We have great readers and commenters here at Raised on Hoecakes. Generally speaking, comments are polite, well written and often factual.
Comments made by people often lead us into another direction. As you can imagine, it is impossible for us to be everywhere, see every thing, and know all that is going on. We often rely on tips or suggestions from readers.
I was looking at the state database for political action committees and noticed that the Cocoa Beach Hotel and Motel PAC made a $1000 donation to this local PAC (on 9/19/2018) that also was not reported to the city in their financial reports.
We decided to follow up on that.
Information on the Cocoa Beach Hotel and Motel Political Action Committee can be found here. This is a screen shot of their organization from the Florida Department of Elections:
On September 19, 2018, the Cocoa Beach Hotel and Motel PAC did make a contribution of $1000.00 to the Protect & Preserve Cocoa Beach PAC. Please notice that the address of the Protect & Preserve Cocoa Beach PAC listed on the activity report is the same as the address for the Protect & Preserve Cocoa Beach PAC given to the City of Cocoa Beach when the PAC registered. (PO Box 320106, Cocoa Beach.) We say that because we want people to see that it is same PAC. (more…)
Playing fetch on all fours might seem like an unusual activity for an adult, but one man who identifies as a dog says it has brought him closer to his husband.
Tony McGinn, known as ‘Tony Bark’ to his friends, says he has been into animal role-play his entire life, and refers to himself as a ‘human pup’.
The 30-year-old, who was born female and is transgender, is supported by his husband and ‘handler’ Andrew who accompanies him to regular play dates with other role-players in their hometown of Los Angeles. (snip)
As we said, it is indescribable.
However, we see his “human dog” and raise him a space heater with a gender. (more…)
Ballot question one is the hot topic in Cocoa Beach. This is the ballot issue that, despite the ridiculous claims of some to the contrary, allows for higher building heights within the city. (It would also effectively allow for a greater density within a given plot of land as more people could live within the same footprint of the taller building. The legal limit to the density does not change, but practically, more people would live in the same plot of land.)
In our post the other day, we wondered “if the ballot question is such a good idea, why the need to lie about it?” Why lie about the particulars, the facts and the effects if the proposed ballot issue were passed?
In that post we mentioned that a Political Action Committee (PAC) was pushing for the passage of the ballot question.
We have questions about this group as well.
The laws covering PAC’s are found in Chapters 97-106 of the Florida Statutes, the Florida Constitution, various Court opinions, State Attorney General rulings and even local ordinances. As you can imagine, that can get somewhat confusing at times, so the Florida Division of Elections puts out a handbook on PACs, including instructions and regulations on registration with the the applicable government entity, reporting requirements, etc. The wording is easy (or at least easier) to understand and probably could be called “PAC’s Made Easy,” “PAC Primer,” or (jokingly) “PACs for Dummies.”
PAC’s are required at least to register with what can be called “the lowest level of government” for the issue or candidate they are supporting. By that we mean while a group advocating for a local town council candidate could register with the State of Florida, because the candidate is not running state wide, the PAC can register with local town. Such is the case with this particular PAC as the ballot 1 question applies only to Cocoa Beach.
With that accomplished, the “Protect & Preserve Cocoa Beach” PAC was set to go 13 days before the primary election which was held on August 28, 2018.
Since that time, the PAC has put out signs, sent mailers, and purchased ads on Facebook.
Political signs that you see along the side of the road during elections are not cheap. Any candidate can tell you that. A mailer to voters in the City of Cocoa Beach is not cheap. Ads on Facebook are not terribly expensive, but they are an expense nonetheless.
Yet somehow this PAC managed to do all these things without spending a dime.
Well, that is what they are telling the City and the voters at least. (more…)
This is a video on the left supported socialism from people who lived through it and had to get away from it.
Interestingly, the video also addresses the left’s claim that Denmark is an example of successful socialism by quoting Denmark’s Prime minister saying the country is not socialism, but a market driven economy. (4:51 of the video.)
Socialism has become cool in America, under the nice name “democratic socialism.”
Gloria Álvarez knows better, because she’s from Latin America and studied socialism there. She says: Watch out! Socialism has a clear track record of wrecking every country that implements it.
Because of all the Christmas decorations starting to appear in stores, you know that Halloween must be close and indeed it is. This year on Wednesday, October 31 kids will venture out into the world, ringing doorbells and being met with “why aren’t you cute!” after yelling “Trick or Treat!”
(One fun thing to do, especially with kids that you know, is after the kids scream, pause, look pensive and then say “okay…..I’ll take the trick.” The reaction is priceless.)
How old is too old to go trick-or-treating? As Halloween approaches, Chesapeake, Virginia says the answer to that question is anyone over the age of 12.
City officials recently announced that doorbell-ringing candy seekers over the age of 12 could face a misdemeanor charge, up to six months in jail, and $25 to $100 fines. They’re far from alone: WAVY’s hrScene reports that nine towns in Virginia have make it illegal for teens to trick-or-treat. The Associated Press reports that officials in Meridian, Mississippi, Bishopville, South Carolina, and Boonsboro, Maryland, also have set the cutoff age at 12. The phenomenon isn’t limited to the US: In 2017, Bathrust, a town in Canada, banned anyone older than 16.
This may be a new low for Bill Nelson or even for politics.
Florida Democratic Senator Bill Nelson sent out an email and a tweet asking for people to help in the form of donations to the people affected by Hurricane Michael. Certainly there is nothing wrong with anyone – including politicians – getting the word out that relief organizations can use help after devastating events such as a hurricane.
Here’s the tweet:
There is a problem, however. A big problem in our minds. (more…)
We are writing this the day that Hurricane Michael is about to slam into the Florida panhandle. As anyone who has witnessed first hand a hurricane of any strength bearing down on them, it is a scary and stressful time. If people leave their homes and evacuate, that adds more stress to the situation. If you are a “first responder,” the time leading up to a hurricane, during a hurricane and after a hurricane is stressful as well.
Which is why we love this “trespass notice” from the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office to the Weather Channel’s Jim Cantore.
Years ago, Byron offered that people who would normally register as Democrats should instead register as Republicans so in primaries, they could vote for the lesser of Republican candidates to run against a Democrat foe in the general election. In the general election, the faux “Republicans” would then shift their vote for the Democrat candidate hoping to get them elected. In other words, Byron was advocated lying in order to skew primaries and subvert the election process.
In the op-ed piece, Byron is up to his old tricks of not being truthful.
For example, he writes:
Why? Because it retains the 45-foot height that’s been the law since 2002.
This is patently absurd.
If the ballot initiative was to retain the current height limits, there would be no need for the ballot question – the current law would just be kept on the books without a change.
Why is Byron not telling the truth about the height issue as it relates to the ballot issue?
It appears he is not being truthful about the impact of the ballot issue as well:
Question one has limited purpose. It affects only the 13 percent of the city where buildings as tall as 45 feet can be built. It has no impact on city areas set aside for single-family homes.
Heifer hockey.
The ballot issue seeks to change Section 6.04 of the City Charter which reads: (more…)
