Saturday and it is Speak Up Day! By Geniusofdespair

Got an issue, now is the time to get it on the internet.  Don't think you are going to trash someone. Just tell us about your issue, what bugs you, what you think we should be doing/concentrating on. Push your candidate (no trashing). Go ahead, we are listening.

My issue: It is my sister's birthday. I lost her years and years ago to drugs (she is not dead). I hope she is okay, wherever she may be. Happy Birthday Sis, I think of you often. Drugs suck.

Marco Rubio Dismisses Climate Change and Disses Mayor Cindy Lerner Today in New Hampshire. By Geniusofdespair

Expensive, economy above all else, that is it...no environment for Marco Rubio. Well, if all you care about is money, you are a sorry guy Marco and so are the people in the room. You shortchange all the children in the country in the name of profit. You had better drop your disingenuous Evangelical crap, it is one "E" too many in your campaign.

 

Isn't he packing on the pounds on that little short body? And how much crap does he have on his comb-over to make it so stiff?

More nukes is Rubio's future scenario he says, not a thought to the Fukushima nuclear disaster,  now into its fifth year (Reported Feburary 2nd: Many of the measuring instruments installed in the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (FDNPS) measuring system continue to malfunction as a result of the accident and there is no guarantee of the accuracy. At the site of the crippled plant, post-accident work is facing extreme difficulties and there is little prospect for a conclusion in sight. The truth is that the objective facts upon which a scientific and technical discussion must be based are unknown, thus making it impossible to formulate plans).

Well, I am sure that Florida Power and Light and Next Era (error) are financing Marco Rubio just fine. That money makes Rubio feel safer than we do with multiple nukes in a hurricane zone.



Watch on youtube...

I thought Marco Rubio was downright rude and dismissive to Cindy Lerner with not even an ounce of friendly acknowledgement to his former colleague in the State House.  Mayor Lerner says thank you at the end I would have said: "You are such a putz you dismissive son of a bitch." You have no intention of following through, Marco Rubio.

Tony Garcia, Miami Transit Expert: TedX talk ... "Why the next American city will be shaped by you ... "

Tony Garcia eventually gets to talking about Ludlum Trail at about 7 minutes.

Historic winter rains in Florida push filth along both coasts like diarrhea coating the rim of a toilet bowl ... by gimleteye

More than 10 billion gallons per day of toxic run off from Lake Okeechobee are poisoning the Indian River Lagoon, the St. Lucie and Calosahatchee, emptying onto both east and west coasts of Florida in a flow permitted by the State of Florida and US Army Corps of Engineers.

Historic winter rains are pushing a tide of filth along both coasts like diarrhea coating the rim of a toilet bowl.

This is not by accident-- for that, thank the political equation that keeps Sugar Billionaires' feet dry in the Everglades Agricultural Area. Not "El Nino". This is our slice of the planet puking the cumulative filth of unsustainable farming practices.

Today the US Army Corps of Engineers is opening the flood gates of hell, to express maximum volume of toxic water into nearby estuaries.

Citizens who can't believe their river-front properties are being trashed AGAIN to save Big Sugar also can't breathe the noxious fumes escaping from the water management locks nearby. It is all about elections.

The only way to stop the catastrophe is to stop voting for elected officials supervising this tidal wave of destruction. Those officials include incoming Senate president Joe Negron.

The political status quo -- Republicans AND Democrats -- have been staring the solution in the face for decades: buy enough surface land storage to build marshes south of Lake Okeechobee adequate to the purpose of cleansing the pollution. Instead, the state and national interest in fixing Everglades is hostage to Big Sugar's greed.

Gov. Rick Scott and his chosen successor, Agriculture Secretary Adam Putnam, are spinning bullshit to a fine art.

Every time the pubic has gotten close to buying sugar lands in the EAA adequate to the purpose of storing and cleansing (sugar's) Lake Okeechobee's fetid mess, Big Sugar launches another round of political arm-twisting in Tallahassee. Here is are two good views of what you, taxpayer and voter, are funding:

There are some excellent editorials adding to the mountain of words condemning mismanagement of water resources by the state and federal government: either ignored by your elected representatives to the Florida legislature and Congress or shuffled along in half-measures. The bottom line for Florida: keep taking half-steps to fixing the problem, and eventually you will get nowhere.

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/indian-river-lagoon/health/lake-okeechobee-discharges-to-start--soon-2a657b77-b625-6872-e053-0100007f44b8-366869691.html

Like a Virgin, About 150 Miami Dade County Police Cars Shiney and New... Just Sit. By Geniusofdespair

These spanking new police cars are just sitting in a a yard at SW 64 Street and 87th Avenue. Maybe 150 cars. Why? Carlos Gimenez touted public safety in his State of the County speech but here we have cars idle. Rumor has it that police cars were also bought without the police package. These cars cannot be returned or used for responding. I guess they are just eye candy? Carlos Gimenez's speech:

...Public safety has always been my top priority. To enhance the work of our Miami-Dade County Police Department and build more confidence between our community and our officers, my budget for fiscal year 2015-2016 includes the hiring of 125 police officers and the deployment of 1,000 body-worn cameras for our officers. We also continue to expand our vehicle fleet and modernize our Real-Time Crime Center. Youth violence is also a key concern of mine, and the safety of every child, of every resident in this community, is our responsibility. We must work together—law enforcement and the community—to put a stop to the violence.

Why didn't he mention the purchase of a couple of million dollars worth of police cars that are just sitting in a lot so neatly parked in rows, all of them there while he was giving his speech?

Wayne Rosen and the Keys Gate Homeowners Meeting in Hudstead. Guest Blog By Out of Sight

Wayne Rosen on the Right

In spite of the previous cankerous Homestead City Council meetings about Rosen and his plans for the Keys Gate golf course property, there was a love-fest tonight at the Keygate Golf and Country Club site. Wayne Rosen and his entourage faced off with a standing room only crowd. The crowd, with an exception of a few irritated people, received the cadre of development people surprisingly well.

The developer of the golf course, James Fazio was the front person speaking most of the time for Rosen. Mr. Rosen was not introduced until the very end when a gentleman stood and asked who the guy was in the background. Really strange strategy, but one that kept Rosen off the firing range for most of the evening with limited opportunity for him to create a ruckus.

A concern for Keys Gate Homeowners was the cost to residents. As it stands at this moment, there is no cost to the homeowners for the rebuilding and refurbishing of the course or its facilities. The partners are picking up the tab. However, they continued with the fact that if a Keys Gate resident plays there, they will be paying a special membership rate, but the costs are not set in stone at this time for any membership or greens fees.

They are fast tracking the course. Mr. Fazio is expecting to start with the heavy equipment soon as next week with the aim of having the greens sodded and ready to play in October of this year. With the permits pulled, the interior of the main Clubhouse is already in the process of being dismantled and will be redesigned with the existing building left intact.

Course designers are offering an 18 hole, 6370 foot-long course with new elevations and drainage. They expect, as they go along with the build, they will end-up stretching the course and it will be longer when it is finished. The tees are going be flipped about, but the basic border will be follow the general outside of the current course.

The course will lose 11 acres around the edge of the existing course. This land will be used for buffer or possibly some housing. Looking at the maps, there are some squared off acreage that could be feasible for residential. Additionally, there was some discussion about mitigation for the loss of the 11 acres with another already identified parcel for a park.

It was stated that Mr. Rosen is considering turning over some multi-unit acreage from another parcel for a well-lit driving range. They are looking into the development of auxiliary money-making enterprises such as a driving range which could be used for golf purposes in the evenings, along with a standard venue use upstairs in the club house and a grill type restaurant downstairs which will be easily accessible for the golfers. Currently, the driving range will stay put until a plan is designed to accommodate all the property changes.

One of the concerning issues was the additional residential being built by developer Pat Liber. When questioned about the housing, it was stated that the developer had not presented the plans to the golf team and Rosen --- which is hard to believe. However, they went on to say that they believe Liber will be doing single family homes against the existing two golf communities and fill-in some of the interior with attached housing around the 1st finger of the course.

It was interesting that there was relief and excitement in the room. No angry challenges to the DRI or other Rosen-related issues. The demeanor of this crowd seemed almost thankful and forgiving, happy and applauding positive comments from the crowd. The Rosen’s team was swarmed with handshakes and thank-yous as the crowd departed. On the way out, one gentleman pondered aloud as he walked to his car, if this was really going to happen. He indicated he had been excited and disappointed with promises broken roughly four times about this course. As a long-time Keys Gate resident, he stated, he will not believe Rosen until the bulldozers are there pushing dirt creating a golf course. It is obvious for some folks, the jury is still out.

News around Florida: Mayor Gimenez, U.S. Century Bank, Push Poll... By Geniusofdespair

St. Lucie Lock - Photo Posted By Marjorie Shropshire

The South Florida Water Management District Back-pumped about 15 billions gallons of polluted sugar farm water into Lake Okeechobee that added 1 inch to the lake. Then they opened the flood gates to the East and West to protect the dykes around the lake. These purges pollute the St. Lucie Estuary and Caloosahatchee Rivers -- the water is now a reddish brown according to residents.

U.S. Century Bank, our most favorite bank, lost $5.8 Million last year. It has consistently had a 0 rating from Bauer Financial, a company that rates banks. Marco Rubio was a Board Member of the Latin Builders Association (Most of the Board Members of the U.S. Century Bank at its start, were LBA Members and Board Members) and got a favorable mortgage rate from the bank.

According to a Michael Putney Editorial in the Miami Herald, he thinks it is a plus that Gimenez has had no scandals in his administration and he thinks it should have been part of his State of the County address. First that is never a plus. you shouldn't have any as a matter of course. Second, he has had scandals. Depends on how big you want them to be. Apparently you want them very big for them to register Mr. Putney. And, Michael, really Alice Bravo? Do your research. Putney also takes Raquel Regalado to task for having no managerial experience. That is why you hire Staff. The current Mayor did that and just makes decisions based on staff recommendations.  What do you think Jack Osterholt does over there?  Exactly what Managerial experience does Marco Rubio have or Barack Obama? That is not a necessity. If you are smart, you hire the best staff, you don't just move the same warmed over staff around,  like Lester Sola, Gimenez pal. Even though it is a strong mayor form of Government in the County and they are supposed to also be the County Manager, Gimenez went out and hired a slew of Vice Mayors to actually do the dirty work so I don't know that Putney's assertion rings true. The County employees have never been more unhappy with a Mayor, except the ones making the big bucks. The Department heads are scared. Lester Sola head of Water and Sewer with no engineering background? Mr. Putney, you think that is a good Managerial decision? And, if he was such a good Manager why did Manny Diaz boot him out of the City so fast?

I got chosen for a push poll for Gimenez the other night:

A push poll is an interactive marketing technique, most commonly employed during political campaigning, in which an individual or organization attempts to influence or alter the view of voters under the guise of conducting a poll.

Gimenez took credit for county term limits -- Really? -- and blamed Regalado for the School Bond issue that the voters voted for. No fair. If you don't follow County Government like I do, by the end of the poll you would think Raquel Regalado was a piss poor excuse for a woman, not an intelligent, articulate woman who is a radio commentator and a School Board Member, raising two children, one autistic. Oh, Union people, there was a question about you on the poll. Not in a good way. Oh, Michael Putney, they cited Raquel Regalado for no managerial experience.

On the spread of the Zika virus and environmental regulation: four Questions for Republican candidates for president ... by gimleteye

Republican candidates for president are highly motivated by the ideology that there is no -- or only a limited role -- for the government in regulating the environment. The GOP's principal target -- strongly supported by efforts of the Koch Brothers and the Fox News / right wing message machine -- is the US Environmental Protection Agency.

Here are four questions for GOP presidential candidates now that the alarming spread of the Zika virus is on par with media coverage of the GOP presidential popularity contest.

In a short period of weeks, the mosquito borne Zica virus has "explosively" spread through the Americas and into the public consciousness. The virus causes some fetuses to grow micro encephalic brains.

Question 1) The virus is certain to spread into the United States. Do you, GOP candidate, support intervention by federal agencies?

Question 2) If so, please explain why?

Mercury pollution is pervasive in American freshwater wetlands like the Everglades, but it is poorly or lightly regulated by the states. In its toxic form, mercury is a severe threat to fetuses and to brain development in children, like the Zica virus.

Question 3) Do you support intervention by federal agencies to monitor and to regulate drinking water quality -- the main pathway for mercury -- by federal agencies including the US EPA? (In fact, the Republican Congress -- and its supporters in states like Florida including the Chamber of Commerce, Associated Industries of Florida and the Farm Bureau, wage a near-constant campaign against the strengthening for rules and laws by federal agencies to protect our water quality.)

Question 4) If you support a federal role in preventing the spread and the consequences for the Zica virus but not federal responsibility to tighten toxic mercury, monitoring and enforcement of protections for our drinking water supply, please explain why?

Investigative Report: WHO GETS THE MYSTERY WATER? HIALEAH OR MIAMI LAKES? By Geniusofdespair

EYE ON MIAMI INVESTIGATIVE REPORT:

City of Hialeah Water Treatment Plant

Long ago, in a galaxy not so far away, it was required that Hialeah build a water plant as a caveat to move the UDB line - the water was to supply the NEW development on the other side of the UDB. Hialeah agreed to build the plant so the UDB line was moved for Hialeah. They forked over $100 million for the reverse osmosis plant, but somehow the County also forked over the same. Why? It was a condition for the movement of the line. Why did the County pay anything?

Anyway the plant was built by some firm from Spain. Yes, we always use locals don't we? The plant had fatal flaws and wasn't able to run. The raw water for the plant was to come from 14 deep wells. The plant was designed to only supply 10 Million Gallons Daily (for the new development). To give you some idea of how little that is, FPL recently got permission to pump an additional 100 Million Gallons of fresh water daily to keep the toasty-hot cooling canals cooler. With the failed Plant in tow, the Spanish company was bought by another company in South Korea and the South Koreans were tasked with "fixing" the reverse osmosis plant. Did they? The plant has never worked right and the people working there are not water and sewer personnel. In the Flint Michigan spirit of water delivery, the Hialeah plant started delivering water anyway. Could be rotten water for all we know.

The staff at the plant "blended" the mystery Hialeah water with the usual water supplying Miami Lakes. Choke. Why Miami Lakes? Hialeah didn't want to poison its own? Anyway there is more to this story. Much more.

Why aren't County Workers and DERM overseeing this water delivery since the County has $100 million invested in this fiasco? I want to know, and so does Mayor Michael Pizzi who has called Lester Sola at WASA for answers.

By the way, why is the County buying up land way out west in North Dade? I heard they want to put a Wastewater treatment plant out there. Really? Out west near our North West well field? Is that why they are testing that deep deep inject well at Virginia Key. I see a conspiracy of bad planning going on and tainting of water in our future. Injection wells have never been a proven method to dispose of anything.

President of American Bar Association gets pasted on CBS 60 Minutes for trolling at the edge of laws prohibiting inflows of anonymous foreign cash ... by gimleteye

Here is another perspective. Want to know the original cause of traffic chaos in Miami-Dade County? It is not what you think.

A few weeks ago, the US Department of Treasury announced a trial program for Miami and Manhattan requiring the disclosure of identities behind all real estate transactions, especially limited liability corporations or LLCs. The move by the Obama administration was greeted with scarcely a note, except perhaps its opponents' quiet satisfaction that the transparency requirements sunsets in only a few months.

LLCs are legal corporate entities that shield the identity of investors and controlling interests. For foreign and domestic investors -- and criminals -- the use of LLCs in the United States has exploded. On 60 Minutes, broadcast last Sunday, an investigation disclosed that in 2015 more than 2 million LLCs were created. Impressive. But what's the link to traffic chaos?

Pull on the loose threads of traffic chaos, and you will come to investors and land speculators who hide their real identities through corporate shells and limited liability corporations.

To conceal identities and sources of foreign capital, not only shields flight capital into the United States -- and domestic criminal behavior -- it also empowers the lobbying class that dominates campaign fundraising practices, and through influence at the local, state and federal levels, the disbursement of funds and of priorities that lead to massive shifting of growth costs to taxpayers.

In other space, I've called the cause; growth-at-any-cost. The same boosterism embraced by successive generations of downtown lawyers, Chambers of Commerce, the Latin Builders Association and affiliated supply chains. Traffic chaos didn't happen by accident. It is the literal manifestation of political revolving doors, between regulators and regulated and the posse of land use consultants, traffic engineers, and "planners" who storm the public interest.

The January 31 segment on CBS 60 Minutes is astounding. It shows some of America's VIP lawyers trolling at the edge of the law with promises of anonymity for foreign investors. If these were bankers, their conduct would be illegal. Because they are lawyers -- and because lawyers wrote the laws of corporate identity -- things are "looser". It is an amazing segment (and followed by one of our favorite subjects, the melting ice sheet in Greenland).

Watch Anonymous, Inc. Think about the land owned outside Miami-Dade's Urban Development Boundary, and how much easier it would be for good policies to emerge protecting the built landscape and the environment, if only we knew exactly who the opponents were.

A key piece of leveling the playing field is disclosure of investors whose profit motives shift costs to taxpayers. Like traffic chaos.

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Marco Rubio to get Climate Change Petition in New Hampshire from our Pals. By Geniusofdespair

direct to video...
My friends are going to New Hampshire to deliver a Climate Change Petition. Marco you had better take it and heed it.

Now watch the damn video. It is VERY SHORT. WORTH YOUR TIME, especially to hear Dr. Hal Wanless' dire prediction at 52 seconds on the video.

Sign the petition and see same video here too.
_____________________________

Best article yet on Marco Rubio and best illustration:

"Mr. Rubio’s entire public image—the child of poor Cuban immigrants fleeing the repression of Castro’s Cuba who pulled himself up by his bootstraps and even now is a simple José Sixpack and family man—is less tethered to reality than The Wizard of Oz. For example, in his autobiography, An American Son: A Memoir, Mr. Rubio describes how he allegedly grew up poor and mowed the grass and walked dogs to make a bit of spare change. Technically this may be correct, but most poor kids don’t get paid by relatives heavily involved in narcotics trafficking and whose pets double as guard dogs for a drug cartel, as was the case with young Marco, a federal indictment shows."