Press Release from City of Lake Worth: Monday's Martin Luther King March

To read the entire press release go to the City's "Special Events" page and scroll down for the news on Monday's Martin Luther King March. Last year was the largest march ever and the Post's Julius Whigham II was there to document the event. You can read about that here.

Here are excerpts from the City's press release:

Contact: Retha Lowe
Phone: 561-586-7276
 
MLK Day Declares – United We Are the World

This year Lake Worth will honor the transformative power of Martin Luther King Jr’s dream on January 17th and 18th under the theme, United We Are the World. The theme was selected to correspond with the rededication of the MLK Globe Fountain after the City’s recent renovations.

[and. . .]

      The highlight of the day will be the 22nd annual Candlelight March through downtown Lake Worth. Participants will gather at 5 PM at City Hall and parade down Lake Avenue to the Cultural Plaza. A brief commemorative program in the Plaza will feature the rededication of the MLK Globe Fountain. The Fountain, originally installed in 2005, has been refurbished and rebalanced so that the 4-ton granite globe will once again float freely and be rotated by hand. To mark the occasion, a children’s choir will perform a heart-warming rendition of We Are the World in recognition of the progress that the City of Lake Worth has made toward fulfillment of Dr. King’s dream.
     Following the rededication program, a Fellowship Dinner will be enjoyed at First Baptist Church. The church is located at Second Ave. South and M Street, just a block south of the Memorial. Musical entertainment is planned. The free dinner will provide an opportunity for warm fellowship across religious and racial lines in the spirit of Dr. King. Sponsoring religious and civic organizations will provide the food and beverages. Members of the general public are invited to help with the dinner preparations which will begin at First Baptist at 4 PM or to contribute a dessert.

[and. . .]

All events are free of charge to the public, sponsored by the City of Lake Worth, Kiwanis Club, Lake Worth Interfaith Network and the Lake Worth MLK Committee.

A "Point of View" in the Post and the now "Null and Void" heights vote three years ago WAS NOT "overwhelming"

"Overwhelming" support to limit heights in downtown Lake Worth? Hardly.

The latest one to carry the myth forward on the "overwhelming" turnout for the 'heights vote' is Lake Worth Commissioner Ryan Maier. It's hard to know if he believes the myth or not, but if he does believe it he's delusional. I remember the day after that vote on heights downtown and no one was celebrating. The "No's" could have gotten more people to turn out and the "Yes's" were in a state of despair. They won but their expected and hoped-for landslide never happened. Not even close.

The "Yes's" victory was a lame one and then the entire effort was deemed "Null and Void" by the state legislature. One thing that isn't pointed out much is what the leaders of the height limit side knew but didn't tell their supporters: They were told well-prior to the vote and prior to the gathering of signatures that there was a risk that a victory could be overturned by the state. They weighed the options and chose to go forward. It ended up being a terribly bad choice.

Mark Horne has a "Point of View" in the printed edition of The Palm Beach Post today about the Gulf Stream hotel project which makes some very good points. The downside is the Post will likely print another letter from Lawrence McNamara on Sunday saying something like, "They dishonored my vote!" or "Listen to the people!" which is all complete nonsense just like the "overwhelming" vote to limit heights in Lake Worth's downtown.

Here are two excerpts from Mr. Horne's letter which makes very good points:

      The developer’s representative [Land use attorney Bonnie Miskel] did an excellent job of explaining the goals, and potential outcome, of this project [the Gulf Stream hotel renovation]. It will become the anchor for the downtown business district, providing international exposure and flooding the downtown area with new customers and, ultimately, new businesses.
      It is clear that what has been tried in the past with this gem has not worked. The only other option would be to level the building.
      It will now have the opportunity to stand on its own. Plus, most people are not aware of the “bed tax” dollars that would be generated, and ultimately come back to our community.

[and. . .]

     For too long, this town has been divided by opposite factions: growth vs. status quo. I would not like to see Lake and Lucerne avenues turn into six-story buildings everywhere. However, I say it’s time to find a balance, and I vote for “smart” growth.
     This single project has the potential to be the smartest thing city leadership has done in decades. It isn’t about thinking big or thinking small — it’s about thinking smart.
     MARK S. HORNE, LAKE WORTH

Thank you for taking the time to pen your thoughts, Mr. Horne. Use this link to learn more about how the City Commission stands on the the Gulf Stream hotel project and one woman who voted to limit heights and now regrets her vote. Here is how the Lake Worth City Commission voted on the rezoning necessary to save our historic downtown hotel:

How your elected representatives stand on the Gulf Stream hotel renovation project.

I owe an apology to my blog readers: Did you attend the Road Rascals Car Show at the Lake Worth Casino because you saw it on my blog??

To say the "Car Show" at the City's Lake Worth Casino last night (1/14) was a disappointment is an understatement. I didn't even get inside with my newly road-ready '63 Buick Riviera. Understand this, car shows are nothing new to me. I've been around classic cars my entire life and can still remember my parents telling about how they strapped me into a "Chinese red" Packard V12 convertible in a caravan through Canada to Montreal in 1962. I drove a '69 Corvair all through high school and it is still in my father's collection. You can see his 1985 Cadillac Biaritz convertible behind it. Throughout my life I have been to many, many car shows.

Only 6,000 Corvair's were made in 1969 and this one is #3375. Despite its reputation it's still my favorite car ever.

So I pulled into the Casino parking lot and I don't see any evidence of a car show going on. The weather wasn't good, it was windy and drizzling so thought nobody turned out. Drove up to Benny's and didn't see a show going on there either. As I approached the Casino building, I saw that the road blocked off with traffic cones and the car show was happening there, in front of Mulligan's! Why did they have to shut the road down for a car show?

There were two people at the "check point" and I was asked if I wanted to get into the show. I was told that it cost $25 to get in. That was a "discount" from the $35 that was the original price to get in. Anyway, $25 is still outrageous for someone who wants to display a car in a non-judged show. Below is the image I used on my blog to promote the car show. Do you see any mention about a cost of admission? How many "Family Friendly" events do you know of on a weekday night that cost $25 just to get in? Checked the City's website last night and there was no mention of any cost except that the "Parking is Metered". There is an email for more information and a lesson learned: I should have gotten more information.

No mention of a cost of admission.

It wasn't a "car show" at the Casino; it was actually a "car club". It would have been fun to see all the cars but given the weather and my sudden change in mood turned the car around and left. What bothered me was thinking any of my blog readers attended the 'show' and had to pay out the $25 they weren't expecting to. . .like me. Actually at least one of my blog readers did show up and he was none too happy either as you'll read in the comments below.

To all the people who showed up because you read about the "Car Show" on this blog, I apologize. And the City should also apologize for not disclosing the cost of admission. Plus the folks from the "Road Rascals" should at least make note that there is/was a cost to attend. The people at the gate also said that the money was being used to "pay the city" for the space. My suggestion is get a row of parking spaces blocked off at the top parking lot and save the money plus keep the road open. This event is supposed to take place on the second Thursday of every month until June. Hopefully the next event will be organized differently.

As far as the $25? Lesson learned.

Ever see movie "Harry and Son" with Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, and Robby Benson? Was filmed in Lake Worth, FL!

The movie wasn't well received and Robby Benson was nominated for a Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actor in the 1984 movie. Film critic Roger Ebert gave the movie one star and wrote, "This movie looks like the aftermath of an explosion in the story department." But get this—the movie was filmed in Lake Worth. Here is the movie trailer:

Here is more about this movie from Wikipedia:

Harry & Son is a 1984 American drama film directed by Paul Newman, who also stars. The screenplay by Newman and Ronald Buck focuses on the relationship between a blue-collar worker and his son (Robby Benson), who fails at various odd jobs while aspiring to be a writer.
     Joanne Woodward, Ellen Barkin, Ossie Davis, Wilford Brimley and Judith Ivey also star.
     Much of the film was shot in Lake Worth, Florida. The movie set construction site was the demolition of the sister hotel affiliated with the Gulf Stream Hotel named The Inn.

Maybe the Stonzek Theater can screen this movie? It will be a lot of fun and get tons of attention here in Lake Worth.

Parts of the movie Body Heat were filmed in Lake Worth also. This was the movie many believe launched the career of Kathleen Turner. William Hurt starred in this film along with Ted Danson, J.A. Preston and Mickey Rourke.

Actor William Hurt with Lake Worth City Hall in the background from the movie Body Heat. In the movie the city was called "Miranda Beach".

Does psychology explain the reason "Sea Level Rise" isn't gaining traction in south Florida?

It seems every day another study comes out about 'sea level rise' in south Florida and the net effect seems nil on the populace. Pictures showing Miami under water and a little sliver that will remain of Florida in the future don't have any impact on the present. Miami continues to grow and so does Palm Beach County, All Aboard Florida is sinking (pardon the pun) almost $2 billion into a new rail project, and there is no slowing of future population growth projected. It's boom time in the state again despite the appeals from the 'sea level rise' and 'climate change' believers.

Is the sea level rising? Who knows, maybe or maybe not. This article in CityLab seeks to explain how people perceive risk and they use the example of earthquakes in the Pacific Northwest. Here is the subtitle of the article: Terrible natural disasters will come someday, but most people have a hard time worrying about stuff that isn’t imminent.

One of the ways people identify with risk is emotionally. Here is an excerpt from that part of the CityLab article:

     Studies show that when people calculate risk, especially when the stakes are high, we rely much more on feeling than fact. [emphasis added] And we have trouble connecting emotionally to something scary if the odds of it happening today or tomorrow aren’t particularly high. So, if an earthquake, flood, tornado or hurricane isn’t immediately imminent, people are unlikely to act.
     “Perceiving risk is all about how scary or not do the facts feel,” says David Ropeik, a risk-perception consultant who has written multiple books on the subject. “A risk in the future feels a lot less scary than a risk that’s presented right now.”
     This feeling also relates to how we perceive natural, as opposed to human-made, threats. We tend to be more tolerant of nature than of other people who would knowingly impose risks upon us—terrorists being the clearest example.

Larry the Lenz in Lake Worth, FL, has his own take on sea level rise you may or may not find amusing but does present some interesting facts in an entertaining fashion.

The Lake Worth Cribune makes publishing history—turns accepted economic theory upside down

[Hard to believe but it will be a year ago this Saturday (1/16) since that silly tabloid hit the streets for the first time in Lake Worth. The tabloid didn't last very long; it folded up shop shortly after the elections in March. Quite a few spoofs of the tabloid were posted on this blog and below is one of them. Enjoy reading about the tabloid in Lake Worth that defied economic theory in the business of publishing!]

All eyes in the publishing industry are on the City of Lake Worth as The Lake Worth Cribune continues to defy accepted economic theory:

• The Cribune is FREE
• The Cribune has few advertisers 
• The Cribune has a scattering of classified ads
• The Cribune has a staff, office, and bills to pay

Yet, despite these challenges The Lake Worth Cribune continues to stay in business! The cynic might conclude the Cribune is not a newspaper at all but instead a clever promotional tool pushing an agenda under the guise of a 'newspaper'. That's jumping to conclusions; there's no evidence to suggest that charge. 

This could be an exciting story for a business reporter at The Palm Beach Post.

Next week: Will the paper still be Free? When will final issue be? Is this a new business model for publishing industry? How come no one figured out how to do this? So many questions!

Lake Worth resident discriminates against native trees and supports poisoning small rodents, songbirds, and gopher tortoises

Sounds absurd, doesn't it? Just about as absurd as The Obtuse Blogger's (TOB's) silly nonsense about the Neighborhood Assoc. Presidents Council (NAPC) debate coming up soon. One or more of the challengers seeking a City Commission seat is getting cold feet and they came up with a red herring: The NAPC is doing something wrong.

Here is the Wikipedia definition for the red herring tactic/strategy:

A red herring is something that misleads or distracts from a relevant or important issue. It may be either a logical fallacy or a literary device that leads readers or audiences towards a false conclusion.

The NAPC is being completely in The Sunshine and has duly contacted everyone and set the rules for the debate. So what's the problem? Here is what TOB writes:

It should be evident to everyone in this city that power can be a dangerous thing and hearing both sides of a problem or giving possible solutions by all the commission, well forget about that. McVoy and Maier can attend but they cannot comment.

Note that commissioners Maier and McVoy are not up for re-election. But TOB thinks they should be part of the debate? Huh? What kind of silly, ridiculous logic is that? The debates are for what exactly? To hear the elected City leaders and their challengers on the positions they have on issues, of course. Maier and McVoy will get their chance in early 2017. Would they support having elected officials that are not on the ballot be part of the debate? Of course not.

The title of this blog post was meant to be funny and absurd. But is it really? Check back to this blog soon for the minutes of the Lake Worth Tree Board in June of last year. You'll be amazed and surprised about TOB's position on the invasive Australian Pines that dot the landscape all over town.

Now THAT issue, invasive species in Lake Worth and how to deal with them, would be a really good topic for another upcoming NAPC debate!

More Perfomances Scheduled from the St. Andrew's 2016 Concert Series

This information and so much more can be found on the City of Lake Worth's "Special Events" page.

The St. Andrew's Episcopal Church is located at 100 North Palmway in downtown Lake Worth and the phone number is 561-582-6609. If you wish, you can "Follow" St. Andrew's on Twitter for the latest on all their events and news items:

Cellist JY Lee will perform Taizé at 6PM Sat Jan 16 & Holy Eucharist Sun Jan 17 at 10AM. #Episcopal #ArtsAtStAndrews pic.twitter.com/cHBRUVweG9

— St Andrews LakeWorth (@SAEpiscopalLW) January 12, 2016

Pick up this week's issue of The Lake Worth Herald: The Commission Update from Shelly Vana

In this week's issue of The Lake Worth Herald is the Palm Beach County Commission Update from Commissioner Shelly Vana. Here are two excerpts:

     In the next few months I will be writing about Palm Beach County and the issues government leaders and staff work on to provide for the health, safety and general welfare for our constituents. Palm Beach County is a Charter County and because of this the Commission has more freedom to enact ordinances as long as they do not conflict with the Florida Constitution, or the action is not specifically prohibited to do so by statute.
     You may have heard the term ‘Home Rule’ which means that our county can enact specific ordinances without going to the state legislature for a local bill. In reality, the legislature can preempt county governments from enacting ordinances for some issues. For example, the ban on smoking in buildings was an action by the legislature to preempt local control of the issue. This action made the regulation of cigarette smoking uniform throughout the state.
     In the 2016 Legislative Session, the legislature may preempt local government’s ability to regulate vehicle for hire companies such as Uber and Lyft. The Board of County Commission has not taken final action on the issues of ride sharing because it is awaiting the decision of the legislature. Hopefully they will act because it will be much more efficient to have one uniform rule across the state.

[and. . .]

     Palm Beach County is a good place to live and do business. In the coming weeks I will demystify the workings of what some may say is a huge bureaucracy, but in reality it is a huge family that is working to make sure that you have a great environment in which to live, work and play. 
Respectfully, Commissioner Shelley Vana

PBSO Sheriff Ric Bradshaw wins a huge legal victory

PBSO Sheriff Bradshaw won a huge legal victory and you can read all about that in The Palm Beach Post. This news also appears in the printed edition of today's paper (1/14) on the front page, below the fold. The irony is that the nearly year-long campaign by the Post coincided with one of the highest murder rates in many years in West Palm Beach, where the paper's main office is located. Over 20% of all the homicides in Palm Beach County occurred in West Palm Beach, within minutes from the paper's front door.

Here is a short excerpt from the article by Jane Musgrave:

     “From our point of view, the court has dismissed the most significant claims against the Sheriff’s Office,” said attorney Richard Giuffreda, who represents the agency.
      The rulings are nearly identical to ones that have been made in other recent excessive force cases against the Sheriff’s Office, including one that will go to trial this month. In each case, the court paved the way for the families or, in some cases, the survivors to pursue individual deputies for multi-million-dollar judgments, Giuffreda said. But the judges have protected the Sheriff’s Office, and ultimately taxpayers, from what could have been budget-shattering verdicts, he said.

From the News Service of Florida: The "agriculture-backed water bill" passes unanimously

Here are two short excerpts from the article by Jim Turner at the News Service of Florida:

     The Florida Senate on Wednesday unanimously passed a massive bill intended to protect and restore Florida’s springs, waterways and groundwater, despite objections from environmentalists who say the bill was weakened by the influence of industry and agriculture interests.

[and. . .]

     Despite their concerns, critics said they still considered the bill a good first step for protecting Florida’s waterways and the northern Everglades.
     “You could be waiting a very long time for a bill that does everything you want it to do,” said Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth. [emphasis added]

So there you go. It goes back to the question I've posed many times over: What do you want—

progress or perfection? You'll hear and see a lot of hand-wringing and a general state of bottomless despair from some of the environmentalists who wanted a different result. Undoubtedly, a letter from Drew Martin is already in the queue for publication at the Post.

However, for the little City of Lake Worth to get a piece of the pie from the Republican-controlled state legislature our elected representatives have to give and take. Remember, if the Liberal Democrat Progressives in Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties had done what they said they were going to do. . .

The Lake Worth Herald editorial: About that Anarchist running against Vice Mayor Scott Maxwell

[To the top of the blog (originally posted 12/26), per popular request. And, as always, Thank You for visiting my blog, Wes.]

Apparently, to make himself more palatable to voters, the Anarchist candidate will donate his City paycheck to charity (likely one he works for) and will refuse any expense accounts like travel and any allowances from the public trough. Anarchists are anti-government, you see. But those standards are flexible: for example, the Anarchist candidate used a public defender at his recent trial:

Note that the Anarchist looks much different now (see below): he cut his hair, shaved, showered, and has Hipster new clothes and sports a wide beaming smile.

Here is the cleaned up Anarchist who will smile at you on the campaign trail. 

Here are two excerpts from the Lake Worth Herald editorial dated 12/24:

     Only months ago, this candidate stood before the City Commission stating that he knows he has an odor, one from not showering regularly, doesn’t shave or cut his hair, wears dirty clothes.
     Why he was there was to complain to the commission about a water fountain that had been removed from Bryant Park and he was there fighting for the homeless. He said he regularly feeds homeless in Bryant Park and he was going to push back against the City’s war on homeless.
     At the next meeting, he appeared. Also appearing at the meeting was an ACLU lawyer. The future candidate told the commission that this was the beginning of the push-back.
     This same individual parked a van at a construction entrance in an effort to stop development in another city. To disable the van and save the trees, he took the battery out of the van and placed it in the lake. Save the trees but pollute the water? Just a reason to protest.
     Now as a candidate he has cut his hair and shaved his beard in an effort to be more attractive to voters. This tactic worked for a young lady a few years ago, and if voters in Lake Worth don’t pay attention to the campaign rhetoric and confirm what they hear, Lake Worth will have another commissioner who is wearing a mask.
     Dear voter, if you vote for a nice smile, keep a smile on your face as your city deteriorates beyond repair. Lake Worth is still trying to find a way to make major repairs that would not have been necessary if previous commissions would have paid attention to infrastructure instead of shiny objects.

[and. . .]

     Look through each and every candidate, they all have their campaign rhetoric. Check what they tell you. If you can’t corroborate what they say, it probably isn’t true.
     Talk with your neighbors, get other opinions and vote wisely.

Remember when the City of Lake Worth had one lawsuit after another threatening to bankrupt the City? This Anarchist candidate is threatening the City with another one:

The City of Lake Worth is doing everything it can to help the homeless and we all know full well the budgetary constraints the City has to deal with. Knowing that, is this the type of person you want making decisions for you from the dais on the City Commission?

Since there is already an "uncomfortable" discussion about race scheduled let's add another item to the agenda

Lake Worth's beat reporter from The Palm Beach Post, Kevin Thompson, has this item which is curiously only a few days prior to the City's Martin Luther King March. In case you didn't know, the MLK march in Lake Worth last year was the largest in the history of the event. Here is an excerpt from the article in the Post:

      On Jan. 29, First Congregational United Church of Christ is hosting what it’s billing as a “Lake Worth Talk” on black activism.
      The keynote speaker is Mark Solomon, Professor Emeritus of History at Simmons College. Solomon is an associate at the W.E.B Dubois Institute of African and African American Research at Harvard University.

You can learn more about Professor Mark Solomon here. I have a suggestion: Since there is already a discussion scheduled why not talk about those few White people who have been disrespecting and disparaging Black people right here in Lake Worth? The images below are from a hateful blogger in Lake Worth. So should this topic be added to the agenda on January 29th: "Why are people trying so hard to divide our City?"

This was posted on a Lake Worth blog the week prior to Lake Worth's Martin Luther King, Jr. in March of 2015.

"You could be the next target."? If this isn't disturbing enough try this one.

That silly crew of lemmings who don't like the NAPC continue marching on to that special place called "Stupid"

The Neighborhood Assoc. President's Council (NAPC), if you listen to the malcontents, are hell-bent on world domination. The truth is they're a whole bunch of really good people who are working very hard to improve each of their respective neighborhoods here in the little City of Lake Worth. The critics of the NAPC try constantly to drive a wedge between the public and the NAPC and really any excuse or tactic is part of the arsenal no matter how petty or inconsequential.

For example, the Bryant Park neighborhood is hosting a debate and they did everything right. Everyone was noticed and it is well-publicized and even commissioners not up for re-election were publicly invited. But the critics are still not happy.

Someone might get the idea that the challengers trying to be elected to the City Commission (the Anarchist Ryan Hartman, Diane Jacques, Gary Antieau, and Frank McAlonan) are getting skittish about attending debates.

The NAPC really should be honored. The near-constant snipes and grumbling from a small group of malcontents really demonstrates how effective they've become at making so many of our neighborhoods a better place to live. Carry On! Check back tomorrow for more on this and other stupidity that always precedes elections here in the City.

Frank McAlonan: the District 3 candidate challenging Lake Worth Commissioner Andy Amoroso

There's not a whole lot to say except the impression many people got was Frank McAlonan wasn't very comfortable with the positions he took on many issues. Put another way, he looked like he was coached at the first debate and he'll have another chance coming up soon at the next debate.

If you attended the last debate or have been paying attention you've heard the term, "critical thinking". This is the latest meme being used that doesn't mean anything. However, when you call yourself a 'critical thinker' you imply the person opposite you on a topic isn't a 'critical thinker', or if you prefer, a stupid person. Anyone who knows or has listened to Commissioner Amoroso knows how smart he is and hopefully Mr. McAlonan isn't trying to imply that Amoroso's intellect is impaired in any way. Maybe McAlonan will clear that up at the next debate.

Here is someone's views on McAlonan's performance at the last debate from The Obtuse Blogger's (TOB's) unhinged blog:

Anyhow, Lake Worth's local beat reporter for The Palm Beach Post has yet to report anything about the first debate and maybe he'll report on the second debate. Or he can just watch my videos on YouTube. At some point he's going to have to mention that an Anarchist is challenging Vice Mayor Scott Maxwell. Or maybe that pertinent fact will never be reported like then-candidate Ryan Maier's claim he was a member of a board in the City?

Ryan Hartman looks very different now. He's become a Hipster!