Deerfield Beach City Management responds to allegations??? Well, sort of.

OK, looks like I have made the big time and “He Who Shall Not Be Named” has given me a nickname that I wear proudly “Did Not Finish” or “DNF” for short.  Isn’t that cute?  I am glad to see that my words have reached the pinnacle of the blogosphere and fallen right into the lap of the Hanson/Klopp attack dog. 

I am shaking in my "DC's"...Laughable!

I am going to take a line from his own page August 16, 2008 in the post titled “Discredit the Messenger”-

“What the **** does my past personal life and actions have to do with the ills in town?” 

It’s sweet that you think Commissioner Poitier or Mr. Scott has anything to do with my blog.  Let me let you and the rest of your ilk in on a little secret.  Well, it’s not a secret because anyone who knows me (and trust me, you will get to me know, too) knows that may words cannot be bought.  I cannot be bossed.  So you make reference to my past and my compulsion to start things and not finish them, i.e my full Florida Merit Scholarship to Florida State University (I guess that was a hand-out, too!), which I blew because honestly I just wasn’t feeling school.  Do I wish I had stayed and completed it, NO! Hell No!  Keiser College same thing, Hell No. Jobs, I have had many and have left many of them on a whim or because I got bored.    There are many things I have never finished and many more that I never started, such as beating on women, stealing from the City I reside in, getting arrested (is that shocking to you that a young black male has never been arrested) and I have never been a "Toy" (do I look like Richard Pryor)...So, "DNF" I shall proudly be from this moment forward.  That’s just me, I’m a Sagittarius!!!

Now, let me say a little something to those “assclowns” at the City, Hanson Klopp, and Ganz. I really don’t appreciate the cowardly way you responded to my email.  Can you please refrain from spending any more of the city’s money on “He who must not be named”, since he appears to be your hitman for hire.  How much is his work costing the city and its residence? 

**Assclown- One, who, through the fault of his parents conception, is a skid mark in society's collective underwear.

Could anyone of those assclowns in the City Manager’s office respond to me directly?

Now, don’t get me wrong, I am very flattered that you got him to do your dirty work for you as I admire that douchebag for the work that he has done.  I take his attack as a personal compliment.  But, like I previously said, I don’t appreciate the fact that you assclowns didn’t address me yourselves.  Since, I sent the emails to City Management, not to a certain blogger.  Makes you wonder…hmmmmm????? (You fill in the blank.)  I guess City Management didn’t have time to respond to a Deerfield Beach resident because they were too busy devising ways to justify their frivolous expenditures and re-organizing/re-dedicating employees to other task like pilfering the City’s coffers and forwarding sensitive information to their hitman. 

I do have one question; however, how did that non-city employee (HWMNBN) get information relating to people’s private personnel files.  For him to detail that these raises were not merit based and just handouts…he would have had to review each recipient’s personnel record to verify that their annual reviews did not merit a raise.  He says he did this investigation back in 2008, maybe I overlooked it, but I didn’t see any of his post from 2008 that remotely resembled his current disdain with the City’s handing out of “merit raises”.  Could you please show me your source so I can verify the legitimacy of your claims that the only individuals’ eligible that didn’t get a “handout” was 4 Whites and 1 Hispanic. 

*Did you guys meet in some abandoned warehouse or maybe an empty parking lot to pass information to “He Who Shall Not Be Named”?

I just want to say to anyone reading this, “I have never suggested or implied that I am an investigative blogger. I did however advise that I will be giving my perspective on events.  As such, if you don’t like my perspective of you or any other individual then take it up with me directly don’t send your flunky.  It just reinforces the notion that you are an assclowns.  Get over yourselves…I Have!


Oh, BTW "HWSNBN" are you now comparing the workers who got "merit raises" to dogs?  If so, then according to your own calculations you are a racist.  I don't want to believe, though.

Deerfield Beach we deserve better.

Broward Health for the people or for themselves??????Cont'd Day 2 part 2

So, I received a response from the Vice President of Community Health Services and was informed that Broward Health was sincerely sorry about the treatment my uncle and I received at their facility.  They advised that they will be discussing my concerns with their staff and addressing them appropriately.


I advised them that I would like to be kept abreast of the outcome of their discussions and that I look forward to seeing a change in the work culture.  I am sure that everyone that attends any of their facilities will appreciate anything that is accomplished from this.


Maybe, if they make strides in providing better customer care the other hospitals real follow suit, especially once they realize that American's are fed up with the third world treatment.u 


***I will be calling them tomorrow to find out what steps were taken.  I will keep you informed.****

Deerfield Beach Customer Connection, helpful or wasteful???

Previously in my post, “It's time to speak litely and carry a big stick”, I commented on Commissioner Ganz’s pet project of creating a new Customer Connection portion of the City of Deerfield Beach’s website, to provide an easier way for Deerfield residence to get information.

 

Well, my question is how you can add a new section to a website that itself is not updated.  If you are looking to find out when the next commission meeting will be you will find information indicating that the next meeting is in 2009.  The "Documents Center" page is not fully updated for customer review and download, either.  These are just a couple of examples of out-dated information on the regular website that, even after the implementation of Customer Connection, have yet to be updated.   

 

So now instead of fixing or improving the system that you already have, you spend more money developing a new system that’s based on the old.  Is that fiscally responsible?

 

I for one would love to see the records of how “Customer Connection” was funded and how it is maintained.  Maybe, I’ll call the “CC” and see if they have the right answer or can direct me to someone who can.

Broward Health for the people or for themselves??????Cont'd Day 2

One day has gone by since I wrote about Broward Health and emailed them.  I have yet to hear back from anyone from that organization.  I emailed a copy of the complaint to the MCA Division of Medical Quality Assurance @ The Florida Department of Health this morning and I will see what they have to say.


I am not looking for anyone to get fired, but what I do want is for some protocols or standards to be put in place that their employees must follow to ensure that service to the public comes first.


Broward Health's facilities seem to foster a work culture that promotes laziness, lack of care and concern for the patient.  This type of work culture is the reason why the hospitals and doctors are in the predicament they are in now because they forget about the needs of the patient and provide sub-standard care which leads to malpractice and wrongful death suits.  


So to any Broward Health Personnel, I hope that you are not responsible for this work culture and that you all begin to treat your patients as you would want to be treated, if the roles were reversed.  We all deserve to be treated with dignity, respect, and care.  Being to your station on time or at least when you say you will be and keeping appointments is all part of that.  Just because someone is receiving free assistance does not mean that they deserve any less care or worse treatment than the privately insured, which by the way is not much better.

Hanson & Klopp, a Lose/Lose Combination for Deerfield Beach and it's Employees

Burgess “Balance the Budget on the Backs of Blacks” Hanson is at it again.  The city has offered its heart and soul employees an opportunity to save their jobs.   The clincher is that they have to take a pay cut, give up their pay raises earned in 2010 and then on top of all that they have to help the city pick up the tab for the insurance the City provides to them.  In essence, it seems like Hanson wants the employees to pay the City for allowing them to work.

WTF, this is some Mafioso style **** (insert expletive here).  So, let me address this one kick in the a$$ at a time.

So who's idea was it anyway?

First, the City wants the general employee union to agree to a 5-percent across the board pay cut.  So what does this mean exactly?  All city employees will have a 5 percent reduced salary or just the ones who slave for the city each day in Parks and recreations, Public Works and other departments where the majority of the employees are black.  Will the city management and their assistants be taking a pay cut?  If I remember correctly, according to the 2010/2011 budget proposed by Hanson it indicated that his office was getting over $900,000.00, a $300,000.00 hike from last year’s budget.  So he found money to pay himself and his friends, but somehow the city could not afford to keep those they laid-off due to budget constraints.  I can see why…Deerfield Beach had to make sure that Hanson and his cronies can get paid.

Apparently, they had job openings in the City Manager’s office where assistants to assistants could make over $80,000.00.  I wish I could make that money as a glorified secretary.  Hanson, are you still hiring in management, I type 85 wpm and I have a great phone voice.  I don’t look to good in stiletto’s, but for $80,000.00 I’ll surely wear them and I’d be fierce, if that’s what it takes to get paid by the City and keep your job. 

Hanson interviewing Klopp after his promotion to Assistant City Manager
CLICK TO ENLARGE

Secondly, the City is asking that the general employees give up the “merit pay raises” from 2010, which are raises the employees earned because of positive evaluations for services rendered to the city.  Will management be giving up their pay raises?  Because it would seem that Hanson himself would be taking a drastic pay cut then, because he just got about $90,000.00 merit pay raise when he went from acting City Manager to City Manager in 2010.  Even, though he had no experience as a City Manager he is making over $150,000.00.  Who did he sleep with to get that job, or is that why his hands are never visible while on the Dias because he is giving one of the Commissioners a handjob as gratitude for that cushy position.  Then another slap in the face to those laid-off employees of the City.  Hanson hires Keven “Kill a City” Klopp, a guy who was most recently fired from the City of North Miami Beach and if you take a look at what’s happening there in the last 4 years with Management getting pay raises while the city employees get laid-off, and the City’s employee unions were being railroaded into agreements help the City pay for its top heavy management and administration departments. 

Wait, that’s happening here too.  So, I guess that’s why Burgess “Balance the Budget on the Backs of Blacks” Hanson hired him because he has experience in getting City Management pay raises, while justifying the expenses by reorganizing departments and then firing dedicated city employee’s to free up some cash.  It must be great to be in os the inner sanctum of the Burgess/Klopp gang.  Union negotiators and bargaining units beware because you are dealing with two made-men and the decks are stacked against you.

Third, the City is requesting that the general employees pay 10 percent of the City’s cost for individual health plan insurance premiums.  This would free up a lot of revenue that can be used to pad the pockets of the already overpaid management team. 

In conclusion, the City is so broke that it wants its general employees to take a 5 percent pay cut, give up their “merit” raises from 2010, and pay an additional 10 percent of their insurance premiums.   All the while paying the management teams exorbitant sums of money, while breaking the backs of its dedicated employees. 

Burgess “Balance the Budget on the Backs of Blacks” Hanson proposed cutting the budgets of almost every single department in the City Of Deerfield Beach, except Human Resources, Commission, City Clerk, Engineering/Utilities, Solid Waste, Risk Management, and Non-Departmental expenditures, while proposing an increase of his own budget by about 57 percent, from $633,026.00 in 2010 to a proposed $987,939.00 in 2011.  Now you tell me, what tough decisions were made, except for what departments to cut so we can pay our huge and undeserved salaries?  Also, I didn’t even mention the fact that Hanson has been pitching around the idea that the laying off of sanitation workers (Solid Waste and Recycling), who are currently exempt from these union talks because the City does not have any information as to the effectiveness of this move, will lower our taxes.  Show me the proof, first buddy.  Because all I have seen so far is you and your flunkies breaking our backs while you pad your pockets and sit on your collective asses.

Burgess Hanson, you need to go, take Keven “Kill a City” Klopp and the rest of your lot with you.  The City of Deerfield Beach, its residence and its employees cannot afford you any longer. 

Broward Health for the people or for themselves??????

I emailed the following to Broward Health.  

Dear Frank Nask, President/CEO , Broward Health

Today at 12:10pm I arrived with my uncle at the Annie L Weaver Health Center (formerly Pompano Adult Clinic) located at 2011 NW 3^rd Avenue and I was surprised because I had never been to this place before nor had I heard of it, but my uncle is on Broward’s Medicaid program and this is where he gets his medications. 

Since he had been advised last Friday that his prescription would be ready by 10am on Monday, I did not go in with him as I figured that he would be okay picking up a prescription.  So, I sat in the car and waited until I saw him approaching at about 12:58pm and so I started the engine in anticipation to depart this place, but when he got in the car he had only the papers that I sent him in with.  So I asked him where the prescription was and he replied that it wasn’t ready.  So, I figured I’d go back in with him and check because I know my uncle is impatient.  So when I went into the facility, I wasn’t shocked to see the numerous amounts of people that were inside waiting.  I figured, hey it’s free or low-cost health care so you have to be patient.  I proceeded over to the cashier area, which is where you pick up the prescriptions, and there was about 6 people or so waiting for their prescriptions.  In the cashier’s window was a sign “Be Back at 1:15”, so no problem we can wait.  I sat quietly and listened to horror stories about the wait time at this facility and others.  I heard stories about people bringing their breakfast and lunch to a 9am appointment because they knew that they would be there all day.  

“Are you freaking serious?”  I thought to myself, “all day just to pick up prescriptions or see a doctor.  

Well, I got to see exactly what these people were talking about because at 1:25pm the cashier had still not returned, so I approached the registration desk and the gentlemen informed me that the individual, a Ms. Dawn Jones, was at lunch and would be back shortly.  So, I went back to my sit, figuring “yeah, she’d be back soon,  she’s just running late”.  The people in the line had become restless at this point because some had been there since (from what I gathered) about noon and had still not received their presriptions.  I became anxious and began a conversation with several individual(s) who shall remain nameless (let’s just say they are there a lot) told me that this happens all the time because Ms. Jones and the Manager (I didn’t get her name) are friends.  They proceeded to tell me that even if I complained to the manager, (and this has often happened) nothing is going to change and it gets swept under the rug.  

“Wait” I thought, “Is my time and the other people who come here’s time not just as valuable as the workers here.” Should we not be treated with respect and dignity and not have our time wasted just because someone has a friend in a managerial position.”

Suffice it to say that she did not return until after 1:50pm and then she began her job of passing out the prescriptions.  At 1:50pm the sign said 1:15pm and I know she didn't go to lunch at 12:50 because the people who were in line stated the she left at about 12:05pm.  Now, my gears are grinding and trying to figure out the next step, so I decided to blog about it and send a copy of this to the official in charge of Broward Health (as I had been advised that the manager sweeps things under the rug) and see what happens.  This kind of treatment should not happen to Americans in America.  This is the kind of treatment you see in movies or in documentaries of third world countries, not here in America.  The sad thing is after I experienced this first hand come to find out that this is the norm around Broward and the country.  No, No, this will not do, not at all.

So, Mr. Nask of the "publicly-funded" Broward Health what are you going to do about this?  Tax payers’ dollars are being wasted in your facilities and we want answers.   I know that Broward Health’s Mission is “to provide quality health care to the people they serve and support the needs of all physicians and employees.” But it seems like you guys are only supporting the employees, if a work culture like this is allowed to continue you will not be able to achieve your vision of providing world class healthcare to the people you serve because your employees are doing those same people a disservice by not reporting back to their stations on time and ignoring the needs of your patients.  

***I will keep you guys posted of the outcome

Black History and Chaz Stevens

Well, Chaz Stevens is at it again, but now he is not just attacking Commissioner Sylvia Poitier or recently vindicated former commissioner Gloria Battle, but he is attacking the black community as a whole.

 

I have recently been trying to get a project started to record oral testimonies of members of the black community in Deerfield Beach.  I am doing this in attempt to preserve our rich heritage and fill in the blanks in our City’s history because for the most part “our” history has been omitted (intentionally or un-intentionally). 

Now, I originally had this idea back on March 8, 2011 (some of you may remember this day because you went out and voted), while I was out at the polling places communing with the older generation.  I was inundated with stories of Deerfield Beach that I had never heard before.  I will not tell them here, but I will say that blacks have a great story to tell about our city.  Last week, I became really motivated to get this project up and running when a local pastor got up at the commission meeting and reminded the commissioners that Deerfield Beach does not have an accurate accounting of legacies and histories of the black community that comprise this city.  So, I have contacted the churches in the black community and reached out to the Deerfield Beach Historical Society, who originally started this project but never completed it, notifying them that we were gearing up to start this project again and reiterating to them the importance of collecting our information and preserving it for future generations.  

My team and I have yet to contact any individual, company, or the City for financial assistance on this project.  The only entity that has been contacted is the Deerfield Beach Historical Society, as they would be the ones who would and did handle this project.  Now, if they went to the City because this project was originally started by the City and would benefit the City for funding then why is Chaz Stevens concerned about it.  Is capturing and recording our history within this city not important enough to warrant the City’s financial assistance.  In a time, when the black community is already feeling left out, abandoned, and bamboozled by the City of Deerfield Beach.  This would be a major step toward unity within our City.  But with or without the City’s help this project will be completed, it would be nice to have the assistance of the City.

The black history of Deerfield Beach is a history that has yet to be revealed to the public, but if I have my way it will soon be available for all to read in black and white, for Blacks Whites and everything in between.  

Another Former Commissioner, Vindicated!

Yesterday, another former commissioner, Michelle Spence Jones, was vindicated and a jury found her not guilty of bribery charges.

The state and others would have us believe that Jones solicited $25,000 from a real estate developer in return for her vote on changing South east 2^nd Street to Brickell Avenue, which would have meant a boost in property value for the developer’s project.  The state insisted that the $25,000 contribution went to benefit Jones and not a legitimate charity.  Spence Jones herself insisting she did nothing wrong from the start.  It would turn out that the commission did not have the authority to make such a name change and never voted on the issue. 

Ummmmm, I am not the sharpest tack in the box, but wouldn’t a seasoned real estate developer know or at the very least have researched the commission’s ability to handle the request he was supposedly paying for.  So why would he still pay and reach out to others to pay Jones, for a vote on a transaction that she would have no power to control. Looks like the State was trying to screw justice and railroad, Ms. Jones because shouldn’t someone have asked this information a while ago and that would have saved the poor citizens of Miami, who just recalled their Mayor and another commissioner for wasting their money.  It might be time to get your  petitions back out Miami, and look toward the State Attorney’s office and then join the rest of us in Florida in trying to get rid of Rick “Jim Crow” Scott.

After a couple of months of witnesses, a few hundred thousand in tax dollars, the damage to Jones reputation, and not to mention the damage to the State Attorney’s Office reputation a jury took about 90 minutes to deliberate and come back with a “Not Guilty” verdict.  Vindicating Spence Jones and sending a great big “F YOU” to all her doubters and naysayers.   I personally would like to invite everyone reading this to join me in a moment of silence for the death of the career of Richard Scruggs, Former State Attorney.  We don’t have funds to waste here in Florida, the money we wasted in this trial and holding re-elections and special elections could have been better spent on our education budget.  Anyone willing to blatantly waste our time and money is not fit to be in their position and should not be allowed to remain in such.  We as citizens need to speak up and tell our government to curtail its spending.  We waste money so willfully and stupidly and yet cut the programs and budgets that benefit us the most. 

One way to stop such waste is by streamlining the election system by holding all elections on the same day, instead of staggering them…that would increase voter turnout and save the counties and the state money.  We could also look into having fewer school boards across the state, why do we need a school board in each county; one “Superior School Board of the State of Florida” would suffice.  Why are we paying thousands to individuals on the School Boards and they are not helping our kids.  That money would be better spent on our teachers, books, and fine arts programs.  Maybe then our education system will run better and produce better and smarter citizens.  Not just ones who can’t fill out applications or even vote because those items are not in FCAT format.  Speaking of FCAT, the data clearly shows that the standardized testing is not working.  Our children, our teachers, and our schools are not benefitting from it and we are losing generations of kids because of it.  Unless, that is the product you are trying to achieve? 

So, it’s time to act up and speak out and let our governments know that we are tired of this wasteful spending, we are fed up with selective prosecutions, and we are tired of our kids being left behind because of FCAT.  Something has to change and if they are not part of the solution they are the problem and like a cancer we will search you out and cut you off!

To be or not to be a racist, that is the question.

Let’s talk about racism, which is defined as the belief that genetic factors that constitute race, ethnicity, or nationality are a primary determinant of human traits and capacities and those ethnic differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.

I keep seeing that word pop up on the blog of Chaz Stevens.  First in an article related to the recently vindicated former Commissioner, Gloria Battle, and now in his rants against newly re-elected City Commissioner, Sylvia Poitier.  I have not heard any individual call him a racist, so it makes me wonder why he would jump to that conclusion.  Is it his guilty conscience or is it something a little more sinister?  I don’t know, but I wish he would stop brandishing that sword at our community before he cuts his own head off with it.

I personally stated on this blog that he seemed to be focusing on two individuals Gloria Battle and Sylvia Poitier and that he seemed to be turning a blind eye to other possible corruption within the city.  I came to this conclusion based on comments from his blog related to current Deerfield Beach Mayor, Peggy Noland and the fact that the Kessler report only reviewed a “sample of cases”, instead of auditing the entire city.  Come on, you are a self-proclaimed political watchdog and yet you sit back and watch corruption take place, but you doggedly attack two individuals and you allow a partial accounting of the city you say is so corrupt…This would mean you are either intentionally allowing a witch hunt to take place or you are incompetent.  Either way, you can’t be trusted anymore because you are not impartial and have an agenda, to which none of us are privy to.

Now you may be saying that he is just taking on two politicians at a time and that may be so, but since no one came out and actually called him a racist why jump to that.  He is consistently ridiculing others for playing the race card, but is he not doing the same.  It would seem that he is playing the “they are questioning me because they think I am a racist” card.  This does 2 things; one it throws suspicion off your true intent and second it angers a group of people energizing them to support you.  Brilliant, my good man, bloody brilliant I say! You are a genius and maybe you are a racist just not in the manner which we normally consider it.  Consider this, he consistently states how intelligent he is and how no one is as smart as he.  He is consistently belittling anyone who does not share his opinion. Maybe, just maybe he sincerely feels that he is genetically superior to all individuals in the human race, so in essence he is a racist just instead of ethnicity he is a racist against all of us regular humans.

I for one do not believe that Chaz Stevens is a racist.  I do, however, think he has some deep seeded issues, which I am sure he himself would admit to having...I know that I do.

It's time to speak litely and carry a big stick.

Today was my first City of Deerfield Beach Commission meeting and I must say that at the very least it was interesting.  I can see why many people do not regularly attend them as this meeting was very boring.  However, because I know that it is a necessity that all Americans participate in government and that participation should start at the municipal level.  So I stayed awake and remained attentive.   

I sat and I listened to individuals give presentations, I watched the induction ceremony of the two re-elected Commissioners, Poitier and Miller, and I paid close attention to the demeanour of the other commissioners as each took turns to speak.  What I focused on however, was the feeling I got of total disgust as I watched Commissioner Ganz give Commissioner Poitier the evil-eye every chance he got.  I watched as he damn near yawned every time she or Commissioner Miller spoke.  Who does this guy think he is?  I don’t know, but something tells me he will find out what I think very soon and it may not be pretty.  Anyway, I also noticed that there were several noticeably absent individuals, namely Ben Preston and Beulah Hill, who I guess are home tending their wounds from last week’s election defeat.  But, I digress.

Commissioner Miller tried to set the tone for the meeting by reiterating his campaign message of unity and peace among the Commissioners and the City in general by saying “It’s not them against us, or them against me. It’s all of us together in this economy trying to move forward with reduced revenues”.  No truer sentiment has ever been spoken, well at least not in those chambers.  But how would I know because it was my first time there and I was very proud to hear someone address our city’s unity concerns. (WTG, Joe Miller)

So, Commissioner Poitier spoke and it was the usual platitudes, but during the course of the meeting she addressed the Commissioners and stated her feelings about that “Politician Slayer” or how he is more fondly known in District 2 “He who shall not be named”.  She stated that she believed that he  started “a personal attack” that is ruining her character.  She went on to say that “either he will have to call for a showdown” or she’ll “have to file a lawsuit”.  I personally would love to see a showdown between these two, but being realistic a lawsuit would be great.  Maybe then he will be more objective in his reporting.  She asked the City Attorney about the legal avenues available to her to get “He who should not be named” to stop his personal vendetta against her from playing out on his blog.  She went on to continue the theme of unity by pointing out that when “He who should not be named” cyber attacked another elected official down in Hallandale, the Commissioners there rallied together, as a united front, and got him to stop.  Boy, this unity concept keeps rearing it’s little head, huh.

After, Commissioner Poitier was finished addressing the board, Commissioner Ganz took the floor and he told us about an idea that he had that had come to fruition in the city.  He had organized a new website for the city and phone bank where people could call and get frequently asked questions answered and or be referred to the individuals who could answer them.  Soooo, the city has money to start up another website and create a phone bank to do the same job that is already being done by the current website and other city employees right now????  Geez, I thought the City was under financial strain, so much so that they laid off 106 individuals who kept the city clean…I sincerely hope some of those individuals were asked to fill the jobs created by this new development of Ganz’s.  Somehow I doubt it, though.

So, at this point in the meeting the Mayor Noland opened the floor up to the public and I was unsure who could speak, but I was dying to get up there and address them.  So, I asked around and found out that anyone could speak.  Oh, why did they tell me that and I get three minutes to lay in to them.  Oh, yeah!!!  So I waited for an opening and I jumped up and walked up to the mike.  I first started off by advising them that this was my first time at a meeting and that I was grateful to Commissioner Poitier for energizing me to get involved.  I then proceeded to tell them how I was disappointed in them because they were always talking about “UNITY” on the Board and in the City and yet none of them seemed to want to come to the aid of their fellow commissioner when it came down to her personal issue with “He whjo should be named”.  I pointed out to Mayor Noland that he had written about her too and that if I took the opportunity right here on this very blog to expound on his thoughts about her, she would want her colleagues to rally around her.  I further pointed out that we, the youthful, need to be more involved and that I was working with others to try and make that a reality here in Deerfield Beach.  Now, they seemed receptive to this idea, but hey we’ll see.

So, I have begun my journey to better myself and my community by becoming a voice for my generation.  I hope that those under 40 that are reading this realize that we need to put down the X-Box controllers and step away from our laptops long enough to get involved with our communities and begin the passing of the torches.  We are the future and that future is here and now.  It’s ours to make or break!

P.S.

To the lovely silver-haired gentlemen who stated that Blacks need to stop asking someone to write “our” history for us.  I have one thing to say to you, my good sir. 

Challenge Accepted!! 

Governor Rick Scott, brings Jim Crow back to Florida!

Last Wednesday, Florida Governor, Rick Scott and his cabinet, acting as the board of executive clemency, unanimously approved new rules which requires that criminally convicted non-violent felons to wait a minimum of 5 years after they have completed parole and paid restitutions before they can apply to have their voting rights restored.  Convicted violent felons have to wait 7 years and must have a hearing to determine if their rights can be restored. 

So, you are telling me even after these individuals have served their time and paid their dues, they still have to wait an additional 5 to 7 years before they can petition to get back their most basic right, which is the right to vote.  Scott and cronies, (All republicans, I might add) dropped this bomb after only 30 minutes of public hearings, which were limited to 2 minutes per person, and they didn’t make the rules available for review until minutes before the vote would be decided.   If this isn’t a racist move aimed at perpetuating black voter disenfranchisement, I don’t know what is.  Scott, who himself should be listed as a felon for his companies crimes against the taxpayer and the Medicaid system, and his cohorts should be held accountable for this blatant attack on the Bill of rights and democracy itself.

He has been in office for, what 6 months, and basically the first thing he does is to bring back restrictions that were used in the past to keep newly freed slaves from becoming members of our democratic society!  Some have dubbed this a return to “Jim Crow” era politics and I agree.  Why the sudden reversal of automatic restitution of rights? That is the question that we all should be asking ourselves and then go out and demand that Scott answer us.  This question was posed to Rick “Jim Crow” Scott and he basically said “seemed reasonable”.  Is that a reasonable answer for one of our elected officials who is supposed to represent all Floridians.  Should there not have been more of a discussion on the matter, since it does have such a huge impact on his constituents and their relatives.  It would seem that a discussion is not what they wanted.  Jim Crow era legislation is exactly what they want, as to keep a large number of individuals who more often than not would vote, if and when allowed, democrat.  That is the only reason I can see an all republican board and governor would take this type of action.

With a very important election race coming up in 2012, that will determine who our next Commander-in-Chief will be, this seems a little odd.  Why is the voting right of felons your main concern in the State of Florida.  A state mind you that in the past have determined the outcome of several Presidential elections, by vote and by judicial ruling (say thank you George W. Bush).   Why would you want to have this voting extra voting block in the mix.  A block of votes that would could very well unseat all of the republicans, especially if they actually get their rights back and go out and vote.  Do you know the change that they could affect in our society, the power they would have.  That is a very scary thought for people who are grasping and clawing for power.  So they came up with these new restrictions on voting rights to basically make it difficult, if not impossible, for felons to become productive members of society again.  They can pay taxes, but they can’t vote.  Wasn’t this country founded on a principal of “No taxation, without representation”?  Who then is representing that group of individuals?  Are we also going to limit their paying of taxes, as well?  Rick, that’s also reasonable, why was there no discussion about that.

I am just going to come out and say it, Rick “Jim Crow” Scott is the worst thing that has happened to Florida, since well Jeb “Leave all the black kids behind” Bush.  Scott’s ideas on education, welfare reform, and now felon voter rights are just not good for Floridians.  His ideas on education are to rate teachers based on the performance of their students.  Now this would be okay, if all students learned the same and all schools were funded the same.  Since they are not, standardized, or what I like to call bastardized, testing does not accurately rate how well a teacher is teaching and therefore should only be a small part of the rating scale, not the end all be all of it. 

Is there a pattern here? What are these republicans trying to do?  They are dumbing down our kids by solely preparing them to take a standardized test and not preparing them for college and the real world because they don’t want us to be educated, if our kids are not educated they cannot question them and if they are discouraged and turn from education where else will they turn but to the streets and then to a life of crime.  Is this a two-pronged attack on the black community to impose these standardized tests on us that we are disproportionately failing, discouraging us so we turn to crime and become felons and then lose our rights, affectively enslaving us. 

Well, I say to you Rick “Jim Crow” Scott and anyone else who may be planning any form of injustice against the black community.  “The chains you plan for us, are the chains you’ll rot in!” (In my Ms. Celie voice)

Lend a helping hand!

I would like to send my condolences and heartfelt sympathies to any and all individuals affected by the recent earthquakes and tsunamis that hit Japan and the surrounding area.  It is a times like these that we as the human race need to band together and help those less fortunate.

 

Please take into consideration the multitudes of people that have been devastated by earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, and other natural disasters as of late.  I would hate to sound preachy and say this is evidence of apocalyptic tidings, but what other conclusions can be drawn from these recent misfortunes befalling our world.

   

These are warnings, from who I don’t even want to take a guess, and the reason, I pass on inputting my thoughts on that as well.  The only thing I know for sure is that we need to all look at ourselves and decide whose side we are on.  Are we going to side with money, greed, and power, or are we going to side with people.  I know that I am on the side of people because we all should help each other and not just serve self.

 

“Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.”   Martin Luther King, Jr.

Through altruism we will create a social society designed on the betterment of all, instead of the advancement of few.  My dollar is your dollar, my bread is your bread, and my fulfillment is your fulfillment.  These things are true when the need of the many is respected and honoured and outweighs the wants of the few.

Look in your own city and you will see the blight that has corrupted us.  From reports of CEO’s robbing their workers’ pensions, from cities firing employees as political pawns to anger communities to action, or even bloggers trying to make examples of certain individuals and taking a blind eye to the corruptness of others.

 

We have to get over the trappings of this world as they are fragile and easily broken, as these recent disasters have taught us, and we need to start lending a helping hand to our brothers.

“If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and shall not be answered.”  Proverbs 21:13

"And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains. “But be on your guard. For they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them." Mark 13:7-9

So be on the lookout for your chance to help in your communities because the best place to start is at home and then work outwards.  We in Florida have been very lucky in the recent years as to have averted many a natural disaster that have been in our path.  Be blessed and pass it on!

 

Gloria Battle, Former Commissioner, Vindicated!

The Broward County State Attorney’s Office has exonerated former Deerfield Beach City Commissioner Gloria Battle by closing its case regarding her voting in favour of a 2009 grant proposal that she wrote for the Haitian American Consortium, prior to her appointment to the city commission.  The BCSAO determined that Battle was reimbursed the $750 by the HAC prior to becoming City Commissioner, an appointment that could not have been foreseen and therefore it does not appear that she acted criminally.  I guess she won’t be going to jail.  Sorry, May Another One Survive! 

The witch hunt against Battle, initiated by the self-proclaimed “Politician Slayer”, has finally come to an end.  The funny thing is even after the BCSAO concluded their investigation he is still trying to keep the matter ongoing.  When will this guy learn? I don’t know, but I hope it is soon because it’s time for him to come back down to reality.  He got lucky with Capellini and Gonot, but it would seem that this time his luck may have run out.  I told him that he was “ranting and raving” and spouting “off conjecture about political candidates and hoping to get a response” and it would seem I was right.  If you shoot enough bullets into a crowd, you surely may hit someone.  But looks like his aim was off when he shot at Gloria Battle. 

Ms. Battle has insisted all along that she did nothing criminally wrong, but that idiot kept on blogging and twisting the truth.  I wonder what else is he stretching and twisting the truth about. 

I called him a “political pawn” and it would seem that maybe he is.  He made reference recently in a post entitled “Poitier won. Now we can send her to jail” that current Deerfield Beach Mayor, Peggy Noland, illegally voted to approve her husband’s pay increase.  Now where are the criminal complaints about that?  How many complaints and post did you publish about that little incident?  Can we trust you?  I think not, with all these filings and complaints, he is costing the city big money.  For Kessler to audit the city, I am sure that cost a pretty penny.  And he keeps talking about individuals not providing all pertinent information, so why is it that Kessler audited the city, but only used a sample of cases, huh?  Who provided them with those specific cases and why was the sample cases focused primarily on one individual?  If you really did witness Peggy Noland illegally vote to approve her husband’s salary increase, why did you not file a complaint about it.  Why didn’t Kessler look into that?  Why has there been no mentioning of Ganz in any of your post.  A political pawn or are you more of an attack dog?  Who is your master? Ganz, Noland, Hanson, all three or is there someone more insidious pulling the strings?

Well, at least one victim of your lunacy, hypocrisy, idiocy, and stupidity has come through the fires of your witch hunt unscathed.  Way to go, Gloria Battle!

I can’t wait to see who’s next to escape his wraith.