Saturday, November 29, 2008

TEP Suspended


The fraternity house of Fmr. Innovate Presidential Candidate, Scott Kennelly, as reported in IFAlligator, will prepare to begin a suspension period January 2009.

The issue of hazing goes all the way back to August 2005 (the very first post of this blog, then dealing with the KA suspension).

Hazing is a touchy subject. Pledges are hand-picked by each fraternity and from a pool of candidates that visit the houses during Fall or Spring Rush Week. Pledges are expected to earn their keep, impress the brothers, and do as they're told - no questions asked. A good pledge keeps his mouth shut and acts in the best interest of the house. Pledges that rat out their brothers should never have been in the process to begin with. And this is coming from a guy hated by the majority of his brothers (mainly because of Access and electing one of four African American SBP's in UF history).

On the fraternity end, the E-Board is expected to keep its Pledge Masters (the brothers in charge of pledges) in line. In many houses, the President will operate with as little knowledge regarding the pledges as possible -- this is a popular strategy.

Popular hazing techniques of the current decade at UF include sleep deprivation, confinement, compulsary domestic services, paddling, and other more distinct acts reserved from comment that tend to strike fear and humiliation into the pledge. The more prestigious the fraternity - the harder the pledging; many times the Pledge Masters oppose a single member from crossing, but if blackballing is not an option, they will raise the bar as high as possible to get the target member to either drop off or have the Pledge Class take care of the matter on their own. Sometimes, for as much as a member may be disliked, if he's able to meet all demands of a rigorous pledging process, he will have earned sufficient respect to be allowed to cross. (We see this phenomenon occur often with racial minorities & suspected gay pledges)

In the houses...these tactics are not silly, they are not backward. The Pledge Master expects complete subservience, often times barking orders with a straight face and turning [genuinely] angry when anything less than what's asked for is produced. In a very real way, the fraternity answers to the House President and the pledges answer to the Pledge Master - it's a house within a house - a separate but very much unequal one.

All this having been said, fraternity's should not be engaging in off color practices. All men orgies, the elephant walk, and/or the practices of which TEP is being accused of -- fall very short of even hardnosed hazing. Laxatives and intense exercise...that's for another day, maybe another week.

I believe what is called "hazing" serves an important purpose. However, what TEP is accused of, does not seem to serve any kind of a team-building, fraternity-respecting, endurance-oriented goal. It seems to be couched solely on humiliation - again, this is not where, when, and how hazing should be used.

Friday, November 28, 2008

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Happy Thanksgiving!

From Columbus, OH! I also want to thank all of you for reading my blog. I also want to send a shout-out to those of you who feel you can threaten me with anonymous reports to my school, in hopes of silencing my voice and crippling this blog -- a warm 'go fuck yourself' to you.

Both posts got deleted. The page long rant on Thomas Jardon and my paragraph long rebuttal that offended a whole one person -- guess who that was? Who hates Tommy so much that they'd threaten me this way?

I will not be intimidated by an anonymous troll that threatens my future livelihood. This site will be around for a 100yrs and will continue to celebrate free expression and the free exchange of ideas.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Student Body President Sam Miorelli


That's got a nice sound to it, it sounds fitting and in many ways very much realizable. O&B listened when it came to the impeachment of Paul Drayton - I would argue that that (and the email scandal) made voters more aware of a difference between the System and the Independents. Look...every indie party has exhausted its networking capabilities, so to simply give O&B the Big 12 win simply on that would suggest that Action, Pants, Impact, Progress, & Voice just didn't get the word out there enough -- that's just bullshit.

O&B stood up, their recent filibustering defensive will only add to their already assertive & defiant voice from the Minority. Americans love the underdog, for the hundreds of punches Apollo landed on Rocky, people still felt like they were in the fight everytime Rocko would hit the champ's ribs and make him bend over sideways. O&B landed punches this past Spring and fired four combinations against Gator in Fall. In boxing terms, Gator is in the lead, but its eyes are swollen, it's nose has been broken, its ribs are flaring, and and its legs are giving out from time to time.

There will be no need for ear-bitting or headbutting if O&B gets out to the organizations and speaks now! Speaks the first week of the new term! It's not campaigning folks ---- it's constituent requirements - ONLY GO 2, 3, 4x your required orgs!

I firmly believe that if O&B gains 5% before the term is over and another 5% beginning early next term, that come election time....Jordan Johnson will be giving his concession speech to Student Body President-elect Sam Miorelli.

Gator will still have the majority of wins in senate, but the students will split their ballots to make a statement.

Duque has made his prediction November 26, 2008. And as much as people want to knock him, Sam Miorelli can only benefit by having Thomas Jardon in his corner. I really hope for the future of the movement and for the fact that the Indies are so close, that their egos (they're 12 senate wins) won't see them alienate Jardon. From what I'm told people are angry he's lazy, to them I say: 'the guy has paid his dues, the solider you want has been a general since before you arrived at UF...run ideas by him, explore strategies, CONSULT with him! But if you're looking for a guy to dig ditches, I just don't think he's your guy. Maybe in Spring 2005, but you're headed into Spring '09...show some respect.'


President Miorelli

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Whatever Happened to Armando Grundy?


Back a short time ago Armando Grundy first appeared in the Alachua County scene. His candidacy for the City Commission certainly was an interesting one. There was the incident at the Rotary Club with Tony Domenech; there was the off-the-record, tense feud with Stafford Jones, there was the friction with his opponent Jack Donovan, there was Grundy's Radikal Q&A, and of course... there was the Ron Paul connection.

What do you guys remember about Armando & that election? Where is he now? And who thinks we'll be hearing this name come up once again in Florida politics?

Sunday, November 23, 2008

President Miorelli on Grapski


"As far as Grapski goes, I find myself of several conflicting minds on the matter. As a very simplistic matter as a mechanical engineering major who is focusing my studies on air conditioning and refrigeration systems, hearing about a part of the jail consistently being that cold concerns me. While I don’t know the specifics of their system, it sounds like the reheat part of the process is broken and/or they have serious control issues going on. Either of these would point to a critical problem with a major capital system in the building that should be addressed by maintenance and design professionals immediately because beyond the discomfort the cold causes, it could also point to problems with (or failure of) the outside-air makeup system. When this fails it causes sick buildings, mold and, fungus problems that can start within the air conditioning ducts and spread throughout the building. Severe cases of this can literally grow entire colonies of deadly mold spores in the system that have in the past killed or incapacitated scores of government employees at facilities where these problems were ignored. While this sounds dire, it is usually relatively trivial to fix these problems as long as they’re addressed by competent professionals in a reasonable amount of time and I hope the jail has repairs in the works.


For the legal/political situation things are much more murky for me. Obviously the public does not intend jails to be palaces, but even the imprisoned (regardless of their adjudicatory status) have a right to a liveable climate and nutrition. However, while the temperature is an obvious problem, things such as food are harder to quantify and comment upon. I am glad upon reading your latest post that it sounds like Grapski’s representation situation is moving forward; the legal system is painfully slow as it is and these kinds of things can really drag out a simple matter unnecessarily.



But beyond the nature of his imprisonment, I really don’t think I know enough to make an educated comment on his guilt or innocence. I’ve read the charges in the papers like everyone and while I am extremely skeptical about what I think frequently in this country amounts to a culture of prosecutorial overreaching, making scenes at public meetings just for the sake of making a scene that disrupts the meeting and breaking and entering are unacceptable behaviors no matter who you are. Yes, you Gator Party folks out there might have your jaws open at my comments about making a scene for the purposes of making a scene, but there’s a big difference between being a properly elected/appointed member of a board or commission raising hell or delaying matters with public pressure or parliamentary tactics and being an average joe showing up at a county commission meeting and losing it so much you get dragged out by the police (which is something Grapski seems to have developed a reputation for doing). The point is as members of the public we have every right to show up at any meeting and express our outrage, and I believe we should have significant leeway in the manner and duration of time we use at such meetings to do so, but eventually government, even corrupt government or misguided government, must carry on. If our elected officials are determined to ignore their constituents we have the duty to express our outrage and bring pressure upon them to stop. But eventually you chalk up the loss, move on to other things, and start preparing the attack ads for the next election cycle to remind voters about the times they’ve been ignored. I think our ability in O&B to fight like hell on the issue at hand, roll with the punches when we lose, yet still effectively remind the voters of the times that Gator has ignored their wishes has proved to be one of our most effective tools to motivate voters to give us a chance to do better with their public trust.



As to Grapski’s mark on the current movement, I think it’s hard to really quantify that. His work was really 15 years ago and with the exception of a late-night meeting at Maude’s we had in the Spring shortly before we filed the SOLVe suit, I only know him through the indie oral storytelling tradition. I haven’t read most of the documents related to the case, though I have read some of the Alligator coverage surrounding it to know what happened. My recent contact with Joe Little has filled in some gaps in that respect too. But with respect to what sort of impact his work 15 years ago has had on O&B’s efforts, I think the connection is tenuous at best. The indies have collapsed and reformed several times since then and while I can see a clear connection between the people and work I’m doing today and those of say Access, going back past that is hard since I’ve never really met anyone who was involved in the 10 years between Grapski and then. That’s not to say that he wasn’t important, I just don’t really know what he did on a policy basis all that much to draw a solid connection. In truth, with the exception of Trimboli, myself, and Tommy there aren’t any guys still involved on our side surviving from even as recently as the 2006 ACTION campaign: most of today’s O&B are a direct recruitment result of Trimboli and my work with Progress in 2007. To me, the most important thing about Grapski isn’t who he is today, but what he did: sue for his rights when UF and FBK played dirty. That one act 15 years ago DID resonate through each subsequent indie party and has given us all hope even in the darkest of days. It was knowledge of his suit that led me to Joe Little’s office with the SOLVe documents in February to timidly knock on his door and ask him if he thought there was anything we could do. It was knowledge of his suit that had other former indies cum law graduates calling offering their services then and still doing so today. It is the knowledge we all have that if UF and FBK go overboard in stopping us that there ARE courts and judges out there that can stop them that keeps us going even as all the levers of power are locked against us.


For that, despite my strong disagreements with his recent behavior and most of his political beliefs, I respect the man because it was his decision to stand up back then that has made it possible and much easier for all of us to continue standing up today. To me the greatest tragedy of Grapski is that he didn’t go on to achieve fame/fortune/flashy success after UF: that is the carrot FBK claims to offer their people and had Grapski achieved that as well, debunking the FBK myth would be far easier today."


Still No Word From Canney

Michael Canney
has been by Charlie Grapski's side since day one - in Alachua at least. He's considered a top knotch member of the opposition, whether you choose to use outdated terms like the ALA or if you instead prefer to associate him exclusively with the Green Party, Canney holds a great role to the future of the City of Alachua.

Canney is far more than the camera that follows Grapski around. It will be interesting if his statement will ever be received... though we're not holding our breath.



Why Goldberg

Some people may be wondering why I chose Joe as the first SBP to speak. The Summer 2004 session was quite possibly the most interesting senate session of the decade. Joe's very election was rumored to have been part of a key Access-powerplay that went bad very quickly. Times were tough, relations were strained, Jamal didn't know from day to day if the hostile majority in senate would topple him...but while he waited Jamal & his cabinet threw jabs at hostile senate leaders by forming executive sub-committees (which overstepped into the Legislative Branch by way of their Access Party members' influence).

In the end Joe proved the most keen. While he planned his rise to the top, Dennis was seemingly caught off guard. The administration's kind and friendly #2 (Puckett was the clear #3), Ngin zealously worked from his office to do his best by the side of the students. It's for this reason when several of us approached him in December, that he still had not made a decision. This indecision, coupled with other internal issue, began to signal The Minority Migration to Gator that would culminate by the Spring elections.

In a very blunt way...even without a Progress or Voice, Dennis (also lacking an Andre Samuels f/t by his side) would have been no match for Joe. Let me expound further. Even with Samuels & the Team [Argento/Harrell/Kassim] in 2005...Dennis still would have been in trouble. The '04 contacts and strategies were outdated and obsolete by '05 -- so much so that Jamal's own last minute, highly publicized endorsement weighed little less than the paper it was printed on.

Oh yeah...back to Joe. I selected him b/c he was a major player at a critical time. His appointments have shaped even your own current SG and his tenure over Senate can also be felt - even today. In terms of legacy-value, Goldberg's has lived longer than Boyles', Moseley's, and dare I say Reilley's ever did or will.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

No Bond for Charlie Grapski


The court denied Charlie bond based on the nature of his pending offenses and on arguments made by the Assistant State Attorney Geoffrey Fleck that Charlie would be a danger to the community. Grapski's court appointed attorney, John Stokes successfully withdrew from the case based on a conflict of interests. Stokes was the third court-appointed lawyer to withdraw from Grapski's defense.


Orange & Blue Hold Off Gator
-developing story on the 5hr Showdown.
(never been happier to have been dead-wrong!!!)

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Grapski: The Untouchable?

Charlie Grapski will be threat to the Machine wherever they send him, but over the years his tactics have alienated him more and more from the already fringe-left whose causes he's championed. I, for one, have been very critical of Grapski (for most of 2007), but I've always held him in high regard for all of his great achievements for our cause.

Charlie's situation looks grim, but this blog will keep its readers informed on what one of our most committed leaders is up to. TheRadikal.com would also like to salute Michael Canney for being by Charlie's side through thick & thin. While there's areas of the campaign in Alachua that I may disagree on with Charlie, I want to put my respect for Michael's loyalty and characteron record.

Yesterday I sent out an email titled: "Reaction(s) to the Grievance. Here's what I got:



Hi Christian,

I'm going to pass on this one.

Thanks,
Pedro [Morales]


Christian,

I cannot necessarily speak for everyone on this list, but this is my attempt: I really don't know about the situation (other than the press release I have read from the Charlie's camp). There has been some stuff covered in the other county newspapers but I have not really gathered much information from those publications. It would appear that something is happening and I do believe the justice system in Florida does have an obligation to investigate it. I would say it seems a little strange that Charlie has been in jail for over a month on a minor civil charge (then again, I'm not entirely sure of what the charges are against him).

-Frank [Bracco]




I have no knowledge of Grapski’s current situation.

-Stafford [Jones]



Peter Gruskin phoned back. A response was requested, but the Fmr. Voice Party President declined and offered no comments for publication.


Hi Christian,

I live some 700 miles away, and no longer read any local newspapers except the occassional glance at the Alligator during SG election season. I've never met Charlie and only know of his activities from his SG infamy and not anything more recent. I am hardly qualified to comment on the situation.

However, since you asked, I do think it's bizarre and disappointing that anyone can be jailed without right to a lawyer or to even have his case scheduled, if that part of the story is true. I would have expected better from Alachua County than that.

But if there's any possibility his civil rights are being violated by the Alachua County justice system, it ought to be investigated. Even if that investigation shows Charlie to be wrong.

Ignoring his grievance or dismissing it because of the source would be a mistake. There's nothing wrong in letting the truth be known -regardless of who that benefits.

Received from Kenneth Kerns


I posted a response last night but seems to have disappeared in the ethers. I said that Charlie had finally reached is true potential- jail house lawyer- a position to which he is well qualified. He has a lawyer, John Stokes. Someone will have to ask Charlie why he hasn't filed for a bond hearing. It is up to him to make that move. I suspect that he wants to sit in jail to avoid his day in court for his other charges in Tallahassee and Kissimee. He can't hide from his felony charges in Alachua but he keeps changing lawyers which delays his day in court.

Hugh "Bud" Calderwood


Currently awaiting responses from:



Thomas Jardon, Sam Miorelli, Chris Carmody, & Brian Aungst

Monday, November 17, 2008

Grievance filed by Grapski, Fellow Inmates



COPY OF GENERAL GRIEVANCE FOR DENIAL OF FUNDAMENTAL CIVIL RIGHTS IN THE ALACHUA COUNTY JAIL (accompanied by individual grievances filed as public records).

THIS IS A GENERAL FORMAL GRIEVANCE pursuant to Inmate Rules and Regulations Section J, 3, filed individually and collectively, on behalf of the rights and interests of all inmates of the Alachua County Jail, and specifically of all those housed in Unit 3W, during the months of October and November, 2008, for routine, systematic, and general denial of civil rights concerning, in particular but not exclusively, denial of fundamental rights in the following four areas: 1) Housing conditions, in particular, dangerous and unhealthy temperatures; 2) Food and nutrition, in particular, a general denial of food of sufficient quality and quantity for nutritional requirements, and particular abuses significantly below even minimal nutritional guidelines; 3) Fundamental and urgent medical care, in general, the refusal to respond to requests for medical attention, the refusal to respond to inmate requests for medical care in a timely fashion, and the denial of medical care in general; 4) Denial of right to counsel, in particular the systematic and routine denial of access to communication with the public defender, and failure of the public defender to meet with and provide counsel and prepare a defense for incarcerated individuals accused but not adjudicated guilty.

Individually, the general denial of rights in any one of these four areas is an abuse and denial of the most basic and fundamental civil rights, but the collective and systematic nature in each of these four areas, as well as the effect of the combination of abuses in all four areas demonstrates a lack of respect and care, systematically for the health, safety and welfare of those detained against their will, which generally applies only to those who cannot afford private legal counsel and/or bond, and a systematic failure of the Alachua County Jail, the Alachua County Sheriff's Office, and Alachua County to provide its statutorily and constitutionally (Florida and United States) obligations, contributing to real harm systematically initiated against the individuals, and general population, housed in the Alachua County Jail and thus in violation of their rights and the duties of care and legal obligations of those institutions and officials.

Below are documented only a sample of the unlawful and intolerable conditions these individuals, and this class of individuals, has been subjected to over the past months.

1) GENERAL LIVING CONDITIONS: TEMPERATURE:
For approximately two weeks the persons housed in Unit 3W of the Alachua County Jail have raised concerns and complaints regarding the excessively cold temperatures, caused by the air conditioning, subjecting them to excessive cold throughout the day and night. On several occasions more than one individual has brought a complaint to the officer in charge of the pod, the supervising officer, and others regarding the excessive cold temperature. Additionally, several of the inmates have displayed and suffered symptoms of illness directly related to this housing condition, including but not limited to sore throat, sneezing, headaches, muscle and body aches, inflated temperatures,coughing, congestion, running nose, and other general symptoms of cold related illness. Adding insult to injury requests for medical care (separately referenced below) have been routinely, regularly, and systematically disregarded and thus denied. On Thursday November 6th a formal grievance was filed after punitive action was taken against those who again sought to raise this issue and the said grievance, and only as a result thereof was an action, although insufficient to cease the harm, taken. That night the sergeant approved the release of a second blanket to all inmates housed in 3W. The following day, however, inmates were ordered not to have those blankets in the day room, effectively forcing the unit to remain bed-ridden for 24 hours in order to seek refuge from the intolerable and inhumane cold temperatures. When officers conducted routine inspections they wore a jacket and would respond to the temperatures by holding their hands within their jacket sleeves to endure the cold temperatures during the brief period of inspection. Inmates have been told that there is nothing that can be done about the condition of temperature, including that there is no reason to file a grievance, there is no one who will hear the grievance, and there is no one who can address said grievances, and in addition the specific claim that this problem cannot be solved until a new jail is constructed. On the evening of November 9th the officer in charge, having spent approximately five to ten minutes within 3W, inquired as to the excessive cold and the duration of this condition. That officer recognized immediately that this was a dangerous condition and affected the health, welfare and safety of the inmates. The officer brought this matter, of his own volition, to the attention of the supervising sergeant. Later that night, as a result of the concern raised by this officer, a third blanket was issued to each of the persons housed within 3W as a temporary means to alleviate the negative conditions. This condition constitutes a significant harm and denial of fundamental civil rights of those housed within the Alachua County Jail, the Sheriff's Office, and the Alachua County government. Persons housed in this facility are primarily detainees who have not been convicted of the allegations for which they are detained.




2) GENERAL LIVING CONDITIONS: FOOD AND NUTRITION:
In general, the food provided - and indeed charged to the inmates without their consent - is generally unsatisfactory. No regard is given to particular dietary requirements of inmates, and the quality of the food is below that ordinary individuals would expect to be given to their pets, let alone family members. The quality of the food, in addition to the clear intent of the quality to be unattractive, unappetizing and unappealing, is clearly intended to give absolute minimums of dietary nutritional value, and appears calculated with the intent of maintaining a regular condition of ongoing hunger, throughout a 24 hour period, to be suffered by the individual inmates. Adding insult to injury, there have been days when the quality of food, on its face, was far below that which is statutorily mandated to be provided. This condition reached the height of its abuse ny midday November 9th, when less than one spoonful of what appeared to be chicken salad was provided to each individual. This cam with its routine complement of four slices of plain white bread, known to have minimal nutritional value, and a single slice of "American cheese" product, also known to have minimal nutritional value. This abuse was so extreme that similar complaints were heard from unit 2W and all inmates within 3W asked to refuse acceptance of their tray and have it returned, as a unit, to the kitchen. Initial response to this, as well as to the desire to file a collective formal grievance, as well as individual grievances, was met with the position that nothing could or would be done respecting this abuse and that the inmates should simply accept their fate and the intolerable conditions. It was a direct result of this incident that the entire unit demanded to be given a form to file a grievance and upon which this general statement is being made and attached for the formal record and as a public record which must be maintained and produced upon request under Florida's Constitution, Article I, Section 25, and Florida's Public Records Law, Chapter 119 Florida Statutes. The general pattern of abuse, and its extreme as witnessed and experienced on November 9th, constitutes a serious and general violation of the fundamental civil rights of those housed against their will within the Alachua County Jail, violating those rights protected both under Florida's and the United States Constitution, and constituting violations of the statutorily imposed duties and obligations established by Florida Statutes.

3) DENIAL OF BASIC AND EMERGENCY/URGENT MEDICAL CARE:
Throughout the months of October and November 2008 the individuals housed within Unit 3W of the Alachua County Jail have, on numerous and repeated occasions, requested medical care only to be ignored and denied such care. In fact there have been numerous occasions when, upon bringing the issue to the attention of the officer in charge, that officer has brought the matter to the attention of the medical staff, yet no action has been taken. Additionally several several of the individuals housed have filed formal documents requesting medical care only to have those documents ignored and care denied. There are several requests for care filed two and three weeks prior to this grievance which remain unfulfilled and indeed unaddressed. The issues of medical care, and its denial, are only exacerbated by the other general conditions violative of fundamental civil rights and contributing directly to the harm of these individual citizens, of health, welfare and safety - as detailed in complaint issues 1 and 3 above regarding intolerable environmental conditions (excessive cold) and denial of sufficient nutrition. In response to raising the issue of filing grievances regarding the denial of health care inmates have been instructed explicitly that the submission of repeat requests for care, in writing, would not result in service, but instead would be met by punitive reaction and explicitly that persons submitting repeated requests, identical to those outstanding for several weeks, would only be moved to the back of the queue. It has also been stated to inmates that the medical staff is not equipped to handle their medical needs and that this has been the cause of the delay and denial of medical care on a routine basis. Denial of fundamental medical care, both for urgent and acute problems, as well as general and/or chronic conditions, constitutes a denial of fundamental and basic civil rights of the most grievous nature. This, accompanied by the fact and factors associated with the other systematic denial of civil rights affecting inmate health, safety and welfare (in being subjected toi conditions of extreme cold for lengthy durations and denial of fundamental nutrition) constitute a violation of the most extreme nature and requiring immediate attention and rectification.



4) SYSTEMATIC DENIAL OF THE RIGHT TO COUNSEL:
In general, and with minor exceptions of particular individual members of the public defenders office, inmates of the Alachua County Jail, accused but not convicted, are being denied their most basic and fundamental right to be represented by counsel and to receive a fair trial. Although each pod/unit within the Alachua County Jail is given a sheet - also provide to each person assigned a public defender by the courts - detailing the instructions and phone numbers to contact their public defender via telephone, it is the routine practice of the public defender, Richard Parker, and his agency to refuse to answer calls from the jail - effectively denying the right to counsel. The few occasions when an inmate has been able to get through via the telephone the receptionist has been uncooperative and has denied access to the attorneys themselves. Furthermore the attorneys at the public defenders office are failing to communicate with and meet in person with those individuals incarcerated. It is well known by the staff, and is routinely stated by officers, social workers, case workers, and other jail officials and personnel that the public defender will only meet with their client for a brief period the day before or the day of their first court date, which often comes after thirty or more days of incarceration, during which no preparation for trial, discovery, or other necessary action required to be performed if one is to expect a fair trial and adequate representation, has been provided. In fact this practice is so routine that it is well known that certain persons employed as public defenders have never taken a single case to trial. It is apparent on its face, that the actions of the public defender are calculated with the prior determination that the individual accused is guilty, or will be treated as guilty, and with persons having spent what is regularly the basic time incarcerated as to be offered a deal in lieu of a fair trial will be pressured, as a result of the denial of legal counsel, to take a deal rather than having his day in court. Furthermore this general and systematic practice of the public defenders office, on its face, assures that inmates cannot avail themselves of their right to speedy trial without [illegible] the concommittant right to a fair trial, given the failure of counsel to take even the most minimal actions on behalf of their clients prior to the speedy trial period's commencement [?].

Furthermore the failure of the public defender to visit with or communicate with their incarcerated clients means that persons sit in jail without knowledge of the charges, the process, or their rights, in addition to other violations such as the inability to seek the posting of bond, the seeking of bond reduction, and other rights available to the non-incarcerated, and generally the class of persons who can [afford?] private counsel, [word illegible] and thus treats them, as a class, as fundamentally unequal. This is perhaps the most severe and significant violation of civil rights systematically suffered by those being incarcerated within the Alachua County Jail by the Office of the Alachua County Sheriff, and the Courts and State Attorney of the 8th Judicial Circuit, and clearly bears a causal relationship with the abuses, systematically imposed and generally unaddressed, as demonstrated in complaints One through Three above.

These complaints are submitted as a general and formal grievance per the fundamental denial of civil rights by the persons housed in Unit 3W of the Alachua County Jail during the months of October and November 2008. Submitted this day, November 9th 2008 by the undersigned occupants of Unit 3W Alachua County Jail.

Signed

Richard A. Jones
Josh Coppess
Rashee Taylor
John Smith
Dwight Harrell
David R. Paulk
Anthony ? [illegible]
Greg A. Faretta
Joseph Burke
Michael Pippenger
Robert Carter
Charles Grapski

Sunday, November 16, 2008

UF Zionists on Sabbatical?

::::lol:::::

[Reading the Alligator Out Loud & Online w/ Blogger Christian Duque]



The Machens Go To Iran

Where was the JSU/GFI Mafia on this one? I mean how is it that Machen even made it to the airport without hearing it from the most powerful student, faculty, and alumni demographic at the University of Florida? In any event, it's nice to see that UF's #1 officer is taking a step toward warmer ties with Iran by attending an academic forum. For the first time in history, Bernie Machen receives a Radikal laurel.

Student Senate to hold meeting in state capital
"External Affairs Director Matthew Goldberger encouraged senators and students to give input on higher education bills that will be addressed during the 60–day legislative session in Tallahassee this spring."____Cited from IFAlligator.


This sounds like a complete waste of money and if anything, a grandstanding opportunity for a select few. Does anyone know exactly how much this little field trip is going to cost? Where is the money coming from? The fact that this trip isn't required and only select leaders will meet representatives seems extremely sketch. How many Sam Miorelli's will get to meet the congressmen? For all I know this could trip could be a front for Jordan Johnson to approach welching Florida Congressmen to remind them they haven't acted on behalf of their pledged-donations to FBK, lol. Thumbs down - wasteful spending during tough economic times for all.

Recent Arrests Page

For those of you unfamiliar with an old, timely GPD practice, check out their 'Recent Arrest' page. This wonderful GPD feature publicly shames men and women arrested on criminal charges. Naturally their convictions are pending and GPD seems indifferent to the fact that tactics like these could sabotage legal proceedings (e.g. prejudice prospective jurors). Nooooooo, they don't seem to care.

Check out a recent Newsday article and what a State Supreme Court Justice had to say on the matter. I will try and get the full opinion and/or excerpts, request permission, and publish.

Oh yeah...almost forgot....the officers having sex with hookers, who wants to bet their mugs don't appear on the indexed shameful page?

Codes don’t replace conscience

Sen. Kyle Huey delivers a strong letter to the Alligator that further reminds the student body that real change begins at home. I, for one, always believed in using the Alligator as a public forum from which to hold members of the System accountable. Unlike, chambers where the gavel can used to silence you, the Court of Public Opinion is ruthless to all who have something to hide.

Even though Huey, like Norris, and other weaklings in the Independent movement that see it more fit to ignore dissent than to challenge it, may have blocked me on Facebook, I still believe his letter was a great one.


"The U.S. was founded in a revolutionary spirit. This American brand of patriotism insists that our citizens constrain the power of our leaders, in spite of impulsive emotions and desires. Throughout their political experience, Americans are encouraged to openly challenge their leaders." - Mike Belle
____Cite From IFAlligator
First of all...'patriotism' is a weasel word. It's a term that's excused everything from the U.S. PATRIOT Act to costly wars on two fronts and the literal abandonment of the Geneva Convention. It's also a term used by far-right-wing conservatives to discredit democrats, greens, and liberals on all fronts.

And how does this brand of patriotism constrain the power of its leaders, when its people's own vote serves as little more than a conduit to the larger, more powerful electoral college? A nation whose majority is ignored in favor of an obsolete system that maintains a select few despots in power? Or a nation that enslaved and later segregated an entire race for the better part of two centuries.

When have we ever been openly encouraged to challenge our leaders - when has that ever happened? Do you mean challenge them by bouncing between the two major parties - or - do you mean by running failed campaigns that play into the hearts and minds of vulnerable college students looking for the next JFK but resigned to settle for you and read your column, buy your hype, and propagate your already-recycled rhetoric.

America is a wonderful nation, rich in injustice and often scant of historical awareness. I say love the people, love the Earth, but fuck the borders, fuck the flags, and fuck patriotism.

No flag or religion is worth a drop of human blood, no flag is worth death, and no borderline is worth fighting for.

Running for office soon Mike? Get real.

Saturday, November 15, 2008

GDI's & FBK

Florida Blue Key is marketed as a leadership honorary, if you dismiss all the rhethoric as just that & simply take heed to the organization's founding principles - you'll find yourself wondering just what went wrong?

Many of you are dumfounded, some of you are even incensed that Frank Bracco would even dare take himself serious enough for admssion. Nonetheless, Bracco ran a top SG Agency and set records that will not likely be broken anytime soon. A James Argento of his day, Bracco has maintained a professional demeanor and never once turned on his President, Ryan Moseley.

It's interesting. You take Nina DeJong...denied multiple times; a former SG Senator, Sorority President, detailed resume rich in public service, leadership, with solid grades...but no admission. Sam Green, then the highest ranking African American on campus, the second most powerful person in the UF Senate, long list of multicultural and leadership experience -- blocked. Bruce Haupt who made it to the most respected university in the United States - denied.

What does Florida Blue Key really have to do with leadership? In my honest opinion, Florida Blue Key has more to do with shameless subservience and less to do with honrable leadership than word around the row and all throughout Florida may have you believe.

And much like the Drayton Impeachment proceedings, much like online voting, and much like agency-legacies...FBK Recruitment has a funny way of proving to all of us GDI's and especially to the non-believers that there is a Machine, there is a System, and you can only join it on your knees.

Because if you try and stand up and fight for what you believe in, you'll go the Nina DeJong route...blocked by some cigar-smoking-turd from a second rate fraternity on University Avenue - that's not PIKE or DELT.

So everyone...let's thank Frank Bracco for applying and let his block, if it even comes down to a vote, further make the case for the sordid drama that is...the behind the scenes comings and goings of UF's most powerful eltist honorary - 70+yrs & counting.

Thursday, November 13, 2008

TheRadikal Celebrates Another Birthday!

Thank you for all the birthday wishes and the private messages -- three years running! Some of the more connected members of the Gator Nation prefer to be discreet, but hey, no worries. I know who my friends are and I appreciate all the warm wishes. I'm glad to see such a great response for Frank's Q&A -- it was long overdue.

Expect more Q&A's, GDI-tv, giveaways, and posts in 2009! As for now, I'm getting ready to head out for my birthday dinner and then back home for some good ole' studying. Hope you're all doing well.

In the coming days I will be posting updates on Grapski - who's been in jail for over a month now. Below is an official update from Grapski Defense, which I received:

NEWS UPDATE - NOVEMBER 8, 2008
For more information contact: grapskidefense@gmail.com

ACTIVIST CHARLES GRAPKSI HELD WITHOUT BOND IN ALACHUA COUNTY JAIL, GRAPSKI SAYS HE IS BEING DENIED HIS CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS AND BLACKMAILED INTO CUTTING A DEAL WITH PROSECUTOR

Gainesville, Florida --- Charles Grapski is being held without bond in the Alachua County Jail, where he has been incarcerated since his arrest on October 12 for two misdemeanor charges. Claiming he has been denied due process and the right to counsel, Grapski says his continued imprisonment constitutes political persecution by the state attorney's office.

"I'm being denied my constitutional rights, and it feels like I'm being blackmailed into cutting a deal," Grapski said, referring to his pending trial on 2007 felony charges. (See Background on 2007 Police Assault and False Arrest, attached below.)

Grapski insists he will not consider pleading guilty to a crime he did not commit, even if it means staying in jail, and he will fight for his right to a jury trial on the 2007 charges. "The misdemeanor charges should be dropped, and my original bond reinstated, since the complainant has told the prosecutor he doesn't wish to press charges, " he said.


Grapski has already spent a month behind bars for the trespassing and criminal mischief charges, which resulted from a late night misunderstanding at a friend's house following Florida Gators football team home game celebrations.

Grapski's bail on the October 12 misdemeanor charges was originally set for $100 for each charge, but before he could post bail a series of actions by a Circuit Court judge and a hostile prosecutor have kept him locked up, perhaps indefinitely.

Since the October 12 arrest, the person who filed the complaint has informed the State Attorney's office on several occasions that he does not wish to press charges against Grapski. Unfortunately for Grapski, the State Attorney's office appears to be using his continued incarceration without bond as a means of extracting a plea bargain on unrelated 2007 felony charges, which are pending trial.

The October 12 misdemeanor charges, rather than being dropped, were assigned to Geoffrey Fleck, the same prosecutor who is prosecuting Grapski's 2007 felony charges. Fleck also prosecuted a previous felony charge against Grapski, following another politically motivated and baseless arrest in 2006, also involving Alachua city officials. That charge was summarily dismissed by a Circuit Court judge only minutes before Grapski's jury trial was scheduled to begin, when the judge heard arguments on Grapski's Motion to Dismiss.

Grapski had posted a cash bond in August 2007 and was released pending trial on trumped up felony charges slapped on him by Chief Robert Jernigan of the Alachua Police Department, marking the third time Jernigan has been directly involved in politically motivated felony arrests of Grapski in Alachua.

Circuit Court Judge Phyllis Rosier raised Grapski's bond on the October 12 misdemeanors from $100 each to $5000 each. This was done without holding a bond hearing and without notifying the defendant. Also without a bond hearing, and without notifying Grapski or his bondholder (a friend had put up the cash), the judge then unilaterally revoked Grapski's cash bond on the 2007 charges, on the grounds that the misdemeanor arrest violated the conditions of his bond. Judge Rosier was the same judge who had originally set a bond of $60,000 for Grapski in the 2007 charges, before the bond was reduced to $1,500 by another judge.

Charles Grapski is still being held without bond on the 2007 charges, just as if he were a dangerous rapist or murderer. Since his 2007 bond was revoked several weeks ago, Grapski has been trying to get a bond hearing set, but without success. After being held virtually incommunicado and without contact with legal counsel for almost two weeks, Grapski finally spoke by telephone with John Stokes, his new court-appointed attorney, and requested that a bond hearing be set as soon as possible. Another state-appointed attorney assigned to his defense in the 2007 charges had recently resigned, citing a conflict of interest, and Stokes was new to the case.

Grapski reports that John Stokes told him that he had spoken with prosecutor Geoffrey Fleck, and he informed Grapski that a plea bargain arrangement had been discussed. According to Stokes, Fleck had offered a deal that would get him out of jail and "keep him out of prison." Grapski insisted he was innocent of the charges and told his attorney that he wanted his day in court.

Grapski claims that when he told Stokes he would not consider pleading guilty to a crime he didn't commit, his court-appointed attorney attorney became angry and hung up on him, saying he wouldn't be filing a motion for a bond hearing. As of November 8th, a bond hearing has not yet been set, and so far Grapski has not been able to speak again with Stokes. According to Grapski, Stokes turns out to be a personal friend of Alachua City Manager and Police Commissioner Clovis Watson (who has been involved in all three felony arrests), and has even represented Watson in legal matters.

Charles Grapski is currently locked in a jail cell and is being denied his basic constitutional rights, including his right to due process, his right to a bond hearing, and his right to prepare a competent defense.

Grapski is essentially being told that the way to get out of jail is to plead guilty to crimes he did not commit, thus sparing the state-appointed attorney the challenge of preparing a proper defense, and also sparing the State Attorney's office the embarrassment of having to prosecute the Alachua Police Department's trumped up felony charges before a jury of Grapski's peers.


Charles Grapski's friends and family are concerned for his health, and are seeking to expose the violation of his rights to counsel and due process. The immediate goal is to get him released once again on bond. Since it appears that his third court appointed attorney has a blatant conflict of interest (the first two resigned for that reason) and is clearly not willing to prepare a vigorous defense on his behalf, Grapski is in urgent need of a criminal defense attorney, preferably from outside Gainesville and the Eighth Judicial Circuit, where "good ole boy" politics prevails over justice and the rule of law.

To send a message to Grapski in jail, send an email to grapskidefense@gmail.com (It will be read to him over the phone) or mail it to the jail.


For more information see this week's High Springs Herald article (more HSH articles attached below):

Grapski continues to be held in jail without bond following October arrest
By Rachael Anne Ryals, Staff Writer
High Springs Herald | November 7, 2008
http://www.highspringsherald.com/articles/2008/11/07/news/news15.txt


Important numbers:

Alachua County Jail 352-491-4460 http://www.alachuasheriff.org

State Attorney's Office: 352-374-3670 http://sawww.co.alachua.fl.us

Thursday, November 06, 2008

Most PC Q&A Ever! Frank Bracco Speaks


Submitted 10/08/08

TheRaDiKaL: When did you arrive @ UF & what are some of the first campus organizations you got involved with.

Frank Bracco: When did you arrive @ UF & what are some of the first campus organizations you got involved with. I arrived at UF in Fall 2006 and focused largely on my classes, work, and running (I was training for a half marathon at the time). I did attend two organizations regularly - but I will refrain from mentioning their names. I also tried to get involved with the Swamp Party during the Fall. After not being slated (LJ lived in Graham at the time), I was told by Josh Weiss and Kevin Reilly to attend the party meeting after the SoE's mandatory meeting. I sat in the back of the Swamp Party's meeting but during the roll call Kevin Reilly, Mike Patrone, and Josh Weiss did not recognize me from when we spoke earlier and sent Lauren Asher back to "remove me" from the room (note it was Reitz Union meeting room). I sill thought I would have an opportunity to get involved, so I stopped by the table a couple times and asked if I could volunteer but the response I always received was, "we would get you in touch with your candidate". Since that incident I have been attending Senate to figure out why some people are excluded and others are not.

TheRaDiKaL: Initially what first drew you to the Pants Party and what kind of a Student Body President do you think Bruce Haupt would have made?

Frank Bracco: Initially what first drew you to the Pants Party and what kind of a Student Body President do you think Bruce Haupt would have made? During Fall 2006, I remember Bruce standing out in Turlington everyday campaigning and interacting with regular students. Looking at Swamp during that time, I did not see any of their "leadership" out on the campaign trail being as active as Bruce. When the Spring Elections arrived, I originally was going to volunteer just to help with Pants but David, Bruce, and Jordan invited me to hang out during the slating process to learn more about the party. From there everything just sort of clicked and I ended up slating.

Bruce Haupt is an amazing guy! I am not sure Bruce would have enjoyed being Student Body President, but I know tons of people would have enjoyed watching him attempt to change Student Government. The big thing about Bruce is he always seems to prosper when interacting with people and he comes across as a down-to-earth, average guy. His attitude allows people to loosen up when they interact with him and the connection seems genuine.



TheRaDiKaL: When you decided to apply for Chomp The Vote, what were your thoughts going into the application process and then once hired? Did you feel you'd get a fair shake and how did everything play out?


Frank Bracco: When I applied to Chomp the Vote, I was actually surprised I received an interview. At the time I applied for both External Affairs Director and Chomp the Vote Director; both times Mr. Moseley was there to greet me as I arrived to the office and gave me a "good luck" speech as we walked to the conference room. I got to know Mr. Moseley during the Spring campaign; for some reason we always seemed to be campaigning in the same place (my one Pants Pole to Mr. Moseley and his two or three volunteers). Later on that Spring, Tyler Antar and I had a meeting with Mr. Moseley to talk about what he would expect from a Chomp the Vote Director during his time as Student Body President. At the time, Tyler Antar was the acting CTV Director thanks to a nod from Jason Lutin.

In the end, there were some pretty notable candidates that passed over, especially Tyler. I do, however, feel like the process worked pretty well and I did get a fair shake. When I was confirmed I tried to reach out to all of the individuals that applied but none of them really didn't seem interested, so Tyler and I put together a Chomp the Vote team the best way we knew how and ran with it.



TheRaDiKaL: In your opinion, how did CTV evolve from its inception under Jared Hernandez to your term. Could you give us some stats &
figures, some idea of what you accomplished?


Frank Bracco: I do not necessarily want to offend anyone, but my understanding (and from the numbers I have seen) tend to indicate CTV had a large number of volunteers and IFC support; in fact, I believe IFC even donated the money for the Chomp the Vote shirts at the time. All the evidence I have seen also shows that Jared's CTV registered somewhere between 3000 and 4000 individuals with other organizations (voluntarily or forcibly under the umbrella of Chomp the Vote) providing another 4000 or so. I think the most notable example the numbers game is when Michael Moore came to town: approximately 1,000 students registered that day with "Chomp the Vote". In reality, 1,000 students registered at the event, of that approximately 500 were with College Republicans.

That being said, Jared's Chomp the Vote was extremely visible and included commercials, radio ads, and, of course, the failed limo service. Jared legitimately wanted to carry Chomp the Vote forward for future Gators but it failed for the next two years. When Tyler resurrected Chomp the Vote, and I took it over in the Spring/Summer of 2007, we couldn't find a student in SG that had been involved with Chomp the Vote to help us craft our approach. We decided to take a more grassroots approach and pounded the pavement as many school days as possible. In the end we registered approximately 2,400 students for an election most students did not care about because they believed their vote would not matter. We also held several events, attended a great deal of organizational meetings, and even begun to make inroads into the Greek Community. We also promoted the local elections, which was really one of the main vision's Jared and Jess Johnson had with Chomp the Vote.

Was the Chomp the Vote team successful during the Moseley Administration? I guess I will leave that up to the reader to decide. When I was confirmed, many people stated (on this blog and elsewhere) that this would be an election no one would care about and they would be surprised if we could break 500 registrations. I believe our team went above and beyond the expectations concerning registrations, and we also did some amazing education and mobilization work for a team whose core membership was half-a-dozen or so at any given point in time. Arguably, Chomp the Vote was one of the most successful non-partisan voter registration, education, and mobilization efforts outside of California during the primary season at a university. Tyler and I also did plenty of interviews with students, local and regional newspapers, public interest groups, other universities, national think tanks, and even a national radio talk show (Hannity: "Chomp the Vote is liberal group heading up the Don't Tase Me Bro' protests on the UF campus!", thanks Tyler). I believe the true success of Chomp the Vote is measured by the fact random students still recognize Tyler, myself, and other members of the Chomp the Vote team and regularly ask us about voter registration. Ultimately, we may have not reached all of the grandiose ideas Tyler, Alan Rezaei, Mr. Moseley, and myself had for Chomp the Vote but I would give our efforts a solid B+ and we were definitely the one of the most productive team inside Student Government at the time (although I might be a little bias).



TheRaDiKaL: Who are some of the people that actually worked for you directly and/or behind the scenes to make Chomp The Vote as successful as it was during your years? And how much leeway were you given as director insofar as funding, programming, and staffing for your agency?



Frank Bracco: With Chomp the Vote, Tyler, Alan Rezaei, Ben Cavataro, Rilwan, and myself were the 'core team' (putting in a couple days a week). There was also a 'secondary team' which was usually the CTV Directors (like Brett Roth) that I would see or hear from once a week or so. Finally, there was a couple dozen other people that came out at random points during the semester to offer an hour or two. Under President Moseley, I had nearly free reign on the programming and staffing of Chomp the Vote. The financial aspect was a slightly different story.

Chomp the Vote was created by an "executive order" under Jamal and was never codified. I refer to this has Ryan Day's folly: everyone thought it was codified but Chomp the Vote was really functioning as a "shadow agency". In fact, the position of Chomp the Vote Director was even made exclusionary by a certain Senate President before the position was even defined elsewhere in statutes. Financially, this meant I really had no legal say whatsoever. Realistically, Chomp the Vote was actually budgeted through the local lobby line. I presented David Drescher with a budget in the summer and it was my responsibility to make sure Drescher signed off on everything before I asked Ms. Sandy to file an SAR for me. President Moseley and David took a hands-off approach and let the Chomp the Vote team do whatever it pleased (within limits of course).



TheRaDiKaL: Will you admit publicly that once you were hired that you may have been ordered, or perhaps advised, to tone down your involvement with TheRadikal.com? And if so, by whom?


Frank Bracco: Sure, this is something I would like to set the record straight on. I have always been pretty active on the blogs but when appointed to the Chomp the Vote Executive Directorship, I thought it would be inappropriate for me to comment on items unrelated to Chomp the Vote. I brought my concerns up with David and Mr. Moseley and they both agreed with me on this matter. I was not ordered from taking part in The Radikal's lovely conversations. In fact, Mr. Moseley encouraged me to use The Radikal if anything relating to Chomp the Vote came up.


TheRaDiKaL: Our nation is in the midst of a foreclosure-nightmare, unemployment is up, there's a weak dollar, there's global warming, wars on two fronts, and over 150 banks including Indymac, Washington Mutual, and Wachovia have all gone under. In an election in that may redefine, even possibly save America...how do you assess Executive Director Brett Roth's job performance in Chomp The Vote? Using your tenure as the litmus test.


Frank Bracco: Bracco left this one BLANK; refused to respond upon follow-up.


TheRaDiKaL: What do you think weighed more in Roth's hire - the fact he hails from a house rumored to be on the fence for Spring 2009 or the fact he's totally inexperienced and quite possibly useless to the organization? Any chance this agency will ever get phased out?


Frank Bracco: Chomp the Vote only became an agency under the Moseley Administration and I can definitely see it being phased it if another string of failures occurs (a la Hannah Hillman style). I cannot say why the Executive Committee decided to appoint Brett Roth, but I can say Tyler Antar did not get a fair shake. Unfortunately some individuals on the Executive Committee, believing they understood the background of Chomp the Vote, refused to even acknowledge Tyler Antar as the person to resurrect Chomp the Vote. All these individuals had to do was speak with Mr. Moseley or Jason Lutin to learn the role Tyler Antar played in Chomp the Vote.

TheRaDiKaL: Please tell us what it was like to run for Vice President under the Orange & Blue Party? How does Tommy Jardon compare to
Bruce Haupt, both in your experiences on the campaign trail and as potential leaders of the UF-SG?


Frank Bracco: Very good question! Running as Vice President was perhaps one of the best experiences I have had at the university. Being an executive candidate allowed me to meet so many students and hear some many ideas concerning how the university and Student Government should function. It is amazing how many people actually have opinions on SG and the how the university works but refuse to exercise their power at the ballot box.

During the Orange and Blue run, I did not have as much interaction with Tommy as I had with Bruce during Pants. I think that just generally had to do with us having different schedules. In my mind, Tommy has always come across as more of a partisan leader to me (someone that will be the head of the Florida GOP in the future) whereas Bruce is more of your "everyman" guy (your hype man). Both Bruce and Tommy can do the groundwork and both are extremely intelligent and able to do the planning but they approach their allocation of time differently. My impression is Tommy is more of planner and strategist while Bruce is more a "people person". As Student Body President, Tommy would have been someone that put pressure on the administration to listen to the students while Bruce would spent more time interacting with the average student.



TheRaDiKaL: Do you believe enough women hold influence and/or any real leadership posts in today's Independent movement? Do you consider Orange & Blue to be as Independent as say, the Pants Party?

Frank Bracco: During Pants,we did have some female candidates and everyone had input into the party's strategy. Those in truly leadership positions included Liz and Eve. While I cannot say for certain how the Gator Party functioned, I do believe that our female candidates had more influence than their female candidates. The Orange and Blue Party has definitely allowed more ladies to get involved in Student Government and hopefully we will see an increase in active, independent thinking Senators after the Fall Elections.

Do I consider Orange and Blue as Independent as Pants? O&B has a completely different energy and has reached more members of the student body. If you consider the amount of students reached as a measure of success, Orange and Blue is creating a whole new level of success for independent parties.




Please give us your prediction in
the following scenarios:


O&B Sweep of District D: Seats in District D have only been won twice by an independent party. If memory serves me correctly, they were parties that had house support as well. I could see us cherry-picking some seats off in D; this is one of the districts I have money on.

O&B Landslide @ Hume: Unlike my comrades, I believe Hume isgoing to be very close. Mark and I have a wager going on what the results of Hume will be.

O&B remains united in Spring '09: I don't know why it would not be.

O&B factions off in two:
Somehow I doubt this would happen. Keep your eye on Gator though!


Gator Back Johnson '09:
Two months ago I would have told you Jordan was a lock; today my response would be there doesn't appear to be any other viable candidate. I have heard from individuals in Greek Life, SG, and FBK that Spring should be very interesting so I guess we will just have to see how it plays out.


TheRaDiKaL: Name Association:


Mark McShera: Potential new leader of the Independent movement
once the Action/Pants generation graduates.



Shea Parrish: Wish we could have gotten her more involved, but
Shea is pretty busy elsewhere on campus.


Tommy Jardon: Oh boy, how do I respond? An unpredictable genius that talks with his hands, haha; for all the disagreements we have, I respect Tommy more than the vast amount of individuals I have met through SG.

Pedro Morales: Pedro, Cecilia, Jordan McBee, Justin Bell, and
Brittany McCants were all part of the "moderate block" that taught me about Student Government. Good people!


Gavin Baker: My big experience with Gavin was his call into the jazz show I host; he won some tickets.


Ryan Nelson: Wish he could have finished his good-bye speech.


Kim Cruts: Very energetic individual, although scary when she is mad (I know from experience).


Ryan Day: y experience with Day has been different than most.
Day always came across as a straight shooter with me. No matter as much as I was told to dislike him, he always did right by me personally; I even got him a graduation card.


Cain Norris: Needs to work on his ground game, haha.
(Thanks for deleting from Facebook -- you're a born leader!)

Kyle Huey: The hardest working man of the Spring 2008 Election
Season.


Eric Wolf: Has always been good to me even when we haven't seen eye-to-eye.


Glenda: Always willing to help me out, even listens to me on the radio sometimes :-).


Sandy: Most helpful individual when I was Chomp the Vote
Director.


Stan: Stan's the Man! The other independents really need to give Stan a chance, he is a straight-shooter with the institutional knowledge to back it up. I got to know Stan more for his work with non-profits outside of SG because I serve on the city's Community Development Advisory Board.


Sam Miorelli: Misunderstood and a hard worker. Derserved more in ACCENT, because he got passed over he became the bitter Sam we all "know and love". His brother, Sunshine Sam, is way cooler :lol:.

Jordan Johnson: Someone to watch for the Spring.

Naadira Renfroe: I have not had many interactions with her.

Jordan Loh: Sincere but sometimes too moderate; a good guy to me.

John McCain: Good personality but I do not agree with his
stances.


Barack Obama: Still do not understand his platform.

Ralph Nader: More power to ya' - keep those unsafe cars (and
politicos) off the roads!


Bob Barr: Odd choice for the ticket but polling well in some states.

Tuesday, November 04, 2008

It's Time To Save America!


After eight years under the war criminal, George W. Bush, & his gang of despots, Americans finally have an opportunity to elect a real alternative. We're not talking about stiff-shirt-Gore or double-talk-Kerry. There's real issues before us, like Universal Healthcare, Tax Relief for the Working Class (not the Elites & Corporate Masters), proper oversight in regards to the monster-bailout we just gave Wall Street, and foreign policy we can live with, like loosening the embargo on Cuba. I hope you'll vote for Barack Obama & Joe Biden; if you're voting for John McCain and you really believe in serving your country -- stay home today.


Sunday, November 02, 2008

Queen of SG



Whether you're in Gator or Orange & Blue, whether you're for McCain or for Obama, chances are you've heard of Naadira Renfroe - former SG Senator and continuing, rising star. Unlike others whose political livelihoods would be history after a failed re-election bid, Renfroe has seemingly turned the loss into a major PR-win.

Renfroe should be watched closely. I believe she will be one of the names for Spring '09 SBVP consideration. My remaining sources in the Greek community, insist Renfroe may be part of a rebel move. Only time will tell. A Q&A request has been sent.

What do you think of Naadira Renfroe. Overly-hateful remarks will not be posted. Agree or disagree - COMMENT!

Saturday, November 01, 2008

The Deliverance of Pedro Morales

Pedro, like JCB, provided a great deal of insight to this blog and was publicly associated with many of the posts. His forte was his rich understanding of the conceptual shortcomings of SG and his passion to bring about sensible change -- not just stir up the rhetoric and pose for the cameras.

When Pedro flipped (and he did flip) it came as quite a blow to me. Whether The Independent Movmement is a bubble to you or not, TheRadikal.com serves as the bubble's background music. Having one of the greats cross over, becomes not only disadvantageous for the movement, but I'd be a fuckin liar to sit here and pretend it didn't take a toll on myself as well.

However, Pedro remains an independent at heart. Does he regret his move? Did he put too much weight on winning? What did he think of the Moseley ticket? In the end, did Pedro really have Moseley's ear on graduate issues??? All the answers +++++ QUESTIONS OF YOUR OWN, will be answered.

You Be The JUDGE!

But I for one think Pedro should be re-admitted into the Independent fold, to opine on matters as years ago, and help us build an even stronger GDI base at UF.

Release Date: February 2009