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Red tide and green water? Florida beaches have a problem, and its name is Rick Scott
By Fabiola Santiago

Read more here: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/ ... rylink=cpy

And how we got to the point of unspoiled beaches, inlets, and barrier islands turning into wildlife cemeteries has a theme: Caring for Florida’s fragile environment — and beaches, of all things, Florida’s top tourism asset — shouldn’t be a partisan issue, but it is in this divided battleground state.

Ideologues vote party-only candidates. Republicans value business interests (rotten as they may be) over environmental protection (that’s for wimpy liberals) — and in Scott, they found their man. They voted twice for Scott, who became the state’s top executive by slim margins, thanks to the apathy of Democrats who don’t turn out to vote in large enough numbers.

During his eight years in office, Scott has rolled back crucial safeguards like septic-tank inspections that ensure waste isn’t seeping into water systems. He has cut almost $700 million in funding for water management districts largely responsible for the protection of waterways. He appointed water management board members more concerned with the rights of polluters than clean water.

And who doesn’t remember when Scott instructed staff not to use the term “climate change?”

For good measure, Republicans aided by gerrymandering (they drew districts that favored them) also elected legislators who are no different from Scott or President Donald Trump, who has gutted the Environmental Protection Agency.

The state’s fate was sealed with that double-whammy. Instead of strong protections and top minds working on how to safeguard our most precious assets, we have politics of the right setting priorities and delivering excuses like waste has to go somewhere. And, in the words of Miami Herald environmental writer Jenny Staletovich, coast “has become a red tide slaughterhouse this summer.”

My only consolation is that Rick Scott lives on a beachfront mansion in Naples and has a front seat to the dead fish.

Thanks to Scott and the Florida Legislature’s policies, this will go down as a beach-less summer.
You can feel the desperation of tourism operators in the promotional emails coming into your mailbox from cottages and hotels on the west coast. Rock bottom prices! Free nights!

But who needs to bake in the sun with creatures biting at your feet and sea lice creeping up you know where? Who wants to see the carcass of a red-tide-infected whale shark on the sand along with your Sanibel sunset?

Scott, who loves to call press conferences and declare state emergencies in a baseball cap, is very good at taking credit for things like hurricane preparedness, jobs numbers, and growth, growth, growth. He dashes off to Puerto Rico to squeeze out a spot in the Hurricane Maria spotlight to court those Central Florida voters, and doesn’t miss a beat addressing the foreign-policy concerns of constituents in Miami-Dade.

But when it comes to the environment and Florida’s water quality, we’ve been on our own, folks — except, wait a minute, now he’s running for the U.S. Senate in a neck-and-neck race with pro-environment champion Senator Bill Nelson, and he has finally declared the algae bloom a state of emergency.

Yeah, we live in Florida, summer vacation almost over, and we can’t take our kids to the beach.
Our dirty beaches are on sale, USA, but swim at your own risk.

subgenius wrote:how is it possible? my faithful democrat posters (especially the white ones) on this board have long held that these minorities would vote democrat.

The survey reveals that Scott, the Republican candidate, tops Nelson, the Democratic candidate, by 14 points — 52 percent to 38 percent. Likely Hispanic voters over the age 50 were asked who they would cast their ballot for if the election for U.S. Senate were held in Florida today.

https://www.salon.com/2018/09/26/sound- ... hispanics/

First liberal to call them stupid wins a prize!

subgenius wrote:how is it possible? my faithful democrat posters (especially the white ones) on this board have long held that these minorities would vote democrat.

The survey reveals that Scott, the Republican candidate, tops Nelson, the Democratic candidate, by 14 points — 52 percent to 38 percent. Likely Hispanic voters over the age 50 were asked who they would cast their ballot for if the election for U.S. Senate were held in Florida today.

https://www.salon.com/2018/09/26/sound- ... hispanics/

First liberal to call them stupid wins a prize!

subgenius wrote:[i]The survey reveals that Scott, the Republican candidate, tops Nelson, the Democratic candidate, by 14 points — 52 percent to 38 percent.

EAllusion wrote:Old Floridian Cubans are super reliable Republican voters would be my first guess, though Scott is known for not doing super bad among Puerto Ricans. Hispanic voters in Florida over the age of 50 is quite a narrow demographic slice and doesn't refute the idea that Hispanic voters in general tend to prefer Democrats.

Kevin Graham wrote:They're not stupid, but you are. Read EA's post, he hits the nail right on the head.

subgenius wrote:

EAllusion wrote:Old Floridian Cubans are super reliable Republican voters would be my first guess, though Scott is known for not doing super bad among Puerto Ricans. Hispanic voters in Florida over the age of 50 is quite a narrow demographic slice and doesn't refute the idea that Hispanic voters in general tend to prefer Democrats.

Guess? wild stab in the dark is a more accurate description.
Over 25% of Florida is Hispanic with over 20% of Florida being 65+ years old and almost 30% for the 45+ age group.
Not "narrow" at all my friend.

and as for the "tends to prefer" in Florida:

About 38 percent of Hispanic registered voters are not affiliated with either major political party, compared to 26 percent of non-Hispanics. About 24 percent of Hispanic registered voters are Republicans, compared to 37 percent non-Hispanics. The share of Hispanic and non-Hispanic voters for Democrats is nearly the same, 38 percent and 37 percent, respectively.

So, again reality has diminishes your intellectual posturing. I would guess that the opening post statistic is significant given the actual demographics.