Abstinence Only

This is slightly fun. In another write about freely financed forbearance programs, an administration guard dog charged that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) permits projects to disperse wrong sex data to children, and recommended the organization clean up its demonstration.

In any case's with all due respect, HHS contended that it doesn't know how to tell whether something is "experimentally exact."

Maybe they don't know what "experimentally exact" implies on the grounds that they're uneducated, unpracticed fanatic shills named simply because of their political binds to the Bush organization? Then again perhaps its simply a general scorn for science that is sadly predominant among present-day Republicans? Alternately both?

The "forbearance just" development must be a standout amongst the most harming activities in mass idiocy ever. Youngsters will drive autos. Young people will have intercourse. There's no halting it, yet there is a decision: teach adolescents about sex and recovery lives, or don't; counteract youngster premature births, or don't.

Forbearance Only doesn't work.

Anyplace.

Brevard County, shockingly, has a "refraining based" sexual training system joined to the required secondary school life administration course (I moved on from this educational system). Fundamentally, it is "forbearance just" with the proviso that understudies can get some information about sex. I'm certain understudies are simply tingling to do that before their companions.

In my first year of secondary school, a speaker came into our life administration class to discuss "restraint." She recounted to us a tale about how a couple set to marry the following day couldn't hold up and had intercourse that night. As per her story, the man passed on in an auto crash on the way home that night. The lady got to be pregnant. This, she asserted, demonstrates that you should dependably hold up until marriage.

Obviously, I was left thinking about how this story would be any less deplorable if the man had passed on the day following the wedding rather than the day preceding. I could just induce there was a solid religious undercurrent to her story, as though God was rebuffing the couple.

These sorts of alarm strategies don't prompt less youngsters engaging in sexual relations. They prompt less understudies trusting grown-ups in positions of power when they are in most need of data.

Space

Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects exist and events occur and have relative position and direction. Physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider it, with time, to be part of a boundless four-dimensional continuum known as spacetime. In mathematics, "spaces" are examined with different numbers of dimensions and with different underlying structures.

The concept of space is considered to be of fundamental importance to an understanding of the physical universe. However, disagreement continues between philosophers over whether it is itself an entity, a relationship between entities, or part of a conceptual framework. Debates concerning the nature, essence and the mode of existence of space date back to antiquity; namely, to treatises like the Timaeus of Plato, or Socrates in his reflections on what the Greeks called khora, or in the Physics of Aristotle in the definition of topos, or even in the later "geometrical conception of place" as "space qua extension" in the Discourse on Place of the 11th century Arab polymath Alhazen.

Many of these classical philosophical questions were discussed in the Renaissance and then reformulated in the 17th century, particularly during the early development of classical mechanics. In Isaac Newton's view, space was absolute in the sense that it existed permanently and independently of whether there were any matter in the space. Other natural philosophers, notably Gottfried Leibniz, thought instead that space was in fact a collection of relations between objects, given by their distance and direction from one another.

In the 18th century, the philosopher and theologian George Berkeley attempted to refute the "visibility of spatial depth" in his Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision. Later, the metaphysician Immanuel Kant said neither space nor time can be empirically perceived, they are elements of a systematic framework that humans use to structure all experiences. Kant referred to "space" in his Critique of Pure Reason as being: a subjective "pure a priori form of intuition", hence it is an unavoidable contribution of our human faculties.

Space Coast Rising Launches!

Florida's New Progressive Blog

The progressive victory on November 7 was absolutely astounding. Democrats took back the House, the Senate, and a majority of governorships and state legislatures. However, while Florida made great gains, it fell short of the blue wave that swept through the rest of the nation. A nominally purple state, somehow we have some of the most conservative policies of all 50 states.

I have decided to launch this blog to strengthen the netroots progressive coalition in Florida, with an emphasis of the Space Coast. I find it ironic that the Space Coast is a leader in science and space exploration, while represented by some of the most anti-science Republican Congressmen. Representatives David Weldon and Tom Feeney may tout their ability to bring pork to their districts, but NASA’s human space exploration program has not made great gains since the Republicans took control of Congress in 1994. Our Republican Congressmen act in the space program’s favor only when it gives them a political advantage. Recently, both have bemoaned the overwhelming Democratic Congressional victory as bad for the Space Coast because they are no longer in the Majority (and thus have diminished influence on the appropriations committee).

Well, I certainly can think of a solution to that problem in 2008.

The goals of Space Coast Rising are as follows:

To cover the political developments on the Space Coast and in Florida with a fresh, progressive perspective
To become an active agent for change by building the progressive community and providing alternative media
To support the new Democratic Congress
To call for common-sense election reform in the state of Florida
To make Florida blue in 2008 and beyond
Specifically we will:

Support Democratic candidates running in the 24th (map) and 15th (map) Congressional districts of Florida
Support statewide Democratic candidates for Florida and Federal office
Support Democratic candidates for the state legislature on the Space Coast
Support progressive ballot questions and oppose reactionary ones
I hope you will join me in this grassroots/netroots effort to make the Space Coast and Florida better places to live for us all.

Coming soon: A point-by-point analysis of the 2006 election in Florida.

Election 2006 Analysis: Florida

Election 2006 Analysis: Florida
An Opportunity for More Change

The 2006 elections yielded mixed results for Florida Democrats. Great gains were made, but they fell behind many expectations. We reelected Bill Nelson (D) to the United States Senate, but we fell short of electing a Democratic governor. We have a new Democratic Chief Financial Officer, but the majority of statewide offices are still held by Republicans. We made gains in the state legislature, but we are still outnumbered in both chambers. The biggest gain came from the U.S. House seats. Only four districts in the whole Southeast region flipped—two of them were in Florida. Another one is currently contested, and might end up in a recount.


Below I will examine our gains and losses while making suggestions for future strategies.

U.S. House Delegation

First, our victories:

FL-16 (map) (R+2)

This race was catapulted to national status when disgraced Republican Rep. Mark Foley was accused of inappropriate communication with young pages. Foley resigned, but because of Florida election law his name remained on the ballot. Democrat Tim Mahoney went from likely loser to superstar.


While Foley’s name remained on the ballot, Joe Negron was nominated by the state Republican Party to take his place in the event Foley won. The GOP subsequently launched a massive voter education campaign to notify voters of the change. A court ruling also allowed neutral notices of the switch to be placed at polling places at the option of the individual election supervisors.


The final vote was 49-48 for Mahoney, or a 4,404 vote margin. Many conservatives claim Mahoney will simply be a one-term wonder and voters in FL-16 will elect Joe Negron in 2008.


I think this assessment ignores many key points:


The Republican PVI in this district is fairly small (+2)
Ruling out Mahoney for a second term largely ignores the power of incumbency and his obvious fundraising advantage
Voters in FL-16 have been shown more than anyone else the corruption present in the Republican Party
Finally, election notices were posted informing voters that a vote for Foley counted for Negron. So while having Foley’s name on the ballot did play a role in Negron’s defeat, it was minimal.
The bottom line in this district: Tim Mahoney’s fate is by no means decided in 2008. The power of incumbency coupled with the low Republican PVI may keep him in Congress for many years to come. The outcome of the next race will be intimately dependent on the national mood in 2008, and whether or not the Democratic Presidential nominee will help Mahoney.


One additional thing is clear: Mahoney must work hard to turn out Democratic voters in the heavily blue eastern (D+14) part of his district in 2008.

Long-term projection – Tossup (as long as Mahoney stays in)

FL-22 (map) (D+4)


In a historic battle, Democrat Ron Klein beat long-term incumbent Republican Clay Shaw by 51-47. This district leans Democratic, so it look like Ron Klein will avoid the challenges facing Mahoney and keep his seat easily. FL-22 will be an integral part of a long-term Democratic majority.


Long-term projection – Lean Dem


Note: We should continue to look for more districts in Florida with a Republican incumbent, but a small Democratic or Republican PVI. SCR will have more on that later.


Others:


FL-13 (map) (R+4)


This is Katherine Harris’ old seat, and it is only fitting for there to be serious election difficulties. On the first count, Republican Vern Buchanan beat Democratic candidate Christine Jennings by a 368-vote margin. While this is a small enough margin for an automatic recount, many of the votes were cast on electronic voting machines, making a recount impossible. Somehow precincts in Sarasota County registered 18,000 undervotes in this race. Jennings has pledged to pursue every avenue possible, including taking the results to court.


Long-term projection – depends on recount/court result


FL-15 (map) (R+4)


This district is one of the two on the Space Coast, so naturally we’ll be heavily involved in covering this race in 2008. This year long-term incumbent David Weldon won by a 56-44 margin. This was Weldon’s worst showing since he was elected to Congress in the Republican “Revolution” of 1994.


From an email by Weldon’s Democratic opponent Dr. Bob Bowman:



First, the phenomenal stats: our percentage of the votes was 9% higher than the previous Dem candidate for District 15. Our final percentage was 43.7%, a VERY respectable showing against a six-time incumbent who raised six times what we did, from his corporate friends. This was the best Democratic percentage ever against Weldon as an incumbent.

We can be very proud of our grassroots campaign, composed almost entirely of dedicated volunteers. From the beginning, we were the underdogs. For those of you who were with us back in February, you remember that even getting enough petitions to get on the ballot seemed a miracle – but we did it!

This race is winnable, especially due to some of Weldon’s completely radical stances (Weldon introduced the Terri Shiavo legislation into Congress). The two things we need are massive people-power and a moderately well financed Democratic candidate who is willing to campaign aggressively.

Long-term projection: Lean Republican

FL-24 (map) (R+3)


FL-24 is the second district on the Space Coast.


This race gained some unusual attention when a Zogby poll showed incumbent Republican Tom Feeney only two points ahead (45-43) of Democratic challenger Clint Curtis.


Clint Curtis was asked by the corrupt Rep. Tom Feeney to create a program that would flip votes in computerized election machines undetectably. Curtis has since testified against Feeney in front of Congress. Then he ran against him.


Unfortunately, he ended up losing 58-42, but was massively outspent. Also, Tom Feeney drew this district for himself when he was Florida House Majority leader Speaker .


This district may end up being more competitive in the future because of Tom Feeney’s ties to lobbyist and felon Jack Ambramoff


It was a shame Feeney’s ties to Jack were never publicized in the media, but who knows what 2008 may bring.

Long-term Projection: Lean Republican
U.S. Senate

What can I say, it was a blowout. Democrat Bill Nelson carried the day against Katherine Harris 60-38. Nelson was driven largely by his moderate image, astronaut past, and willingness to talk to his constituents.

It is imperative Bill Nelson, buoyed by sky high popularity, campaign heavily for Democratic candidates in 2008. This alone should push a few races over the top. Imagine if the map could always look this blue.



Statewide Constitutional Offices (R:3 – D:1)


Governor


Republican Charlie Crist defeated Democratic candidate Jim Davis by a healthy 52-45 margin. This race most exemplifies the challenges progressives will face in Florida for many years to come. Naturally, the Republicans lead in fundraising, gaining millions from the insurance industry. Crist began running ads against Davis right after the primary, while Davis did not get on the air until a few weeks before the election.


The only way a Democrat, running for Governor or President, can win in Florida is by instituting a massive GOTV operation in Democratic areas while microtargeting Democratic voters elsewhere in the state. Also, Democrats must work extremely hard on the voter registration front, where an increase in the youth vote can have a substantial impact. In fact, while the battle won’t be completely won on the registration front, it can certainly be lost. Florida is a retirement state, so conservative-leaning seniors must be neutralized by new Democratic voters. Fighting hard on the Medicare and Social Security front is also a must.


Chief Financial Officer


Democrat Alex Sink defeated Republican candidate Tom Lee 54-46, ending the GOP’s 4-year monopoly on the Florida cabinet. This raises the total of statewide Democrats from 1 to 2. Hey, a 100% increase ain’t bad!


Attorney General


Bill McCollum beat Democrat Walter "Skip" Campbell 53-47. This was a fairly close election, but allegations that Campbell supported a bill requiring mothers putting children up for adoption to list all of their sexual partners in the newspaper probably cost him the election.


Agriculture Commissioner


Incumbent Republican Charles Bronson had an easy time with Democratic candidate Eric Copeland, beating him 57-43.




Florida Legislature


The changes here were all in the positive direction. Unfortunately, there weren’t many.


State Senate


The state senate remained static


SENATE: D=14; R=26 (no change)


State House


HOUSE: D=42; R=78 (D+7)

Not much, but these are the first state House gains for Democrats in 16 years.



Seriously contesting every U.S. House and state House/Senate race is extremely important. It is much easier for Democratic candidates to win when other Democrats are running up and down the ticket. This will be our biggest challenge in 2008 and beyond.