Voltaire’s Candide, or Optimism (1759) is widely recognised as his masterpiece. A darkly satirical novella taking aim at human folly, pride and excessive faith in reason’s ability to plumb the deepest metaphysical truths, it remains as telling in this era of pandemics and wild conspiracy theories as when first published.
All Else
St. Johns Clerk Hosts National Adoption Day Celebration on Nov. 22
The St. Johns County Clerk of the Circuit Court and County Comptroller’s office will host a special ceremony on Friday, Nov. 22, at 10 a.m. to celebrate National Adoption Day. The event will be held at the Richard O. Watson Judicial Center, marking the culmination of a long adoption process for six local children joining their forever families.
Now Up to Jury to Decide If Brian Pirraglia Deserves Life in Prison for Overdose Death of ‘Best Friend’
After three days of trial that ended short of a verdict this afternoon at the Flagler County courthouse, a 12-member jury will deliberate Thursday morning on the first-degree murder charge against Brian Pirraglia, 39, in the death-by fentanyl of 38-year-old Brian O’Shea in their B-Section house in Palm Coast in 2022. If convicted, Pirraglia faces life in prison.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, November 20, 2024
The Flagler County Public Library Book Club takes on David Von Drehle, Bridge and Games at Flagler Woman’s Club, the United Nation’s report on genocide in Gaza and apartheid in Jerusalem and the West Bank, which most media in the United States have not reported.
What James Earl Jones Can Teach Us About Activism and Art
James Earl Jones was looking to change the culture. He was trying to change the country’s understanding of what it means to fight – and what a freedom fighter is. Sometimes, activism can be as simple as making art to the best of your abilities – or, as W.E.B. Du Bois wrote, “to use beauty to set the world right.”
Advise and Consent. Just Not to Matt Gaetz.
Matt Gaetz is virtually no one’s idea of a qualified nominee. The man is a graduate of William and Mary Law School, a fact that must have the ghost of Thomas Jefferson pulling out his sepulchral hair. He practiced law for less than two years in a civil firm, has no criminal law experience and was briefly suspended for not paying certain administrative fees but was later reinstated.
Craig Flagler Palms Hosts 20th Annual Candlelight Service of Remembrance
Craig Flagler Palms Funeral Home, Memorial Gardens & Crematory hosts the 20th annual Candlelight Service of Remembrance on Sunday, December 1, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Garden of Memory Mausoleum. The event is held to help those that have lost loved ones cope with the loss during the holiday season.
Richardson, Carney and Pennington Make History on County Commission, and Dance Is Acclaimed Chair Again
There was history this evening at the Flagler County Commission: Sworn-in on the silver spine of a Hebrew Bible, Kim Carney and Pam Richardson joined Leann Pennington, who was elected two years ago, to form the first majority-woman commission in the county’s 107-year history. There was also acclamation as Andy Dance was re-elected chair.
Norris, Miller and Stevens Sworn-In as Palm Coast Council and City Begin Uncharted Era
A new Palm Coast City Council, anchored in the intently precedent-breaking mayorship of Mike Norris, was seated this morning amid the cheers and encouragements of a sizable crowd as Ty Miller and Ray Stevens joined the mayor on the dais alongside Theresa Pontieri and Charles Gambaro. With notable pockets of reserve, not just among city staffers and directors, the audience was mostly triumphal ahead of an uncharted future.
Developer of Disputed 204-Boat Storage Facility on Scenic A1A Must Apply for Special Exception, County Rules
The Flagler County Commission Monday evening rejected a settlement agreement recommended by its own attorney to end the four-year-old dispute with a developer who wants to build a restaurant and 204-boat dry-storage facility in the Scenic A1A corridor. What would be called Hammock Harbor is a planned dry-storage marina, or warehouse, as the developer himself had described it in an early building plan, and as its opponents still describe it. A lawsuit by the developer is likely.