Field Of Dreams?

If you build it, they will come. In this case, I'm talking about the recent re-emergence of Palm Beach County in the spring training and Minor League Baseball scene.

Nineteen years ago, Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter was constructed. Located in the Abacoa community, the stadium holds nearly 7,000 fans, and features luxury sky-box seating, 2 levels of permanent seating, parking and concessions.

For what seemed like the longest time, Roger Dean Stadium was the only game in town - literally. As home to the Miami (formerly Florida) Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals major league franchises for spring training, and four minor league teams (the Rookie-level and Class A-Advanced affiliates of both Miami and St. Louis) as well, it was the single choice for baseball-loving fans within Palm Beach County.

But that changes this year, with the inaugural season at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches in Palm Beach Gardens. Like Roger Dean Stadium, the new state-of-the-art complex is the spring training home to two Major League Baseball teams (the Houston Astros and the Washington Nationals). And in the future, minor league affiliate of those teams will also call the 6,500-seat stadium home.

The Astros and Nationals will play the first game at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches on Feb. 22. Roughly half of the $148 million complex cost is being paid by Palm Beach County, using taxes on hotel stays dedicated toward tourism-boosting efforts. The state and the two teams are paying the balance.

For now, that’s as far as in-county professional baseball will advance; an attempt to relocate the Atlanta Braves to Lake Worth’s John Prince Park had been floated, but county personnel involved with the push struck out. The Braves will be moving to Sarasota starting in 2019.

Atlanta had trained in West Palm Beach from 1963 through 1997, when the team moved to Disney's Wide World of Sports near Orlando.

When it comes to building new stadiums, there are mixed views on whether they benefit the community in which they are constructed. The textbook study of the relation between professional sports and economic development was written by Robert Baade of the Heartland Institute. Even though the study was completed in the 1990’s, it is still widely cited as an authoritative reference.  The Heartland Study identifies three economic impacts from public subsidies of professional sports: direct expenditures (restaurants, hotels, transportation, souvenirs, food), indirect expenditures (income spent by those who attend games on other goods and services within the metropolitan area), and “psychological” benefits (which are less easily quantified; some have suggested television coverage of a city’s professional sports teams encourages businesses to locate there).

There are also intangibles, such as the benefits of civic pride successful sports franchises evoke in a community.

But there can also be negatives with construction of new sports complexes; there are times where the deals struck between professional owners and community leaders are so lopsided, the community suffers long-term. For example, the horrible deal between Miami-Dade County officials and Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria. (I wrote about this back in August 2011.)

According to the May 2011 Miami New Times, Miami-Dade County officials "were so incompetent in negotiating the project that they stuck taxpayers with interest rates that would have made a mid-housing-bubble speculator gasp.” By the time the bonds are paid off in 40 years, the $515 million Marlins Park cost will have ballooned into $2.4 billion ... while the team pays no taxes on the land. It was a deal that put low-income taxpayers on the hook, at the same time county services were threatened with cuts, at the same time Miami’s then-Mayor Carols Alvarez pushed through a budget that raised property taxes, while at the same same time Alvarez was calling for a five percent across-the-board cut in pay for most county workers but a 15 percent increase in the salaries of his own staff.

To date, these types of problems have not plagued Palm Beach’s stadiums. I hope our more local options continue to be more fiscally and ethnically sound than our southern counterpart.

The Sober Homes Social Contract Theory

One of the long-standing quandaries that stems from John Locke’s “Social Contract Theory” is just how much power should individuals give up for the safety of the masses? Or, how much power should a government have over its citizens?

These questions have long been a basis for political philosophical differences, with some postulating the government should reduce its oversight of both individuals and companies, and others arguing the government needs to have more of a direct say in matters, especially those pertaining to the health, safety and welfare of a society.

This debate is pertinent as we head into 2017 when discussing the question of “sober homes,” which are a sort of halfway house for people fresh out of rehab. 

According to the Florida Association of Recovery Residences, sober homes are intended to be supportive transitional environments for individuals preparing to face the world during recovery from alcohol and drug addiction. These residences rely upon peer group recovery to help individuals gain strength and coping skills in a safe environment.

Last year, the Florida Legislature passed a law requiring recovery residences and their administrators to be certified. At the time, sober homes were unregulated, so the state was not even sure how many there were. The new rules were expected to provide the state with a list of where these homes are located, as well as restrict the number of people living in a given home.

But sometimes legislation doesn’t work out as effectively as envisioned. Since the new regulations passed in 2015, fraud has been rampant; there have been 10 arrests this year of individuals who have abused the system and the individuals they are entrusted to help transition.

State Attorney Dave Aronberg spearheaded a task force to investigate the problems, and the report - which includes 15 recommendations - will be sent to Tallahassee on Jan. 1. Among the recommendations: banning deceptive advertising from the treatment industry; requiring background checks to own a facility; and cracking down on patient brokering.

“This is an epidemic,” Aronberg said during a press conference earlier this week.“This is the number one public health and public safety crisis facing Palm Beach County and all of Florida.”

The flood out out-of-state patients, with insurance covering more lucrative out-of-network programs, has created a billion-dollar industry in Florida with very little oversight, Aronberg added.

I encourage the Florida Legislature to seriously review the task force’s recommendations, and make them part of the legal oversight of Florida’s drug recovery home operations. Our society is only as strong as the link most in need, and sober homes need sober backing to benefit the greater good.

The Truths We Cling To Depend On Our Point Of View

It was Thanksgiving weekend in the United States, but the announcement of Cuban dictator/strongman Fidel Castro’s death on Nov. 25 must have seemed either a surreal, difficult-to-believe, moment or a concrete, “it’s about time” announcement to Cubans around the world.

The 90-year-old Castro, who ruled Cuba for 49 long, torturous years (he took power in a 1959 revolution), creating a one-party state and becoming a central figure in the Cold War. For five decades, the bearded dictator defied U.S. efforts to topple him. Under his heavy-handed rule, Cubans lived in poverty, while he and his brother Raul lived in extreme luxury.

When the word “dictator” is uttered, we usually think of individuals like Adolf Hitler or Josef Stalin, of Idi Amin or Castro. All of these, and (sadly) plenty more through recent history, have used the same playbook when it comes to ruling with an iron fist.

Under Castro, Jehovah’s Witnesses, gays, and other “undesirables” were rounded up and sent to work camps - or UMAPs. Sound familiar, oh ye who have a basic understanding of how ethnic cleansing works? Castro was a tyrant who imposed communism on Cuba for more than 60 years, while torturing and killing tens of thousands more who disagreed with him. The total of the Castro regime death toll may never be known, but estimates approach 100,000.

Additionally, there was no religious liberty under Castro. Dissidents were tortured, imprisoned, or killed. So extreme was Castro’s control, he banned Christmas from being celebrated for 30 years. Yes, all the American right-wing media heads yapping about the “war on Christmas” might want to take a look at life 90 miles off the Florida coast for a refresher.

There are those who will say Castro was misunderstood, that he wasn’t all bad. They will say, “He built free schools and hospitals with much help from his Soviet sponsors.” They will say, “There's a high literacy rate.” These are true; however, as Obi-Wan Kenobi said so eloquently to Luke Skywalker on Dagobah, “Many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.” The facts of the truth: Castro ruled with repression and hypocrisy. Government-sponsored censorship prevented people from reading whatever they want. Castro executed thousands by firing squad and sentenced thousands to jail and hard labor. Committees for the Defense of the Revolution and block leaders kept people in fear of being spied upon, or called out for being anti-Castro. Citizens had poor access to health care and life-saving medicine.

Two years ago, President Barack Obama loosened the trade embargo between the United States and Cuba. Many criticized the move, questioning opening how the U.S. could work with such a regime. Others offered praise, opining the embargo had never worked, so maybe a new tactic was needed. After all, some argued the U.S. trade embargo is the reason life was so hard for Cubans. The true reason is not the trade embargo, but an oppressive government that decries capitalist enterprise and controls every aspect of financial betterment.

Fidel Castro is dead. But the damage will last a hundred generations longer than his rule.

NPPs Still Shut Out Of The Process

The state of Florida is criticized - often rightfully so - for leading the nation in any number of insanely stupid or mind-boggling events, from political shenanigans in Tallahassee to weird laws on the books to bizarre news stories that have been known to make residents ashamed of living here.

Among the most stupefying of these issues is the state’s insistence on blocking voters from crossing the aisle during primary elections because of phantom write-in candidates who are often nothing more than stooges planted to prevent voting by non-party preference (NPP) or citizens from an opposing party.

In 1998, voters passed a constitutional amendment making a number of changes to the structure of elections in the state. One key change was the institution of an open primary in races where there will be no opponent in the general election; basically, should only Republicans or only Democrats file to run for a specific seat, all voters (regardless of party preference, or even lack thereof) would be allowed to participate in the election process.

But … no sooner did the change become law that both parties figured out a loophole: add a write-in candidate to the mix - someone whose name will not even appear on the general election ballot - and the majority of voters become disenfranchised, because crossing party lines is no longer an option.

The situation is a travesty that considers write-in candidates viable general election opposition, which thereby closing party primaries to outsiders even when the primary race often virtually guarantees the winner in November. In almost all circumstances, write-in candidates are not legitimate candidates. While no-party or minor-party candidates must pay ballot-access fees or collect signatures to get their names on the ballot, write-in candidates do not. Their names will not appear on the ballot. They will be represented only by a blank line.

Lest you think this isn’t a common occurrence, we just need to look at the past three weeks to see its impact in Palm Beach County. By virtue of “write-in” candidates who have magically decided they no longer have any interest in representing “we the people,” a quartet of Democrats have won the general election some 60 days before that general election takes place. Elected to the Florida House of Representative are David Silvers and Al Jacquet. Mack Bernard has been elected to the Palm Beach County Commission. Katherine Waldron has won a seat on the Port of Palm Beach Commission.

The four candidates officially won when write-in candidates who had qualified to run against them in the Nov. 8 general election withdrew from the races. And while they may very well be wonderful people who ultimately represent their constituents effectively, we have a problem with a majority of said constituents never having a say in the process.

For nearly 20 years, both parties have taken advantage of this election law quirk, and while it may benefit their individual candidates, too many voters from both parties are left on the sidelines, unable to exercise their basic constitutional right.

This needs to be fixed, and soon.

Fifteen Years Later

This morning, at 8:46 a.m. specifically, marked the 15th anniversary of 9/11 when nearly 3,000 innocent Americans and foreign visitors were killed by Islamist terrorists in New York City, the Pentagon, and United Airlines Flight 93 in Pennsylvania.

So much has happened in the ensuing 5,480 days - and to eloquently incorporate words of wisdom from Guardians of the Galaxy’s Peter Quill, the years have been a combination of “something good, something bad.”

And in some cases, what has transpired has been a bit of both.

One one hand, the United States federal government became extremely proactive in its visible attempts to curtail international terrorism. The Department of Homeland Security was created. The FBI became a domestically focused national security and intelligence agency. There’s a more intense focus on immigration and refugee programs. Counterterrorism intelligence sharing has become more common and systematic.

On the other hand, the same U.S. federal government dragged itself into expensive wars overseas with sometimes questionable end goals. Al Qaeda, at the time the primary terrorist organization targeted by the U.S., has been overshadowed by ISIL and its terrorist allies. On the domestic front, the Capitol Hill political landscape has transformed into a group of elected officials who are unable or unwilling to cross party lines and find middle ground on anything of importance to the American people. And the prospects for rediscovering bipartisan teamwork appears next to impossible, given the current battle between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump to replace Barack Obama as president next January 20.

But if there’s anything the American people still have on their side, despite all the negatives that are part of the daily lexicon, it’s hope. Hope that the political bickering will come to an end and the two major political parties will work together again in a respectful manner. Hope that the billions of dollars exhausted on anti-terrorism technology and weaponry has been well-spent. Hope that the United States makes wise and effective decisions on dealing with Middle East terrorist non-government organizations, with equal hope we can bring our troops home unscathed.

Meanwhile, not a day goes by that there isn't some 9/11 connection which takes place. For some, it may be a news story about discrimination against Muslims, or a song which is heard on the radio, or going through airport security on a business trip. There’s always something there to remind us, even if we have no such desire to remember a most significant moment in recent U.S. history.

But remember we must, and we do.