Editorial Archive

Incorporation supporters have likened the incorporation wave to the Boston Tea Party—a stand against taxation without representation. They are angered by what they view as bloated and unresponsive county government and want greater control over how their taxes are spent. Proponents argue that the best way to make government responsive to community interests is to make it a community government.

It’s that time of year where many people begin thinking about everything they have to be thankful for. Although it’s nice to count your blessings on Thanksgiving, being thankful throughout the year could have tremendous benefits on your quality of life.

After watching Florida’s role in the 2000 presidential election, we had hoped such nonsense was behind us.

We never understand why certain politicians refuse to deal with the press. Do they believe their “No comment” will prevent the story from running? It won’t. Or do they think that ignoring us will teach us some kind of lesson? It won’t.

I recently visited Boston with my sisters.  I always enjoy traveling there because of the rich history found in Boston and the surrounding areas.  I learned something new about our founding fathers and that fateful day we sparked a revolution with a single musket shot at Concord.  Paul Revere was not in the tower of the North Church in Boston waving lanterns.  That job was assigned to another.  He was standing by on his horse waiting for the signal to warn the families in Concord that the British were coming to destroy their munitions stored at Concord. 

In his Wednesday night address to the Nation, the President finally laid out many of the appropriate steps required to address the ISIL threat, as he came to the realization that his policy of sitting out and leading from behind is simply not a credible option. He is correct in seeking a coalition of not just NATO partners, but also Middle Eastern allies. Additionally, he stated support to the Government of Iraq and friendly forces in Kurdistan, while mentioning the requirement to involve moderate Sunnis in both Iraq and Syria. If his actions reflect his words, our strategy will certainly see air strikes commence in Syria and continue in Iraq, while we increase the number of American troops on the ground and utilization of intelligence assets.

I was recently asked what I learned from the process of running for office. After considerable thought, here is my answer. 

Over the years I’ve seen many changes in Navarre, some that would not have been my choice. As it is, only one person is charged with representing the 42,000 residents of Navarre.  One commissioner out of five speaks for us.  It is time to incorporate – to be our own voice.

If voter turnout had a voice it would cry “wah, wah, wah” …to be read as a diminuendo, which is the opposite of crescendo. Endless road signs, a steady stream of smiling faces in the mailbox and many energetic handshakes have filled (or cluttered, depending on your viewpoint) our lives in the last several weeks. And for what?

The planned draconian military drawdown will take us to pre-WWII levels.  Our economy is in shambles.  Pundits and politicians falsely claim we don’t have adequate highly skilled foreign workers while highly skilled American workers can’t get hired, and thousands more “children” pour across our porous Southern border to eventually compete with us, our children and grandchildren for jobs.