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Rebellious schoolteachers in Jacksonville should answer to parents
Teachers in government schools around the nation – allegedly including 10 in Jacksonville — are vowing to teach their students – by example – to flout the law. The teachers have pledged online do disobey state laws prohibiting the teaching of Critical Race Theory – a divisive, anti-American belief that is being pushed vigorously by…
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Social justice warriors have completed their tasks in Jax
It looks like the “era of enlightenment” is over, and if you don’t feel totally enlightened you’re not alone. Last year, the City Council president, Tommy Hazouri, created the Social Justice and Community Investment Special Committee, saying it heralded a new era of enlightenment. It turned out to be more about “investment” (a euphemism employed…
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Covid test travel requirements are not only absurd; they are a punishment of vaccinated Americans
Amelia Island resident Ken Timmerman sent us information on his travels abroad. Ken is no newbie to traveling abroad. He was a journalist during many wars and his first Middle East reporting trip took him to Beirut in July 1982. He’s lived in Egypt and Lebanon, worked with freedom fighters in Iran and Iraq, and…
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Need a good laugh? City Haul is now “Woke” – no joke!
While making a routine check in the central government complex formerly known as Cohen Brothers, Eye on Jacksonville learned the politicians have a new rebranding effort under way. The city’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report is getting a new label. The reason is hilarious. We sought the report to get some up to date financial numbers.…
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Good Lord! Deliver Us from Diversity Drama
I guess it was just a matter of time. My professional organization, the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese (AATSP), adopted a “diversity, equity, and inclusion” statement. (I know, I know. Foreign-language group names tend to be wordy.) Anyway, in recent years, colleges, companies, and organizations have fallen all over themselves to virtue…
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Want to know more about our beloved Governor DeSantis? Here you go!
I met Ron DeSantis during the tea party days. I immediately knew there was something very special about him and what resonated more than anything was his drive to pursue the calling on his life. With his strong and beautiful wife, Casey, by his side as his helpmate, he worked tirelessly day and night to…
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Getting building permits in Jacksonville requires patience
Jacksonville was once the best place to get a building permit and now has become one of the worst, according to someone who has been in the building business nearly half a century. Chip Williams said the deterioration has taken place over the past 25 years and while it is bad in most counties of…
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Fathers and mothers are important, despite what critics say
Recently, I met a remarkable guy. The most remarkable thing is that he voted for Trump. The most unremarkable thing about him is that his skin is black. Like millions of other Americans, he enjoyed Father’s Day Sunday with his wife and three children in their middle-class home in Jacksonville. He agrees that the nuclear…
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Not everything old is priceless
The Jacksonville Historical Society has published another list of buildings it says the city cannot afford to lose. Why not? Comment in Daily Record: “Save anything that is old? Except offensive statues, of course? What is the purpose of saving something if it doesn’t have a purpose? Will tourists flock to Jacksonville to buy a…
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There’s a lot of trash talking in Fernandina Beach
Trash rules seem to apply to city residents and businesses, but not to the city or the City Manager. It is apparent we are living in the “do as I say not as I do” world in Fernandina. For instance, in a recent article titled “Talking Trash” by our City Manager, Dale Martin on May…
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The Skyway, a hand-me-down from the days of double-knit suits
Mass transit fans may have been dismayed when funding for the Skyway was diverted to a new fad, but they shouldn’t fear – bad projects almost never die. The Skyway dates to 1972, when mass transit enthusiasts discovered the federal government was throwing away money on the latest and greatest thing – essentially a newer…
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Orange Crush Festival gets special privileges you can’t get
In a recent interview with Sheriff Mike Williams about this weekend’s Orange Crush “festival” he said the communication between the organizers and the city has been “haphazard.” Haphazard is not a word the residents of Jacksonville and the beaches wants to hear. We want to hear that all is well, we have this under control,…
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Mayor Curry again walks the town content with the labor of tearing it down
Once again Mayor Curry and his team have taken a wrecking ball to a city landmark. The biggest wrecking ball was the demolition of The Landing after the Mayor revealed (but didn’t mean to) — “we have a plan to take back The Landing.” He took it back as he said he would and brought…
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Eye hands out a WINK to local mom, Quisha King
There is a movement in the air and it involves Moms who are not happy with what’s going on in America. I’m reminded of the old saying, “When Mamma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy!” Moms in America are not happy with many issues facing families today. But one of the loudest “Moms aren’t happy movement”…
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Lori Hershey: You might be a RINO if…
Every election cycle politicians clamor for the votes of hardworking taxpayers. They make promises and many wear masks to hide who they really are at heart. Here at Eye on Jacksonville, we believe that you shouldn’t take all of the campaign hype at face value – voters should carefully examine each candidate and their record.…