During Biden’s first year in office, he held a total of 10 press conferences. Most of those featured him reading prepared remarks and then leaving without taking questions from reporters. When he does take questions, he tends to call on only preselected reporters from – in his own words – “a list I’ve been given.”
Florida & Beyond, and All Opinions
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, February 27, 2023
Mosquito control, Life Skills program, Chinese Auction by the Ladies Auxiliary of Palm Coast, how NYPD Blue can teach the governor a lesson, Joan Didion’s Salvador, Hugo Black’s birthday.
White Saviorism’s Sordid Problem
“White saviour complex,” which has a long and sordid history, presumes that people of color, whether in the Global South or in the West, need “saving” from a white western person or aid worker, when what they do is ignore the role of western countries in encouraging inequalities and wars in the Global South.
Nikki Fried Will Lead Florida Democrats in Hopes of Stanching State’s Bleed to Red
Fried will face a momentous task: To bring more Democrats into the fold, increase the number of Democratic candidates who can win races, and bring back a Florida that is at least purple, not red in the political scene. And keep in mind that DeSantis is considering a presidential bid for 2024.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, February 26, 2023
The 8th Annual Princess Place Preserve Pow Wow, Palm Coast Farmers’ Market at European Village, The Hit men, at Flagler Auditorium, a Johnny Cash trio, and from the Journals of John Cheever.
Samuel Stewart and ‘Cancel Culture’ in the 1930s
More than 80 years ago, an English professor named Samuel Steward was dismissed from his teaching position after publishing what his college’s president deemed a “racy” novel.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, February 25, 2023
The Flagler Woman’s Club’s Casino Night at the Italian American Social Club, Friends of the Library book sale, remembering Anthony Burgess on his birthday.
What the GOP Gets Wrong About ‘Woke Capitalism’
The notion of equal access to capital flies in the face of one of the central tenets of capitalism. The ability of different organizations to borrow and the price they pay is never equal. It depends on the risk of the investment and how many investors will take that risk.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, February 24, 2023
The Scenic A1A Pride Committee meets, the killing of Orlando journalists, the essential work of journalists and other media workers, Ernie Pyle on war’s peculiar sounds.
Biden’s Border Crackdown Explained
The Biden Administration’s proposed rule change – which would see the rapid deportation of anyone who had not first applied for asylum en route to the U.S. – has been condemned by immigration rights groups, which claim it runs counter to the “humane immigration system” that Joe Biden promised while campaigning for the White House.
Latest Attack on Home Rule Would Enable Suspension of Local Ordinances Subject of Suits
A bill in the Florida Senate would require local governments to suspend enforcement of ordinances while lawsuits play out. Also, plaintiffs who successfully challenge ordinances in court could receive up to $50,000 for attorney fees and costs.
Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Against Migrant Flights After Legislative Fix
A circuit judge dismissed a lawsuit filed after Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration sparked a controversy in September by flying about 50 migrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts. The lawsuit became moot when the Legislature this month passed a law addressing the issue.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, February 23, 2023
The Flagler Beach City Commission decides on an interim manager, drug court, Anne Applebaum on the war in Ukraine, a poem by Taras Shevchenko.
The Ethics of Home Ownership in an Age of Inequality
Despite the current state of the housing market, property is still considered a sound investment – at least for the limited group who can afford it. However, property ownership can have serious consequences on others’ lives.
John C. Hitt, Who’d Presided Over UCF for 28 Years, Dies at 82
President Emeritus John C. Hitt believed education transformed lives. The first in his family to attend college, he greatly expanded opportunities for students to earn UCF degrees while also leading the university through exceptional growth in academic quality and forming partnerships that remain critical to the region’s economic vitality.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, February 22, 2023
The school board meets today (not yesterday), the Atlantic Chapter of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State has its weekly chat group, a little Astor Piazzolla, a little Didion.
3 in 5 Long Covid Patients Have Organ Damage a Year Out from Infection
A new study published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine looked at organ damage in long Covid patients, most of whom were not severely affected when they had Covid initially. Organ damage was identified in 59% of participants a year after their initial symptoms.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, February 21, 2023
The Palm Coast City Council meets, the Flagler County School Board yet again talks about arming staffers, a few words from Malcolm X.
Poland Is Policing History, and Distorting the Holocaust
In 2018 Poland passed a law punishing anyone who claimed Poles had any responsibility in the Holocaust. The law is intended to silence historians, even beyond Poland’s borders.
Plan to Expand Taxpayer Funded Private Education Advances as Democrats Sound Alarm
Florida House and Senate GOP lawmakers are fine with families of millionaires and billionaires utilizing public dollars to attend private schools, even if those families could afford private school costs and tuition.
Florida House Bill Targets Socially Responsible Corporations
The Florida House bill seeks to block government investment decisions involving “environmental, social and governance” standards, known as ESG.
GOP Bills Disrupting Trans Youth Care Are Sweeping the Nation Beyond Florida
Republican lawmakers in more than half the states are continuing a party-line push to restrict doctors and other medical providers from offering some gender-affirming health care to minors, even with parents’ consent.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, February 20, 2023
To include your event in the Briefing and Live Calendar, please fill out this form. Weather: Mostly sunny. Highs in the lower 80s. West winds 5 to 10 mph. Monday Night: Mostly clear in the evening, then becoming mostly cloudy. Lows in the upper 50s. Southwest winds 5 to 10 mph. Today at the Editor’s […]
How Jimmy Carter’s Human Rights Focus Helped Dismantle the Soviet Union
Critics have described Carter’s foreign policies as “ineffectual” and “hopelessly muddled,” and their formulation demonstrated “weakness and indecision.” But his overseas policies were far more effective than critics have claimed.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, February 19, 2023
Final day for the Near Disaster of Jasper and Casper at CRT, Thibault Cauvin and Bach’s great prelude in C major, Joan Didion’s multiple sclerosis.
Think You Know What High Blood Pressure Is? Think Again.
Most Americans don’t know the normal or healthy range for blood pressure – yet strikingly, they think they do. And that is cause for serious concern in a nation where nearly half of Americans ages 20 years and up, and three-quarters of those 65 and up, have high blood pressure.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, February 18, 2023
Farmer’s market in Flagler Beach, Jasper and Casper at City Repertory Theatre, Nat Hentoff and Judge Stephen Reinhardt on a seminal court decision against book-banning.
How Much ‘Religious Accommodation’ Are Employers Responsible For?
The U.S. Supreme Court will soon address the extent to which employers must accommodate employees, if at all, when they want to pray, not work on Sundays, observe the Sabbath or invoke litanies of other sectarian requirements.
Florida Justices Refuse to Block Killing of Donald Dillbeck, Convicted of Carjacking Murder
Justices refused to issue a stay of Dillbeck’s execution, whose death warrant was signed last month by Gov. Ron DeSantis. The killing, scheduled for Feb. 23, would be the first time a prisoner has been put to death in Florida since 2019. Dillbeck’s attorney say he is mentally disabled.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, February 17, 2023
Gabriella Alo is again before a judge this morning, this time on a state motion to have her bond revoked, The Near Disaster of Jasper and Casper, at City Repertory Theatre, John McWhorter gives DeSantis some credit.
White Noise: How Dangerous Was the Ohio Train Derailment?
Headaches and lingering chemical smells from a fiery train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, have left residents worried about their air and water – and misinformation on social media hasn’t helped.
Judge Tosses Challenge to Law Restricting Gender and Sex Orientation Discussions in Class
U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor dismissed a revised lawsuit filed by students, parents and teachers, ruling that the plaintiffs had not “alleged sufficient facts” to show they had legal standing to challenge the law.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, February 16, 2023
The Flagler Youth Orchestra Winter Concert celebrates Black composers, at the Auditorium, high school committee review “The Black Flamingo,” Jeff Terrell at Tiger Bay, The Near Disaster of Jasper and Casper, at CRT.
What Does ‘Equal Protection’ Mean on the Most Diverse Supreme Court in History?
Though the court is the most diverse in American history – with three justices of color and four women – the conservatives who have historically opposed affirmative action programs hold a 6-3 majority. That majority may ban the use of race when the court issues a decision in a Harvard case expected in June.
Lawmakers Pushing to Increase Homestead Tax Break at Local Governments’ Expense
A proposal to change the state’s Save Our Homes property-tax cap from 3 to 2 percent, significantly diminishing local governments’ revenue, cleared its first legislative committee on Wednesday, despite concerns that it might force counties to cut services or shift the tax burden.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, February 15, 2023
Brennan Hill in court, the Palm Coast Planning talks about a new 110-home subdivision, Armenian composer Stephan Elmas, another excerpt from From Dean Atta’s Black Flamingo.
DeSantis Suggests He May Get Rid of Advanced Placement Courses in Florida Schools
As a feud over an African American studies course continues between Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration and the College Board, the governor said Monday that Florida will “look to re-evaluate” its relationship with the organization.
Understanding Israel’s Huge Protests Against Netanyahu’s Democracy-Ending Ploys
Demonstrations in Israel since January have drawn hundreds of thousands of protesters denouncing Prime Minister Netanyahu’s proposal to emasculate the Supreme Court and threaten the essence of the country’s government.
GOP House’s Anti-Immigration Hearing Turns White Nationalist Screed
The U.S. House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing Tuesday at times sounded more like a bile-brimming Unite the Right rally than a congressional proceeding. It was essentially a white nationalist promotional appearance.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, February 14, 2023
The annual Valentine’s Day mass wedding at the Flagler County courthouse, the Palm Coast City Council meets in workshop, a poem from The Black Flamingo.
Valentine’s Day Gifts from Chaucer to Chocolates
For Valentine’s Day, some couples only roll their eyes at each other in mutual cynicism. The capitalisation of love in the modern world can certainly seem banal. But people have been celebrating the day and gifting love tokens for hundreds of years.
The Battle Over Mifepristone, the Abortion Pill
Medication abortion now accounts for more than half of all abortions in the United States. Some states that have banned abortion altogether or have restricted access to it are vowing to block access to abortion pills.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, February 13, 2023
The Flagler County Library Board discusses sending a member to the district’s book-ban committees, the Macon dirigible disaster, Bill McKibben on the national culture’s small minds.
CBD Is Not a Cure-All. It Has Real Benefits, But Use With Caution.
While there is growing evidence that CBD can help with certain conditions, caution is needed. Rigorous scientific studies are limited, so it is important that the marketing of CBD products does not get out ahead of the research and of robust evidence.
Era of ‘Free’ Covid Vaccines, Test Kits, and Treatments Is Ending. Who Will Pay Tab Now?
Time is running out for free-to-consumer covid vaccines, at-home test kits, and even some treatments. Vaccine prices will be steep, as will covid treatments, and benefits will depend on insurance coverage even as many are poised to lose insurance because of new government rules.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, February 12, 2023
The final of Palm Coast’s tennis open, the Farmers’ Market at European Village, Super Bowl versus World Cup, Robert E. Lee’s worry about Yankees’ effects on Southern women.
Public School Enrollment Dropped by 1.2 Million During the Pandemic
Dramatic evidence of learning loss has mobilized federal, state and local education leaders. The federal government has allocated US$122 billion to support state and local efforts to help students “catch up in the classroom.”
The DeSantis GOP Plan: Replace Public Education With Ahistorical Propaganda
By unleashing an avalanche of fear and legal absurdity into a struggling, underfunded system of public education, these far-right ideologues are in the process of crippling the learning process for tens of millions of the nation’s children.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, February 11, 2023
The Annual Jazz Brunch and fund-raiser at AACS, Unique Boutique Event at Santa Maria del Mar Church, Palm Coast Tennis Open, the first robots, Mohsin Hamid.
The Bible’s Song of Songs Is Full of Sex, Challenging Assumptions
Graphic descriptions of both male and female bodies pervade the work and are certainly titillating, even bordering on pornographic. Sensual metaphors such as “grazing among the lilies” and “drinking … from the juice of my pomegranates” suggest sexual practices that are anything but vanilla.