The wire for 063008

Construction worker dies after accident at Disney resort
Scott Powers and Susan Jacobson 5:15 PM EDT, June 27, 2008 Sentinel Staff Writer
A 52-year-old construction worker injured in a June 13 accident at Disney's All-Star Resort died Thursday night, a Walt Disney World official said this afternoon. The man was identified this afternoon as John Swearingen, 52, of Davenport. Read more at http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/custom/tourism/orl-bk-disney-death-062708,0,4161193.story

Cars hit with anti-Obama messages
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS • June 29, 2008 Florida Today
ORLANDO -- Police today are investigating vandals' spray-painting of dozens of city vehicles here, some with disparaging messages about the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama.Authorities think the vandalism to about 60 vehicles, estimated at $10,000 in damage, was done Saturday afternoon, police spokeswoman Sgt. Barbara Jones said Read more at http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080629/BREAKINGNEWS/80629010/1086/rss07

Presidential race could cost down-ballot campaigns
posted by Aaron Deslatte on Jun 29, 2008 10:31:53 AM Orlando Sentinel
With the political fundraising season in high gear, Florida is once again poised to pump some serious money into an inordinately deep and wide field of competitive local, state and national races.Already, political givers had contributed in excess of $135 million to state campaigns and the presidential contenders through last spring -- not including money that went to special elections and the Amendment 1 property-tax campaign last January Read more at http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_politics/2008/06/presidential-ra.html

Deal could restore the Everglades
By Carol J. Williams, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer June 25, 2008
LOXAHATCHEE, FLA -- . -- It was a strategy so bold no environmentalist or state bureaucrat dared dream it could happen: Buy out Big Sugar's polluted fields, railroad and refinery within the Everglades so the wounded "river of grass" could heal after more than a century of man's industrial intrusions.Read more at http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-everglades25-2008jun25,0,3721951.story

THE WIRE FOR 062508

Demand the Steering Committee remove Joe Lieberman's position within the Democratic Caucus.
posted by IUPAT DC78 Steve Hall
See video@ http://liebermanmustgo.com/

Schools must cut budget --- again
Staff may be let go in this round
BY MEGAN DOWNS • FLORIDA TODAY • June 25, 2008
Brevard Public Schools will lose an additional $10 million from its operating budget, after already cutting $27.4 million that left district officials with no fat left to trim. Superintendent Richard DiPatri had warned months ago that a second level of cuts could result in the loss of annual contract teachers, stifle the progress of the Secondary Schools of National Prominence initiative and carve deeper into department-level budgets. Read more @ http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080625/NEWS01/806250325/1006/rss01

Legislator's wife tried to get property tax break
posted by Aaron Deslatte on Jun 25, 2008 5:57:39 AM Orlando Sentinel
Early last year when state Rep. Frank Attkisson and his wife were looking at expanding their hobby farm outside St. Cloud, she inquired with the Osceola County Property Appraiser's Office about getting an agricultural tax break. Read more @ http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_politics/2008/06/legislators-wif.html

Orlando Uber-lobbyist Leonhardt stays on Enterprise Florida board
posted by Aaron Deslatte on Jun 25, 2008 10:38:42 AM Orlando Sentinel
Gov. Charlie Crist this morning re-appointed Orlando lobbyist Fred Leonhardt to the board of directors of Enterprise Florida, the state's economic development arm. His new term will run through June 2012. Read morw @ http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_politics/2008/06/orlando-uber-lo.html

3,000 Cape workers face uncertain future
BY TODD HALVORSON • FLORIDA TODAY • June 23, 2008
CAPE CANAVERAL -- NASA and the Air Force are splitting a single launch base operations contract into 15 separate pacts at Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, a dramatic reversal raising uncertainty for about 3,000 workers. Read more@ http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080623/NEWS02/806230322&s=d&page=2#pluckcomments

On paper, Bob Allen still running for Senate
Posted 6/17/2008 3:42 PM EDT on floridatoday.com By Matt Reed
Bob Allen for state Senate? Campaign finance reports show the former state representative has continued to list expenditures connected to his previously planned 2010 Senate race. Allen had raised $24,500 before his July 2007 arrest for solicitation in Titusville. (Allen, who resigned, has appealed his misdemeanor conviction.) He has raised no money since. Read more @ http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?category=PluckPersona&U=f687970412fd47db937813cfb67c58fa&plckController=PersonaBlog&plckScript=personaScript&plckElementId=personaDest&plckPersonaPage=BlogViewPost&plckPostId=Blog%3Af687970412fd47db937813cfb67c58faPost%3Aecc7d43a-ecec-40df-9fb6-b3ef2a155e99&plckCommentSortOrder=TimeStampAscending&sid=sitelife.floridatoday.com

test sat 062108

The quick red fox jumped the sleeping dog

Wire for 061608

On Father’s Day, Low Wages Hurting Single Dads
by James Parks, Jun 15, 2008 AFL-CIO Blog Now
On this Father’s Day, we’d like to wish all fathers a Happy Father’s Day. An official holiday to honor fathers was initially proposed in 1909 by the daughter of a widowed father. William Smart, a Civil War veteran, raised six children after his wife died in childbirth. Today, when we think of single parents, we almost always think of single mothers. But families headed by single fathers are one of the fastest-growing groups in our country. Read more @ http://blog.aflcio.org/2008/06/15/on-fathers-day-low-wages-hurting-single-dads/


Will You Be Paid for Sick Days?
By Matt Bushlow, PARADE Magazine
Nearly half of all Americans who work in the private sector-including more than 75% of low-wage workers-do not get a single paid sick day. Now the federal government and lawmakers in 14 states are proposing legislation that would require employers to provide paid sick days. Read more @ http://news.yahoo.com/page/parade/sickpay


Florida Legislature Downgraded by Biz
posted by John Kennedy on Jun 10, 2008 3:31:55 PM
The usually industry-friendly Republican-ruled Legislature earned lower marks from a leading business lobby for an election-year session marked by deep budget cuts.Associated Industries of Florida's post-session report card released Tuesday found the Legislature supported the organization's position on issues 85.5 percent of the time, a 3 percent decline from last year's legislative score Read more@ http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_politics/2008/06/florida-legisla.html


FL Chamber: Fewer A-students in state Legislature
posted by Aaron Deslatte on Jun 13, 2008 2:59:44 PM Orlando Sentinel
Another Tallahassee business group has pronounced the 2008 Florida Legislature a less "business-friendly" environment.Well in time to make the first rounds of campaign mailers, the Florida Chamber of Commerce has judged that only 52 percent of lawmakers deserved an ‘A’ for supporting the business agenda in this spring’s 60-day lawmaking session, compared to 62 percent who voted the group’s way last year. Read more @ http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_politics/2008/06/fl-chamber-fewe.html


Florida’s U.S. senators probably are richer than you
posted by Mark Matthews on Jun 13, 2008 1:35:33 PM Orlando Sentinel
WASHINGTON -- Life as a public servant isn’t half bad, especially if you’re a U.S. senator from Florida. Both U.S. Sens. Bill Nelson and Mel Martinez are millionaires, according to 2007 financial records released today. Read more @ http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_politics/2008/06/floridas-us-sen.html


Senator Says Loan Favoritism Is Possible
Published: June 15, 2008 LESLIE WAYNE NY Times
Senator Kent Conrad, Democrat of North Dakota, said Saturday that he would donate $10,500 to charity and refinance a property loan after suggestions that he and other prominent Washington figures received preferential treatment from Countrywide Financial Corporation. Read more @ http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/15/us/15loans.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin

How to Block Cellphone Spam
By DAVID POGUE , NY Times
If I told you that today's e-column would change your life, would you mind that it's sort of short?The story goes like this. A few weeks ago, in my blog (nytimes.com/pogue), I wrote this:"OK, now I'm really, REALLY annoyed. Within a week, my wife and I have both started getting spam text messages on our Verizon cellphones. I know that this is nothing new, but it's new for us, and it's apparently getting worse Read more @ http://www.nytimes.com/indexes/2008/06/12/technology/circuitsemail/index.html?8cir&emc=cir

TIPS ON PUMPING GAS
From e-mail recieved by sharkeykevin@yahoo.com

I don't know what you guys are paying for gasoline.... but here inCalifornia we are paying up to $3.75 to $4.10 per gallon. My line ofwork is in petroleum for about 31 years now, so here are some tricks toget more of your money's worth for every gallon: Here at the Kinder Morgan Pipeline where I work in San Jose , CA ,we deliver about 4 million gallons in a 24-hour period thru thepipeline. One day is diesel, the next day is jet fuel and gasoline,regular and premium grades. We have 34 storage tanks here with a totalcapacity of 16,800,000 gallons. Only buy or fill up your car or truck in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold. Remember tha t all service stationshave their storage tanks buried below ground. The colder the ground themore dense the gasoline, when it gets warmer gasoline expands, so buyingin the afternoon or in the evening....your gallon is not exactly agallon. In the petroleum business, the specific gravity and thetemperature of the gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, ethanol and otherpetroleum products plays an important role. A 1-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for this business. Butthe service stations do not have temperature compensation at the pumps.When you're filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to afast mode. If you look you will see that the trigger has 3 stages: low,middle, and high. You should be pumping on low mode, thereby minimizingthe vapors that are created while you are pumping. All hoses at thepu m p have a vapor return. If you are pumping on the fast rate, some ofthe liquid that goes to your tank becomes vapor. Those vapors are beingsucked up and back into the underground storage tank so you're gettingless worth for your money. One of the most important tips is to fill up when your gas tank isHALF FULL. The reason for this is the more gas you have in your tankthe less air occupying its empty space. Gasoline evaporates faster thanyou can imagine. Gasoline storage tanks have an internal floating roof.This roof serves as zero clearance between the gas and the atmosphere,so it minimizes the evaporation. Unlike service stations, here where Iwork, every truck that we load is temperature compensated so that everygallon is actually the exact amount. Another reminder, if there is a gasoline truck pumping into thestorage tanks wh en you stop to buy gas, DO NOT fill up; most likely thegasoline is being stirred up as the gas is being delivered, and youmight pick up some of the dirt that normally settles on the bottom. WHERE TO BUY USA GAS - THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO KNOW. READ ON: Gas rationing in the 80's worked even though we grumbled about it.It might even be good for us! The Saudis are boycotting American goods.We should return the favor. An interesting thought is to boycott theirGAS. Every time you fill up the car, you can avoid putting more moneyinto the coffers of Saudi Arabia . Just buy from gas companies thatdon't import their oil from the Saudis. Nothing is more frustrating than the feeling that every time Ifill-up the tank, I am sending my money to people who are trying tokill me, my family, and my friends. I thought it might be int eresting for you to know which oilcompanies are the best to buy gas from and which major companies importMiddle Eastern oil. Companies that import Middle Eastern oil: Shell........................... 205,742,000 barrels Chevron/Texaco......... 144,332,000 barrels Exxon /Mobil............... 130,082,000 barrels Marathon/Speedway... 117,740,000 barrels Amoco............................62,231,000 barrels Citgo gas is from South America .
If you do the math at $30/barrel, these exports amount toover $18 BILLION! (Oil is now $100+ a barrel.
Companies that DO NOT import Middle Eastern oil: Sunoco...............0 barrels Conoco...............0 barrels Sinclair...............0 barrels BP/Phillips..........0 barrels Hess...................0 barrels ARC0..................0 barrels If you go to Sunoco.com , you will get a listof the station locations near you. All of this information is available from the Department of Energyand each is required to state where they get their oil and how much theyare importing. T o h ave an impact, we need to reach literally millions of gasbuyers. It's really simple to do. I'm sending this note to about thirty people. If each of you sendit to at least ten more (30 x 10 = 300)...and those 300 send it to atleast ten more (300 x 10 = 3,000) and so on, by the time the messagereaches the sixth generation of people, we will have reached over THREEMILLION consumers !!!!!!! If those three million get excited and passthis on to ten friends each, then 30 million people will have beencontacted! If it goes one level further, you guessed it..... THREEHUNDRED MILLION PEOPLE!!! Again, all you have to do is send this to 10 people. How long wouldit take?

The wire for 06/11/08

DRS Technologies seeks a five-year tax abatement
Contractor will construct more floor space
BY RICK NEALE • FLORIDA TODAY • June 9, 2008
DRS Technologies seeks a five-year tax abatement to expand its Babcock Street facility to accommodate more than 500 DRS workers now based in Palm Bay. The defense contractor plans to construct almost 200,000 square feet of new floor space adjacent and next door to its current optronics plant. Estimated cost? $29.5 million, city records show. DRS Technologies then would transfer its Palm Bay workforce -- 502 employees -- to the Melbourne site, plus hire 10 more workers Read more http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080609/NEWS01/806090319/1006/news01
NAACP energized by Obama
Central chapter gathers for annual dinner
BY KAUSTUV BASU • FLORIDA TODAY • June 7, 2008
For many of the 400 people who gathered Friday for Central Brevard NAACP's annual Freedom Fund Banquet, this year felt a bit different.Members said this celebration was special because the black community in Brevard, like elsewhere in the country, is in a buoyant mood after Barack Obama became the presumptive presidential nominee for the Democratic Party Read more http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080607/NEWS01/806070320/1009/news03
Job Losses and Oil Surge Spread Economic Gloom
By PETER S. GOODMAN Published: June 7, 2008 NY Times
The unemployment rate surged to 5.5 percent in May from 5 percent — the sharpest monthly spike in 22 years — as the economy lost 49,000 jobs, registering a fifth consecutive month of decline, the Labor Department reported Friday Read More http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/07/business/07econ.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&th&emc=th&adxnnlx=1212884138-7itM0LLKAvwlcGe/ZLJN0g
Democrats -- Like Everglades Mosquitoes -- Buzz McCain
posted by John Kennedy on Jun 6, 2008 1:26:46 PM Orlando Sentinel
Florida Democrats did their best Friday to make sure Republican John McCain didn't have a peaceful airboat ride through the Everglades. While McCain was touring the fabled River of Grass as part of his two-day swing through Florida, former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham and state House Minority Leader Dan Gelber, D-Miami Beach, continued a Democratic assault on the rival presumptive presidential nominee for having voted against a $2 billion Everglades restoration project that was part of a massive water resources bill in 2007. Read more http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_politics/2008/06/democrats----li.html
ACORN Holds Rights Restoration Workshops
Learn about changes to Florida's Clemency Rules. Find out if you are eligible to have your rights restored. In Florida, people with past felony convictions lose their civil rights—including the fundamental right to vote. Read more
http://www.acorn.org/index.php?id=7895

The wire for 06/06/08

Posey to quit state Senate in November
BY JOHN McCARTHY • FLORIDA TODAY • June 5, 2008
State Sen. Bill Posey, R-Rockledge, said he will resign his legislative seat effective on Election Day.Posey, whose term expires in 2010, is running for the congressional seat held by Republican Dave Weldon, who is not seeking re-election.Though the law does not require him to give up his current office because of his congressional campaign, Posey said he was quitting to save taxpayers the expense of a special election if he wins in November. Read more http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080605/NEWS01/806050322/1006/rss01

Altman interested in Posey's Senate seat
Many positions likely to change
BY JOHN McCARTHY • FLORIDA TODAY • June 5, 2008
Bill Posey's early resignation from the Florida Senate to run for Congress could shake up November's legislative elections.One person who has expressed interest in Posey's legislative seat should it become vacant is state Rep. Thad Altman, R-Viera.Altman on Wednesday night said he was "definitely leaning toward running" for Posey's Senate seat. Read More http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080605/NEWS01/806050343/1006/rss01

Brevard's tax rolls show shrinkage
BY JAMES DEAN • FLORIDA TODAY • June 2, 2008
Voter-approved Amendment 1 is primarily responsible for a projected $2.9 billion decline in Brevard County’s tax base for 2008, Property Appraiser Jim Ford said today. Ford’s updated tax roll estimates are close to the more preliminary calculations he released in April, but his analysis of the numbers has changed. "Amendment 1 was a major contributor for the county," he said. Read More http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080602/BREAKINGNEWS/80602053/1086

Nine workers lose jobs as office closes
Move will save $500,000 a year, Ford estimates
BY JAMES DEAN • FLORIDA TODAY • June 6, 2008
In addition to closing his Merritt Island service center, Brevard County Property Appraiser Jim Ford announced Thursday he had laid off four full-time employees and five temporary workers. Ford said the actions would shave about $500,000 in expenses next year, reducing his proposed budget by about 5 percent, to $10.6 million. He said those cuts responded to voters' desire for lower taxes and the county's expectation of reduced tax revenue because of the passage of the property-tax-cutting Amendment 1 in January, falling property values and the weak state economy. Read more http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080602/BREAKINGNEWS/80602053/1086

School district disputes graduation report
Study says 69% graduate here
BY MEGAN DOWNS • FLORIDA TODAY • June 5, 2008
Every 13 seconds, one student is lost from the high school pipeline, totaling more than 1.23 million students nationwide who won't graduate from high school this year, according to a report released Wednesday. Brevard County, among the 50 largest districts in the nation, graduated only 69 percent of its students in 2005, according to "Diplomas Count 2008," a major report by Editorial Projects in Education Research Center in Bethesda, Md. Read more http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080605/NEWS13/806050321/1006/rss01

Cost of 2005 storms is getting bigger
by Aaron Deslatte Orlando Sentinel Jun 4, 2008 9:44:42 AM
Whether you realize it or not, you're still paying off the 2005 hurricane season every time you pay your auto and homeowners-insurance premiums.The bill is about to get a little steeper.Florida's hurricane-risk managers will ask Gov. Charlie Crist and the Cabinet next week to authorize the sale of up to $625 million in bonds this summer to help pay claims still outstanding from the 2005 hurricane season, when three storms struck the state and a fourth brushed it. Read more http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_politics/2008/06/cost-of-2005-st.html

CBS 60 Minutes on Worker Safety
by Celeste Monforton Confined Space @ TPH, June 5, 2008
Set your wristwatch alarms or your VCR for this Sunday (June 7) at 7:00 pm (EST) to watch CBS’s 60 Minutes and a hard-hitting story on OSHA and its failure to protect workers and communities from combustible dust explosions Read more http://thepumphandle.wordpress.com/

The Shameful Irony of McCain's New Orleans Speech
by Greg Saunders Huffington Post 4 June 2008
For all of the vitriol that I've thrown in Hillary Clinton's direction, it's nothing compared to my contempt for John McCain. I don't know if he's been a millionaire in Washington D.C. for so long that it makes him completely tone deaf to the experiences of others or if he's just a world class d###head, but it takes a superhuman level of gall for him to go to New Orleans, which still hasn't fully recovered from Hurricane Katrina, and say this: Read more http://www.huffingtonpost.com/greg-saunders/the-shameful-irony-of-mcc_b_105323.html