South Sarasota Needs New Representation in the State House
Want to join me at a campaign kick-off party for Nancy Feehan, District 70 next week?
Many of my readers both of this blog and from the days of my Reality Chick column with the Pelican Press live in South Sarasota, Venice, Nokomis, and Osprey – Florida State House District 70. The District includes most of the southern half of Sarasota County, from Clark Road and State Road 72 at the north and South Venice and part of Englewood at the south. It extends from Siesta Key and part of Manasota Key on the west to the Myakka River.
Nancy Feehan is running for State House Representative for the District — against Republican Doug Holder. And I’m betting on Feehan to take the race. 
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Florida State Rep Race, District 70 starts to look interesting
Looks like Republican Doug Holder will have some competition in November. Savvy politico Nancy Feehan has thrown her hat into the ring, officially filing today for the race for State Representative, District 70.
From the cheap seats, it’s looking like a no-brainer for voters south of Bee Ridge Road in Sarasota, stretching all the way down to the Charlotte County line. Holder voted last year for legislation that would allow oil drilling as close as three miles to the area’s beaches – I think it includes Siesta Key, Casey Key and others.
Bad enough that he voted for near-shore drilling, but what really got me was that (according to the Sarasota Herald Tribune) Holder said he only voted that way because he knew the legislation wouldn’t pass but he wanted to “open the discussion.” To me that’s pretty astounding – voting for something you don’t believe in because you’re pretty sure it won’t pass? That’s the kind of clarity, consistency, and protection I want in a State Rep for sure. NOT.
Feehan lives in Osprey, and if elected, would be representing more coastline in Sarasota County than anyone else in the House. I’ll have to find out where she stands on the issue. Stay tuned.
New changes to “Abortion Bill” unfair to men say outraged House Repubs
As most of you know, Governor Crist received some amendments along with the health care bill he received on June 7th. The amendments have people referring to the bill as the “Abortion Bill” and essentially would require that women who want an abortion during their first trimester of pregnancy be required to pay for, have, and look at — or hear a real-time description of –a live ultrasound image of the embryo or fetus inside her womb, before having an abortion.
But what hasn’t been reported in most mainstream media is that an amendment to those amendments was received late last night in the Guv’s office. Thus this breaking (balls) news:
The revised amendments, require — essentially — that all men — seconds before they put their penis inside any women’s vagina (doesn’t count if it’s a man they’re schtupping or if it’s oral sex, for um, obvious reasons you should have learned about in grade school) be required to view pictures of used baby diapers, as well as happy smiling babies, listen to soundtracks of screaming, as well as cooing, babies, and sign a contract stating that they will a) pay for the pregnancy tests if the women freaks out because her period is late while offering calm reassurance that it will most assuredly be negative because he was, um “really careful”; b) pay for the ultrasound if the woman they’re knocking boots with gets knocked up; c) pay for the abortion if there is one; and d) pay 50% of all costs incurred in bearing, birthing, taking sick days or maternity leave not paid for by employers (because most of them don’t anymore), as well as pay for child care for working mothers, and half of all costs of raising the kid up through and including four years of college.
Sources in Tallahassee (I drove up there when I heard of this new development so I could get a first-hand report on the situation) told me that the bill is now being referred to as the Stop Look Listen & Sign Before You Fornicate Bill, though others, for simplicity’s sake, are just calling it the Pre-Sex Bill.
Over coffee this morning, most experts around the capitol were saying there’s little chance that Crist will oppose the bill now that it carries this new, clarifying language — since everyone knows men already desperately desire to be more fully informed in the moments just before they get their rocks off and have been searching for years for ways in which they could more wholly participate, emotionally and financially, in every precious post-coital moment that follows — from the seconds-later “Baby, you were great” whispers to the weeks later “Crap, my period’s late” screams.
In an unexpected and somewhat odd turn of events, John Edwards reportedly has already called Crist, urging the Florida governor to ink his approval on the new bill good and fast, saying “I wish this kind of legislation had been in effect when I was running for President — it would have been a game-changer!”
House Republicans held a press conference this morning stating their unified objection to the revised bill saying it “just isn’t fair!” Many said that such stringent requirements would unnecessarily cause men to have to make informed decisions before “dipping their swords” (I’m quoting here) and, as one House Republican said, “What good would that do any of us?”
Others pointed out that the Think Before You Sink bill (as some of the randier Republicans were calling it) would be unconscionably emotionally unfair to men, not to mention potentially create a severe financial hardship for them in both short and long term.
One Republican lawmaker speaking only on the condition of anonymity because as he said, “I wouldn’t want people to think I could have this problem,” pointed out that forcing men to see pictures of babies, even happy ones, “or God forbid, dirty diapers”, could also have the emotionally devastating effect of causing men to “lose their woodies” at the very moments when they need them most.
Crist has until June 22 to weigh the pros and cons of all the amendments included in the health care bill and in a leaked memo he indicated that he plans to give the issue his full attention in between his appointments at the tanning salon.
Oil-slick BP
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/05/13/60minutes/main6480988.shtml
I hope everyone saw 60 Minutes tonight — if not, check out the link above.
BP should be put out of business entirely. Mofos of the first degree.
In the category of they must be kidding … more proof of the bourgouis brain
http://gawker.com/5536722/wall-street-journal-claims-ignorance-on-kagan+lesbian+softball-connection
Bennett, bikini babes, and the bourgeois brain
I could care less what Mike Bennett, the man, views or watches — whether it’s actual or perceived porn or not — (care to say which of these is pornographic: PETA’s attention-grabbing hijinks on a West Palm Beach city street; Desperate Housewives; Siesta Beach during Spring Break; or The L Word.)
Hey, whatever floats the boat. (more…)
Sarasota County Commission hopefuls are thinking smart
Uber-reporter/newsman Stan Zimmerman commented on yesterday’s blog that in fact, another Sarasota County Commission hopeful — Nora Patterson –(Republican) had also foregone the pay-for-placement-on-the-ballot route and qualified to be on the ballot already by obtaining official petitions from registered Sarasota County voters. (more…)
Sarasota County Commission Hopeful Mimics Meek’s Mighty Moves
I was impressed when Florida Democrat Kendrick Meek became the first U.S. Senate candidate to qualify for the Florida ballot by petition. Instead of dropping ten large to buy his way onto the ballot, Meek got his name in the running the old fashioned way — by collecting over 140,000 signatures, which wasn’t exactly an easy thing to do. Kudos to Meek and he’s got my attention; let’s see if he can hold it.
Now, local architect Mark Smith, Republican, is throwing his hat into the ring for Sarasota County Commissioner and is attempting to match Meek’s mighty moves by collecting enough signatures (I think he needs 2,000 by May 14) from registered Sarasota County voters to get his name on the ballot. (more…)
Frailty, thy name is Economic Development?
Does it seem like everything being done under the Sarasota sun lately is being done in the name of worshiping at the altar of “economic development”?
The ubiquitous use of the phrase bugs me nearly as much as phrases like “Vote for the children,” or “Vote for family values.” I’ve got nothing against looking after children’s best interests, or having values that support families — albeit, for me, families come in all shapes, sizes and sexual orientations. And I largely support the idea of developing a strong platform for attracting and supporting diverse businesses and industries in our community.
But just as I disdain knee-jerk, emotionally based stances on political issues, I don’t think economic issues should be approached with the same stars-in-our-eyes approach that Sarasota has used for way too long to way too little end. Sure, some people got rich off the gold-rush pursuits of the past (think real estate bubble), but many more crashed and burned (think real estate bust).
As a city we seem hell-bent on “economic development” — thrashing about wild-eyed for whatever might get us back into our McMansion/Nadel dreamscape of yesteryear. Hot topic du jour is the concept that the film industry will get us there. (more…)
Sarasota Creative Loafing Loss is Florida’s Indie News Gain
Sheesh. I finally hit my groove with Creative Loafing editor Cooper Levey-Baker and now he’s leaving!! Yup, the boy-wonder who was playing with the big boys in Florida politics to get Obama elected … the literati who loves books and if I recall correctly had the chutzpah to travel to Italy to hunker down to write a year or two back … the guy who hired me and gave me a regular writing gig in print in this town when no one else would touch me … yup … that guy’s leaving Creative Loafing to go on to greener, more indie pastures.
Good luck, Coop — (damn you! 
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EDITOR HIRED FOR THE FLORIDA INDEPENDENT
After an extensive statewide search, The American Independent News Network (AINN) is pleased to announce that it has appointed Cooper Levey-Baker to be the first editor of The Florida Independent.
“Cooper comes to The Florida Independent with a political news sensibility combined with a great understanding of Florida’s diverse landscape that will lend well to editing the newest site in The American Independent News Network,” said AINN President and CEO David Bennahum, “I am confident that Cooper will lead his team of reporters based across the state successfully toward our Network’s mission of impact journalism.”
“I am thrilled to take on this new challenge as editor for the brand new Florida Independent,” stated Levey-Baker. “I look forward to working with our reporters to grow this site from the ground up and tackling the difficult issues facing Floridians, maintaining the high standard of writing and investigative journalism for which The American Independent News Network is known.”
With half his life spent living in Sarasota, Fla., Levey-Baker has been the editor of city’s Creative Loafing, an alternative weekly newspaper, for the past year and half, previously serving as an events editor and reporter for the publication for five years. The Arts Council of Sarasota County recognized Levey-Baker for fiction writing in 2006, awarding him a John Ringling Fund Individual Artist Fellowship. In his spare time, Levey-Baker serves on the board of Forum Truth, a nonprofit organization that invites high-profile speakers to Sarasota to address the issues of the day. He is also a member of the steering committee of One Book Sarasota, a nonprofit effort aims to foster a love of reading in Sarasota County.
The Florida Independent will launch by June 1, 2010. The Knight Foundation awarded The Florida Independent project $352,000–the largest amount given–out of $4.3 million to 24 total other projects across the country. The projects represent the second-year winners of the Knight Community Information Challenge, a five-year, $24 million contest that helps community and place-based foundations find creative ways to use new media and technology to keep residents informed and engaged.
The American Independent News Network investigates and disseminates news that impacts public debate and advances the common good. To accomplish its mission, The American Independent News Network operates a nonprofit, nonpartisan network of online news sites: The Colorado Independent, The Iowa Independent, The Michigan Messenger, The Minnesota Independent, The New Mexico Independent, The Washington Independent and soon The Florida Independent.