Author
The NRA’s waning reign?
You probably noticed that Florida recently held an election, complete with the usual bad ballots, recounts and lawsuits. You may not have noticed that a federal judge just slapped down the lamentable Marion Hammer, doyenne of the National Rifle Association, dismissing part of a lawsuit she filed against people who sent hateful, possibly threatening, messages […]
The age of the political brats
I’m almost old enough to remember when Republicans acted like grown folks. Republicans were the party of fiscal responsibility, the party of moral probity, the party of Dads. They used to be into stuff like civil rights, science, and, OK, golf–golf is encoded in white men at the cellular level. Still, Republicans prided themselves on […]
Florida’s racist legacy and today’s throwback politics
Florida pretends it’s not part of the South. Florida pretends it’s some Neverland of palms and pastels, beaches and theme parks full of talking animals and plastic princesses, a place where the past exists merely as a roadside attraction. You know that’s crap. It’s 2018 and the state only recently decided to exchange the statue […]
Football’s female problem
It’s college football season, the time of year when men holler at television screens, women roll their eyes, and a good hunk of Florida’s population drapes itself in orange and blue or orange and green or garnet and gold, mainlines cheap beer, and reverts to a level of tribalism that would make the Sunni and […]
A 77-year-old South Florida environmentalist speaks out and gets sued, harrassed. She won’t back down.
In Martin County, all animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others. You may express your opinion–about a dodgy water deal, say, or damage to certain wetlands–but if you challenge the wrong billionaire, if you urge your elected representatives to take action thwarting the plans of said billionaire, you may find yourself […]
The boy lawmaker from the family farm grows up — into a sellout
It’s shocking how Adam Putnam doesn’t get the respect he so richly deserves. The man has something like $37 million in his campaign account. As Commissioner of Agriculture, he’s got name recognition less accomplished politicos can only dream of, what with “Adam H. Putnam” emblazoned on every gas pump from Chumuckla to Miami Beach. He […]