The reaction by Democrats and Republicans to the Zohran Mamdani phenomenon in New York City has been like an MRI of both our parties’ cancerous hopelessness. Democrats in their wilderness should be championing energetic countercurrents who could slow the slide and focus the party on everyday challenges. But instead of capitalizing on a new voice that champions the disaffected, Democrats are competing with Republicans in a race to the muckiest.
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Daily Cartoon and Briefing
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, August 23, 2025
Flagler, Palm Coast & Other Local
Fendrick Gabaud, 40, Would-Be Firefighter for Flagler County Fire Rescue Dies During Physical Test at Bunnell Training Tower
Fendrick Gabaud of Ormond Beach, 40, who was being assessed for recruitment as a Flagler County Fire Rescue firefighter, died this morning at the John R. Keppler Jr. Fire Training Center on Justice Lane in Bunnell. Gabaud was part of a group of seven recruits who were going through a standard physical agility test at 10 this morning. The Bunnell Police Department is investigating.
Rookie Marineland Mayor Dew Tries Firing Veteran Town Manager and Town Attorney. His Own Appointee Stops Him.
In another gust of dysfunction underscoring Marineland’s increasingly nonsensical status as a town, rookie Mayor Douglas “Dewey” Dew on Wednesday and Thursday attempted but failed to fire Town Manager Suzanne Dixon and Town Attorney Dennis Bayer, starting with an Aug. 20 email “request” that they resign immediately. He sent the email unilaterally, without the authority of the commission and outside of a public meeting. Jessica Finch, whom Dew unilaterally appointed to the commission in May, refused to go along with the firing and was critical of Dew’s methods.
Flagler County Issues Statement Explaining Letter About New Tax to Be Levied on Barrier Island Property Owners
On Aug. 15, the Flagler County government administration issued a letter to property owners in the unincorporated portion of the barrier island alerting them to a possible special tax the county would be enacting in the future to raise money for beach protection. There would be no levy in 2025-26, but there will likely be one the following year, pending a study. The letter raised concerns among property owners. The county administration today issued a clarifying statement and Q & A.
More Flagler, Palm Coast & Other Local
Flagler County Eyes Land Buy As Jacoby’s JDI Seeks to Offload 35 Acres Previously Slated for Development in Marineland
With Atlanta-based developer Jim Jacoby of JDI Marineland looking to offload properties in Marineland, Flagler County government and three state agencies are working to acquire 35 acres of JDI land in a joint purchase coordinated by the North Florida Land Trust. Flagler County would partner with three state agencies to buy the land, which is zoned for mixed use–housing or commercial. There’s long been rumors and speculation that JDI would build up the place, transforming the character of Marineland.
In a Plea, David Chenowith, 33, Is Sentenced to 14 Years in Prison, 20 on Probation for Sex Crimes Involving Minor
Circuit Judge Dawn Nichols on Wednesday sentenced David Chenowith, a 33-year-old former resident of Langdon Drive in Palm Coast, to 14 years in prison followed by 20 years on sex-offender probation–an extremely restrictive sanction–following a guilty plea on eight charges related to the sexual abuse of children.
Former Assistant Public Defender Regina Nunnally Leads ‘Know Your Rights’ Workshop for Local Renters on Aug. 26
Former Assistant Public Defender Regina Nunnally, an inspirational speaker, author, preacher and lawyer with Community Legal Services, will lead a free “Know Your Rights” workshop for renters on Aug. 26 at Flagler Cares’ Flagler County Village at Palm Coast’s City Marketplace. The workshop will offer essential information for renters on their legal protections and responsibilities.
Feral Hogs, A Recurring Flagler Scourge, ‘Desecrate’ Cemetery
Feral hogs have been causing what one visitor called “desecration” of Craig-Flagler Palms’s cemetery grounds. It’s been a recurring problem in Palm Coast and Flagler County, and an increasing one, as development continues to diminish habitats. The cemetery has taken concerted action to bait the hogs off the grounds, but neither Palm Coast (the cemetery is outside the city’s jurisdiction) nor Flagler County will intervene.
House Rep. Sam Greco Sets Eyes on Palm Coast’s Needy Utility Infrastructure and Other Coming Asks
Florida House Rep. Sam Grego’s visit to Palm Coast’s Waste Water Treatment Plant 1 in the Woodlands this morning had two purposes. The junior House member who replaced Paul Renner got a chance to see where some of the $5 million appropriation he helped secure in the last session will go. And he was taken on a tour of other locations that are part of the city’s asks for the coming session, including the congestion-prone intersection of Town Center Boulevard and Old Kings Road, and drainage and capacity improvements for stormwater in the flood-prone Woodlands.
Ex-US Attorney Roger Handberg Returns and Oprah’s Stedman Headlines Flagler Tiger Bay’s New Speaker Series
A former U.S. attorney, a human space flight expert, a promoter of business with Israel, and Oprah Winfrey’s besty for the holiday event: that’s the lineup of speakers Flagler Tiger Bay announced Tuesday evening at its annual wine tasting and grand “reveal” evening at the Palm Coast Community Center. The lineup is part of the club’s seventh year.
Commissioner Kim Carney Recasts Decisions in Response to Library Board Chair’s Criticism of Cutbacks
Recasting her decisions in a different light, Flagler County Commissioner Kim Carney Monday took issue with criticism by the chair of the county’s Library Board of Trustees of County Commission decisions about the library system, and about the absence of commission members from Library Board of Trustees meetings all year.
In a Reversal, Palm Coast Council Unanimously Rejects Hargrove Lane Rezoning That Would Have Allowed Concrete Plant
Reversing a vote two weeks ago, the Palm Coast City Council today unanimously rejected the rezoning of 37 acres on Hargrove Lane from light industrial to heavy industrial, requested by a concrete batch plant company. Council members did not want to set that precedent, or to jeopardize the thriving commercial businesses along Hargrove Grade and Hargrove Lane, which they said would far outnumber in jobs whatever jobs a concrete batch plant might bring.
Greg Hansen Will Not Run Again in 2026, Ending Decade of Pragmatism on Flagler County Commission
Flagler County Commissioner Greg Hansen had somewhat of a surprise for his colleagues and the public at the end of the commission meeting Monday evening: he announced that he will not run again. His term ends in 15 months, and he intends to fulfill it “with a bang.” Then-Gov. Rick Scott appointed him the seat in January 2017 following the death of Commissioner Frank Meeker the previous July. As the local political atmosphere got more polarized, Hansen over the years became more pragmatic and moderate.
Flagler Cares CEO Carrie Baird To Be Honored with News Service of Florida’s 2025 Above & Beyond Award
Carrie Baird, chief executive officer of Flagler Cares, is among this year’s honorees of the News Service of Florida Above & Beyond Award. The awards honor the “most influential and thought-provoking women in Florida who have demonstrated exemplary leadership in their field, combined with having made significant contributions to society.” Flagler Cares, a Palm Coast-based non-profit that just marked its 10th anniversary, connects people to benefits, direct services or resources through a “no-wrong-door” approach.
Palm Coast’s Michael Brick, 35, Killed in Collision at Crash-Prone US1 and Whiteview Parkway Intersection
Michael Brick, a 35-year-old Palm Coast business owner, was killed Friday evening when a car crashed into his motorcycle at the intersection of U.S. 1 and Whiteview Parkway. He is the fourth motorcyclist to die on Flagler County roads so far this year.
The Conversation
Why the Eiffel Tower Gets Bigger Every Summer
Specialists have estimated that the Eiffel Tower actually grows between 12 and 15 centimetres when comparing its size on cold winter days with the hottest days of summer. This means that, in addition to being a landmark, a communications tower and a symbol of Paris itself, the Eiffel Tower is also, in effect, a giant thermometer.
Florida and Beyond
Federal Court Orders Florida to Dismantle ‘Alligator Alcatraz.’ DeSantis Is Not About to Do It.
Gov. Ron DeSantis isn’t backing away from a controversial immigrant-detention center in the Everglades after a federal judge ordered his administration to begin dismantling the facility, as environmental groups and the Miccosukee Tribe gear up for the next stage of the legal battle. U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams on Thursday issued a preliminary injunction preventing additional construction and bringing additional detainees to the complex, which the state has dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz.” Williams also ordered the removal within 60 days of temporary fencing, detention-center lighting and such things as generators.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, August 22, 2025
Arend van Dam compares the president to Neville Chamberlain, Acoustic Jam Circle At The Community Center in The Hammock, the Friday Blue Forum, intimations of war and rancid patriotism from 1914 to 9/11 to 2025.
FPL ‘Settlement’ With Opponents Reduces Proposed Rate Hike from $2.5 Billion to $1.71 Billion Over 2 Years
But other parties in the case have not agreed to the proposed settlement, including the state Office of Public Counsel, which is designated by law to represent utility customers. The Public Service Commission is expected to hold a hearing this fall to determine if the proposal should be approved.
More Florida and Beyond
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, August 21, 2025
‘Let’s Talk Palm Coast’ Town Halls with Council member Charles Gambaro, Model Yacht Club Races, the Marineland Commission meets, on being a Sullivan v. New York Times baby, and an interview with Anthony Lewis.
Ancient Greeks Did Not Share Your Love of the Beach
Beach vacations only became popular in the 19th and early 20th centuries as part of the lifestyle of the wealthy in Western countries. Early Europeans, and especially the ancient Greeks, thought the beach was a place of hardship and death. As a seafaring people, they mostly lived on the coastline, yet they feared the sea and thought that an agricultural lifestyle was safer and more respectable.
Canadians Not as Interested in Florida as They Used To Be Even as Overall Tourism Numbers Rise
U.S. travelers continue to bolster Florida’s tourism industry, while the state hopes to make up for a decline in Canadian visitors by drawing people from other countries. Visit Florida on Tuesday estimated 34.435 million people traveled to Florida from April 1 through June 30, up from 34.279 million people during the same period last year. The estimate for this year would be a second-quarter record, according to the state tourism-marketing agency.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, August 20, 2025
The Flagler County Contractor Review Board and Palm Coast’s planning board meet, Separation Chat, Open Discussion, how editorials might write the requiem of the current administration, and a little Gide on Wagner.
As US Folds on Climate, China’s Leadership Steps In
While it’s still too early to fully assess the long-term impact of the United States’ political shift when it comes to global cooperation on climate change, there are signs that a new set of leaders is rising to the occasion. China and the European Union issued a joint statement vowing to strengthen their climate targets and meet them. They alluded to the U.S., referring to “the fluid and turbulent international situation today” in saying that “the major economies … must step up efforts to address climate change.”
John Thrasher Remembered as ‘Building Block for a Generation of Conservative Governance’
Family, Florida legislative figures past and present, and Florida State University stakeholders honored the life of John Thrasher Tuesday in an ceremony representing his lifetime of service to the Sunshine State. Former Gov. Jeb Bush, Thrasher’s successor President Richard McCullough, and children and grandchildren were among those who eulogized the former Florida House Speaker and senator who died in May at the age of 81.
‘Alligator Alcatraz’ Lawsuit Over Migrants’ Legal Representation Moved to Orlando
Pointing to “prudence,” a federal judge late Monday ruled that a battle about legal representation for people at an immigrant-detention center in the Everglades should move to a different court. The judge declared moot the plaintiffs’ argument that the federal government had violated their rights by not identifying an immigration court that would handle their claims. That court has now been identified.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, August 19, 2025
The Palm Coast City Council meets, Food Truck Tuesdays in Palm Coast’s Central Park, Flagler Tiger Bay Club’s annual Wine Tasting Meet & Greet at the Palm Coast Community Center, the nostalgia for the College Mariste de Champville.
4 Years of Repressive Taliban Rule, But the World Looks Elsewhere
Despite promises of moderation and inclusion, four years later, the Taliban has established a repressive, exclusionary regime – one that has dismantled institutions of law, justice and civil rights with ruthless efficiency. As the Taliban regime has tightened its grip, international attention has waned. Crises elsewhere dominate the global agenda, pushing Afghanistan out of the spotlight. With the Taliban seeking to end its isolation and gain legitimacy, can the international community find the will now to exert real pressure?
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, August 18, 2025
The Flagler County Commission meets, so does the Mosquito Control district board, the Library of America’s new volume of Hemingway, containing “A Farewell to Arms.”
‘People Are Really Good at Heart’: Anne Frank Beyond the Quote
The quote carries a universal message that good will eventually prevail. This has turned Anne’s legacy into an easily adoptable trope, serving activists and political agendas. But who, actually, was Anne Frank? And how did she differ from the “Anne Franks” that have emerged since the end of the war?
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, August 17, 2025
Clay Jones on the president’s military invasion of the nation’s capital, Palm Coast Farmers’ Market at European Village, the fake DC crime wave, Vicki Gray on the militarization of language.
Alaska Summit Bust, and Possibilities
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, who was excluded from the Alaska summit, has maintained that Kyiv will not agree to territorial concessions. Such a move would be illegal under Ukraine’s constitution, which requires a nationwide referendum to approve changes to the country’s territorial borders.
Commentary
Israel’s Murderous Targeting of Journalists in Gaza
The Israeli government has denied international journalists access to Gaza. Its murders of Palestinian media workers fit a pattern of trying to eliminate witnesses to its heinous human rights violations. Nearly 270 journalists and media workers, the vast majority of them Palestinians, have been killed by Israel since October 7, 2023. They are not “collateral damage” — they’re being hunted.
Florida Cities and Counties Line Up to Defy New Pro-Developer State Law Known as SB 180
All over the state, local governments are pushing ahead on common-sense changes to their growth plans, wetlands protection, and impact fees. They’re doing so despite warnings from big, bad opponents that what they have in mind will violate a new pro-developer state law that limits city and county governments’ authority on new land-use or development regulations. It’s bad news for Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Legislature.
Idi Amin’s Phony Populism
Amin was the creator of a myth that was both manifestly untrue and extraordinarily compelling: that his violent, dysfunctional regime was actually engaged in freeing people from foreign oppressors. Even his cruelest policies were framed as if they were liberatory. In August 1972, Amin announced the summary expulsion of Uganda’s Asian community. Some 50,000 people, many of whom had lived in Uganda for generations, were given a bare three months to tie up their affairs and leave the country. Amin named this the “Economic War.”