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.