How do you get control of the narrative after it's been hijacked? The environmentalists vs. Jon Steverson

John Kennedy at The Palm Beach Post has this article that's available online. The word hyperbolic is used in the article which gives you some idea of how entertaining a read the article is. The article might hit the print edition tomorrow which means Drew Martin's Letter to the Editor won't be too far behind. Drew, a Lake Worth resident and a remarkably well-behaved speaker at county commission meetings at public comment, is one of the golden-haired letter writers at the Post.

This latest Florida kerfuffle has to do with the DEP chief Jon Steverson and his ideas to increase revenue from the state's parks. For some this is a good idea and for others it's a terrible idea. As you'll read in the article there are already many streams of revenue from logging and other activities but it's still not enough to fill the revenue gap. 

The DEP's Jon Steverson is taking all the slings and arrows it would appear and state Rep. Matt Caldwell (R) is a strong candidate for The Understatement of The Year when he's quoted saying, "There’s a political element in all this". The interesting part is hearing state officials acknowledge the politics of controlling the narrative. Caldwell understands this has happened and it will be interesting to see what tactics are used to regain control. If you're a regular reader of this blog you've read many times about controlling the message and the tactics used to steal the message. Once the narrative has been hijacked it's very hard to gain control. 

All this would be a moot point, of course, if all our environmental friends here in south Florida (in Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties) each got a few extra people to get out and vote. But they either couldn't, didn't, or weren't sufficiently motivated and Gov. Scott was re-elected. Some of the anger at the DEP's Steverson might be more usefully directed by all environmentalists in the state at their comrades here in south Florida. They dropped the ball in spectacular fashion and everyone who saw what happened acknowledges that now.

Anyhow, enjoy these two excerpts from John Kennedy and I'll let you know when the Drew Martin letter gets published in the Post:

     “Do I think it would be good if we could make some more money off parks, and make them a little more self-sustaining? Sure,” [state Rep. Matt Caldwell, R-North Fort Myers] Caldwell said.
     “But we’re not talking about doing this at a park with a lake and picnic tables. Some parks are huge and this kind of activity may be just good land management,” he said.
     Caldwell, who said he will bring back the legislation for the session opening Jan. 12, said the opposition has been “hyperbolic.”
     “The narrative here really has been hijacked. There’s a political element in all this,” [emphasis added] he said.

[and. . .]

     Revenue produced at the state parks, much of it drawn from admission fees, was $64.2 million this year – covering about 80 percent of the system’s $80.3 million budget.
     Steverson [Department of Environmental Protection chief, Jon Steverson] told The Palm Beach Post that what he’s proposing is not new. Timbering currently is allowed in 34 state parks, cattle grazing in eight parks, and even hunting is authorized in a couple of Florida’s large parks.
     “To me, it’s not about money, it’s about appropriate management,” Steverson said. “But if we have the ability to also help the State Park Trust Fund, I don’t know why that’s a bad thing.”

Before long our local state representatives (House and Senate) will be staking their positions and will keep you informed on how that plays out. Stay tuned.