THE TOP STORIES LAST WEEK
‘MAURICE ALLEN DAY’ Gary Cain,
Some welcome good news from Pine Hills: One of the neighborhood's favorite sons, golfer Maurice Allen, recently won the World Long Drive Championship. The Orange County Commission honored the former Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida "Youth of the Year" by decreeing Nov. 13 "Maurice Allen Day." We're proud to claim Allen, and the tens of thousands of Pine Hills youth who have called our club a second home for almost 75 years.
PECHAKUCHA NIGHT IN ORLANDO
Tom Dyer,
Last Friday at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, the marquee event was folkrock crooner Ray LaMontagne at the Walt Disney Theater. But next door, a more introspective crowd gathered at the Alexis & Jim Pugh Theater for metaphysical Orlando's favorite quarterly event: PechaKucha Night. At two shows, attendees heard Ted Talk-like presentations from some of the people who ground our city spiritually. Speakers included arts instigator Terry Olson, Sweet Utopian Mylk Bar founder Ashley Renee, Hoop Brothers CEO Sam Tarell and transgender activist Gina Leigh Duncan. PechaKucha (Japanese for “chitchat”) is a global phenomenon. Orlando's is one of the best.
CONGRESS AND IMMIGRATION John L. Evans Jr.,
Immigration looms for our next, 116th, U.S. Congress. I was in Las Vegas recently, and I took five Ubers; my drivers hailed from Cuba, Panama, China, Mozambique and Boise. It felt like a United Nations caravan of sorts. My conversations were all glorious, and here's why. All five might not have spoken good English, but all five certainly spoke enthusiastic English. Moreover, they all showed outstanding work ethics, using Uber to support another entrepreneurial business dream. This is beautiful, and uniquely American. Famed French philosopher and observer of all things USA, Alexis de Tocqueville, would have been impressed. I wish he could hail an Uber in Vegas or Orlando. Keep legal immigration streamlined. Let's roll.
KEEP WEBSITES ACCESSIBLE Rogue Gallart,
Recent lawsuits targeting business websites over ADA violations are on the rise. The Trump administration's decision to stop drafting rules for website ADA compliance is widely seen as opening the floodgates to legal action. With online sales, reservations and job postings now a huge part of our commerce, websites need to be as accessible to everyone, just as brick-and-mortar stores, restaurants and schools are. Nearly 5,000 ADA lawsuits were filed in federal court for alleged website violations in the first six months of 2018, according to an analysis by Seyfarth Shaw. The number of lawsuits are expected to climb to nearly 10,000 by the end of the year, a 30 percent increase from 2017.
KUDOS TO JACOBS Joel C. Hunter,
Kudos to Mayor Teresa Jacobs, who will term out as Orange County mayor this week. Under her leadership, Orange County has made remarkable improvements in the business, tourist and wage-increase sectors. Even more profoundly, she helped us create a "culture of compassion" with her efforts in addressing family homelessness, children's needs and especially our response to the LGBT community after the Pulse nightclub massacre. Her heart to honor the victims and help build the memorial with a $10 million donation from hotel taxes not only makes us more deeply respectful, but aids in our community's healing. Thank you, Mayor Jacobs.
SOCIAL MEDIA’S EFFECTS J. Matthew Knight,
Eighty percent of Americans age 12 and over have at least one socialmedia profile, where we spend, on average, two to three hours each day swiping and commenting. Unfortunately, all this networking seems to be terrible for our well being. In a new comprehensive University of Pennsylvania study, researchers examined how Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram affect our moods. Their conclusion: Socialmedia use is highly correlated with depression and loneliness. It appears that repetitively viewing heavily polished snippets of others' lives engenders feelings of inadequacy and sadness. Is it just coincidence, then, that the suicide rate in America has increased 25 percent since 1999?
As we head into Thanksgiving week, I can only imagine that readers will be especially thankful for the day I'll stop talking about affordable housing ... but until then, I am especially thankful for our community partners at Wells Fargo for their commitment of $6.3 million for down-payment assistance grants. The NeighborhoodLIFT program will pair home-buyer education classes with down-payment assistance grants for qualifying residents in Orange, Seminole, Lake and Osceola counties. Many residents are already paying the equivalent of a mortgage in rent, and this program will help them pursue homeownership. When 26 percent of our region makes less than $34,000 a year, this assistance might be the difference between homeownership and homelessness. Thank you, Wells Fargo.
FIX ELECTORAL PROCESS T.J. Legacy-Cole,
The aftermath of the Nov. 6 general election has shifted the conversation across the state to fraud and voter disenfranchisement. No matter who wins the election for Florida governor or U.S. Senate, there should be a statewide call to action by every Supervisor of Elections office to fix our electoral process. Democratic Party candidates have pledged to remain vigilant with the demand to count every vote. My question is when should every vote count, and when should our communities be in an uproar about voter disenfranchisement? In Orange County, predominantly in African-American districts, the culture of ballot brokers and absentee-ballot fraud have suppressed the will and voices of the people for decades. When will clergy, organizations and community leaders take a stand to say enough? Maybe turning a blind eye to voter suppression for so many years sowed the seeds the state of Florida reaps today.
UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES
A.J. Marsden,
Often one of the unintended consequences of a law telling you “no” is that someone looking to make a buck will tell you “yes.” This applies to myriad topics, not the least of which is abortion. Even Frank Sinatra's mother was known to provide the then-illegal service to her neighborhood when he was a boy. Aid Access, an online service, has started providing mailorder prescription abortion pills — to the applause of some and the chagrin of others. The United States is divided on abortion, but one thing is glaringly obvious, we can tell women “no” to make ourselves feel morally superior, but we only drive those in need into the dangerous deadly dark.
CLEAN UP GATEWAY Anna McPherson,
With Black Friday quickly approaching, the finishing touches on all holiday shopping displays are being readied in the Mall at Millenia. The megacenter positively sparkles and glimmers, luring retail dollars to the area. What's not so sparkly? The bridge connecting Mall at Millenia shoppers from Interstate 4 to their destination. An errant vine is growing over the Orange County Government logo on the westbound-facing side. Mildew streaks down the concrete. The gateway to Orlando is overgrown and is in dire need of a pressure wash and some landscaping to make it ready for the holidays.
SENTINEL’S NEW LEADERSHIP Joseph F. Pennisi,
New leadership has arrived at the Sentinel, along with a host of other changes. Among the goals behind the changes is “growing the Sentinel's digital audience.” Now I'm an old-fashioned guy and like nothing more than the feel of the paper in my hands as I sip my morning coffee, but I understand that we're facing a brave new digital world. New publisher Nancy Meyer and editor-in-chief Julie Anderson will have their work cut out for them in improving the utility of the paper's digital versions. We're all counting on them. We need our hometown paper to retain its quality and relevance in the digital age.
ANGEL TREE PROGRAM John Thedford,
The Salvation Army of Orlando sponsors the annual Angel Tree program to provide holiday gifts for underprivileged children ages 12 and younger. Because of the community's generosity, each year several thousand children receive toys, clothes, shoes, bicycles and other presents to open Christmas morning. Central Florida ranks as one of the leading cities in the country in homelessness, so the need is great. As a volunteer in Orlando, I see the wonderful things that the Salvation Army does for the homeless and the elderly as well as those who have suffered from natural disasters, job loss, and illness. I support Angel Tree, and I hope others will join me.