The federal gas tax has been stuck at 18.4 cents a gallon since 1993, lowest among advanced countries. Yet Congress just adopted a three-month stopgap measure, kicking the gas can down the road for the 35th time since 2009.
All Else
To Battle Nit-Pickers, Palm Coast Will Make Anonymous Code Enforcement Complaints More Difficult
In an attempt to fight back against harassing and nit-picky neighbors, the Palm Coast City Council will require names and email addresses from people filing code violation complaints electronically.
Tuesday Briefing: Flagler Firefighters Head West, Palm Coast Talks Code Enforcement, Ann Beattie Returns
Flagler firefighters are sent to help battle wildfires in California, the Palm Coast council gets a better understanding of how code enforcement enforces.
In Defense of Megyn Kelly
Megyn Kelly deserves conservatives’ admiration, not their disdain, for leveling the sort of tough questions at Donald Trump and other candidates that should be asked of any presidential hopefuls, argues Nancy Smith.
GOP Opens Special Session With Complaints That Fair Districts Infringe on Free Speech
Senators scolded the Florida Supreme Court for trampling on their First Amendment rights as lawmakers began a special session Monday aimed at redrawing congressional districts the court said were gerrymandered to help the Republican Party.
Sunburned Child at Flagler Camp Exposes a Florida Paradox: Paddling Is OK. Applying Sunscreen Is Not.
The Palm Coast mother of a 5-year-old child who got sunburned while in care of Flagler camp counselors was surprised to find the strict limitations on school employees touching children.
Monday Briefing: Sheriff’s K-9 Euthanized, Bunnell’s Budget, Amendment 1’s Fallout, Redistricting Session
The special session on redistricting congressional boundaries begins today, a K-9 is euthanized at the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, a Flagler panel discusses land acquisitions under Amendment 1.
2nd Only to Texas With Military Retirees, Florida Facing Stiff Competition For Them
Military retirees are some of the best-educated, best-trained and youngest retirees around. Florida has nearly 200,000 of them. States are using their tax codes to lure them.
Scout’s Dishonors: Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” Chapter 9
In Chapter 9 of “Go Set a Watchman,” Harper Lee gives us a short biography of Scout’s past between various deaths and blood flows, without as yet revisiting her recent discovery about a bigoted father.
Jailhouse Porn
Fort Apache: Flagler
There’s nothing to be proud of in the pornography of incarceration: Flagler had no reason to triple the size of its jail other than to amplify an indefensible architecture of disproportionate punishment.
Ex-Supervisor Kimberle Weeks Billed Taxpayers $12,500 For 3 Lawyers and Misled Media
The bills include $5,000 to defend herself in a state investigation that resulted, after she resigned, in 12 felony counts against her. She charged the bills to taxpayers.
Matanzas Woods Parkway Re-Opening on Monday, 2 Weeks Before School Resumes
Though more lane closures are projected, none will be allowed on Matanzas Woods Parkway between 7 and 8:30 a.m. or between 1:30 and 2:30 p.m. on days when school is in session.
Weekend Briefing: Cleaning Up Matanzas Woods Golf, Art League’s Plein Air, Trump’s GOP Show-Stealing
Trump steals the show at the GOP debate, the Matanzas Woods golf course owner is ordered to clean up, First Friday in Flagler Beach, the emotional journey of a plastic bag.
Flagler Beach Will Seek In-House City Manager Before Putting Out Broader Call
As it replaces Bruce Campbell, who’s leaving in september, the city will give preference to an internal applicant, then possibly advertise more broadly later this month if internal applicants don’t make the cut.
Thursday Briefing: City Hall 80% Done, Flagler Beach vs. Sea Ray, Hiroshima War Crime at 70, Iggy Pop Does Poe
Flagler Beach takes on Sea Ray this afternoon and thinks about its next city manager, Republicans take the stage, Japan marks the 70th anniversary of the nuking of Hiroshima, Jon Stewart signs off.
Sea Ray Issues Open Letter to Flagler Beach Ahead of Thursday’s Special Meeting
The Flagler Beach City Commission meets in special session Thursday to consider taking its opposition to a Sea Ray plan for a parking lot to the state. Sea Ray offers its side.
Flagler’s Congressional District Would Lose Putnam and Most of St. Johns But Pick Up Volusia
The change suggests that the district would tilt left somewhat, compared to its current makeup, which could favor Democrats. A special session of the Legislature will decide the final boundaries in accordance with a Supreme Court Order.
Driver at Origin of 2 Wrecks That Killed 6 People is Fined $1,000 and Loses License
Roy White, 39, was found to have caused the wreck on I-95 in Palm Coast in June 2014 that killed two people, and that caused a back-up that led to a second wreck in which four people died.
Case Dismissed: No Penalty Against Brian Szmitko, Responsible for Death of Elisa Homen in Whiteview Wreck
Because of a technicality on the careless driving citation, Szmitko walked off free of any penalty or so much as points on his license for the crash, let alone a license suspension.
Wednesday Briefing: A Kitten Is Saved From Walmart, Dennis McDonald Pays Palm Coast, Elizabeth Warren on Planned Parenthood
Elizabeth Warren unravels the GOP’s latest of endless attacks on women, a kitten is heard and saved from between two containers at Walmart.
Atticus Finch, Grand Wizard of the KKK: Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” Chapter 8
In Chapter 8 of “Go Set a Watchman,” Scout discovers that her father Atticus is the leader of a KKK-like organization, and her boyfriend is just as much as a white supremacist.
Lawmakers Reload to Allow Students to Carry Concealed Weapons on Florida Campuses
The proposal drew heavy debate during the 2015 legislative session, with gun-rights advocates supporting the idea and many university-system leaders opposing it.
Tuesday Briefing: 2,000 Macbooks for Middle Schoolers, Billing Overgrown Lots, Amy Schumer Takes on NRA
The school board tonight may approve $2 million in spending for 2,000 Macbooks and 900 iPads to extend the one-Mac for every student to middle school.
Why the Florida Solar Initiative Is Losing
The problem isn’t with the popularity of solar power, but the poor choice of words written by the people who have the best-ever name for their group: Floridians for Solar Choice.
Rethinking Restrictions on Food Stamps and Welfare Benefits for Drug Felons
The bans on welfare and food stamps assistance apply only to drug felons, in accordance with a 1996 federal law, unless states choose to waive them.
Commissioner Revels Saves 13 Jobs, Rejecting Privatization at Expense of Lowest-Paid Employees
The county administration had proposed to privatize cleaning services for $500,000, allegedly saving $174,000 a year, but employees hired by the private company would have lost all benefits, and many would have lost their jobs outright.
County Seals Final Approval for Sea Ray Parking Plan, This Time With a Caution
The County Commission gave final approval today for Sea Ray Boats’s planned 24-acre parking lot south of its plant off Colbert Lane, but not without words of caution from several commissioners.
Monday Briefing: FPC’s Dusty Sims Gets State Honors, Sea Ray Parking Green-Lighted, Traditional Phones Lose Appeal
Dusty Sims, the 2015 state assistant principal of the year, will be honored in Tallahassee today. He has since been named principal at Flagler Palm Coast High School.
Iran Nukes Deal Will Protect Against Saudi and Israeli Threats
Iran hasn’t launched a single war in 50 years. Israel has launched eight, Saudi Arabia has kept funding America’s worst enemies–ISIS, the Taliban and Al-Qaeda. Who are the real threats to Mideast peace?
Not So Fast on Killing Teddy: Conservationists File Suit to Stop Bear Hunting in Florida
With permits for this fall’s hunt going on sale Monday, the Seminole County-based group Speak Up Wekiva filed a lawsuit in Leon County circuit court Friday challenging the constitutionality of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission-approved bear hunt.
Flagler Live-Blogs Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” Chapter 7: Doxology Sings Dixie
In Chapter 7 of “Go Set a Watchman,” a church service turns into an example of Northern aggression against Southern hymnals and Doxology.
Flagler Chamber Launches School For Business-Minded Political Candidates, But Behind Closed Doors
The two-day school, held in private, will train a dozen potential candidates chosen by a secret chamber committee for their business focus. The sessions are scheduled for September.
Weekend Briefing: Flagler Students Win National Gold and Bronze, a Rattler in the L’s, Fetal Cell Research
Stanley Wykretowicz, the 39-year-old Palm Coast resident accused of brutalizing his 2-year-old daughter last year, is back in court today, the start of an otherwise uneventful weekend in Flagler.
Lawsuits Accuse Air Traffic Controllers of Negligence in 2013 Crash That Killed 3 On Palm Coast’s Utica Path
The plane was misled to Flagler airport instead of the nearer Ormond airport when the emergency began, the two daughters of the pilot and two sons of a passenger claim in their federal lawsuits.
Thursday Briefing: Princess Place Stable Restored, Palm Coast Birds, How the GOP Demolished Voting Rights
The county has completed restoration of the livery stable at Princess Place Preserve, a Nikon birding show is devoted to Palm Coast, the Republican dismantling of the Voting Rights Act is explained.
Flagler’s Fire Flight and Crews Save 2 Homes Surrounded By Brush Fire in Eagle Rock
A 3.5-acre brush fire that had surrounded two homes in Eagle Rock at the south end of the county, requiring their evacuation, was halted and controlled, capping a busy day for Flagler Count Fire Rescue crews and Fire Flight, the county’s emergency helicopter.
Flagler Fire Flight Assists in Ocean Search for Missing Teens Amid Conflicting Reports of Effort’s Status
Helicopter pilot Dana Morris and flight medic George Tolbert searched 150 miles of the ocean off the Flagler County coastline and as far out as five nautical miles this morning without success.
News 13’s Jason Wheeler Becomes Face of Flagler Schools in District’s Push For Broader Community Appeal
Wheeler’s appointment is part of a reorganization reflective of Superintendent Oliva’s intention to broaden the marketing of the district’s programs to the community in hopes of further engaging the community at large.
Wednesday Briefing: Another County Citizen’s Academy, Medical Pot’s Empowerment, Snooping on Students
Flagler County is looking for its next class of candidates for its Citizens Academy, how medical pot returns control to patient over their pain and bodies, Jon Stewart’s secret White House meetings.
In Walton, One Confederate Flag Replaces Another as “Compromise” Is Termed a Cop-Out
The Panhandle’s Walton County Commission today voted 4-0 to replace the Confederate battle flag with the first flag of the Confederacy, the Stars and Bars, on government grounds, eliciting applause from some and ridicule from others.
Genesis Was Wrong: Man’s Dominion Over Animals Is Stewardship, Not Ownership
Pope Francis has now rejected mainstream Christian view, insisting that being created in God’s image doesn’t mean dominion over the earth or absolute domination over other creatures.
Tuesday Briefing: Nominate Your Veteran of the Year, Black on Trump, and Those Dull Tax Hearings
The county is looking for nominations for Veteran of the Year, tax rate hearings begin today with the school board, Lewis Black gives Donald Trump the kick in the toupee he needs, from back in 2012.
Flagler Live-Blogs Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” Chapter 6: Skinny Dipping Sins
In Chapter 6 of “Go Set a Watchman,” Scout and Henry take a dip in the waters off Finch Landing, fully clothed, but no one believes they stayed modest.
Whistleblower Suit Against Sheriff Proceeds as Judge Rejects Latest Attempt to Dismiss It
Circuit Judge Michael Orfinger this morning ordered the whistleblower lawsuit to go forward, putting the case on track for trial next year, in the thick of Manfre’s re-election campaign.
At Olustee State Park, Confederacy Wins One As Plan For Union Monument Is In Retreat
Florida’s Olustee Battlefield State Park, site of the Civil War’s largest battle in the state, was to have a Union monument until opponents revived an old conflict.
Monday Briefing: Sheriff’s Budget, Bunnell and County Tax Rates, and Cheating Ethically
The County Commission and Bunnell’s city commission today set their proposed tax rates, and the county reviews the budgets of constitutional officers including a big increase submitted by the sheriff.
Barack Obama Stands Up to the Warmongers
The US is not a partisan in the Shia-Sunni struggle. If anything, the US confronts mainly Sunni terrorism, funded from Saudi Arabia, not Shia terrorism backed by Iran.
Flagler Live-Blogs Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman,” Chapter 5: Days Of Her Lives
In Chapter 5 of “Go Set a Watchman,” Scout flashes back to childhood as she skates on a date with Henry.
State Ethics Commission Finds Sheriff Manfre in Violation on 3 Counts in 6-1 Vote; He Doubles Down
Meeting in Tallahassee this morning, the Florida Ethics Commission voted 6-1 to find probable cause that Flagler County Sheriff Jim Manfre violated the state’s ethics laws on three counts. The case now goes to the Attorney General’s office for prosecution.
Weekend Briefing: Sheriff Manfre v. Ethics Commission, Credit Card Thief Sought, A Marineland Engagement
Sheriff Manfre’s case goes before the Florida Ethics Commission this morning, the sheriff’s office is seeking the public’s help finding a credit card thief caught on video, a donation drive for the family victimized by a May fire in Palm Coast.