Privacy activists hold that cops’ tracking of cell phones require a search warrant to be constitutional. But the Supreme Court hasn’t ruled on the issue, and Congress has yet to pass a law addressing it.
All Else
Editor’s Note: When Comments Are Swift Boats’ Docking Hooks
I’ve been asked why certain comments in the John Pollinger-Anne-Marie Shaffer case were approved, considering their lavish innuendoes and borderline slanders. The decision bears explaining in light of this year’s distinctly foul election season.
Big Sweep of Small-Time Pill Pushers Nets 78 Arrests in Flagler, Putnam and St. Johns
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office was ground zero for a three-county sweep today–and for a choreographed media event to maximize publicity for the sweep, and three top cops running for re-election–State Attorney R.J. Lariza, Flagler Sheriff Don Fleming and Putnam Sheriff Jeff Hardy.
Pollinger Will Remain on Aug. 14 Ballot as a Republican as Judge Craig Denies Challenge
John Pollinger will remain on the Aug. 14 ballot as a Republican candidate for Flager County Sheriff, Circuit Court Judge Dennis Craig ruled Tuesday afternoon, denying a challenge by Anne-Marie Shaffer, a supporter of candidate Ray Stevens, to bar him from the Republican ballot.
In a Historic Breakthrough, County Will Cede Old Courthouse to Bunnell for Its New City Hall
No money will change hands, though the transaction isn’t quite free for Bunnell or the county, which retains the larger, annex portion of the building, and several building and maintenance rights (and costs).
When Oceans Heal:
In Praise of the Jimmy Miller Foundation
The Jimmy Miller Foundation is a non-profit organization helping people challenged by physical and mental illness, including through the Wounder Warrior Project.
Walmart at 50: Gutting the Middle Class 1 Small Business and Manufacturing Job at a Time
Walmart’s 50th anniversary caps a 150year stretch when the number of independent retailers fell by over 60,000, and when, between 2001 and 2007, some 40,000 U.S. factories closed, eliminating millions of jobs.
FHP’s Crackdown and the Prohibitionist Politics of Drunk Driving: A Dissent
Taking aim at today’s deployment of 40 FHP troopers on I-95, Darrell Smith calls the targeting of people who drink–as opposed to drunk drivers–a brown-shirted example of a police state mentality too readily embraced by the public.
U.S. Economy Adds Just 80,000 Jobs In June as Unemployment Stagnates at 8.2%
The national economy added percent for the third most 80,000 jobs in June, keeping the unemployment rate stuck at 8.2 percent for the third month in a row.
Divided Palm Coast Council Buries
Home-Based Baking Start-Ups For Good
For a Palm Coast City Council that has been preaching the virtues of entrepreneurship and small business, the 3-2 vote reasserted council members’ priority for residential neighborhoods and freedom from the risks of new business.
FHP Deploying 40 Troopers and 2 Planes on I-95 in Flagler and 3 Other Counties Friday
The Florida Highway Patrol’s Operation Checkered Flag will take place Friday, July 6, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., targeting aggressive, drunk and speeding drivers. FHP is asking civilian drivers to report such drivers throughout the day, which coincides with races at the Daytona Speedway.
Flagler Beach Volunteer Fireman’s Association Awards Scholarship
The Flagler Beach Volunteer Fireman’s Association announced Firefighter / Paramedic Michael “Dusty” Snyder has been selected as the recipient of the Association’s annual Emergency Services Scholarship. Snyder will be using the scholarship to take advanced course work in Firefighter Survival Techniques.
Gov. Scott, on Media Blitz, Hit With “Pants on Fire” Falsehoods Over Health Care Claims
In his media blitz against Obama’s health care reform, Gov. Rick Scott gave a one-sided and misleading account of how much the Medicaid expansion would cost the state, badly misrepresented requirements on small businesses and used a widely debunked talking point about rationing, Politifacts found.
Memories of July 4 From Lake Sebasticook to Flagler Beach
July 4 festivities have turned into a 24-hour rolling event in Flagler County, beginning with fireworks at Town Center on Tuesday evening and finishing with fireworks at the Flagler Beach Pier tonight. What takes place in between is a parade of memories.
In Flagler Beach, a Clash of Authority Entangles The Manager, Fire Chief and Commissioners
The controversy over all-expenses-paid trip Fire Chief Martin Roberts and others took to investigate fire trucks is bringing to light a more serious conflict over City Manager Bruce Campbell’s authority, and the city commission’s habit of meddling directly with city department heads, over Campbell’s.
Florida Law Barring Doctors From Asking Patients About Guns at Home Ruled Invalid
The law restricts doctors’ ability to provide truthful, non-misleading information to a patient, U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke ruled. The “docs-vs-glocks” law was backed by the NRA and signed by Gov. Rick Scott in 2011.
What Fox and CNN Flubbed in Health Care Verdict Scoop: Getting It Right
Fox and CNN reporters who got the health care verdict wrong last week were driven by the intense competition of live TV and online reporting and social media. Those reporters let their competitive instincts overcome the rule we all learned on the college newspaper, writes Bill Cotterell.
Student-Led School Prayers Are Now Legal, But Fear of Litigation Could Trump God
The new Florida school prayer law lets local school districts approve policies allowing students to deliver prayers at school events, but districts aren’t likely to approve such measures for fear of costly litigation.
I’ll Have What She’s Having
In Praise of Nora Ephron
Long before she was putting words into the mouth of Tom Hanks in “Sleepless in Seattle” and fake orgasms into the mouth of Meg Ryan in “When Harry Met Sally,” Ephron was mastering the craft of learning from and telling truths about people from all walks of life as a $98-a-week cub reporter for the New York Post.
Mike Pius’s Visual Recovery and Other Flashes of Brilliance: Wire Essentials, July 2
Firefighter Mike Pius is in recovery mode, Marco Rubio stutters on the Daily Show, Britain slumps ahead of the 2012 Olympics, Kandinsky is caught on the act of drawing, on video, Chief Justice Roberts goes transcendentalist, and more.
FlaglerLive Is Moving–Again
Just as we did a year ago, FlaglerLive is moving to a new server yet again, this time a dedicated one, because readership keeps outgrowing our old accommodations. We ask for your patience over the next 72 hours. And donations.
Discover Your Treasures: Washington Oaks Gardens State Park
Washington Oaks Gardens State Park is the dean of Flagler County parks: a 476-acre spread on both sides of State Road A1A, rich in history and intimate paths for solitary walks or preludes to more than a kiss. A renewed look, with an image gallery, at a particular Flagler treasure.
U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Health Care Reform, a Major Victory for Obama and the Uninsured
Chief Justice John Roberts joined the left of the U.S. Supreme Court in upholding the 2010 health care reform law, including the individual mandate. The Roberts ruling narrowed the allowance under tax rules, as opposed to the commerce clause. But the entire law was upheld.
Get to Work, Governor Scott, and Implement Health Care Reform Now
Now that the most conservative Supreme Court in the history of our nation has ruled that the Affordable Care Act is constitutional, perhaps it is time to redirect a little of that negative energy used to obstruct reform toward implementing the law and solving Florida’s health care crisis, writes former Florida House Democratic Leader Dan Gelber.
In a Victory for Rick Scott, Federal Judge Clears Path to a Limited Voter Roll Purge
It is the first significant ruling in the legal battle over Gov. Scott’s effort to remove allegedly ineligible voters from the rolls. At least two other lawsuits have been filed against Florida.
Flagler’s Sheriff and Judge Candidates Rub Elbows Raw at Long NAACP Forum
The revealing moments were less in what the candidates said than in how they said it, or in how they waited to say something. The crowd of 200 was relaxed and riveted. Many of the candidates were stiff, fidgety and tense.
Florida’s Hispanics Like Obama Over Romney By Big Margin, Dimming Rubio’s VP Appeal
Hispanic voters in Florida, traditionally Republican, prefer Obama over Romney by a 56-32 margin, buttressing the president’s advantage among Independents.
Red-Light Camera Ticket Revenue:
Palm Coast, 14%, Private Company, 86%
American Traffic Solutions, which runs Palm Coast’s red-light traffic cameras, will make up to $4,250 per camera per month, while Palm Coast makes just $700. Still, the Palm Coast City Council is ready to sign a seven-year deal.
Replacing Meeker: Palm Coast Council Will Appoint Successor Rather than Hold Election
Frank Meeker’s decision to serve until November as he runs for the county commission means the Palm Coast City Council cannot hold an election to fill out the two years of his term, but will instead appoint a replacement in November.
Weldon Ryan, Reigning Flagler Artist of the Year, Exhibiting at at Bethune-Cookman
The Bethune-Cookman University Visual Arts Gallery is featuring the works of Weldon Ryan in a exhibits that opens Friday, June 29, with a free reception. Ryan is Bethune-Cookman’s new artist-in-residence and the current Flagler County Artist of the Year.
Florida Professors Still Can’t Travel to Cuba On State’s Dime; Low IQ Execution Cleared
Three Florida cases are the many the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear, which means a ban on Florida university faculty’s travel to Cuba stands, as does Florida’s authority to execute a Daytona Beach murderer with an IQ of 70.
Tropical Storm Debbie Dumps 3 to 4 Inches on Flagler, With More to Come
Tropical Storm Debbie, slowly churning across the Florida Peninsula since the weekend, isn’t done yet, with areas of Northern Florida expected to get 10 to 15 inches of rain, and some perhaps getting as much as 25 inches.
U.S. Supreme Court Invalidates Most of the Key Provisions of Arizona’s Harsh Immigration Law
The United States Supreme Court has reversed key provisions of the controversial Arizona immigrant law, invalidating Arizona’s–or any state’s–law that would have given state or local police the power to make warrantless arrests of individuals suspected of being undocumented, or “illegal.”
The Vagina Monologues Ungagged
Vagina. Uterus. “There,” writes Marry Jo Melone in a look at the Lisa Brown-GOP flap over the words. “I’ve said those dirty words, and boy, did it feel good. It’s curious what a little free speech will do. It clears the mind.”
Haley Watson Is Miss Flagler County 2012
The annual Miss Flagler County Scholarship Pageant is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. this Sunday afternoon and at the Flagler Auditorium, with Miss Junior at 5 and Miss Flagler County at 7 p.m.
When American Health Care Heads for Texas
If the Affordable Care Act is overturned, the rest of the country should take a good look at the situation in Texas, because this is what happens when you keep Medicaid enrollment as low as possible and don’t undertake insurance reforms.
Miss Flagler County Pageant 2012 Contestants, Ages 16-23
A complete, click-through chart and photo gallery of the 2012 Miss Flagler County Scholarship Pageant contestants, Ages 16-23.
Oceans on Acid: How a Greenhouse Gas May Be Taxing the Seas
The surge in worldwide emissions of carbon dioxide–a greenhouse gas–may be overtaxing oceans, which can absorb only so much of it before altering their acidification, and affecting marine life.
Miss Junior 2012 Flagler County Contestants, Ages 12-15
Another complete click-through chart and photo gallery of the 15 Miss Junior Flagler County 2012 Contestants, Ages 12-15.
Flagler’s Competing Ham Radio Clubs Mark Field Day in Flagler Beach and at EOC
June 23 is National Field Day for amateur radio people all over the country. See it in action beginning at 1 p.m. at the Flagler Beach Fire Department and at at the Flagler County Emergency Operations Center.
Little Miss Flagler County 2012 Contestants, Ages 8-11
Another complete click-through chart and photo gallery of the 18 Little Miss Flagler County 2012 Contestants, Ages 8-11.
Lord of the Flies On a School Bus: The Bullying of Karen Klein
Karen Klein is the 68-year-old school bus monitor from Greece, N.Y., cruelly bullied by seventh graders and recorded on a YouTube video that went viral. The middle schoolers are acting out the persecuting spirit that christens their daily lives.
Wire Essentials, June 22: Banning College Football, Joking About Obama’s Blackness
Last Updated: Friday, 1:57 p.m. Banning college football: a debate, the Chamber of Commerce is undefeated at the US Supreme Court, the state of poverty in America, religious freedom as a license to discriminate, heckling and joking about Obama, press freedom’s scorecard.
Neurologist David Karaffa Joins Florida Hospital Flagler as Staff Physician
Dr. David Karaffa can treat a variety of conditions including seizure disorders, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, strokes, migraine, back pain, neuropathy and more.
Little Miss Flagler County 2012 Contestants, Ages 5-7
A complete, click-through chart and photo gallery of the 15 Little Miss Flagler County 2012 Contestants, Ages 5-7.
The Live Poll: Obama-Romney
Take the poll: Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are battling for Florida’s 29 electoral votes, which are more essential to Romney than they are to Obama: Romney can’t win without them, Obama can.
Mike Pius, Firefighter Just Back from Winning Gold in Europe, Is Seriously Hurt in Wreck
Lt. Mike Pius, one of the more popular and decorated Flagler firefighter-paramedics, suffered several broken bones and may be out six months following a wreck in St. Augustine, after a truck cut through Pius’s right-of-way. Flagler Fire Chief Don Petito said the firefighter brotherhood kicked in immediately after the wreck.
Poll Pots: Floridians Like Stand Your Ground, And Like Voter Roll Purges Even More
A new Quinnipiac University poll shows Floridian voters support the Scott administration’s ineligible-voter purge by 60-35 percent, and approve the stand your ground law by a 56-37 margin.
Invoking Conspiracies and ‘Party Purity,’ Pollinger’s Opponents Proceed With Suit
Court documents show that Sheriff’s candidate Ray Stevens and county commission candidate Dennis McDonald were involved in efforts to battle John Pollinger’s qualifications as a Republican candidate for sheriff as the case against Pollinger proceeds.
Democrats Outpacing Republicans In Florida Registrations, But Not in Flagler
More Democrats than Republicans registered to vote in Florida in May, driven by women and Hispanics, but Independents continue to make the biggest gains, and in Flagler County, Republicans have widened their registration lead to a full percentage point.