|
"If we're going to become so rigid as a country to be able to
disallow speech, even though it may not be politically correct, I
think we're in danger." ... Governor John Ellis
"JEB" Bush, quoted in the Tallahassee Democrat, 4/25/01
Check the new
WhoseFlorida
for updates
 |
Here's another, again it's from the st. pete times: martin
dyckman explains the folly of the state's tax structure and how it
got that way. i loved the line that says jeb and feeney govern
as tho they're governing the planet mongo.
|
|
Here is a good site for the basics of propaganda analysis.
,,,Jacob L., 10/10
|
| BuzzFlash Insider Account of the Florida Anthrax
Scare
http://www.buzzflash.com/BuzzScripts/Buzz.dll/Content
BuzzFlash sources at the Boca Raton offices of American Media Inc.,
the publisher of The Sun, The National Enquirer, and other tabloid
publications, believed, as reported in Newsweek, that an envelope
containing a "soapy letter," was received just days before
September 11....
|
|
H. Troxler column from 10/5
...Volusia, 10/10
|
|
As reported in an article from the Chicago Tribune over the weekend
about the first anthrax death, "Most worrisome to Stevens'
neighbors (the first anthrax victim) was that their modest
neighborhood is directly under the flight path used by small planes
taking off from Palm Beach County Park Airport just a few blocks
away.
That's the airport from which Mohamed Atta--the suspected pilot of
the hijacked plane that slammed into the World Trade Center's north
tower Sept. 11--rented a small plane on three occasions during the
month of August as part of his flight training."
Yet, the "authorities" were saying at the time: "But
Florida public health officials said Stevens' case appears to have
been an isolated event, and there is no evidence that his illness
was caused by an act of bioterrorism."
Maybe they were just trying to keep us calm and collected. ...(read
article here) ....buzzflash, 10/8
|
|
Media patting themselves on the back a little too quick I
think - Cable TV news, network news are all still singing the
same song. Reading other countries' reports, or
investigative reports on the net paints a different picture than
the pabulum we get fed to us in the US. So glad to see
they are happy with themselves... WDP, 10/6
|
Public
seems happier with media
The United States' news media, battered
for 25 years by declining credibility, appear to have
regained respect among readers and viewers -- at least
temporarily -- with their coverage since the Sept. 11
terrorist attacks. Story |
|
|
Here are some that are just too good to pass up:
THE WARTIME OPPORTUNISTS
Under Cover Of Crisis Anything Goes
ATTACKS CHANGED THE NATURE OF ENVIRO-DEBATE
DINOSAUR DANCING
Fossil Fuel Lobby Tries Fancy Footwork to Pass Energy
Bill
.... VIWB, 10/3
|
|
Proud to be an American for peace
I am displaying my American flag just as everyone else is, and I take
my responsibility to vote very seriously. I consider myself a good
American, but I would be considered un-American by a recent letter
writer (“Making peace is un-American," Letters, Sept. 17) and
probably many others because I do not support this "war"
that President Bush has declared.
I agree with Roger Peace (My View, Sept. 21) that the United States
should not act alone but should go through the International Court of
Justice to get bin Laden. Suppose someone burned my house down and
killed my family. It is not acceptable that I burn down my neighbor's
house and kill his family because I think he did it since he has been
harassing me for years. Even if I knew for sure that it was he, I
would have no right under our laws to do that. I would expect that we,
as a nation, would follow this basic principle of law.
When we lash back too quickly at someone who has hurt us, it is
only revenge. If we start acting like a group of angry vigilantes, we
not only will hurt a lot of innocent people but will lose the support
of many nations and add fuel to the hatred. This "war" just
is not a good idea.
....KIRK BINGHAM, in the Tallahassee Democrat 10/2
|
| Thanks for putting up the link to the live radio reports from the
rally in DC tonight
"change doesn't happen by itself - we have to do it" someone
just said.
Word is at the moment that it's pretty mellow and
celebrative.
If I can't be there this is the next best thing - especially since
there's not a word about it on any of the TV stations I get on cable.
It might as well be happening on the moon as far as the mainstream
media is concerned.
Tune in and listen - it's 24 hrs live - with occasional
streaming videos from teach-ins happening there...and music
...
Oh yes - this is very nice- let's hope the police behave themselves
tomorrow.
Peace is flowing through our airways from DC tonight:
http://dc.indymedia.org/audio/dcimc.pls
...a blissful quixote this evening 9/28/01 11:37 PM -------------
|
|
So Is This Bush Sr.'s Second Term?
"Like his father a decade before, President Bush is mobilizing
a worldwide coalition to help him roll back aggression — and
his dad has been drafted as a key stealth operative in the
diplomatic campaign. Former President George Bush is heavily
involved in persuading his legion of pals around the globe to climb
aboard the U.S. anti-terror effort, sources told the Daily News
yesterday. 'The old man is engaged well beyond what's been publicly
reported — or ever will be,' one well-placed source said. Another
Bush source, asked what the former President was up to, said only:
'He's busy.'" Earlier this year Bush Sr. advised Jr. on Poland
and North Korea. http://www.nydn.com/2001-09-19/News_and_Views/
9/28
|
|
Revealed: Yet Another White House Hoax Amid National Crisis
"Remember how, amid the horror of September 11 and its
aftermath, the White House press office gravely announced that
terrorists had targeted either the White House or Air Force One or
both -- and that some suspicious figure had managed to get hold of
the presidential plane's code number? Well, the White House press
office has now been forced to confess that at least parts of its
story were untrue. And, on those parts of the story it has refused
to recant, the press office's attempts to save face have led to
baldfaced efforts to deny abundant evidence that refute their
claims." So reports the ever-vigilant Media Whores Online. http://www.mediawhoresonline.com/hoax.htm
9/28
|
|
Ari Fleischer Chills Free Speech
Asked about the controversy over Bill Maher's comments about the use
of cruise missile's as "cowardly," Ari Fleischer warned
"all Americans that they need to watch what they say, watch
what they do, and this is not a time for remarks like that; there
never is." Wow - this comes less than a week after Bush
declared that we are fighting for "our freedom of speech, our
freedom to vote and assemble and disagree with each other." So
what is the real position of the White House? ... http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20010926/us/fleischer_maher_2.html
9/28
|
| Why Did Jeb Warn of Terrorism in Florida on September 7?
On September 7 - 4 days before Florida-based terrorists attacked the
US - Jeb Bush issued an unusual executive order. "Based on the
potential massive damage to life and property that may result from
an act of terrorism at a Florida port, the necessity to protect life
and property from such acts of terrorism, and inhibiting the
smuggling of illegal drugs into the State of Florida, the use of the
Florida National Guard to support FDLE in accomplishing port
security training and inspections is 'extraordinary support to law
enforcement' as used in Section 250.06(4), Florida Statutes."
Did Jeb know something the rest of us didn't know then - and still
don't know now? http://sun6.dms.state.fl.us/eog_new/eog/orders/2001/
... demdailynews, 9/25
|
|
Jeb Declares State of Emergency and Establishes Police State
After the attack on September 11, Jeb Bush declared a State of
Emergency in Florida, and put state and local government agencies
under the control of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement
(Florida's state troopers). This gives the state police broad powers
to suspend state laws, commandeer state and local government
employees, seize property, and evacuate residents. Pretty scary -
especially since Jeb has thoroughly politicized the FDLE by firing
career officers and appointing loyalist hacks. Right-wingers love to
accuse Democrats of being dictators, but here's one in the flesh -
and his name is Bush. http://sun6.dms.state.fl.us/eog_new/eog/orders/2001/september/eo
...demdaily news 9/25
|
| Clear Channel, the company that has bought up 1,200 stations
altogether -- 247 of them in the nation's 250 largest radio markets --
and that not only dominates the Top 40 format, but controls 60% of all
rock-radio listening.
The company has ordered its stations not to play a list of 150
songs during this "national emergency." The list,
incredibly, includes "Bridge Over Troubled Water,"
"Peace Train," and John Lennon's "Imagine."
Rah-rah war songs, though, are OK.
And then there was this troubling instruction: "No songs by
Rage Against the Machine should be aired." The entire works of a
band are banned? Is this the freedom we fight for? Or does this sound
like one of those repressive dictatorships we are told is our new
enemy?
........excerpt from Michael
Moore letter 9/22
|
| Last month Bush said that the Social Security fund would not be
tapped unless "the nation was at war or in a recession"
--
 | Now we're in a war, in a recession, and congress is
appropriating billions of dollars for the "war
effort".
|
| Peace songs are banned from the largest radio conglomerate in
the nation as Americans are prepped for "a long and costly
battle."
|
| We're being told by the media that it's OK to give up our
privacy rights and other civil rights in order to have
"security."
|
| We're preparing to do to Afghanis (and others) what we were so
horrified last week at having done to us.
|
| What's wrong with this picture?
... blast from the past, 9/22
(WF note - see social security ,
no news , IFRC)
|
|
| Why Is America So Despised?
Local U.S. policy experts and activists grappled with grief and
shock Tuesday along with the rest of the country. While they took
pains to explain that they in no way excuse or condone Tuesday's
violence, some were willing to offer their insights into the reasons
so many people hate America. Understanding the motives behind
terrorist attacks against the United States is hampered by the
assumptions many Americans hold, said Ira Chernus, a professor of
religious studies at CU (Colorado University). One of those
assumptions is that U.S. intentions the world over are good, even when
the government or military makes mistakes. The belief that we're only
trying to help makes it hard for us to understand why anyone would do
something like this to us, Chernus said. Related to that assumption is
the belief that the United States is both innocent and invulnerable,
which prevents Americans from listening to the message behind such
events. " - Pamela White in this week's "Boulder
Times." ....More
.... 9/18
|
| "Give me Liberty or give me death"...1776
"Take my liberties, but spare my life" ... 2001
Maybe we've forgotten what America was supposed to be about. Do
we need a decade or so of fascist tyranny to make us remember?
...Leslie, 9/18
|
| I've been looking for the liberal media lately for a little
sanity. It's a myth - this "liberal media." All
is see is a goose stepping propaganda machine.
Spare me the teeth-gnashing snarls, please. If the American
government wants to go and kill thousands more innocent people to feel
better about itself, at least call it what it is - revenge! (or maybe
just good for business?)
Don't pretend it will root out terrorism when it will only create more
oppression... more hate filled kids growing up in refugee camps
dreaming of the day they can get revenge.
Our "leaders" need to lower the rhetoric, and begin to talk
some sense.
Stop manipulating us to go and fight your war and talk with us about
how we can make the world a better world for all of us to live in.
... 20 yrs old, and not looking for another Vietnam; 9/18
|
|
Migrant workers urge boycott on tour
A caravan of Florida-based migrant workers and their advocates has
embarked on a 10-city, cross-country bus tour to urge Americans to
boycott Taco Bell and raise awareness about working conditions
farmworkers face. The tour, sponsored by the Coalition of Immokalee
Workers, will culminate in demonstrations in Los Angeles on Sept. 23
and at Taco Bell corporate headquarters in Irvine, Calif., on Sept.
24. Other stops include Atlanta, Chicago and Washington, D.C.
Coalition members say the tomatoes Taco Bell uses are picked by
workers who receive insufficient pay, have no right to organize,
work in "deplorable" conditions and get no overtime, no
sick pay and no paid vacations. In January, the coalition - in
partnership with other migrant advocacy groups - marched to
Tallahassee to demand better working conditions, benefits and pay.
|
|
|
| Prisons director plans cuts in staffing
TALLAHASSEE - Florida's prison chief in the coming year wants to
consolidate 3,000 of the state's worst inmates in three prisons, expand a
women's prison in Marion County, while at the same time eliminating more
than 800 jobs. 9/15/01 by GARY FINEOUT
http://www.gainesvillesun.com/articles/2001-09-15i.shtml
|
| For those who wonder how, with our state-of-the-art intelligence
gathering, there was no warning about what was about to happen, follow
the money trail. Ask yourselves who will ultimately profit from this
horrendous act of cowardice.
I predict the following will happen: The Defense Department and the
intelligence communities will get their budgets increased to
never-before-seen levels without major opposition. This will profit
defense contractors that had been experiencing layoffs at current
spending levels. Mideast unrest will cause gas prices at the pump to
spiral upward faster than at the onset of the last Bush War, aka The
Gulf War, resulting in windfall profits for oil interests.
Does this lead to anyone we can think of immediately? Like everyone
else, I would like to see any country harboring those involved removed
from the map, but let's not forget the overall picture. Bush Senior
managed to have some type of military action every time the '88-'92
recession got worse.
...Jeff H, Pompano Beach, SunSentinel, 9/14
|
|
Precautions Taken by States Around the Country in Wake of Terrorist
Attacks
Because of the randomness of terrorism, it is extremely difficult to
anticipate where and when another attack will occur, but many states
are taking precautions to reduce the danger and mitigate possible
consequences. Here's a run down of what's going on around the
nation.
|
|
Want to send a letter to the editor or to your congressman (woman)
or both?
You can do it now at FloridaBay.com!
|
| here are 3 newsclips whoseflorida readers might be interested in:
|
| Sex,
Lies, and the Tape. The
John Fund Story
The following tidbit would remain disgusting but not noteworthy but
for the many times during the Clinton impeachment, and the 2000
election that millions of TV viewers witnessed a self-righteous John
Fund (Wall Street Journal) pontificate about restoring moral decency
to America. What a hypocrite!
"The following is a transcription of the tape of Morgan
Pillsbury and John Fund. Mr. Fund makes mention of how he is being
threatened by Melinda. He apparently believes that Melinda has no
right to be angry for his deceiving her for three years, all the
while sleeping with, and impregnating her oldest child. For those
who doubt the veracity of the transcript or wish to hear the anger
and seething hostility of John Fund, Please listen to the audio
tape." Investigative reporter John Connolly adds, "So
there should be no confusion, this tape was made legally and given
to me by Morgan Pillsbury. Ms. Pillsbury also gave me her permission
to use her name, as did her mother Melinda Pillsbury-Foster."
|
| President Bush spent as much as $250,000 on a PRIVATE fireworks
display for Mexican President Vicente Fox and 135 other guests, many
of whom are not US taxpayers. The fireworks - reportedly the best in
decades - were shot over the Mall, but the public was not informed of
the show.
"Taxpayers have the right to know whether they paid for this
elaborate and unnecessary spectacle," commented Jill Lancelot,
Legislative Director at Taxpayers for Common Sense. "We need to
make sure that we're getting the biggest bang for our buck with our
tax dollars and picking up the tab for a fireworks display at an
essentially private event isn't the way to do that."
....read more at www.taxpayers.org
"Bush welcomed President Vicente Fox of Mexico on Wednesday
night with a bang a fireworks display that was as big, and as
loud, as it was under-publicized…In Georgetown, the noise woke up
a family with an 11-year-old daughter. 'The president of the United
States just woke up three-quarters of a million people for a private
party,' said the girl's father, who did not give his name. 'It's not
a national holiday; it's a school night, it's a work night . . .
it's just about common decency that neighbors have for one
another'...
|
|
I just found out that the appeal for the mercury case will be heard
in the First District Court of Appeals in Tallahassee at 9 AM on
Friday, September 21. This is one of the last legal hurdles
currently standing in the way of the kiln, and the DEP is fighting
hard alongside the company to argue that 97 pounds of mercury coming
out of the stack each year (and most of it landing within 3-5 miles
of the plant) will not have any ecological effect on the three
Outstanding Florida Waters within this fallout zone. Ironically
enough, the DEP's web site (http://www.dep.state.fl.us)
currently advertises how proud (and rightly so) they are of
recovering 80 pounds of mercury from thermometers around the state.
Why the DEP is put in the position of fighting for mercury
contamination in the Three Rivers region seems to speak volumes
about how far their boss (JEB!) will go to please his industrial
puppet masters, and we should make sure that the media and the
people of Florida hear this message loud and clear.
...Jason, 9/4/01
|
| The suggestion in the St. Petersburg Times this morning that Rep Jim
Davis vote to give GWBush fast track trade authority in order to
better the environment, bolster the concerns of labor, and provide a
safeguard for human rights is bizarre.
Seeing this in the Times reminds me of the Nu-Speak from the Council of 100 members
when they presented "Service First" as beneficial to Florida
government. Congratulations to Jim Davis for listening to the people he is elected to
represent. ...More
9/1/01
|
|
Florida Republicans Complain About
E-mail Use by Democratic Official
The Republican Party of Florida is up in arms because Leon County
Commissioner Cliff Thaell, a Democrat, used his county e-mail
address to post a single letter of support for gubernatorial
candidate Pete Peterson. This is the same Republican Party whose
Governor and Secretary of State used their offices in countless ways
to steal the Presidency. Tell reporter David Twiddy (drtwiddy@taldem.com)
you are outraged - and want a FULL investigation of the abuses of
Jeb Bush and Katherine Harris' offices to steal the presidency. see
article in Tall. Democrat
.... from demdailynews, 9/4
|
|
The buying of a local paper...
Why is the Tallahassee Democrat so quiet on issue dealing with Jeb
Bush. I see all these article's in other papers, so what is going on there. Has the governor closed
(TDC) down?
...retired veteran, 8/22/01
|
|
The questions and issues presented in the editorial "DON’T
FALL INTO DBPR ARBITRATION TRAP!” at the web site http://www.ccfj.net
should concern every constituent in the state of Florida who expects
relevant and straightforward responses from pertinent
Officials.
....Manuel Blanco, Chairman, Condo Committee, Cyber Citizens for
Justice, Inc.' 8/20/01
|
|
Jeb guts State Government in order to bring in Privatization.
Jeb's "Budget Exercise" is designed to dismantle public
agencies in Florida to the extent that they can no longer provide
the citizens of our State with the services they deserve, and
expect. Then, as the public clamors for Jeb to do something about those State employees who won't help them (because there won't
be enough employees left to help them); Jeb can ride in on the White
Horse of Privatization to save Florida's Citizens from those bad,
bad, State workers who wouldn't help them.
...chief@sectionb 8/20
|
| I ran a web search on "Jeb Bush" today. An
interesting thing about the results via the ProFusion search engine
was that the only WhoseFlorida reference was the "Pro-Jeb"
page. You have several other pages that specify Jeb Bush in the
title - how come only the Pro-Jeb showed up in the search?
.... Dusty, 8/19
|
| I heard an interesting story on NPR the other day about an American
who was arrested on a road near Genoa after the G-8 conference.
She was with a theater group who had been in Genoa doing non-violent
street theater. The group was held for over 3 weeks. The
report stated that her Italian lawyer was shocked that calls to the
American embassy were fruitless, that the embassy officials were not
at all interested. Sounds just like Bush's reaction. ...
Quixote, 8/15
|
|
WF, thought you might want to post this information about Surround
the White House on your site. It seems to be gaining momentum
from what I can tell from the liberal/progressive web sites I
visit.
...Alan, 8/15/01
|
| On National Missile Defence -
8/11/01
"The whole aim of practical politics," H.L. Mencken once
wrote, "is to keep
the populace alarmed by menacing it with an endless series of
hobgoblins,
all of them imaginary."
MEDIA LENS: Correcting for the distorted vision of the corporate media
|
| Why force state workers into dangerous commute?
I'm just curious as to why Gov. Jeb Bush did not give state workers
the day off on Monday, considering the severity of the rain from
Tropical Storm Barry.
I specifically remember seeing him on "Good Morning
America" commenting that the dangerous part was "after the
storm," when there would be so much flooding. Then state workers
are forced to drive back and forth in the weather. Makes you think,
doesn't it?
....AMANDA WALKER (letter in Tallahassee Democrat)8/10
|
| Our president gets a month long vacation after working just seven
months. Wouldn't it be nice if the rest of America could get the same?
And wouldn't it be nice if the rest of America could get a six-hour
medical exam from 14 physicians to see if they were healthy enough to
do their jobs?
Something seems wrong here. Yes, he is the president, but why can't
the rest of us just get half of what he gets for free?
...Charlie Cramer - Lake Mary (letter in Orlando Sentinel) 8/10
|
| Is Katherine Harris' office resisting Florida election reforms?
County election supervisors charge that her top election lieutenant is
sandbagging efforts to clean up the state's voter-roll mess. ...more
8/6
|
| The Bush administration is making a fundamental change in how the
federal government approaches issues involving reproductive health,
scaling back efforts to promote family planning and contraception
while aggressively promoting "abstinence-only" programs. -
Since taking office, President Bush and top aides have refused to
allow states to expand family planning services for poor women,
reimposed a ban on abortion counseling at overseas health clinics,
released a report questioning the effectiveness of condoms and
proposed eliminating mandatory contraceptive coverage for federal
employees. .... More
8/5/01
|
| GOP fund-raising strategy targets physicians - Republican campaign
committee invites doctors to join its "Physician's Advisory
Board" as a hook for soliciting contributions. -
American
Medical Association medical news 8/5/01
|
| Time to take another look at The
Florida Liberator
"Man is born free; and everywhere he is in chains."
--Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712 - 1778), The Social Contract
|
| Letterman
Censors Ani DiFranco - Here's what happened: "Producers of
CBS's 'Late Show with David Letterman' cancelled musician Ani
DiFranco's scheduled appearance (7/19). . . after the folk singer
refused to substitute a more 'upbeat' song for one about racism,"
as John Maynard of The Washington Post reported. ...
|
| What's the difference between Gary Condit, D- California and Joe
Scarborough, R - Florida? click
here .... 8/4/01
|
|
Request for writers:
The Democracy Chronicle is a new national print publication
published from Florida. It's "A Digest of Democratic,
Liberal,and Progressive News, Perspectives, and Resources from the
Internet and Independent Media.
The publication needs help -- writers, editors, marketing,
distribution, business planning...
|
|
Want to post this Save
our State (From corporate take-over) Flyer?
It's suitable for printing and using as a hard-copy flyer to post
of buliten boards.
....John, 8/3/01
|
|
How can I find out if our wonderful legislative body voted
themselves a
raise during this last legislative session?
....CA, 8/2/01
|
|
All successful conquests go through three stages. First the defeated
are dispossessed. Then they adopt the habits and the outlook of the
conquerors. Finally, they thank their new masters for their
dispossession. Corporate power has entered the third stage of
conquest. And everywhere we are told how grateful we should be.(Published
on Tuesday, July 31, 2001 in the Guardian
of London
) from CommonDreams
.... Vance, 7/31/01
|
| U.S.
Gov't Recalls Indonesia Book Keywords: State Dept recall of
history books, US role in Indonesia 1960's purge
...ToMix, 7/31/01
following from DemDailyNews (7/30/01)
In the 1960s, the CIA engineered the ouster of Indonesian leader
Sukarno, who was anti-western. The CIA directly aided the despotic
Suharto, who slaughtered and tortured hundreds of thousands of
Indonesians. After the bloodbath, in swarmed the US corporations,
throwing thousands of natives off their ancient lands and trashing
the environment to drill for oil and dig for gold. One of those
leading this exploitive charge: HENRY KISSINGER. Now Bush wants to
make this ugly history disappear by recalling every single truthful
State Dept. history book from hundreds of libraries. Why? Could it
be some of the names on Cheney's "secret list" may also be
mentioned in this damning history, including Kissinger. HK helped
Mobil forge a deal with Suharto in the mid-60s, then set up the
Freeport McMoran gold mine for which he is now majority shareholder
as well as anti-environmental legal counsel.
|
|
George Washington University’s National Security Archive today
posted on the Web (www.nsarchive.org)
one of two State Department documentary histories whose release the
U.S. Central Intelligence Agency is stalling, even though the
documents included in the volumes were officially declassified in
1998 and 1999.
The Indonesia volume includes significant new documentation on the
Indonesian Army’s campaign against the Indonesia Communist Party (PKI)
in 1965-66, a slaughter which cemented Suharto's coup. In 1990,
under George Bush, Sr., the CIA also censored a State volume on Iran
to erase any reference to the CIA-Backed coup there in 1953. In
1991, Congress passed a law requiring the State Dept. histories to
include info. on ALL activities, including covert operations. ...
|
|
Please sign petition that calls for a Senate investigation regarding
the Florida vote-fraud in the 2000 s-election. Mike Rectenwald of
Citizens for Legitimate Government wrote this petition and he will
be submitting it late next week.
..... RitaW 7/22/01
|
|
I'd really like you to check out the website http://forums.delphi.com/1stAmendment.
There is one topic on Illegal FL Ballots. I tried to get people to
read this website but being that I am not very computer literate I
can't seem to post things from this site. And I received very
negative feedback from a guy.... Maybe you can educate people on
this forum as to what whoseflorida is instead of people only seeing
what negative things this man says about the site. Thank you.
... james 7/22
(Note: You can "Copy" from here and "Paste" to
where you want to post.)
|
|
Will JEB downsize his own office?
Florida Trend magazine had an article a few months back about all
the aides JEB had in the Gov. office. Many were lawyers making good
salaries.How many of them will the Gov.eliminate to help downsizw
Florida Government?
...sunstatekid, 7/22
|
|
Judicial Watch Sues Cheney over Energy Task Force
Conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch on Tuesday filed a
lawsuit against VP Dick Cheney for denying the public information
about the activities of a White House energy task force that he led.
Judicial Watch said the energy task force was not in compliance with
the Federal Advisory Commission Act or the Freedom of Information
Act, which require that documents, task force members, meetings and
decision-making activities be open to the public. The General
Accounting Office (GAO), at the request of Democratic lawmakers, is
trying to establish who met with the White House panel and how much
money was spent by the task force. The White House has refused to
provide the list of names and has questioned the authority of the
GAO to even investigate the task force.
|
| Old news for some, but interesting nonetheless... and the theme of
corporate media censorship is still knowcking on our door:
http://www.foxbghsuit.com/
.... JH 7/19
|
|
I visited your website, and I thought you might be interested in
seeing my new website regarding the 2004 presidential election. It
contains biographical and professional information on potential
presidential candidates. The address is:
Please feel free to vote in my polls, and send the address to all of
your politically-interested friends/family and associates online, as
well.
I assure you, I am not a Republican (even though some people may
jump to the conclusion of being one) and I have no fondness for
George W. Bush. I simply am an equal opportunity critic of
partisan politics, and strive to express my views as honestly as
possible.
.... 7/19
(WF - we're more interested in information that can widen our
horizons than political affiliations - so thanks)
|
| Here is a link that could be quite useful for everyone involved with
whoseflorida, www.usnewspaperlinks.com/flnews it
has
everybody, TV also, check it out and good luck
... d.m. pompano
|
|
We've been drilled.
Governor Bush and some prominent newspapers are presenting the
Northwest Florida oil lease agreement as a win for Florida. A
little background information may allow for a decent comparison.
Lease 181, as approved, will permit drilling on 1.5 million acres of
submerged lands off Florida's coast. The entire state park
system, according to DEP figures, which is made up of over 150 park
properties, comprises only 500,000 acres. So basically, our
Governor believes that we should readily accept as a victory the
drilling for oil on 3 times the acreage of our own park system.
If that's a win, I sure would have hated to lose in this one.....Dade
County, 7/17
|
| This is a good rant: There
will be a reckoning, George -
... Rita W, 7/16/01
|
|
Check out the St Pete Times article last week on those Enterprise
Fla folks.Spending tons of money with no accountability.Is this the
private sector at work? ...sunstatekid, 7/16/01
(see Time
for agency to change)
|
|
There are some very interesting potential news stories emerging on
your site. Where's Bill Cottrell and the other reporters who write
about government?
My experience with the Tallahassee Democrat was that you are
supposed to deliver stories to them on a silver platter and then
feel very grateful for the possibility that the Tallahassee
Democrat may turn the publicity light on you. (Like the
out-of-town movie company which comes into a small town and
promises the locals a vanity spot in the film.)
There are some very significant stories in the bowels of the
bureaucracy which require a little bit of work. Now, you have a
site where some of the leads for these stories are available to
the media for the taking. My friends and I in Tallahassee used to
have a saying that if you wanted to know what was going on in
state government, you had to read out-of-town newspapers.
... Cap'n Flats, 7/16/01
|
| Jeb
Bush Isn't About to Bother Us With the Truth When It Comes to His
Role in Helping Out His Brother in Stacking the Recount in Florida
7/15
.... found on buzzflash, Robby 7/15
|
|
Do you ever listen to the Rob Lorie show on WMNF? It's on at 1pm on
this
station: http://www.wmnf.org
You can listen over the internet. You'll find a "listen
link".
....JH 7/13
|
Here's a suggestion for a program topic for that show:
Janet Reno, or whoever, responding to Jeb Bush's programs,
none of which she's ever mentioned before. She sounds
like she has no idea what's new in FL -- same as the other
potential candidates...."Independent FL voter"7/13
|
|
| Saw this on Buzzflash - please post the link about JEB and GW's
brother Neil Bush - an article from the Austin
Chronicle
.... JTC 7/11/01
|
|
I hope you'll post this article for all to read: Artists
of Resistance
by Howard Zinn
... J Lerner 7/10/01
|
| Voting Records of Mike Fasano
I am preparing a paper on the voting records of Mike Fasano for the
past
2 years. Does anyone know where I can get the information?
... alice 7/9/01 (send them in and WF will post them in its
collection of research tools)
|
| Just
a harmless little comprimise... cartoon by JimMorin Miami Herald
.... IVBurns, 7/9/01
|
| Anybody know what article this writer is referencing? -
I just read where Al Cardenas and the Florida republican party are
going to take steps to depress the voter turnout by the
african-american community in the forthcoming elections. This
outrages me as a citizen! Let me know what I can do to
counteract this!
...JMK 7/8/01
|
| http://www.politics1.com/fl.htm
-- "Your complete directory of Florida candidates for Governor,
State Cabinet, United State Senator and Congress in the current
election cycle ... state political parties ... the official state
election office ... and state news sources."
....HR 7/8/01
|
| Howard Troxler - Does
the fiery spirit of 1776 still burn?
(WF: Please take a look at this July 4 editorial folks - it's addressing
something we think is so important. You're thoughts about this
would make a most welcome thread to post here.)
|
|
Be on the lookout for similar tactics in Florida:
Statement by Common Cause President Scott Harshbarger
on Tom Delay's 'Predatory' Telemarketing Tactics
|
|
Republican Bias
website rivals Limbaugh
The GOP-bias web site below (found as salon site link) rivals Limbaugh
as a liberal stream of invective, outrage and condemnation of the
actions of the current administration, media, "bastard
Republican Party," etc. It is fun to read and might be
something your watchers would enjoy too.
http://members.aol.com/gopbias/.
...katybar 7/1/01
|
|
In your search for articles and
editorials from around the state, have you ever stumbled upon one
that is pro-Bush and was NOT written by Bush's people? If you
find one, please post. Thanks!
....posted 6/28
|
|
Is there a way that
we Americans can tell Katherine Harris how we really feel about
her? Can we e-mail her directly? nancy dion, 6/26/01
WF: the following information from the state government website (myflorida.com)
might be helpful:
naming
standards for state of Florida agencies- this is a helpful
little section for figuring out the email addresses for state
employees. Just plug in the name exactly as directed below,
and it should work. If you wander around the Department
of State page you might find contact links as well.
|
| Harris, Katherine |
STA |
850-414-5500 |
994-5500 |
Tallahassee |
Shadow
Dwellers by By Jim DeFede --
Is Miami-Dade County Manager Steve Shiver a lying
little weasel? Absolutely, absolutely
.... Posted by Jacob Lerner, 6/20/01
|
The layoffs begin... Monday monday...I walked into work this
Monday morn and was informed that 4 construction state workers were
laid off. Actually, most were vocational instructors, ex-Correctional
Officer's, who switched...
... Santa Rosa CI, 6/18/01
|
|
Hi, we are on line as of today - The
Florida Report. We are searching for aspiring reporters
who would like to have their stories published. Need one in the
Tallahassee area. Thanks for leading the way.
|
|
Group meets
with DEP about adopting an unsafe SCADA monitor computer system to replace qualified operators at our drinking water plants and waste water plants.
6/10/01
|
|
Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government
Accountability
The Florida Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government
Accountability (OPPAGA) is a research unit of the Florida Legislature
under the oversight of the Joint
Legislative Auditing Committee. Created to help improve the
performance and accountability of state government, OPPAGA conducts
studies on the performance of state agencies and programs to identify
ways to improve services and cut costs.
Here are some of their
Recently Published reports -- you can search for reports by
agency, topic, or just give them a call if you can't find what you
want - they'll be only too "happy" to help you find whatever
you're looking for.
|
|
President Bush nominates Janet Rehnquist, daughter of Supreme Court
Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, to be inspector general of the
Department of Health and Human Services.
Eugene Scalia, son of Justice Antonin Scalia, also
nominated to be solicitor of Labor
Scalia and Rehnquist both voted to put Bush in office
... FreeMan, Gainesville 6/3/01
|
| State workforce demographics:
http://www.state.fl.us/dms/hrm/reports/workforce_99.pdf
|
|
The Palm beach post is reporting that the Democrats now hold a
300,000+ registered voter margin in Florida and Jeb's disapproval
rating is at an all time high of 40%...Service First might just be
working.
... Digger, 5/30/01
|
|
A beautiful Day in the St. Joe Neighborhood
Ask the residents of St. Joe what a good neighbor St. Joe Paper Co.
has been.
Ask the supporters of the marine lab at Appalachia Bay in Franklin
County how they appreciate St. Joe's strong-arm tactics to swap less
desirable shoreline for the estuary that was the reason for locating
there in the first place.
Ask Tallahassee neighborhood associations how much they appreciate
the St. Joe/Arvida Southwood development and the devastating Blair
Stone Road extension that is among the results.
Ask any environmentalist about Ed Ball and his fencing off the
headwaters of the Wakulla River for his plantation-style Wakulla
Springs Lodge where citizens still pay for the privilege of using
what should be a publicly owned navigable water body.
Ask if the conversion of Mr. Ball's mansion as the sales and
operation of the Southwood Community prompts any additional
resentment.
Ask Martin Dyckman to look into St. Joe Co.'s ownership of more
private land in Florida than any other entity, and what St. Joe has
done and plans to do as the biggest bear in the North Florida Piney
Woods.
Then, Katy, Bar the Door. -- 5/22/01
|
|
Governor JEB Bush's vision for Florida civil service
has come to pass. A summary can be found here.
Senate Bill 466 in its entirety is here.
MyFlorida: "If you have any questions or would like more
information about Service First, please contact ServiceFirst@dms.state.fl.us."
You could also drop them a line and let them know what you think about
it.
|
| Reno
is considering a run for governor
``If it would serve Florida's interests, it's appealing to serve a
state that I love,'' Reno, a Democrat and the only woman ever to serve
as U.S. attorney general, said from her home in Kendall.
``It's something I'm exploring because I want to do what's best for
the state. I've made no decision. I'm just focused on the issues I
care about for Florida."
Those issues, Reno rattled off in order, include protecting the
state's natural resources, helping the elderly become more
self-sufficient, strengthening Florida's stature as a trade partner
with the Americas and improving computer technology, education and
communications...
...Tallahassee Democrat 5/19/01
Other links for this story:
Gainesville
Sun, St. Petersburg
Times, Tallahassee
Democrat, Palm Beach
Post,
Orlando Sentinel
| Question: Does anyone remember hearing anything from Ms Reno
about "Service First," "One Florida," or the
actions and attitudes of the 2001 Florida legislature? Did
she just get back to Florida last week? Was she speaking up
and just not being covered by the press? Or is she like
AFSCME, hopping on the train with too little and too late?
How different are the issues she "rattled off" as being
ineterested in for Florida from JEB's?
|
|
|
I think I need a career change and based on some of the recent
appointments, I stand to get a fairly decent job. After all:
I know a family, so maybe I could head up the DCF, or
I flew on a plane once, so maybe I could oversee the state's fleet
of aircraft, or
I drive a car...any openings at the Highway Adminsitration?
...J Pryor, 5/14/01
|
|
Jesse Jackson said "Stay out of the Bushes". And
here we are. Jeb and the council of 100 have rammed the
beginnings of a dismantling of the civil service system down our
throats, and George W. has so alienated the world community that the
United States of America has been voted out of the United Nations
Human Rights Commission... ousted for riding roughshod over our
allies on environmental issues and a host of other insensitive
me-first-me-right-you-wrong foreign policy matters. And to
think just a few short 100 plus days ago the stock market was good,
gas prices were good, the economy was good, the Cold War was
melting, editors had good things to say about politicians. What
happened? Wonder what tomorrow will bring?
...troublesometimesahead 5/8/01
|
|
Back to the Future
Now that "Service Worst" is a reality it's time for a
lesson in survival.
In a patronage system (I have worked in one before) an employee must
keep a personal notebook of decisions on the job that are
controversial and might become the basis for a firing. Write
down dates, names, places, keep copies of documents.... think about
covering your ass all the time. Trust no one.... not
your best friend.... it is every man/woman for themselves in a
patronage system. You won't avoid a firing but you can put
people on notice that you will take somebody down with you.
That is where your notebook comes into prominence. And your keeping
a personal work record will help you keep your self-esteem and will
help you remember that you did your job the best that you
could. You will need that self-esteem to function in your next
job interview. Isn't it sad that we are returning to the good
old boy system that we just got rid of a few years ago.
Thanks, JEB, you SOB.
...thanxfornothin 5/8/01
|
|
Just reviewed your web site and found it very interesting. I downloaded
the supposed 7000 e-mails from the Governor and found something you
may find interesting. There were a number of duplications as
well as e-mails from non-state employees. So instead of
7000 or 2700 as you may have estimated the number may be much lower.
Also, in scanning the e-mails I did not find one that was in support
of
Service First.
Also, as you probably already know the governor put out his message
to
employees 1 - 2 weeks before the first version of HB 369 came out(giving
employees the first glimpse of his plans) So I am sure many of these
messages were sent without the employees realizing that they would
be
used for political gain by Republicans, despite the fact that the
great
majority of the messages did not think the system needed major
changes. Best of luck to you and all state workers.
....Barbara 5/6/01
|
| Editorial:
Civil-service 'reform' The Palm Beach post Tuesday,
May 1, 2001 --The only objective expert paid by the state to look at
Gov. Bush's notion of civil-service reform called it unworkable. So
the House passed it, and the Senate is ready to go along.
...thankyou, weaseltracker we missed this one this
morning !!
|
| But we didn't miss this little May Day gem by AP's Dara Kam
-
Sister
of Bush advisor gains education post Unbelievable, but
true! - 5 years teaching experience in private schools + an
older sister who is Governor Bush's ex-chief of staff =
$77,000/yr job managing $17 million of our public school
budget. And DEP secretary David Struhs' wife (whose brother is
President Bush's chief of staff) gets a part-time 20 hr/wk position
(exempted from the upcoming legislation by the way) for
$35,000/year. But, hey, we're told we don't need to worry about
our positions losing civil service protection - there won't be an
exchange of jobs for political favors - Service won't deteriorate -
Yeah, right ... wf 5/1/01
|
| Sierra Club Environmental Legislative
Updates
|
| PLEASE!!! Go to the web site below, it takes just a few minutes to send action letters out and have our voices heard on several important issues.(ie
the Greater Everglades -- our nation's greatest subtropical
wilderness.
BioGems: Saving Endangered Wild Places A project of the Natural Resources Defense Council
http://www.savebiogems.org
Thanks, Denise 4/25/01
|
|
What is the Agency for Workforce Innovation that will be increased
by over 1500 jobs? Joie 4/24/01
|
|
No Protection and no raise...
I don't understand how Jeb thinks he is going to attract the
"best and the brightest" when he screws the staff he
already has. To take 16,000+ employees and put them in
select-exempt status with no increase in salary is ludicrous.
What exactly is his beef with state employees anyway...? To show
some good faith he should have taken the top two pay grades under
select exempt (25's and 26's in my agency), give them a decent raise
and select exempt perks and see how it goes. What they are
doing now is simply wholesale slaughter. ...Trix 4/21/01
|
|
Our Governor, Speaker of the House, President of the Senate, and
agency heads claim that ServiceFirst is simply a step toward
running government as a business is run. When asked what
business they are talking about, no answer is given. My
question to them is: What do you want our Florida government
to model itself after? The customer service ethic of the
airline industry, the environmental ethos of the oil companies,
the product quality of Firestone, the employee appreciation of
McDonalds?
We have a group of former campaign workers and lobbyists-for
the most part- who have been appointed to follow without question
the governor's notion of public service, based upon the governor's
3-4 years of public service experience. If these politicians
are allowed to succeed, the public can expect disposable and
transient public employees, government agencies staffed by
politicos-not technical/professional employees, and a decline in
the services they have come to take for granted.
I used to be a Republican. That changed 5 months ago.
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