Have you been to the Fantasy of Lights show in Town Center yet? The cold-weather shelter opens yet again, Anne Frank’s Christmas, Stone Mountain’s bland of inoffensive consumables.
All Else
Only the Richest Ancient Athenians Paid Taxes – and they Bragged About It
In ancient Athens, only the very wealthiest people paid direct taxes, and these went to fund the city-state’s most important national expenses – the navy and honors for the gods. While today it might sound astonishing, most of these top taxpayers not only paid happily, but boasted about how much they paid.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, December 26, 2022
More cold weather, if geologic time could somehow be seen in the perspective of human time, Bach’s Magnificat.
Don’t Be So Quick to Call Deion Sanders a Sellout
When Deion Sanders announced he’d leave Jackson State University to become head coach at the University of Colorado Boulder, ardent fans and supporters reacted with dismay and disbelief – particularly supporters from the Black community.
American Impressions 1 | The Day Before America
In the first of nine installments of his American Impressions series–a reporter’s journey across the 50 states–Pierre Tristam fills in details that marked his youth in war-torn Lebanon and defined his outlook before migrating to the United States and beginning a process of discovery that continues to this day.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, December 25, 2022
The cold weather shelter is open again tonight, Omar Thomas’s “Of Our New Day Begun,” from the Narrative of James Albert Ukawsaw.
Congress Passes Legislation That Will Close Off Presidential Election Mischief and Help Avoid Another Jan. 6
Legal theories were floated by allies of President Donald Trump after the 2020 election that suggested ways to undermine the results of the election, culminating in a failed insurrection at the Capitol. That’s why a bipartisan group of congressional leaders aimed to pass reforms to the 1887 law governing this process, the Electoral Count Act, before the end of 2022.
Gratitude on Christmas Eve
For long-time Flagler Beach attorney Scott Spradley, an image he took of the moon above the pier’s A frame not long ago provoked a range of feelings and emotions and led him to reflect on the meaning of gratitude even in an age of stresses and sorrows.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, December 24, 2022
The cold weather shelter is open tonight, WKCR’s Bach Festival, speed limits and the holidays, On the pleasure and necessity of digressions.
How Democrats Won the West
Since 1992, Democrats have flipped the West away from Republican control, a shift that began with the end of the Cold War and carried through a Pacific Coast economic recession, anti-racism demonstrations and violence in Los Angeles and the area’s increasing diversity.
Fred the Great Leapfrogs 10-Year-Old Palm Coast Girl Into Young Children’s Book Author
Fifth Palm Coast fifth-grader Bella Soumokil several years ago started writing and drawing what became “Fred the Great,” a 56-page book for children about humility and family, published locally and selling on Amazon.
Is Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin Running for Paul Renner’s Seat? Maybe.
Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin is considering a run for Re. Paul Renner’s House seat, which is up in two years. Alfin, who revealed Machiavellian political instincts in a lengthy interview, will make his decision by the end of January, depending on whether other viable candidates are lined up for the seat.
New Smyrna Beach Weighs Development Moratorium in Wake of Storms. Shouldn’t All Coastal Florida?
Moratorium: Using this word in Florida is like that scene in “A Christmas Story” where Ralphie says a word that he shouldn’t and gets his mouth washed out with a bar of Lifebuoy soap. But the sense that sprawl is out of control is springing up all over, not just Deltona and New Smyrna Beach.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, December 23, 2022
The cold-weather shelter opens in Flagler tonight, State Attorney R.J. Larizza and Sheriff Rick Staly on Free For All, Maurice Sendak, Jane Austen and “women’s fiction.”
LGBTQ Americans Are 9 Times More Likely to be Victimized By a Hate Crime
Almost half of violent hate crimes with LGBTQ victims involved an attacker who was a close friend, family member, partner or former partner, and victims were more likely to have physical and psychological symptoms as a result of the attack.
Flagler’s Visual Arts Struggle for Visibility With Seeming Demise of Art League and Gargiulo Foundation
Their apparent demise during the past year — the Flagler County Art League from the pandemic’s economic pressures, the Gargiulo Art Foundation from the death of artist and co-founder Tom Gargiulo in February — coupled with the retreat of JJ Graham’s Salvo Art Project and the disappearance of several exhibit spaces and other smaller galleries is leaving many area artists feeling like the proverbial tree that falls in a forest with no one to hear it.
Based in Palm Coast, Global Support Group for Rare Disease Gets Awareness Boost from Celine Dion Diagnosis
Palm Coast resident Mike West started the Stiff Person Syndrome support group almost 20 years ago. It now has 1,700 members in 34 countries, and on Dec. 7, with Celine Dion announcement that she has SPS, the disease got the broader awareness people like West have been seeking.
Should There Be Armed Civilians in Schools? Flagler District Will Survey Employees and Residents
With numerous questions still unanswered–and some unanswerable questions–the Flagler County School Board is moving forward with gauging interest from school employees and residents in arming civilians in schools as a presumed addition to the security provided by the Sheriff’s Office’s school resource deputies.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, December 22, 2022
Preparing for the coldest spell of the year, a look back at the 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act, the St. Matthew Passion in full, and Grand Guignol.
Teddy Roosevelt’s Failed Bull Moose Campaign May Portend the Future Of GOP and Donald Trump
Theodore Roosevelt campaigned to regain the office from his successor, William Howard Taft. He divided the Republican Party and ensured the victory of Democrat Woodrow Wilson in the presidential election of 1912.
Palm Coast Trash Pick-Up Schedule and Tree Recycling
Trash pick-up will follow a normal schedule. The 16th Annual Christmas Tree Recycling Event will be held January 7 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Palm Coast Fuel Depot located at 22 Utility Drive.
Marineland Acres Improvement Project Enters Final Year
The Marineland Acres Improvements Project in 2023 enters its final year of construction and includes the final phase of the MalaCompra Basin improvements, designed to address the flooding impacts experienced by residents living in the Hammock.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, December 21, 2022
The Atlantic Chapter of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State’s open discussion, chess club at the library, Heinrich Boll, Lewis Mumford’s Roaring Traffic’s Boom.
2022’s US Climate Disasters
The year 2022 will be remembered across the U.S. for its devastating flooding, storms and hurricanes – and also for its extreme heat waves and droughts, including one so severe it briefly shut down traffic on the Mississippi River.
Bunnell’s Sizemore Welding Will Buy Former Sheriff’s Operations Building Ahead of Expansion
Duane Sizemore of Sizemore Welding–Bunnell’s largest manufacturer–confirmed that his company will be buying the former Sheriff’s Operation Center off State Road 100, for just over $3 million. The 36,000 square foot facility will be expanded by 15,000 square feet, and will receive a $96,000 incentive from the city.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, December 20, 2022
The school board talks about the potential availability of Narcan in schools, the future of the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club and the possibility of arming civilian staffers, and how the American really loves nothing but his automobile.
What the Criminal Referral of Trump Means
The House committee recommended that the Justice Department pursue four main charges against Trump – obstruction of an official proceeding, conspiracy to defraud the U.S., conspiracy to make a false statement and inciting or assisting an insurrection. Here’s what it all means.
Flagler’s Cold-Weather Homeless Shelter Facing Staffing Challenge as 4-Night Freeze Coincides With Christmas
Flagler County’s all-volunteer organization that runs the county’s only cold-weather shelter is facing a steep staffing challenge this week as the National Weather Service is warning of an unusually long, bitter cold spell starting Friday night and coinciding with the Christmas weekend, when many shelter volunteers are away, visiting family. The shelter is planning to open four nights in a row.
Sheriff’s Office’s Ultra-Modern Operations Center Is Dedicated, Ending 4 1/2 Years of Nomadic Existence
Sheriff Rick Staly dedicated the $20 million, 51,600 square foot Sheriff’s Operations Center off Commerce Boulevard before hundreds today, ending four and a half years of borrowing space from the courthouse, among other locations, and closing an unhappy chapter in the county’s history.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, December 19, 2022
The dedication of the new Sheriff’s Operations Center, the Legislative Delegation meeting, the County Commission meets, Larry David may or may not have a fetish, Donald Trump’s trading cards, Leonid Brezhnev’s birthday.
Henry Kissinger’s Deadly Legacy
Kissinger espoused a narrow perspective of the national interest, known as “realpolitik,” centered on maximizing the economic and military power of the United States. This power- and transactionalist-oriented approach to foreign policy produced a series of destructive outcomes. They ranged from fomenting coups that put in place murderous dictatorships, killing unarmed civilians, and alienating potential allies.
To Combat Gun Violence, Artist Mykael Ash Turns Ammunition Into Art
Mykael Ash is turning ammunition into art. Ash, who lives in East St. Louis, Illinois, frequently walks through parts of the city where bullet shells aren’t hard to find. The shell casings represent a cycle of inequality, Ash says, and the art he makes with it serves as a call to action.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, December 18, 2022
Today it’s all about France and Argentina, plus Robert Caro and Robert Gottlieb, and how U.S. House members in 1983 tried to bring the World Cup to the United States.
A Primer on the World Cup Final
Penalties, if it comes to that, are unbearably tense. If you’d rather avert your eyes from the on-pitch drama at that point, then here are three of the best World Cup articles from The Conversation to take your mind off those tense moments–or to prepare for the show.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, December 17, 2022
An artificial intelligence special, Florida Democrats ask themselves: Where do we go from here? at the Palm Coast Community Center, the World Cup’s useless third-place game.
Trump-Era Law Used to Restrict Immigration Is Nearing Its End Despite GOP Warnings Of Looming Crisis At Southern Border
Officially called Title 42 of the U.S. Code, the little-known law was established initially in 1944 to prevent the spread of influenza and allow authorities to bar entry to foreigners deemed to be at risk of spreading the disease. Donald Trump invoked the law in 2020. It’s set to expire at the end of the year.
Sen. Marco Rubio Wants TikTok Banned. His Bill Has Bi-Partisan Support.
Two years after former President Donald Trump called for a ban on TikTok, Florida GOP Sen. Marco Rubio this week introduced legislation that would impose a national ban on the Chinese-owned social media platform that has become immensely popular with young Americans.
Two Inmates at Flagler Jail Who Attempted Suicide Within 24 Hours Each Had a Disturbing Backstory
On Dec. 8 and 9, in the span of 24 hours, detention deputies–and an inmate in the first case–intervened and halted the attempted suicides of two inmates, a man and a woman, in unrelated incidents. Each had a harrowing back-story, suggesting that the individuals’ attempts may not be their last.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, December 16, 2022
The 2023 economic outlook, Florida-friendly landscaping, Honky Tonk Angel, at City Repertory Theatre, chess as a boxing match, put down that burger, or else watch your world disappear.
Ten Big Issues in Florida’s Just-Enacted Insurance Overhaul
Florida lawmakers this week held a special session and passed a 105-page bill aimed at stabilizing the state’s troubled property-insurance system. The bill (SB 2-A) deals with numerous issues, including lawsuits, the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp. and critical reinsurance coverage. Here are 10 key issues that lawmakers addressed.
Getting Critical: Mississippi and Other Major Rivers Are At Record Lows
In 2022, water levels in some of the world’s largest rivers, including the Rhine in Europe and the Yangtze in China, fell to historically low levels. The Mississippi River fell so low in Memphis, Tennessee, in mid-October that barges were unable to float, requiring dredging and special water releases from upstream reservoirs to keep channels navigable. Earth scientists see this year’s dramatic plunge in water levels as a preview of a climate-altered future.
Perry Mitrano Elected Flagler’s REC Chair, Defeating Renner-Backed Jill Woolbright By Big Margin
Internal party elections are not ordinarily newsworthy. This one, however, reflects political dynamics that reverberate beyond the party and the county, especially as Republicans control all but a handful of Flagler’s elected seats, when Renner is House speaker, and in his last term, and when Republicans are cleaved by fierce divisions, in Flagler as elsewhere, over the direction of their party.
Lawsuit Cites Splash Pad Contractors’ ‘Collective Negligence’ and Bond Company’s Refusal to Pick Up Pieces
The lawsuit Palm Coast government filed to recover damages from the broken splash pad at Holland Park names three contractor, accusing them of negligence, breach of contract and warranties, and violations of Florida’s building code. The lawsuit also names the bonding company, revealing that the company has allegedly refused to comply by the bond’s terms.
MOCI Program Graduates First Cohort at Daytona State College
The first cohort of students participating in Daytona State College’s MOCI program were honored Wednesday at a Rite of Passage ceremony at the Mori Hosseini Center on the Daytona Beach Campus. The program has existed for several years, but this is the first time a cohort of students has worked together through the program.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, December 15, 2022
Press freedom and a dismal 2022, the ILA Working Group that handles the joint agreement between the school board, the county and Flagler’s municipalities regarding school concurrency, meets, storytime at the Flagler Beach Public Library.
Florida GOP and Insurance Companies Won Big ‘Bailout’ in This Week’s Special Session
The Florida Legislature’s special session on insurance reform ended Thursday with final passage to a bill extending a $1 billion subsidy to insurance companies but doing little to decrease premiums any time soon or provide relief for ordinary homeowners.
Fusion Ignition Explained and Why Benefits Are a Long Way Off
The cost of a fusion power plant needs to go well below the US$3.5 billion of the National Ignition Facility. These steps will require significant investment from both the federal government and private industry.
My Massive Heart Attack, and a Bit of Advice from a Departed Medical Examiner
Former Assistant Public Defender Raymond Warren describes for the first time his 2016 experience of a heart attack and offers advice derived from what he learned deposing the late Predrag Bulic, the circuit’s medical examiner who died earlier this year of a stroke.
Flagler Public Health Officials Reassert Efficacy of Covid Vaccines as DeSantis Intensifies Denialism
In a sharp escalation of Covid vaccine denialism by a sitting governor, Ron DeSantis on Tuesday called on the state Supreme Court to empanel a grand jury to investigate alleged “wrongdoing” related to the vaccine, as Flagler County’s architects of the response to the pandemic reasserted the efficacy of the vaccine and relied on the latest science.
Flagler County Sues Cynthia d’Angiolini, Lone Dunes Hold-Out, And Her Attorney Wants Off Bankruptcy Case
Flagler County government today filed a federal suit against Cynthia d’Angiolini, the lone remaining obstacle to a dune-rebuilding project intended to protest 2.6 miles of shore and State Road A1A in Flagler Beach, asking the court to revoke the discharge from bankruptcy d’Angiolini secured only a few weeks ago. The move occurs as other steps are severely complicating–and darkening–d’Angiolini’s posture against the county, including a motion today by her bankruptcy attorney to stop representing her.