Out
The Panhandle’s Walton County Commission today voted 4-0 to replace the Confederate battle flag with the first flag of the Confederacy, the Stars and Bars, on government grounds, eliciting applause from some and ridicule from others.