FLORIDA DIGEST - October 04, 2008

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~~FLORIDA GLBT NEWS~~

-Dolphin Democrats - Ft. Lauderdale
"Come Out" and hit the bars with the Dolphin Democrats! We are doing a final "hard drive push" to register any stragglers that we may have missed to vote in November.
We are asking you to join us at the following locations:
Alibi and Bills - Friday, Saturday @ 9pm, Sunday @6pm
Steele - Sunday @ 8pm
Tea Cruise - Sunday @ 2pm
Come on out and join us in this historic registration drive.
For more details, call:
Chip at 954.701.2902 or Linda at 954.630.VOTE
We will see you there! Thanks for "coming out!"
Sincerely,
Adriane Reesey
Vice President of the Dolphin Democrats


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Ft. Lauderdale - GLCCSF
http://www.glccsf.org/

-Educational Program at the GLCC on October 6
You are cordially invited to attend a Program On STDs: What you need to know
Presented By: John Marangio, RN
Monday, October 6 at 6:00 PM
GLCC
1717 N. Andrews Avenue
Ft Lauderdale, FL 33311
954-463-9005
Food and beverages will be provided
PLEASE RSVP TO: Seth Leverence @ 954-205-8396

-FOUNDER CIRCLE RECEPTION - OCTOBER 7
CONTACT ROBERT BOO TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS LEVEL OF MEMBERSHIP.

-TRANSGENDER DISCRIMINATION SURVEY
In the wake of one of the most violent years on record of assaults on transgender people, the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (The Task Force) have teamed up on a comprehensive national survey to collect data on discrimination against transgender people in housing, employment, public accommodation, health care, education, family life and criminal justice. NCTE and the Task Force have partnered with Pennsylvania State University's Center for the Study of Higher Education to collect and analyze the data. Applying rigorous academic standards to the investigation will strengthen any case made to legislators, policy makers, health care providers, and others whose decisions impact the lives of transgender people. A national team of experts in survey research and transgender issues developed the questionnaire, which can be completed on-line at:
https://online.survey.psu.edu/endtransdiscrim



~~FLORIDA GENERAL NEWS~~

New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

-Stateside: In Florida's Economic Pain, Obama Gains Ground
Jim Piccillo lost his job as a bank vice president in August, applied for food stamps to support his two young daughters and swore off a life of loyalty to the Republican Party. He now volunteers here in Pasco County for Senator Barack Obama of Illinois.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/04/us/politics/04florida.html?hp


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Fort Report
http://www.fortreport.com/
Go to the links for the following articles:

-Sink Shaking Things Up In Tallahassee
In July, the FBI arrested a 35-year-old man and charged him with wire fraud after the Florida Department of Financial Services discovered some $5.7 million in state funds in his personal account.
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2008/oct/04/na-sink-shaking-things-up-in-tallahassee/news-opinion-editorials/

-South Florida's Jewish voters, traditionally Democrats, mixed over Obama's qualifications
West Boca - Nancy Factor listened intently as Halie Soifer, Jewish vote director for the Barack Obama campaign in Florida, laid out the senator's steadfast commitment to Israel. A Republican among Democrats at this gathering in Montoya Estates, she raised her hand.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/palmbeach/sfl-flpjewishvoters1004pnoct04,0,6194131.story

-BLACK TURNOUT COULD DECIDE ELECTION
Four years ago, nearly 500,000 registered black voters stayed home, a significant figure considering that President George W. Bush beat John Kerry by 381,000 votes. There were 1.2-million black voters overall in Florida. What's more, hundreds of thousands of African-Americans were not registered to vote, even though they were eligible. Today, that number stands at 600,000. Taken together, the potential for Democrats is tremendous and the Obama campaign is aggressively trying to turn the tables. "It doesn't take much history in Florida to know that a few extra votes can be the difference between winning and losing," said Steve Schale, Obama's campaign director in Florida.
http://fortreport.com/

-For third time, killer's execution is scheduled
A Death Row inmate convicted in the strangulation murder of his Tampa girlfriend's teen daughter more than 25 years ago is scheduled to be executed this month, Gov. Charlie Crist said in a letter signed Thursday.
http://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafety/article837031.ece

-Restoration of felons' voting rights in Florida has 'never been easier'
With felons who have served their time now having a much easier path back to the voting booth, the 2008 political season has led to some efforts to harness a newly accessible voting bloc. Since April 2007, when new procedures were approved to rescind much of Florida's Jim Crow-era voting practices, 123,000 felons have had their rights restored and could help decide where Florida's 27 electoral votes go in the presidential election. There are still 56,502 cases pending for felons seeking to get back the right to vote.
http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/CD/20081004/CAPITOLNEWS/810040331/-1/capitolnews

-Sunshine Law trouble on Ave Maria boards?
For almost two years, two representatives from Ave Maria Development have served on both Ave Maria town's public and private decision-making bodies, sparking concerns about their compliance with state law. Once a month, high-level officials from Ave Maria Development, made up of representatives from local developer Barron Collier Cos. and associates of Ave Maria University founder Tom Monaghan, make the development's private decisions in "executive committee" meetings.
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2008/oct/03/sunshine-law-trouble-ave-maria-boards/

-School chief delay urged
As questions persist about new Dade schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, an ethics committee urged the School Board to hold off on his contract.
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/5min/story/712696.html

-Voter registration deadline approaches
Time is ticking away for those who need to register to vote in the November general election.
http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/100408/met_340081730.shtml

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