Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Guest AuthorAugust 26, 2014

Opponents of raising the minimum wage should try living on that paltry $7.25 an hour. The experience might change their minds, or at least make them a little less willing to consign people to living on $290 a week. Do the math; you can’t live on $290 a week (before taxes). I had a close […]

Daniel TilsonAugust 25, 2014

Here in August 2014, 50 years after the historic “Mississippi Summer of 1964” helped propel America forward in search of Civil Rights progress, I’m literally brought to tears by what has happened in Ferguson, Mo. They’re tears of both grief and rage, just like they were 50 years ago. My first cousin Karen (now a […]

Guest AuthorAugust 25, 2014

As someone who has worked for institutions of higher education for more than four decades, it is especially embarrassing for me that colleges have the worst record in sports for hiring women and people of color. UCF’s Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport released the 2013 College Sport Racial and Gender Report Card this […]

Martin DyckmanAugust 24, 2014

In Germany two weeks ago, we were impressed by the multitude of solar arrays along the autobahn. There were too many to count. They perched on the rooftops of homes, apartment buildings, barns, offices, shops, storage sheds and garages. They were free-standing in cornfields and pastures — any place with a southern exposure and space […]

Guest AuthorAugust 24, 2014

Florida was lucky that Trayvon Martin’s killing in Sanford in February 2012 did not trigger a riot. But if we consider the anatomy of a riot, we’ll know that it wasn’t simply dumb luck — but the absence of destructive forces. First, the entire country, both black and white, grieved for Trayvon. Apart from some loony […]

Diane RobertsAugust 21, 2014

When he’s not dodging questions about his trip to the King Ranch, Congressman Steve Southerland is touting a bill to help struggling polluters. See, that socialist Clean Water Act messes with his BFFs at Florida Power and Light, the Florida Farm Bureau, and the Homebuilders Association. Dagnabbit, somebody has to stand up for run-off! Southerland’s […]

Shannon NickinsonAugust 21, 2014

Most people do resolutions in January. I think Pensacola — and all of Florida — should dare to be different. I think August is a great time for a resolution. A resolution to take the mantra of “each one, teach one” seriously and to heart. The school year is beginning. The sales tax holiday is […]

Bob SparksAugust 20, 2014

Many significant issues confront us daily, both in Florida and around the country. Thank goodness for distractions like football, whose season is only two weeks away. Larry King said it best: “If you are a sports fan, every day is different.” Over the past 30 years, no state has played championship football better than Florida. […]

Dominic CalabroAugust 20, 2014

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the great German theologian who paid the ultimate price for standing up to Hitler, once said: “The test of the morality of a society is what it does for its children.” By that metric, Florida is doing better – but not well enough. In the most recent legislative session, business leaders, policymakers and […]

Guest AuthorAugust 20, 2014

We all have dreams. A young couple dreams of purchasing their first home together. New parents dream of the day when they can send their child off to college. Our country is rooted in the American Dream, which tells us that the opportunity for a better life exists for each of us. Those who achieve […]

Uncategorized

Mark O’Brien: Do the math: You couldn’t live on minimum wage

Daniel Tilson: Ferguson shows how far we’ve come — in wrong direction

Richard Lapchick: The failure of college sport as an equal opportunity employer

Martin Dyckman: How Florida laws are made and utility regulators are appointed leave the state way behind Germany in use of solar energy

Rachel Patron: Ferguson, Missouri: The anatomy of a riot

Diane Roberts: Southerland and the Clean Water Act: Somebody has to stand up for run-off

Shannon Nickinson: Take time to improve a child’s future, our future prosperity

Bob Sparks: FSU is still waiting for White House invite

Dominic Calabro and David Lawrence Jr.: Investments in early learning save taxpayer dollars, produce results

Alex Sanchez: Florida bankers help make dreams come true