The results of an experimental drug paint a mixed picture for those with Alzheimer’s. On one hand, this is the first drug that has been shown to have any effect on slowing the progression of the disease. On the other hand, the apparent effects are slight and the risks are not inconsiderable.
Florida & Beyond, and All Opinions
Federal Lawsuit Charges DeSantis Migrant Relocation Program Is ‘State-Sponsored Harassment’
Accusing Gov. Ron DeSantis of an “attempt to legalize state-sponsored harassment,” immigrant-advocacy groups filed a federal lawsuit challenging an “unauthorized alien” relocation program approved by state lawmakers earlier this year.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, December 3, 2022
USA v. Netherlands, the Christmas parade in Flagler Beach, the boat parade in Palm Coast, Flagler Schools’ Winter Job Fair, Friends of the Library Holiday Book Sale, Amos Oz on the ecstasy of 1967.
Jobs and Wages Are Up. So Why Is This Economist So Gloomy?
The rosy employment figures come despite repeated efforts by the Federal Reserve to tame the job market and the wider economy in general in its fight against the worst inflation in decades. Meanwhile, there aren’t enough people to fill the jobs being advertised.
DeSantis’s New Target: Restricting Demonstrations at State Capitol in Name of Protecting Children
The state Department of Management Service’s proposal, in part, seeks to prohibit actions or displays that are “harmful” to children from taking place in the Capitol. The DeSantis Administration proposal is the latest in a series of measures restricting protest and speech.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, December 2, 2022
First Friday in Flagler Beach, Community Chorus of Palm Coast’s holiday concert, City Repertory Theatre’s Holiday Treat, John McPhee’s geology, when the Senate could find a pair.
Black Twitter’s Expected Demise Would Make It Harder to Publicize Police Brutality and Discuss Racism
Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter has thrown the future of Black Twitter into question. Social media users argue that the takeover has already had an impact on the Black social media community. Multiple sources report an almost immediate spike in the use of the N-word, and Musk has also allegedly mocked Black Lives Matter in general and the group’s apparel found at Twitter’s headquarters in San Francisco, California.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: December 1, 2022
City Repertory Theatre’s “A Holiday Treat: A Special Night of Story and Song,” the doomsday glacier the size of Florida, Jay London returns, Bill Bryson on the horror of RVs.
Oath Keepers Convictions: The Limits of Free Speech and the Threat Posed by Militias
Far-right extremists or other hate groups can claim they are just venting or even fantasizing – both of which would be protected under the First Amendment. In the absence of any specific plan, threat or incitement, group members may never suffer legal consequences for oral or written expressions that nonetheless create fear in those who draw these groups’ ire.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, November 30, 2022
A banned books talk at the public library, One Night of Queen at the Auditorium, more elimination rounds at the World Cup, Mark Twain on Power, H.L. Mencken on Mark Twain.
Capital Crime: The Long, Grim History of Botched Lethal Injections
Since 1900, in states across the country, lethal injections have been more frequently botched than any of the other type of execution methods used throughout that period. This includes hanging, electrocution, the gas chamber and the firing squad – even though these approaches are not without their problems.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, November 29, 2022
Tyler Adams was all class responding to an Iranian reporter ahead of today’s USA-Iran match, a must-win for the U.S. to avoid elimination. The Freedom Readers Club at the library takes on Eli Wiesel’s “Night.”
Seafloor Evidence from Old Hurricanes Has Oceanographers Worried
Hurricanes leave behind telltale evidence that goes back millennia. The Atlantic has experienced even stormier periods in the past than we’ve seen in recent years. That’s not good news. It tells coastal oceanographers like me that we may be significantly underestimating the threat hurricanes pose to Caribbean islands and the North American coast in the future.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, November 28, 2022
A possible plea and disposition in the case of Robert Batie, the psychologist accused of abusing an underage patient, the Bunnell City Commission meets, a contrast with the Artemis mission.
Beaming Misogyny Around the World
Misogyny, a sexist contempt and hatred of women, aims to keep women in a lower position than men within a patriarchal society. With discrimination against women enshrined in Qatari law – which, among other things does not criminalise domestic violence or sexual assault – misogyny is being beamed through televisions internationally, via the means of the 2022 men’s football World Cup.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, November 27, 2022
The Washington Post reports on Flagler and Florida’s eroding beaches, Spain and Germany in a preview of a cup final, tundra and John McPhee coming into the country.
8 Billion People and the Era of the Megapolis
On November 15, a baby girl in Manila became the eight billionth person in the world. Of those 8 billion people, 60% live in a town or city. By the end of the 21st century, cities will account for 85% of Earth’s predicted 10 billion inhabitants.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, November 26, 2022
Tree-lighting ceremony in Palm Coast’s Central park, the Gamble Jam, Casablanca at 80, Saudi Arabia gets to show us whether they’re for real, Michael Kazin asks: where’s the outrage?
Retailers May See a Little More Red This Black Friday
Retailers are gearing up for another blockbuster holiday shopping season, but consumers burned by the highest inflation in a generation may have other ideas. Amazon said it is laying off 10,000 workers, one of several big companies announcing job cuts recently. Bezos even cautioned consumers to hold off on big purchases like cars, televisions and appliances to save in case of a recession in 2023.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, November 25, 2022
The Celtic Angels Christmas at Flagler Auditorium, the United States and England from Qatar at 2 p.m, Simone de Beauvoir on American shopping, Jay London returns, America’s lethal gun culture.
Florida Is Turning Its Back on the New South, Embracing its Dixie-fied Past
Florida for decades was determined to leave Jim Crow behind and separate ourselves from the likes of Alabama, with leadership committed to equal justice, open government, and voting rights — however imperfectly achieved. No more. With the reelection of Ron DeSantis, and ultra-conservative victories in gerrymandered congressional districts across the state, Florida is sliding back into the mire of its Old South past.
Death and Life in Cormac McCarthy’s The Passenger
The Passenger is a book of life and liveliness. The novel’s language communicates energy, not entropy – a sense of opening up, not winding down. At its most localised, this verbal exuberance runs through individual lexical choices. There seems no word that McCarthy doesn’t know and he fans life into archaic or obscure terminology (eskers, kedge, lemniscate, uncottered and many more).
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, November 24, 2022
Can we avoid another mass shooting today? A World Cup of upsets continues today with Brazil and Portugal on the potential chopping block, Philip Roth’s American Pastoral Thanksgiving.
Much of Florida’s Eroding Coast is Risking Home Collapses. Why Is Construction Continuing?
There’s a disturbing trend after hurricanes, and we’re seeing it with Ian: Many damaged areas see lots of money pouring in to rebuild in the same vulnerable locations. An important question communities should be asking is, if these are already in high-risk areas, why rebuild in the same place?
75,000 Abortions in Florida in 2020 Before Restrictions and Strike-Down of Roe v. Wade
Florida reported 74,868 abortions during 2020. Of that number, 3,988 abortions or about 5.3 percent were obtained by out-of-state residents. The CDC’s report tracks what’s called the abortion rate, the number of abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-44. For Florida, that rate was 19.1 for the year, among the higher rates in the data set.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, November 23, 2022
A Christmas tree lot opens, Rodney Dangerfield has us rolling on the floor, the ravages of covid misinformation, winding down before Thanksgiving.
Qatar Is ‘Sportswashing.’ Fans Don’t Really Care.
“Sportswashing” is using sport as a tool of soft power, to clean up (and distract from) a murky political or humanitarian reputation. The World Cup is a massive deal. The last one, hosted by another controversial host nation, Russia, attracted 3.5 billion viewers across the world.
Renner Takes on ‘Drag Queen Story Time’ and Social Governance in 1st Speech as House Leader
In his first speech as Florida Speaker of the House, Paul Renner focused Tuesday on bread-and-butter measures such as reducing taxes and making housing more attainable but also touched on a culture war agenda that has defined the Ron DeSantis regime in Tallahassee.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, November 22, 2022
Leann Pennington, who defeated Joe Mullins in the primary, is sworn-in as a Flagler County Commissioner, a little jazz ensemble, a lot of World Cup, Ron White, an ironic independence day and Bill Day’s reaction to the latest hate-inspired, assault-rifled massacre.
Why It’s Time to End Child Sponsorship
The narrative we are given is that sponsoring a child in the Global South is a way to make a positive difference in their lives. However, this narrative inaccurately frames children and their families as lacking, backward, inferior, and longing for the standards of the Global North.
Hidden Until Now, Audits Reveal Millions in Medicare Advantage Overcharges
Newly released federal audits reveal widespread overcharges and other errors in payments to Medicare Advantage health plans for seniors, with some plans overbilling the government more than $1,000 per patient a year on average. Medicare Advantage, a fast-growing alternative to original Medicare, is run primarily by major insurance companies.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, November 21, 2022
The Flagler County Commission sends off Joe Mullins ahead of his last meeting, Qatar’s human rights record, what Netflix software engineers do with your $9.99 a month.
How Same-Sex Marriage Gained Bipartisan Support
While public opinion and different state laws on abortion rights are sharply dividing the country, there’s growing indication that most people agree on another once-controversial topic – protecting same-sex marriage.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, November 20, 2022
Pianist Michael Rickman plays Beethoven and Schumann in Ormond, the World Cup kicks off at 11 a.m., Qatar’s dismal human rights record, Abdullah Al-Arian’s case for Qatar.
The Good and Bad of the World Cup
Controversy has dogged the event ever since sport’s governing body, FIFA, handed Qatar hosting duties back in 2010. In spite of the controversy, the World Cup will be the most-watched sporting event of the year. Here are quick guide of the good and bad.
Citing Orwell, Federal Judge Calls DeSantis’s ‘Stop Woke Act’ Unconstitutional Muzzling of Academic Freedom
Calling the state’s approach “positively dystopian,” a federal judge on Thursday blocked a law championed by Gov. Ron DeSantis that restricts the way race-related concepts can be taught in universities. The law is “antithetical to academic freedom and has cast a leaden pall of orthodoxy over Florida’s state universities,” Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker wrote in the 139-page ruling.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, November 19, 2022
Celebrate America at the Ag Museum, the Saturday Flagler Beach Farmers Market, Barry White, the end of the world can’t come soon enough.
Why You Shouldn’t Be So Quick to Cheer the Demise of Twitter
Twitter’s dual role in fostering real-time communication and acting as an arbitrator of authoritative information is of crucial interest to academics, journalists and government agencies. If Twitter were to collapse, there’s no clear replacement in sight.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, November 18, 2022
Flagler Beach hosts its rescheduled Veterans Day ceremony, the Jersey Tenors at Flagler Auditorium, Mickey Mouse’s birthday, Barbara Ehrenreich on gyms and fitness.
Note to Québec’s Premier: French is the Language of Voltaire, Hugo and Human Rights, Not Xenophobia
To return the French language to its rightful place as the voice of human rights, the Québec government must promote it as a tool of a human rights-based civic education, not a mandatory language. Welcoming immigrants would subsequently not be an obstacle to the French language or francophone culture — it would be a benefit.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, November 17, 2022
The Flagler Beach City Commission meets, Medicare basics at the public library, Pegine Echevarria at Daytona State, DeSantis catching up to Trump, James Joyce on Ulysses.
Despite Growing Legalization, 317,793 People Were Arrested for Pot Possession in 2020
Arrests have actually been going down each year since 2010 as more states legalize medical or recreational use of the drug. In 2019, for example, more than 500,000 marijuana possession arrests were reported, so the 2020 arrest numbers represent a single-year decline of 36%.
DeSantis Deflects But Doesn’t Silence Speculation on 2024 Presidential Bid
Following former President Donald Trump officially launching his 2024 presidential campaign, Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday didn’t acknowledge Trump’s big announcement last night. And former President Trump didn’t mention DeSantis’ name during his speech at Mar-a-Lago Tuesday evening.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, November 16, 2022
The Flagler Youth Orchestra in a sold-out concert at the Auditorium, Kevin Guthrie, Director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, at Tiger Bay, Letterman to Donald Trump, in 1987: “You act like you’re running for something.”
Twitter’s Mocking of Musk
Playful impersonations of companies on Twitter aren’t coincidental: they are a dissent against Musk’s leadership. In response to Musk becoming CEO, users used the platform to challenge dominant ideas about capitalism and power.
FireFlight’s Chief Dana Morris, Flagler County’s Legend of the Air, Is Retiring After 12,500 Flight Hours
After 20 years flying Flagler County FireFlight, the emergency helicopter, and more than 12,500 flight hours later, Dana Morris will power down the rotorcraft one last time as its pilot on November 13, five days before his official retirement after 43 years of flying.
Sen. Travis Hutson Will Chair Fiscal Policy Committee in Senate President’s Leadership Team
Incoming Senate President Kathleen Passidomo rolled out her leadership team Monday, as the Senate prepares for an expanded Republican majority next week. In his new role, Hutson will run a committee that Passidomo described as a path for “legislation that may contain a fiscal impact.” Hutson had vied for Senate presidency against Passidomo but fell short.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, November 15, 2022
The Palm Coast City Council takes on the controversial Harborside development proposal, why Curtis LeMay lived a few decades too long, Lydia Polgreen on why Twitter deserves to survive.
Artemis Launch: From One Delay to Another
Of NASA’s 135 Space Shuttle missions, only about 40% launched on time. While Artemis 1 is continuing the long tradition of delayed NASA launches, there are good reasons for the high level of caution that underlies these delays.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, November 14, 2022
Flagler Cares Coalition meets, the Bunnell and Flagler Beach city commissions meet, Rediscovering pianist and composer Moritz Moszkowski, William least-Heat Moon in a Nevada house of pleasure.