For two years I’ve been begging people to talk to each other in the paper. We are so blessed to have the very best dedicated lagoon team. Now we can send articles to our friends! Our voices and the voices of the Stuart News is intragral to being heard.
So thank you who ever made this happen. (I think the person has the initials E.S.) because now we can talk to each other and reach out even more.
Thanks for publishing my letter.
Thanks to all the people who commented.
#buytheland #stopthetoxicdischarges #saveourdrinkingwater
Water Advocates that are not paid duped actors advocate for the water at South Florida Water Management District.
So here we were back again on April 9. Due to work I missed most of the morning but I was able to get video in the afternoon. I’d like to take the opportunity to say thank you for being able to shoot this video to document the effort to save the lagoon. This is using my camera for the highest good and it also comes with the responsibility of being professional with my work product and I take that responsibility very seriously. I hope others do also. Don’t use your camera to act out, be vindictive and humiliate others.
For those who do not understand why this is so important: The option runs in October to buy this land. This has to be dealt with before May 1. The last video is the discussion by the board after we all spoke.
And this has been the issue. No one is talking to each other. We talk to the board, the legislators, Rick Scott. They have answers but they don’t talk to us. There is no discussion. There is however an enormous amount of frustration.
I think its important to listen to what board believes and address that.
Our friend Aiden Lewey telling us the lesson of the lorax.
Linda Curtis The Death Mermaid Speaks out
Irene
SFWMD April 9 Julie Williams reads Stuart , FL resolution to purchase land into the record.
Stephen Malagodi
Megan Remick
Julia Hathaway
The City of Stuart and St Lucie Resolutions being read into the record
Dr Harvey Hathaway read Sewell’s Point Resolution to buy the land.
Laura Reynolds from Tropical Audubon
Eileen
Gayle Ryan
kenny hinkle jr
John and Ruth Scott from the West Coast
Linda Miller
Jon Ullman The Sierra Club
Florida Audoban
Florida Wildlife Federation
Everglades Law Center
Cristy Costello Sierra Club Florida
Dr Gary Goforth
Dawn
South Florida Wildlife Association
Mark Perry
Our wonderful speakers from the west coast!
Various speakers
Lee Country Resolution
me!
http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrP-SCwrVeI&feature=youtu.be
and finally the discussion after all the speakers
I wrote four speeches. One all typed out. 2 more I wrote out on the way to the meeting and the last I wrote on scrap paper. In the end I threw them all away and spoke from heart minus the curse words. Afterwards I cried.
“Thank you for bringing our message home today.”
I havn’t downloaded my video, so thanks to Irene for shooting this nice video of me talking to the Board of Governors at South Florida Water Management.
This week the item was on the agenda. Afterwards Kevin Power’s said for sure he’d be a River Kid. Instead of just moving on to the next subject there was discussion. Not the one we wanted. They want to finish projects.
Years of talking to these people and we will still have discharges probably forever. The Everglades will be destroyed. Our drinking water destroyed. I’m sure they have something up their sleeves about that one and it will include spending lots of money and the cost will be passed on to you.
How dare we ask for clean drinkable water. We have a lot of nerve.
How dare the people of the Treasure Coast ask to have our clean water back.
We passed amendment one to buy this land. How difficult is it going to be in the future to get people to sign on and pass citizen initiatives if the legislature is just going to go what they want to do?
In our next election will people really think about who they are voting for and are they going to put up deeper into this hole of being manipulated by Big Sugar and other Big Business and not whats good for us?
Right now the best thing we can do is pray for a drought.
So here is my message to Rick Scott, our legislature and the Board of Governors of South Florida Water Management District.Stop the discharges. You figure it out! We did everything we possibly could, we got you the money, we got the support, we pulled everyone together. Keep the locks closed. Close them forever. and bring us some oysters. ” Then go home and find us people who can come up with solutions not constraints. Because no one. Not one single person should have to deal with this.
For Immediate Release: Contact Cris Costello, Sierra Club, 941-914-0421 (cell). Julia Hathaway, Sierra Club, West Palm Beach, 202-315-8211 (cell)
Floridians demand Gov. Scott’s appointees initiate US Sugar purchase
Residents will wear stickers saying: “I’m not an actor”
When: Thursday, April 9, 2015
Time: 9 a.m.
Where: South Florida Water Management District Governing Board Headquarters Auditorium: 3301 Gun Club Road, West Palm Beach, Florida, 33406
What: Large turnout to Buy Sugar Land NOW!
Florida Senator Joe Negron (R) said he is planning on introducing legislation asking for $500 million for land purchases, money that could buy U.S. Sugar lands.
Supporters of US Sugar purchase will once again convene at the West Palm Beach headquarters of the South Florida Water Management District to demand that Governor Rick Scott’s appointed water managers purchase 48,600 acres of US Sugar land to restore the Everglades and protect the coasts from pollution. The state of Florida has an option to purchase the land by October, but water managers must take action now for the process to begin.
Last week, actors were paid $75 to attend a Tea Party protest against the purchase.
**VISUALS** Residents wearing “I’m not an actor” stickers. Signs. An enlarged photo of hundreds of Buy the Land supporters from Tallahassee.
Why: The South Florida Water Management District and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are dumping more about a half billion gallons of highly polluted fresh water a day into the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee rivers, polluting critical marine habitats and harming communities.
Residents are incredulous that Governor Scott and his appointees will not consider the 48,600 acre purchase option in the US Sugar contract in spite of algal blooms and massive marine die offs that occurred in Indian River Lagoon in 2013 and are now threatening. According to the University of Florida, the land purchase must be considered to stop marine life die-offs.
As polluted water is dumped to the coasts, the Everglades subject of a multibillion restoration project, is starving for water. The solution, according to University of Florida scientists, is to pursue 48,600 acres of sugar land to store and clean the water. Governing board members have largely ignored those pleas and appear intent to allow Big Sugar to walk out of a deal and let restoration evaporate forever.
It is a characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things.
Henry David Thoreau
When a person’s free will is taken away it chill’s me to the core. As humans we are morally responsible for our own behavior. If someone take’s away a person’s free will they take away their freedom.
So it cracks me up when people spout off about freedom but have no issue taking that freedom away.
What is to act or choose freely?
What is to be morally responsible for one’s actions or choices?
So last week when Karen Donahue under the direction of Everett Wilkinson called Jason Wool to wrangle up actors to be in a piece that was supposedly to be the background of a documentary for the Tea Party and spun this off for Jason to be the middle man, a huge lie, she took away his free will.
Then when the actors showed up to do their job and hold their signs and yell and make noise based on this lie their free will was taken away.
Stolen. What’s the price for stealing people souls?
Because when you take away free will, you take away a person’s freedom and freedom is what I thought the Tea Party people stood for?
What do you think?
Henry David Thoreau
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_David_Thoreau
Thoreau’s writings went on to influence many public figures.
Political leaders and reformers like Mohandas Gandhi, U.S. President John F. Kennedy, American civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr., U.S. Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, and Russian author Leo Tolstoy all spoke of being strongly affected by Thoreau’s work, particularly Civil Disobedience, as did “right-wing theorist Frank Chodorov [who] devoted an entire issue of his monthly, Analysis, to an appreciation of Thoreau.”[70]
To ALL my friends:
I just want to give you everyone an update on this situation with this issue with actors protesting at SFWMD last week. Karen Donahue called Jason Wool to wrangle up actors to be in a piece that was suppose to be the background of a documentary for the Tea Party. When Karen put out her add the it said to contact Jason. Karen spun this off for Jason to be the middle man. People responded to Jason, because they know him , because he is a trusted member of the acting community and frequently helps his fellow actors get gigs. He had recently gotten Karen a gig. So Jason thought she was just returning the favor. Fifty people were given what they thought was an acting gig. There were sag actors involved but no sag contracts. And no water was provided as required by SAG. NO WATER!
Karen will not talk to Jason. He has tried to call her and she refuses to talk to him.
So it seems the whole thing was set up by Karen Donahue and
Everett Wilkinson.
But who paid the money to Everett?
“I don’t know anything about people being paid! These are real protestors”
Everett was brought into the meeting and greeted by a friend on the WRAC board. Who was that? And is that person who paid these guys to do this. To trick them.
You have to be a real bottom feeder to do this.
Anyone who knowingly tricks people into doing something by presenting it in a different way is truly a bottom feeder. I
Jason is now receiving nasty emails. They should not be directed at him. Please do not direct your anger at the people who were tricked.
The people you should be harassing is South Florida Water Management to get to the bottom of who hired these guys. I doubt they even care.
We demand an investigation!
I made my call.. Now you makes yours.
Attention: Florida Senator Joe Negron
(850) 487-5032
#buytheland
This past weekend I went to celebrate this little guys celebration of a complete rotation around the sun.
mista sunshine
I drove five hours to Anna Maria Island. The last hour sitting in traffic to get over the bridge to the island. When I got there
I saw this.
Anna Maria Island
I spent the entire day at the beach in that water. It was the first time since 2013 that I could swim in clean water.
This is my house.
What’s wrong with this picture?
This is my letter to the Editor in the Stuart News Today.
”
What’s the obstacle? U.S. Sugar wants out of its contract. Instead of selling the land like it agreed to do, it now urges the Legislature to drag its feet until the agreement expires later this year.
We can’t go through this again, and if our local legislators and Gov. Scott turn their backs on us, it is time we turn our backs on them.”
I left you a message at your office today.
We want this:
Not this:
It’s not that complicated. One piece of land will complete everglades restoration, save the water of South Florida, protect our drinking water, Protect the Everglades and for goodness protect and represent the people you are suppose to represent.
Thank you,
Cyndi Lenz and Mista Sunshine
Attention to all my film friends: Can you help us Save the Indian River Lagoon:
I miss all the fun.
This was the add on Facebook that was posted by a person named Karen Donahue who apparently was on her way to Michigan later that night. Probably to her new job at Fox News or some kind of great payola for selling her friends down the filthy, dirty, polluted river last week at South Florida Water Management. When I checked her out on Facebook we had 50 or so of the same friends. Since we have many mutual friends in the film industry who have watched me post about this issue for the last three years I’m sure they were quite surprised that one of their own basically screwed them and intentionally used them in a protest to hurt the Everglades.
In the end. Its didn’t hurt that much.
After I posted the article on Karen’s Page she said this:
“Don’t take the Bait.” This is how I know she is not innocent.
Then she posted “You know dear Karma is only a bitch if you are.”
Funny.
Then she deleted all the posts
So I guess Karma really is a bitch if you are!
Funny.
Here is the add:
“Political Rally Protesters needed!!
We could use up to 40 people for Rally Protesters this Thursday, April 2nd at 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
We will pay CASH of $75 per person at end of shoot. NO BREAKFAST
The address is: MUST BE REGISTERED and ON LIST TO GET PAID
South Florida Water Management District
3301 Gun Club Road
West Palm Beach, FL 33406
Details: Basically to stand behind fence, holding banners or signs that will be provided. Clothing is almost anything!! Use common sense and don’t wear “club” outfits or gym clothes. Just wardrobe for a Political Rally. This couldn’t be any easier…………the only down side is an early start for West Palm Beach location. That is why we’re paying so well!!
Also Jason we have many friends in common.
“I don’t know anything about people being paid! These are real protestors”
Here are some of the great articles that followed:
http://eyeonmiami.blogspot.com/2015/04/big-sugar-pays-tea-party-protesters-to.html
More than 50 actors from a Broward County acting group were paid $75 each to protest outside the South Florida Water Management District on Thursday about a controversial land deal they knew little about.
A great article by our own Zaimarie De Guzman.
They were protesting about stopping the land grab! This is not a land grab. Its like opposite. If your going to be against something why not learn about it.
http://www.tcpalm.com/franchise/indian-river-lagoon/ed-killer-land-buy-is-not-a-land-grab_29713934
The protest was called by the Tea Party of Miami and Florida Citizens Against Waste, a recently formed group that has no contact information on its website and is not registered to do business in Florida.
I had a conversation with a person who was at the rally and very confused. He thought he was protesting the selling of the land because he didn’t want Big Sugar to make a profit and he was concerned about the “poor and homeless.” which as an actor in South Florida where the pickins are thin I’m sure he’s knows a lot about this. I felt badly for him but I also saw the light bulb go off in his head when he realized what a messed up thing he did.
Apparently, people pick up these jobs all the time through their group of Broward Actors. These guys need these jobs to make ends meet and I am in no way upset with them with the exception of two people.
How much of this has gone on. Is the Tea Party really a party or a bunch of hired actors? I hope so!
The big questions I have right now are these?
Who paid the Tea Party to pay these people? That needs to be investigated. Not the actors. Some of them thought they were filming a reenactment for a Tea Party Documentary.
To the people at
I also think it’s important that people step forward anonymously and let it be know what else they were told about the gig.
And thirdly, I’d like to know why there was no Craft Service Table. This is very bad form Tea Party. We all know part of the gig is providing good food for all.
Feel free to email me at clenz@mac.com.
The whole thing is really pathetic but funny and very telling. For the future if you want to know how to put on a great protest we can totally hook you up.
Here’s is a video I made when the River Warriors went to DC. Please remember what we went through and the rest of you please help us not have to go through this again!
Don’t ever forget this day when we didn’t know each other but we all came together.
Please go here and follow these directions. We need you today!
https://cyndi-lenz.com/2015/04/01/save-floridas-water-campaign-call-to-action/
If you have not signed the petition please sign now. This petition will be presented at Everglades Day in Tally next Monday. We need lots and lots of signatures. Speak now and know you have done everything possible to make the land buy happen.
For our area in the Treasure Coast call (Phone calls are imperative)
Senator Joe Negron
850-487-5032
Representative Gayle Harrell
850-717-5083
Marylynn Magar
850 717 5082
After you’ve done this send an email over to the Everglades Trust and let them know so no one can these calls were never made. (takeataking@gmail.com)
Here are the big ticket items. Please speak from your heart and tell them your personal story.
“Please Act now to protect and save Florida’s drinking water ! Last November, 75% of Floridians voted for Amendment 1 to set aside funds to clean and protect the Everglades and our drinking water.
We need to hold the sugar industry to their binding and written contract to sell 46,000 acres of sugar land to the state for Construction of the Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir. The project will help control pollution and save the Everglades.
I urge you to take action, follow the will of the voters and prioritize Everglades Restoration and fund the purchase of this critical land. ”
For those out of our area we need you to call your representatives. One of the big issues is that other legislators from all over the state have no earthly idea what we are talking about. You need to let them know. This issue affects not just us in Treasure Coast. It affects the entire Everglades ecosystem, the Florida Bay and the drinking water of South Florida.
Please pay attention! This could be fixed by buying the land in the EAA! Our legislators aren’t interested. please help us today.
Toxic real estate is not real estate at its full market value. (Google map of Stuart, Rio, Sewall’s Point, and Hutchinson Island- areas of Martin County, words JTL.)
Real estate taxes are paid in arrears, so one learns about the property values of a calendar year, a year later. In the Town of Sewall’s Point, the 2014 (really 2013) tax value increased .14%. This seemed low compared to other similar areas of the state. During this time, I contacted Laurel Kelly, our Martin County property appraiser. She had her staff research the issue, and assured me that the answer to my question: “Did the toxic St Lucie River/Southern Indian River Lagoon of 2013 have anything to do with lower property values?” was a negative– or at least could not be verified.
Rather, data showed it had to do with other things like the number of homesteaded properties and a limited…
View original post 605 more words
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