Amendment 4

Basically, the amendment wanted to make it so that a special ballot would have to be set up for the public to vote on changes made to land-use plans. The Amendment would have given Florida voters the right to make more decisions when it came to city and county comprehensive land-use plans in the state. However it would have also cost taxpayers more money in order to have these special ballots set up, as well as up to 200,000+ jobs.

Amendment 4 needed 60% of voters to vote “Yes”. The results have now come in and 67% of voters voted “No” on the Amendment, thus nothing will change when it comes to comprehensive land use plans.

Amendment 4 in Florida

REFERENDA REQUIRED FOR ADOPTION AND AMENDMENT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMPREHENSIVE LAND USE PLANS.

“Establishes that before a local government may adopt a new comprehensive land-use plan, or amend a comprehensive land-use plan, the proposed plan or amendment shall be subject to vote of the electors of the local government by referendum, following preparation by the local planning agency, consideration by the governing body and notice. Provides definitions.”

Basically if you vote “YES” on Amendment 4 in Florida, you are saying you would like a special ballot to be set up for the public to vote on changes to land-use plans. This means that any changes to city and county comprehensive land-use plans would have to be sent to a public vote. If you vote “NO”, you support keeping the current system of not having a public vote.

There are pros and cons to this Amendment, as a “YES” vote would certainly give the public more say in land-use planning, but at the same time, would cost tax payers a lot more money in order to hold these additional ballots.

It is a tough decision for a lot of people since no one really says how many additional funds would be needed. Some studies suggest that Amendment 4 would also cost close to 270,000 jobs in Florida. That’s not something too many people want to see in the current economical situation that the state is already in.

How do you feel about Amendment 4 in Florida?

2010 Florida Voters Guide and Information

Pages 4 & 5 – For Florida Senate Seat
Kendrick Meek – Democrat
Marco Rubio – Republican
Charlie Crist – No Party Affiliation

Page 6 – Governor of the State of Florida
Alex Sink – Democrat
Rick Scott – Republican

Page 7 – Florida Attorney General
Dan Gelber – Democrat
Pam Bondi – Republican

Page 8 Commissioner of Agriculture for Florida
Adam Putnam – Republican
Scott Maddox – Democrat

Page 9 – Florida CFO
Jeff Atwater – Republican
Loranne Ausley – Democrat

Page 10 – Supremse Court Justices
Chief Justice Canady
Justice James Perry
Justice Polston
Justice Labarga

There are also 6 Amendments in this Year’s Florida Election:

Amendment #1: Repeal of public campaign financing requirement
Amendment #2: Homestead ad valorem tax credit for deployed military personnel
Amendment #3: Amendment has been removed
Amendment #4: Referenda required for adoption and amendment of local government comprehensive land use plans
Amendment #5: Standards for Legislature to follow in legislative redistricting
Amendment #6: Standards for Legislature to follow in congressional redistricting
Amendment #7: Amendment has been removed
Amendment #8: Revision of the class size requirements for public schools

Remember to get out there and vote if you are registered. There is no honor in American greater than our right to vote on Election day.

Crist & Meek

There is word today, that former President Bill Clinton has contacted Democrat Kendrick Meek, to try and see if he would be willing to drop out of the Florida Senate race. Meek says that this is not true, although Clinton did contact him.

“[Bill Clinton] didn’t ask me to drop out of the race,” Meek said to Fox.

Meek is also now accusing Charlie Crist of calling him and trying to get him to drop out of the senate race.

“I told him I’m not getting out of the race. I don’t sell out on the people of Florida,” explained Kendrick Meek.

Whether or not any of this is true, is still up for debate. When Charlie Crist was asked about the story, he said, “I wasn’t trying to get a deal done (get Meek to drop out).”

One can definitely see why Crist would want Meek to drop out of the race though. Meek is a Democrat, while Crist is running as an independent. However, Crist’s main following are democrats.

According to the latest Quinnipiac University Polls, Crist appears to have the support of 19% of Republicans, 51% of Democrats and 43% of independents. At the same time, Marco Rubio only is carrying 6% of Democrats. If Meek were to drop out of the senate race, Crist would most likely receive the 36 percent following that Meek currently has from the Democrats. If this were to happen, Crist would win the election hands down.

However, this isn’t the case. Meek plans on staying in the race. Crist is trailing Marco Rubio 42% to 35%, and that won’t win him the Senate seat.

Can Crist make up the ground prior to the November 2 election, without a Meek dropout? We shall wait and see.

Charlie Crist

If Crist could become a Senator running as an independent, whats next? Could we finally see a President of the United States run an an independent and actually have a fighting chance? Sorry Ross Perot.

More importantly Charlie Crist could help influence other big name political candidates to run as an independent. Could this become a new thing for politicians to do? When it comes down to it, a large amount of political candidates can not honestly say they are 100% conservative, or 100% liberal. Why affiliate yourself with a party at all, if you have some liberal beliefs that are mixed with conservative beliefs?

Most voters are not far left wing or far right wing when it comes to their political ideals. Can they really be classified as a Democrat or Republican, if they have mixed beliefs? Party affiliation gets in the way of many things for a politician. Perhaps Charlie Crist will show America that it is alright to be “independent”.

2010 Senate Election

- Democrat Barbara Boxer projects to defeat Republican Carly Fiorina for Senator in California, although it is a very close race. Fiorina is hoping that her latest health issues for an infection does not hurt her campaigning ability in these last few days before the election.

- Democrat Chris Coons looks to be ahead of Christine O’Donnell by a significant margin in the Delaware Senate race. Coons appears to have the wraps on the Senate spots, but polls have been wrong in the past when trying to project elections.

- Republican Marco Rubio projects to defeat Independent Charlie Crist and Democrat Kendrick Meek in the Florida Senate race. Christ is hoping to surprise Florida voters after becoming an independent. Will the change in party affiliation cause him to lose this election? It very well may. Crist is hoping that some of Meek’s followers end up deciding to vote for him.

Whether these predictions end up being correct is anyone’s guess. Polls are not accurate 100% of the time. Find out for sure who wins, on November 2.

Jennifer Mee

Now, Jennifer Mee is in the news again, but this time it isn’t for innocent hiccuping. The 19-year-old Mee was arrested for the murder of a man during a robbery. Mee allegedly lured the victim to a specific location where her friends robbed him at gunpoint and then killed him. The victim’s name is Shannon A. Griffin, and he was apparently shot several times during the robbery.

Mee is being held without bond in Pinellas County. She has admitted to her role in the killing, and has been charged with first-degree murder.

Hurricane Paula Headed Towards Cozumel, Mexico

Computer models are having a hard time dealing with the long term track of Hurricane Paula, as they are all in disagreement as to the strength and the direction of the storm. The National Hurricane Center has Paula making it’s way fairly close to the Mexican Island of Cozumel early tomorrow morning. It is possible that Paula may be a major category 3 storm by the time it brushes the shores of Cozumel. All interests along the East Coast of Mexico should pay close attention to this possibly deadly storm. The long range forecast for the storm is still iffy, so anyone who may be in it’s path, including Florida, especially the Keys, should continue to watch this dangerous storm.

Tropical Storm Paula

Hurricane Wilma in 2005 did just this. Although Paula likely won’t become a powerful category 5 storm like Wilma did 5 years ago, the threat remains that the west coast of Florida or the southern tip of the state may be impacted by Paula down the line. It is very important that all interests along the Gulf of Mexico pay close attention to future National Hurricane Center updates.

Tropical storm Paula will likely become Hurricane Paula within a day or two. It will then basically stall out over the Gulf of Honduras for several days according to the NHC. From there, the computer models have several different solutions, but at this time its much too early for them to get a handle on the situation. The next several days should be crucial as to the development of the storm.

Shooting in Gainesvile leaves 2 dead & 5 wounded

Clifford Miller, who was only 24 is the suspect. He ended up taking his own life after going on a shooting spree in the Gainesville area on Monday. Gainesville residence can sleep more soundly, because the gunman is no longer a threat. After shooting what seems to be mostly random people, the gunman pulled his car over and apparently shot himself.

“We believe we’re with the suspect and the vehicle, and there is no one out there running around,” said Gainesville Police Captain, Ed Book.

There are currently 5 people in the hospital with gunshot wounds. One of the dead is believed to be the suspects father, Clifford L. Miller Sr. The wounded are at Shands Hospital located at the University of Florida, which is in Gainesville.