Looking ahead to this week
Frank Ortis, mayor, Pembroke Pines
This is the first full week of school for our students. Of course, top of mind is school safety in addition to quality of education. More a process than a destination, failure to ensure school safety is not an option. The stakes are just too high. Metal detectors, armed guards, funding, accountability, mental health screenings and security cameras are just some of the words bantered about in school safety discussions. We need to put aside the heated rhetoric to rationally take practical measures, and tackle the challenges before us. Parents shouldn’t have to ask ‘is my child safe?’
Chuck Shaw, chairman, Palm Beach County School Board
School is open. I hope we hear what every school district has done to provide security, who is complete, who has not complied, and which approach each took. I also believe the story has to see just how our Legislators plan to continue (or ignore) their responsibility to support this issue from today on. They handed us a bandage with no replacement and no treatment. Anybody in Tallahassee listening, including candidates for governor?
Scott J. Israel, sheriff, Broward County
Reporting suspicious activity or perceived threats at our schools just got a lot easier. BSO, in partnership with SaferWatch, is rolling out an innovative new mobile app this week that allows users to report nonemergency incidents and tips in real time directly to BSO. The SaferWatch program will cover more than 440 public, charter and private schools in Broward, and give students, teachers and parents the ability to submit photos, videos, audio files or text messages anonymously. Learn more about the free app, including how to download it, at BrowardAlerts.com. With your help, we can keep our community safer.
Mike Ryan, mayor, Sunrise
VOTING. In a non-presidential election cycle, here is a depressing fact: too many fail to exercise their right to vote, a right for which blood and life have been sacrificed. In Broward, the percentage of eligible voters who actually cast a November ballot was abysmal: 2014 (45%), 2010 (41%) and 2006 (45%). More than half stayed home. Florida overall data is only incrementally better. Voting in primaries historically in Broward is even more depressing: 2014 (11%); 2010 (15%) 2006 (12%). There is no excuse. Early Voting. Mailin Ballots. How much easier could it be? Educate. Dedicate. Celebrate. Vote.
Robert Weinroth, former deputy mayor,
Boca Raton
Election Day is no longer a single date on the calendar. Thanks to Vote by Mail and Early Voting, ballots are cast over extended periods of time. For the Florida primary, that period began several weeks ago with the initial mailing of ballots followed, last week, by Early Voting, which will continue through August 26th. All polls will open on August 28th for traditionalists. With all of these opportunities to cast a ballot, it is truly amazing that turnout will likely fall below 30 percent. Voting is a right and civic responsibility. Take a few minutes and cast your vote!
Tim Lonergan, president, Broward League of Cities; mayor, Oakland Park
The importance of home rule is so very apparent in discussions regarding the regulation of vacation rentals. Local regulation enables municipal governments to balance the objectives of vacation rental owners with the concerns of neighbors. Local officials, who best understand the unique issues in their cities, are charged with the responsibility of deciding what works best within their city. A one-size-fits-all approach does not work for vacation rentals. Municipal leaders must have the flexibility to do what is right for their residents.
Joshua Thifault, Advancement Director,
Turning Point USA
Why did socialism win so many converts in 2016? The answer is simple. People were hurting. When the streets aren’t safe and companies aren’t hiring, it’s easy to blame “the system.” But is capitalism to blame for these problems? If the Trump era has taught us anything, that answer is a strong “no.” After slashing regulation, cutting taxes, and empowering police, most Americans are living better. Blaming “capitalism” for the Obama era’s failure is foolish. He moved us away from capitalism, and closer to a state-run economy. When government picks winners and losers, everyday people lose. Socialism never works.
Michael Dennis, M.D., chairman, Florida Atlantic University Schmidt College of Medicine
There were 462 fully educated students, eager to pursue their life goals, who were denied a graduation ceremony recently at Florida Atlantic University because someone discovered a threatening note taped to a mirror in a campus bathroom an hour before the event. University police considered it credible. Whether it was a prank or serious statement remains unclear. We have enough natural disasters without creating our own. Huge wildfires destroying homes and many acres of forest, volcanic eruptions, massive earthquakes, and tsunamis crushing communities — to name a few. And then there’s human error almost daily producing infrastructure failure. We have enough on our plate.