This is our regular feature where every day I do a quick post with the top posts/stories that I think people should read from the previous day.
1. Robert Wexler – A Surge of More Lies: “A new troubling myth has taken hold in Washington and it is critical that the record is set straight. According to the mainstream media, Republicans, and unfortunately even some Democrats, the President’s surge in Iraq has been a resounding success. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. This assertion is disingenuous, factually incorrect, and negatively impacts America’s national security. The Surge had a clear and defined objective – to create stability and security – enabling the Iraqi government to enact lasting political solutions and foster genuine reconciliation and cooperation between Sunnis, Shias, and Kurds. This has not happened.”
2. More on New Hampshire: Pensacola Beach Blogger – New Hampshire Effects, Talk To Me – New Hampshire, Pensacola Beach Blog – John McCain’s Disqualifying Speech, Morning Martini – Words that Had to Hurt, Son of Timatollah – Quick New Hampster Reax, Bark Bark Woof Woof – Morning Aftershocks, Bark Bark Woof Woof – Handicapping the Races, Flablog – Going Dark, becoming change – if the democratic candidates were…in a kindergarten classroom, Incertus (Bradley) – It’s a Wacky Wednesday With the Incertus Zoo Crew (BOIIIIIIIING!!), Pensito Review – Roughly Half of New Hampshire Republican Voters Were Bush Haters, Pensito Review – Poll: God Puts Huckabee in Lead in Florida – Also Leads in S.C., Home of Christian Exodus, Robin ‘Roblimo’ Miller – Hillary finally showed her human side — and it helped her a lot, Independent Report – McCain, Clinton win in New Hamshire, Make Me A Commenter – Catch 22, Bark Bark Woof Woof – Teenage Wasteland, Bark Bark Woof Woof – What Happened?, The Spencerian – The Tear that Changed the World, Pensacola Beach Blog – Analyzing the Analysis, Blast Off – We’re still relevant!, and Why Now? – Get a Clue.
3. Flablog – 101st idea: “Speaker Marco Rubio says he wants entire agencies wiped off the state budget, according to an article by Old Tallahassee Hand Bill Cotterell.”
4. Turkey Point Nuclear Power Plant: Eye on Miami – Cuban American politics in Miami, FPL and nuclear power, Eye on Miami – How Far Are You From Turkey Point, Future Site of 4 Nuclear Reactors?, and Eye on Miami – Nuke Public Hearing Today!
5. Lincolnville Dumping: Clean Up City of St. Augustine, Florida – No “Root Cause Analysis†Exists for City of St. Augustine’s Illegal Dumping – City Managers Misled the Public at the December 13 Lincolnville Meeting, and Clean Up City of St. Augustine, Florida – Letter: Protect Lincolnville from old dump’s waste.
6. the 13th juror – Housing the homeless saves money: “Two housing projects are saving taxpayers in Seattle about $3.2 million a year by directly addressing their residents’ struggles with alcoholism, mental health problems and other issues. Preliminary studies indicate that the projects are dramatically reducing visits to the public hospital, sobering center and jail” and the 13th juror – St. Petersburg targets the homeless again: “For months, just a few feet from the steps of City Hall, a makeshift encampment has grown. Dozens of homeless people sleep along the sidewalk and store their belongings in sleeping bags, old suitcases and shopping carts” and the 13th juror – Speaking up for the homeless (and others whose voices aren’t heard): “‘Tonight, a man or a woman whose name is unknown, who served this country patriotically and wore the uniform of the United States of America, will go to sleep under a bridge or on a grate, homeless,’ said John Edwards in his speech after finishing third in the New Hampshire primary. He’s the only one of the presidential candidates who talks about homelessness in America.”
7. Florida Science Standards: Florida Citizens for Science – Miramar: the morning after, Florida Citizens for Science – Breathtaking inanity, Florida Citizens for Science – Framers and writers back to work. 12 counties?!, Blast Off! – Is our children learning?, Florida style, and Blast Off! – Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to live in Taylor County.
8. Miami-Dade Dems – Become a delegate: You WILL be counted: “Now it’s becoming clear, despite all the Republican misleading. Florida’s Jan. 29 primary will have a strong effect on choosing the Democratic nominee for president, and that person will see that Florida’s delegates will be welcome at the national convention.”
9. Bill Nelson: Truman’s Conscience – Hey, Orlando! You can now thank Sen. Bill Nelson’s yea vote for that Bankruptcy Law vote, and Blast Off! – What Nelson said.
10. Flablog – Roads are for bikes, too: “This is off-topic but as somebody who bicycles a lot, it’s just something that annoys me. Drivers – usually bad drivers in some of the largest vehicles available to civilians — will shout at me to ride on the sidewalk. Once somebody intentionally ran me off the road while shouting at me to get on the sidewalk. (I was on a mountain bike, so it didn’t matter. I just kept going over the grass.) Well, as this column in the Tally Democrat patiently explains, sidewalks are not safer for bicycles.”
11. Broward’s Blog – Dinner and a (drag) show to raise money for LaFontaine: “Mark LaFontaine, who hopes to become the first openly gay member of the Florida Legislature by winning the seat about to be left open by state Rep. Jack Seiler, is getting a little help from a current openly gay elected official. U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat and openly gay member of Congress, will help LaFontaine raise money at two events on Jan. 13.”
12. Draft Joe Garcia – The Secret Plot: Diaz-Balarts and Ros-Lehtinen to face “gasp†elections: “This is big. A secret plot has just been discovered by South Florida Republicans on the possibility that they may face challenges in their re-election bids. That’s right, three South Florida Representatives are going to face Democratic challengers in US House elections and they have lots of evidence to prove it.”
13. Miami-Dade Dems – Herald: Diaz-Balart may face challenger: “It’s tempting to rip into the Miami Herald for the headline above. Hey, that’s perceptive. But no, let’s look at the content.”
14. Mark Foley: Blast Off! – Remember Mark Foley?, and Smashed Frog – Mark Foley–He’s BAAACK.
15. Tampa Bay Blue – Vote John Edwards on January 29. Pushing Rope responds.
16. Miami-Dade Dems – Vote for Raul Martinez!: “This is meaningless, but what the heck…”
17. Florida Blogging News: Incertus has a new blogger, S.O.S., and Interstate4Jamming is back.
18. Here are the sites in our Candidate Watch Network that have been updated: The Lincoln Observer, Say No To Mario and Eye On Ileana.
19. Also check out CG Radio.
20. For more, as always, go to the FLA Politics daily round-up, Political Newsclippings from The Spencerian and The Florida Blogosphere Zeitgeist from Truman’s Conscience.
I’m honored to be on your blogroll. Thank you so much.