It's official.
The Julia Tuttle Causeway has changed her name.
Among South Florida locals, she has been christened Bookville.
Fred Grimm, columnist for The Miami Herald--who I've recently decided to officially adopt as a kindred spirit--recently addressed the most recent honor bestowed on the namesake, Ron Book.
(...)
Ron Book, the very lobbyist who originally pushed city and county commissioners to adopt the overreaching ordinances that chased sex offenders under the causeway (some have dubbed the homeless colony ``Bookville,'') now talks about ratcheting back the 2,500-foot restricted radiuses around schools, playgrounds, parks, etc.Even Miami-Dade County commissioners have been uttering the unhappy sounds of politicians who realize their ill-conceived ordinance has created a stinking monument to bad public policy smack in the middle of Biscayne Bay.
Mr. Grimm appears to support state Senator and AG wannabe Dave Aronberg's efforts to lasso Florida's hodge podge of residency restrictions via increasing state law from 1000 feet to 1500 feet away from places children are known to congregate, buffered by the inclusion of child safety zones. All Florida municipalities would be required to comply with the state standard.
(...)
Sen. Dave Aronberg, who tried, futilely, the last two years to shepherd through legislation cutting residency restrictions to 1,500 feet while adding very tough sex-offender loitering laws, thinks certain ``cowardly'' political leaders ducked the issue and hoped, instead, that some judge will take the political heat.So now we can wait for a judge to undo the Tuttle conundrum. Or wait until 2010, when Sen. Aronberg thinks his legislation -- and good sense -- will finally prevail.
--The Miami Herald (8/19/09)
Well, just my opinion, but that extra 500 feet with the addition of child safety zones--just yet another exclusionary effort--sounds like a man balancing a political fiasco in one hand and political suicide in the other.
He knows the truth about these laws, but the truth is, will the truth get him elected to the AG seat?
Sounds to me like Dave's got one political foot still stuck under Bookville.
And I'd inquire of my kindred spirit, to ask Mr. Aronberg to 'fess up the grim truth.
