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Reptiles: Why One in Five Species Face Extinction

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A first-of-its-kind global assessment of more than 10,000 species of reptiles (around 90% of the known total) has revealed that 21% need urgent support to prevent them going extinct. But since reptiles are so diverse, ranging from lizards and snakes to turtles and crocodiles, the threats to the survival of each species are likely to be equally varied.

Smoke and Ash from Development’s Burn Pile Near FPC Clouds School’s Hosting of District Track Championship

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On Monday and Tuesday, the burning of cleared woods on State Road 100 near Wawa, for a future self-storage facility and a shopping mall, produced enough smoke and ash to cause concern on the nearby  campus of Flagler Palm Coast High School as track athletes on Monday trained through the smoke, and on Tuesday had to compete through it as FPC hosted nine schools in the district track and field championships. The conditions produced a poorer image of of Palm Coast to visiting athletes and families than the district wished.

‘Waiting for Godot’ Finally Arrives as Palm Coast’s City Rep Stages Beckett’s Absurdist Masterpiece

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Beckett’s 1953 play – which is often and rightfully tagged as part of the “Theater of the Absurd” movement – depicts two men, Vladimir and Estragon, who engage in conversation as they wait for a mysterious figure named Godot who (or that) never shows up. Detractors (and there have been fewer and fewer of them as the decades have progressed) howl “There’s no plot!” Admirers howl “There’s no plot!”

It’s Not Enough to Protect Parks and Preserves in Isolation

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As human development spreads ever farther around the world, very few large ecosystems remain relatively intact and uninterrupted by highways, cities or other human-constructed obstacles. Linking protected areas from Yellowstone to the Yukon shows the value of conserving large landscapes, not just isolated parks and preserves.

Weaponizing Children in Domestic Conflicts

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There are approximately 5.7 million cases of domestic abuse in the U.S. each year, and in some of those, mothers and fathers use children to manipulate and harm the other parent. This behavior can include directly pressuring the child to spy on the abused parent or threatening the abused parent that they will never see the child again if they leave the relationship.

What Are Book Bans Really About? Fear.

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While those behind these campaigns hide themselves behind the mask of “parental control,” they’re really concealing fear: Fear of a country and world that’s changing around them; fear of voices that were kept silent too long who are now speaking up and demanding their seat at the table of power, and, mostly, fear of the erosion of their own privilege.

Clarence Thomas and the Supreme Court’s Missing Ethics Rules

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In the past, the Supreme Court of the United States has cast aside pleas to adopt an ethics code for the justices. The actions of Justice Clarence Thomas’ wife, Virginia – who pushed the White House to overturn the 2020 presidential election – have once again thrown light onto this long-standing conflict: How accountable should the justices be?

Federal Appeals Court Strikes Down UCF’s ‘Discriminatory Harassment’ Policy as Chilling Free Speech

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The 38-page opinion by a three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals backed arguments by the group Speech First, which has represented students at universities in various parts of the country. Judge Kevin Newsom wrote that the UCF policy “objectively chills speech because its operation would cause a reasonable student to fear expressing potentially unpopular beliefs.”

How Russia Does ‘Patriotic Education’

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The Russian government has launched a series of patriotic education campaigns aimed at Russia’s youth to encourage them to regard the war in Ukraine as a continuation of the second world war and to feel a personal connection to the Russian soldiers fighting there.

Between Missing Toes and Blood Spatter, the Play’s the Thing at AdventHealth Palm Coast’s $1 Million Simulation Center

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The $1 million simulation center at AdventHealth Palm Coast’s campus on State Road 100 uses high-tech, interactive, realistic mannequins, flesh-and-blood actors, makeup artists whose creations rival anything concocted by Hollywood splatter films, sophisticated computer equipment, and seasoned medical personnel to simulate a variety of health conditions and scenarios. The center provides realistic training for AdventHealth nurses of all skill levels, as well as nursing students from the University of North Florida and Jacksonville University studying in Palm Coast.

The Visceral Trouble with Beer

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Drinking beer and spirits is linked to elevated levels of visceral fat – the harmful type of fat that is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, and other health complications – whereas drinking wine shows no such association with levels of this harmful fat and may even be protective against it.

Mistrial in Case Against Kwentel Moultrie, Accused of Raping 16-Year-Old Girl, as Jury Deadlocks

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An all-white jury of five women and one man could not agree on a verdict on the charge against Kwentel Moultrie, now 23, of raping a 16-year-old girl when he was 20 in a P-Section house in Palm Coast. The three day trial hinged on whether the sexual encounter was consensual or forced. Moultrie remains in jail on this charge and on unrelated second-degree murder and burglary charges resulting from a December alleged home invasion in the R-Section.

Can Jaguars Make It Back to the United States?

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There are only two main corridors in the western borderlands that jaguars could use to get into the U.S. Maintaining these corridors is crucial to connect fragmented habitats for jaguars and other mammals, such as black bears, pumas, ocelots and Mexican wolves.

Palm Coast Council Votes Itself 151% Pay Hike Plus Benefits Plus Annual Raises

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Council members’ salary will rise from $9,600 a year to $24,097, a 151 percent increase. The mayor’s salary will go up from $11,400 a year to $30,039 a year, a 164 percent increase, substantially less than the more than 300m percent increase Mayor David Alfin originally sought, but still equally costly to taxpayers as the original proposal, since benefits are now part of the compensation package.

‘Every Day Feels Unsettled’: Educators Decry Staffing Shortage

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A shortage of teaching staff affects every student. One principal explained that learning stalls when “students in classes with revolving subs may spend the hour playing video games with no structure or learning happening.” Administrators describe waking up with dread knowing they’ll have to scramble to find coverage for absent staff.

School Appeals Pre-Game Prayer Ruling

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A Tampa Christian school is appealing a federal judge’s ruling that backed a decision by the Florida High School Athletic Association to prevent a prayer over a stadium loudspeaker before a 2015 state championship football game.

With Median Rent Now at $1,760 a Month, Tenants Across Florida Are Struggling to Afford Housing Costs

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Florida’s rental market has become problematic for many families and workers battling to afford surging rent prices over the past two years, with median rent prices jumping from $1,340 in February 2020 (right before the pandemic) to just over $1,760 in February 2022, a 31.4 percent increase over two years, according to a new report by Florida TaxWatch.