As published in the Miami Herald (9/17/20)

RIPE FRUIT

If ex-felons must pay court fees before voting then why does this not apply to all citizens?

A court fine is a civil penalty regardless of how it was incurred. Does the court have a different set of fees and fines for felons? And did the court address the imperfect system of administering the fines?

This ruling is a poll tax, pure and simple, a clear example of how the courts are used to implement facism. Most Floridians live under a facist system at every level of government: County, State and Federal.

We should replace the State flag, and maybe the Stars and Stripes too, with one with a banana in a field of white.

Perhaps the banana on a wall at Art Basel was prescient.

 

 As published in the Miami Herald August 20, 2020

    When Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Giménez was a County Commissioner, he seemed to be a fair minded, somewhat objective politician. So, when, in 2011, he ran for mayor I supported him and campaigned for him, As we stood in U.S. 1 waving at cars I asked him, when he became mayor, to please give me some time to discuss environmental issues. It never happened. Instead, I saw first hand that his Regulatory and  Economic Resources Department always gave FPL an easy road and never fully imposed or enforced meaningful and effective measures to curb FPL’s contamination, putrefaction and salinization of once pristine and bucolic Turkey Point as he hobnobbed with FPL executives.
          As an administrator, he created an autocratic, top down government where many were afraid to speak out and turned off instead. By advocating small government, our services and infrastructure suffered; Miami has always been willing to tax  itself for needed services if they understood the problem.  He micromanaged our traffic and transit departments and the Smart Plan to a standstill undermining the several advisory committees to impose his own solutions. His marching order to his department heads, “development.” His  staff’s answer to essential last mile connectivity for transit,  “Let them take Uber”: not so easy for the 25% of our citizens living below the poverty line. And his insensitive  reduction of library and police services reflected a disregard for the basic needs of our citizens and our community. His staff has disrupted the Coconut Grove Playhouse rebuild when he himself does not  really care what happens to it.
       So do we really need a visionless Philistine with a trademark Mussolini sneer and attitude to take his anti-environmental and insensitive small government philosophy to the U.S. Congress?  Not with my vote

As published in the Miami Herald, November 22, 2019

 

 

 Unpublished Letter to the Miami Herald

Playhouse Economics

The current County plan for the restoration of the Coconut Grove Playhouse as championed by Commissioner Raquel Regalado will do nothing to return the $25 million in annual revenue to  Coconut Grove businesses the Playhouse generated before it closed in 2006. In fact, the County plan is specifically designed to keep patrons on the property with shops and restaurants.  Historically, in addition to being a world renowned theatrical icon, the Playhouse was an economic driver for the Grove producing 40% of its revenue in 2000.  With only 300 seats a restored Playhouse would be but a a shadow of its historic predecessor which had 1100 main stage seats and a smaller 150 seat venue and would be physically and financially incapable of presenting major theatrical offerings. The gross demolition in the County's plan evoked this statement by the HEP Board, Deputy State Preservation Office Jason Aldridge:  "...demolition may affect the Playhouse's Nation Historic Register designation" which would cause a loss of funding.

      Since the County's plan is untenable  economically, theatrically and regarding historic preservation, it would seem that either the County or the State should take steps to solicit other plans which will actually restore the Playhouse as it was in 2006 with the potential to produce a full range of theater and to produce the revenue needed to revitalize the Grove  It was such a fine time for the Grove and for Miami with world class directors, actors and audiences. And for Grove businesses and employees.

 Unvaccinated: A Menace

The unvaccinated are potential hosts for Covid 19 in which to live and mutate. They are like little children who bring home every bug that’s out there. Except this little bug causes blood clots that can  shutdown your organs and turn your brain to mush. The unvaccinated are a danger to themselves and others. They really should be required to wear a badge telling others to avoid them.

But, since they probably won’t,  perhaps those who are vaccinated could have a symbol which cannot be counterfeited,  Maybe a fingerprint or eye scan for entry into public places tied to a data base.  We must begin to protect ourselves from a very difficult  disease to contain and control and against walking germ factories who won’t tell us they are threatening our lives.

 An Alternative Reality - Unpublished Letter To The Editor Miami Herald

   America, like Nazi Germany and the novel 1984. is living with an alternative reality for half of its voting population. Science and politics for them are whatever they say they are and  they are using every possible means to be in a position of power to impose their agenda on the other half in every aspect of society. This is not the first time in history that this has happened but it is happening here and now to us and it is an existential threat to our democracy and our way of life.  In our nation with our form of government the only way to defeat the forces working to re-empower a dystopian autocracy is to elect officials with centrist views who will reverse self serving laws and statutes and follow rational rather than objectively misguided principles and decisions. To not do this and to allow the dissenters to prevail will mark the end of our 245 year civic democratic experiment and put many of our minorities and less fortunate citizens in grave danger. We are already seeing this where radical views have been kindled leading to acting out against Congress and minorities.  We must be fully aware of the consequences of accepting fiction as truth and entertainment as legitimate news. But the right will not change. They will not give up their tribalism, their core views and values. We can only contain them by political success. Voter and civic apathy will only guarantee that they will prevail. Only if everyone who understands this is moved to act, to speak out, to support democratic politics financially and with time,  to pursue civic engagement  and to vote can we save our nation as a functioning democracy and not a right wing autocracy.

 

AS PUBLISHED IN THE MIAMI HERALD 

 

THEY MISSED THE POINT

OF THE 836 EXTENSION

   RE: 836 Parkway Ruling (Apr 1, 2020)

   In 2005 when the late David Lyons and I, as founders of Citizens Against Nonconcurrency Task Force, Inc., suggested to MDX the extension of SR 836 south toward SW 136 Street we had some specific reasons in mind.  As victims, even then, of major traffic congestion east of 97 Ave and south of Bird Road we conceptualized the roadway as a way of reducing the congestion in our area by allowing traffic from West Kendall to go west to it in the A.M.and east from it in the P.M. The judge focused on time, not necessarily the most important variable. The roadway would provide an additional route. It would create a ring road; Miami is one of the only major cities in the world which does not have one. Wikipedia lists hundreds of cities which do have one.
     The planned roadway would specifically be designed to facilitate bus rapid transit further relieving traffic in the area. We proposed depots without
parking facilities where circulator vehicles could drop off passengers to be picked up by those buses. The goal of all transit should be to get people out of their cars; this roadway would contribute to that.
    Reading the judge’s ruling it appears that both sides have more work to do. The petitioners, including one who wants to build a new city there, must more closely assess the actual impact of the roadway on the environment and agriculture. The judge did not seem to think it was onerous but rather focused on technicalities. And the SFWMD is remiss in not actually completing its plans on what they will be doing in the area. The defendants are also at fault in not providing specific measures which will assure that building beyond the UDB will not occur except for agricultural use.
     From here on a lot of politics will determine the outcome of what should be a major improvement in our traffic and transit systems. And, we the people, are still stuck in our cars with roads which are always behind the need and transit which does not provide first and last mile service, and is seamless, clean, safe, convenient and dependable.

Barry J. White
President
Citizens Against Nonconcurrency Task Force, Inc./CANT
Miami