Gov. Ron DeSantis has suspended another elected prosecutor. This time it’s Monique Worrell of the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court, in Orange and Osceola counties, a Democrat who was elected in November 2020 and is the second African American to hold the position.
Florida & Beyond, and All Opinions
Back-to-School Anxiety and What To Do About It
Predictability helps prevent anxiety in children. Predictability means things going along as they’ve always gone: sleep at night, up in the morning, cornflakes for breakfast, off to school, activities in the afternoon, dinner with the family.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, August 9, 2023
More dangerous heat today, Separation Chat, Open Discussion, Weekly Chess Club for Teens, Johnny Cash’s greatest love affair, Christopher Niemann and Bach on coffee.
Sending People to Space Shouldn’t Be a Priority of Exploration
Most Americans (69%) believe it is essential that the United States continue to be a world leader in space. But only a subsection of that group believes NASA should prioritize sending people to the Moon. The United States’ most visible effort to maintain world leadership in space is arguably its Artemis Program to land humans on the Moon by late 2024.
Education Officials Want Lawsuit Over Gay Penguins Book Tossed Out, Claiming It’s Moot. Litigants Disagree.
“And Tango makes Three” had been banned for students up to third grade by Lake County schools, then allowed in libraries. It tells the story of two male penguins who raised a penguin chick at New York’s Central Park Zoo. In a filing last month seeking a preliminary injunction, attorneys for the plaintiffs disputed that the case is moot. They argued, in part, that the district could reverse course again and restrict access to the book in libraries.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, August 8, 2023
The Palm Coast City Council meets in workshop, the Flagler County Planning Board decides whether to allow less rain to seep through at the Cornerstone strip mall, Donald Hall and thoughts of oblivion in the middle of the night.
Dismantling the Myth that Ancient Slavery ‘Wasn’t That Bad’
Because these kinds of slavery took place so long ago and weren’t based on modern racism, some people have the impression that they weren’t as harsh or violent. That impression makes room for public figures like Christian theologian and analytic philosopher William Lane Craig to argue that ancient slavery was actually beneficial for enslaved people. Those arguments are wrong.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, August 7, 2023
The Flagler County Commission holds a pair of meetings, the Beverly Beach Town Commission just one, only in America, a Texas Supreme Court decision ridiculing the fanaticism of the Second Amendment.
Nonprofits May Engage in Advocacy, But Few Do
Though it can be vital for the advancement of their missions that charities exercise this right, fewer than a third of charities in the U.S. (31%) engaged in advocacy in the last five years. This represents a dramatic decline in the past two decades, even though the law allows these groups to speak up regarding the issues that affect the people they serve.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, August 6, 2023
“Firebringer” at City Repertory Theatre, Sunday Chess Club at Chabad of Palm Coast, how the bombing of Hiroshima was reported the day after, how Enrico Fermi experimented during the blast of the first atomic bomb.
Why Your Home Feels Warmer Than Thermostat Says, and What To Do About It
While people are used to thinking about how clothing, air movement, temperature and humidity affect comfort, two lesser-known measures help explain how they experience comfort indoors: Mean radiant temperature. and operative temperature.
Child Nicotine Poisoning Hit All-Time High as Vapes Flood the Market
Cases of vaping-related nicotine exposure reported to poison centers hit an all-time high in 2022 — despite a 2016 law, the Child Nicotine Poisoning Prevention Act, that requires child-resistant packaging on bottles of vaping liquid. In what doctors call a major oversight, the law doesn’t require protective packaging on devices themselves.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, August 5, 2023
Back to School Jam, “Firebringer” at City Repertory Theatre, Monthly Volunteer Clean-Up Day at the Florida Agriculture Museum, Sunshine and Sandals Social at Cornerstone, Maupassant’s “Inheritance.”
The Lessons of Hiroshima
In a world of potential nuclear terrorism and conflicts that risk the unthinkable use of nuclear weapons, the need to control proliferation and double down on arms control, such as a US-Iran agreement and better relations with China, are essential starting points.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, August 4, 2023
“Firebringer” at City Repertory Theatre, Superintendent LaShakia Moore on Free For All, First Friday in Flagler Beach, the future of abortion and a moment with Margaret Atwood.
Dunkin and Lego Made It Work. X Rebranding Misses the Mark.
Twitter has swapped the fluffy bird that used to symbolize the social media platform for a spindly black X. Ditching the company’s well-known logo and changing its name to a letter often associated with danger, death and the unknown is only the latest user-aggravating step CEO Elon Musk has taken since he bought Twitter in October 2022 for US$44 billion.
Florida Prisoners Broil in 115-Degree Heat in Buildings Without AC, and No Plans for Structural Relief
Many prisons are decades old. Installing air conditioning would be expensive and take years. Some facilities can’t be retrofitted for AC. Temperatures inside buildings without air conditioning can soar 15 degrees higher than the temperature outside. That means temperatures over 100 degrees last month put the thermometer above 115 inside prisons in some regions.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, August 3, 3032
The incorrigible L’Darius Smith is back in court on a plea, a status hearing is scheduled in the case of Reba Lynn Johnson, who assaulted a teacher, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lawrence Friedman on law.
‘Dishonesty, Fraud and Deceit’: The Most Serious Trump Indictment Yet
Three counts in this new indictment allege conspiracies: There is conspiracy to defraud the government; to obstruct an official proceeding – in this case, counting the electoral votes on Jan. 6, 2021; and against the rights of the voters to cast ballots and have them fairly and honestly counted.
Florida Regulators and Industry Object to Federal Plan to Lower Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Claiming Costs
Florida utility regulators and other industry officials are objecting to a federal proposal aimed at reducing greenhouse-gas emissions from power plants, arguing the changes could drive up costs for consumers and hurt the reliability of the state’s electric system.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, August 2, 2023
Flagler Beach’s Margaritaville Hotel public meeting, the Flagler County Republican Club meets, Separation Chat’s open discussion, the ins and outs of juries and jury selection.
Unsupportive Families and Conversion Therapy Drive Trans Youth to Suicide
Supportive family environments and hormone replacement therapy that affirms a transgender child’s gender identity decrease their risk of suicide or running away from home, whereas unsupportive family environments and conversion therapy that denies their gender identity increase these risks.
Palm Coast and Florida Gas Prices Reach 3-Month High
Florida gas prices surged to the highest levels this summer over the past two weeks, adding 30 cents per gallon to an average of $3.67 before declining slightly. Oil prices today topped $81 a barrel, approaching their highest level since April as economic data has been stronger than expected.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, August 1, 2023
The Palm Coast City Council will consider the management contract for a new cell tower at Ralph Carter Park, remembering Charlie Ericksen, Jack Reacher solves the mystery behind why hookers always carry big purses.
Aromatherapy and Its Skeptics
Aromatherapy is not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treatment of any medical condition. Clinicians say there’s not sufficient evidence to show that it works. Conversely, public acceptance of aromatherapy has never been higher. But this is not always a good thing. Although information about aromatherapy abounds on the internet, many of the claims are based on personal experience. This is not scientific evidence.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, July 31, 2023
Heat index again at dangerous levels, stormwater and the Flagler County Commission, a celebration of the American language on the cusp of Gulden Draak.
Chief Justice Roberts’s Conflicting Views of Race
Though Roberts’ opinions appear at odds, his general disdain for the use of race is not. In both landmark race-related cases this term–the repeal of affirmative action, the requirement that race be considered when drawing congressional districts–he was clear that his preference is for as little use of race as possible, a position he has held for decades.
Health Care’s Familiar Symptoms: GOP Wants Less Regulation, Democrats Want More
GOP health plans would allow more employers to bypass the landmark health insurance overhaul’s basic benefits requirements and most state standards. Democrats want to limit short-term plans’ length before people go into ACA plans. Meanwhile, many still struggle to afford deductibles or other costs.
Without Evidence, Florida’s Surgeon General Blames Covid Vaccine for Bronny James’s Cardiac Episode
Despite scientific evidence to th contrary from federal agencies, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo this week bolstered the link between the Covid-19 vaccine and cardiac arrests suffered by two University of Southern California basketball players. One of those players is Los Angeles Lakers player Lebron James’ son.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, July 30, 2023
Sunday Chess Club at Chabad of Palm Coast, Shifted, at Limelight Theatre, Grace Community Food Pantry, A tribute to Jason Epstein, Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Make Developers Offer Strategies to Reduce Car Use
For decades, cities have required developers to provide a set number of parking spaces for their tenants or customers. And while many people still rely on parking, the amount required is typically far more than most buildings need.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, July 29, 2023
Annika Chambers & Paul DesLauriers at Blues & Brews Bistro in Ormond, the Saturday Flagler Beach Farmers Market, taking stock of our Barbie world.
Do Smartphones Belong in Classrooms?
As school leaders in the U.S. wrestle with whether or not to ban smartphones–and Flagler County schools have banned the use of cell phones during instructional time–four scholars to weigh in on the issue.
Facing Cash Crunch and Skirting Rules, DeSantis Appears as ‘Special Guest’ at His Own Campaign Events
As DeSantis deals with a cash crunch, firing staffers, a super PAC required by law to keep its distance from him is now being assigned more campaign tasks, enabling DeSantis to take advantage of a loophole allowing a candidate to appear as a special guest at a super PAC event.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, July 28, 2023
Scenic A1A Pride meets, John Fogerty at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre, Bonkerz Comedy Night, the sound of a tank, what 3 degrees of warming looks like.
Dr. Spock’s Timeless Lessons in Parenting
“The Common Sense Book of Baby and Childcare,” written by Dr. Benjamin Spock and published in 1946, encouraged parents to think for themselves and to trust their instincts. Spock’s book was a huge best-seller, second in the U.S. only to the Bible. He believed that children come into the world with distinct needs, interests and abilities, and that the core of good parenting is attending carefully to what each child requires at each stage of development.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, July 27, 2023
The Flagler Beach City Commission has a full agenda–new manager’s contract, impact fees, sales tax increase, and more. The Teron trial may conclude. Joan Didion on Charlie Rose.
Why Immigrants Serve in U.S. Military. It’s Not to Gain Citizenship.
The fast track to citizenship is not as important in explaining immigrant enlistments as economic factors like poverty and debt, and cultural factors, such as valuing warrior masculinity and legitimization of war.
Brain Drain at New College? DeSantis Is ‘Good With That’
New College has been filling positions that account for nearly a third of the school’s faculty. DeSantis appointed a slate of conservative members to the school’s Board of Trustees early this year.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, July 26, 2023
Separation Chat, Day three of Monserrate Teron’s trial, The Flagler County Public Library Book Club takes on Kim Michele’s “Woman of Troublesome Creek,” Paul Robeson.
DeSantis ‘War on Woke’ Mirrors Whitewashing of History in Other Countries
Florida’s new law forbidding the teaching of systemic racism is the most extreme example in a series of recent U.S. state bills that critics call “educational gag orders.” The tactics that Gov. Ron DeSantis is using to censor the teaching of American history in Florida look a lot like those seen in the illiberal democracies of Israel, Turkey, Russia and Poland.
Texas University Suspends Professor Accused of Criticizing Lt. Governor in Lecture on Opioids
The professor, Joy Alonzo, an expert on the opioids crisis, was placed on paid administrative leave and investigated, raising questions about the extent of political interference in higher education, particularly in health-related matters.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, July 25, 2023
Monserrate Teron’s trial Day Two, the school board holds a pair of meetings, the Volusia-Flagler Sierra Club hosts a group social, taking on the multiverse.
Women’s World Cup: Gender Equity in Sports Is Still an Issue
For women playing football in this year’s Women’s World Cup, there are issues and concerns they must play through. Unfortunately, most of these obstacles exist outside the corners of the football pitch. Lack of funds for training and pay equity continue to be at the forefront.
ACLU Accused Florida Supreme Court of Abusing Its Authority on Recreational Pot Initiative
In a brief supporting a citizens’ initiative to legalize recreational marijuana use, the ACLU accuses the Florida Supreme Court of abusing its authority to strike proposed state constitutional amendments from the ballot.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, July 24, 2023
Monserrate Teron again goes on trial on charges of raping his 7-year-old niece, the Bunnell City Commission meets, Delmore Schwartz On Marilyn Monroe, the Library of America does Virginia Hamilton.
Why You Shouldn’t Trust AI
People who come to rely on certain AI systems will have to trust them implicitly to navigate daily life. That means they will need to be sure the AIs aren’t secretly working for someone else. Across the internet, devices and services that seem to work for you already secretly work against you.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, July 23, 2023
Sunday Chess Club at Chabad of Palm Coast, Michael Franti & Spearhead at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre, a world shrugs at the Women’s World Cup, Mary Wilson Thompson’s anti-suffrage letter to Woodrow Wilson.
Barbie Movie Is a ‘Feminist Bimbo’ Classic
Barbie fits perfectly into director Greta Gerwig’s repertoire of women-focused stories, which includes two Oscar-nominated coming of age films, Ladybird (2017) and Little Women (2019). Gerwig is a feminist filmmaker whose characters are curious, transgressive and rebel against their restrictive circumstances. Barbie is no exception.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, July 22, 2023
Gamble Jam, Rolling Stones Tribute, Cat in the Hat, The Saturday Flagler Beach Farmers Market, celebrating Bernard Malamud through “The Mourners” and other works.