The Fane Lozman Reports

E-mail Fane at recallscott@gmail.com

Holy cow, hallelujah, there is a God, did hell freeze over in this warm winter? Those were just some of the astonished comments around Palm Beach County when its residents heard that the McAuliffe era had ended! When my first story about McAuliffe ran in March 2010, it was accompanied by a cartoon in which McAuliffe expressed his "fear" over tackling the corruption in Riviera Beach. I was always hopeful that McAuliffe, a man I had formerly nicknamed the "fearless wonderboy" for having climbed two of the world's highest mountains, would find "his set" when it came to tackling the public corruption in Riviera Beach. Well, McAuliffe never tackled public corruption anywhere in the County, instead he decided to "pussy out" and resigned his office before his term ended. To "pussy out" comes from the word "pusillanimous." The definition, according the Merriam-Webster dictionary, is: "lacking courage and resolution: marked by contemptible timidity—pu•sil•lan•i•mous•ly adverb." Accordingly, McAuliffe is now the "pussy-wonderboy" and it is a moniker that will forever mark his dismal legacy as the worst State Attorney in Palm Beach County history.

Over the last two years, we regularly wrote about McAuliffe with the hope that one day, he would step up to the plate, and charge at least one of what our investigations have shown were four corrupt Riviera Beach City Councilpersons. It never came to pass. For the last year, the "pussy-wonderboy" could not even obtain the transcript of an executive session (closed door) Riviera Beach City Council meeting. Why couldn't he get the transcript? He was too inept to demand a timely hearing, and now the case has been transferred to the third judge on the file. Forgetting how McAuliffe "pussyed out" on Riviera Beach, he has now let down all the citizens of Palm Beach County who bought his b.s. that he was going to make a difference when it came to fighting public corruption. McAuliffe's claim to fame is one lousy arrest, that of former Palm Beach Commissioner Jeff "Crybaby" Koons! Compare that to Broward State Attorney Michael Satz who has charged a dozen elected officials during the same time frame, and it is obvious that McAuliffe didn't have the backbone for the job. Being State Attorney is not a popularity contest to curry favor with politicians for future re-election campaigns. Instead, Palm Beach County's top prosecutor is supposed to be aggressive prosecuting crime and public corruption, not dishonor the once proud office of State Attorney. To the horror of his initial supporters, McAuliffe never was a corruption fighter! McAuliffe's failure to take action against Riviera Beach officials not only cost the City millions in lost revenue at the city marina, but also caused hardships for hundreds of former marina tenants, and allowed a rogue police department to run roughshod over the city's residents.

McAuliffe was not stepping down to volunteer at a legal clinic or other pro bono work. No, McAuliffe was hanging it up, in what should be a short and feeble attempt to make the big coin, to work for billionaire Bill Koch. How hypocritical can one man get? It was only 14 months ago that McAuliffe went on television with attack ads against Governor Rick "the Skeletor" Scott, whose big supporters are the Koch brothers! There is more to the recent McAuliffe saga which has left prosecutors, judges and attorneys around the County speechless. According to recent reports, a potential juror, Ms. Melissa McKinlay, a divorced mother of three, asked to be recused from a criminal trial before Palm Beach County Circuit Judge John Kastrenakes. The courtroom video can be found at youtube.com with the title "Juror: I don't want to serve because the State Attorney threatened me"! It shows a visibly shocked Judge Katrenakes asking McKinlay if it was "the elected state attorney" who threatened her in a parking lot. McKinlay's reply was "yes," and that she had filed an ethics complaint against McAuliffe. As a corruption fighter, John Kastrenakes is a personal hero of mine for his legendary accomplishments as a former Assistant United States Attorney. It was John Kastrenakes who put three Palm Beach County Commissioners and two West Palm Beach City Commissioners behind bars, an achievement that forever branded Palm Beach County as "Corruption County." Two videos of my arrest are also on youtube under the titles "fane lozman arrest at riviera beach city council meeting" and a television news clip "activist arrested at riviera beach city council meeting" after the charges against me were dropped.

So now the burning question: who will be the next State Attorney? Former State Senator Dave Aronberg has declared his candidacy, and Circuit Judge Krista Marx announced that she is seriously considering running. Given his young age, Mr. Aronberg has an admirable background of public service but Judge Marx tops that in experience. Her 13-year record as a prosecutor was exemplary, and the 14-years she has spent on the bench dealing with a number of high-profile cases including the Dunbar Village rape case, shows how she possesses outstanding judgment, leadership and understanding of the law that are the necessary qualities to be State Attorney. It is way too early for The Palm Beach Sun to endorse either at this time, but once elected the new State Attorney can finally get to work tackling the mountain of corruption that is Riviera Beach.

C'est la guerre (this is war) with McAuliffe has now become C'est la vie (that's life). I repeatedly provided McAuliffe's office with the results of my investigations into political corruption in Riviera Beach. I spent three long years trying to convince McAuliffe to do his job, sadly all for naught. At least there will not be a fourth year and, with a new State Attorney, the corrupt scum masquerading as local politicians will finally be put where they belong, behind bars! Winners never quit, quitters never win. Thank you for showing your true soul and quitting McAuliffe. With your new life hanging around the big money boys, heh, you never know, you could be the winner of the milk carton photo shoot one day! …The people of Palm Beach County deserve a whole lot better.

Another year we bid adieu, it was the smelliest one on record, Phew! It was the kind of year where Riviera Beach City Attorney Pamala "Lyin' and Cryin" Ryan finally caught the attention of the mainline media. Ryan's slime factor became media fodder when the Palm Beach Post Editorial Board opined that she is "Incompetent." It's no surprise that Florida Governor "Skeletor" Scott is Ryan's fellow Slimeball of the Year winner. The Skeletor's claim to immortal shame was not only being the CEO of Columbia/HCA Healthcare when HCA paid a $1.7 billion fine for defrauding medicare, and taking the Fifth Amendment 75 (seventy five) times when questioned about the scam. But it was the Skeletor's a.k.a. Scottdafi's heartless executive order cutting the funding for 35,000 disabled citizens that were served by Florida's Agency of Persons with Disabilities. This agency not only assisted seniors with disabilities, but countless young children with autism also received care at specialized state university centers. What were the citizens of Florida drinking when they elected this loser? Once the voters sobered up, they rewarded the Skeletor with the most dismal approval rating of any Governor in the U.S., an abysmal 26%!

The slime factor of Ryan and Scott was so extensive in 2011, that it took a number of full length stories to explain the details. For those who just showed up for the season, my prior stories can be found at the Fane Lozman Reports, www.palmbeachsun.net. Runner-ups for Slimeball of the Year were George "Crabass" Carter, who was defeated for Riviera Beach Mayor, along with Bruce "I beat my girlfriend" Guyton. Dishonorable mentions include Riviera Beach Councilpersons Cedrick "the flubberer" Thomas and Dawn "the dictator" Pardo, two perpetual slimeball finalists. These two slick slimesters may finally make it to the big dance in 2012 if State Attorney McAuliffe finally gets around to completing his criminal investigation. McAuliffe, the fearless wonderboy, has waffled around for 11 months in criminal court trying to compel the City of Riviera Beach to produce a transcript of a closed door meeting at which the councilpersons illegally voted on public business.

Among the ditties that ran in my 2011 stories, one that brought a smile to the face of many Riviera Beach residents and employees, bears repeating (with a few more lines) as a wrap for 2011. Redistricting, term limits, casino gambling, and a presidential election will set new slime records in 2012. Now where did I put my wading boots?

She's Wasted Our Coin, is an original rap song from Mr. Fane:

Lyin' and Cryin' Ryan has wasted our coin,
She spent 500k to stop a tall white boy from knockin' her off her throne,
Ryan likes to postulate but her legal theories are phony fabricates.

She is a nasty woman, how so true,
She turned off the juice to a white woman stricken with cancer too,
Destroying a houseboat brought her glee,
She walked around town for a month saying yippie kay yee!

Ryan has no shame, she constantly whines and loves to complain,
When called on the carpet she starts to cry,
And begs the council for another try,
This legal fake is a disgrace,
She constantly lies to the public's face!

Ryan spares no expense to cover-up, her legal incompetence,
She flies attorneys from out of town, to stop Mr. Fane from bringing her down,
Stepping in dog-shit is much more fun, than looking at Ryan ramble on,
It is time to take our city back, from this legal nitwit, that's a fact Jack!

 

The logistics of coordinating the constitutional amendment to allow for the recall of a Florida Governor and elected members of his Cabinet is a major undertaking. I have been working a network of powerful players in an effort to coordinate the complex logistical hurdles that would need to take place to place this question on the November 2012 ballot.

There has not been one negative response to my October story, which explains why Rick "Scottdafi" Scott is a dangerous dutz. The positive feedback and palpable anger among my supporters is inspiring. This support has empowered me to develop a roadmap to put the recall question on the ballot. If anyone has any doubts, Rick Scott's action towards the disabled shows why handicapped citizens around our State consider him to be heartless. In early April, Scott signed an executive order that cut the funding for 35,000 disabled citizens that were served by Florida's Agency of Persons with Disabilities. The waiting list is even longer than those who were previously helped by the agency. Many reading this story may think that the agency only assisted seniors with disabilities, but that is completely inaccurate. Countless young children with autism received care at specialized centers, including the University of Central Florida's Center for Autism and Related Disabilities, which was worshipped by those parents who are overwhelmed with the demands of severe autistic children.

This month's ditty is a takeoff on Alice Cooper's timeless song, SCHOOL'S OUT, one dear and near to all students come each May,

SCOTT'S OUT!!

Well, we got no choice,
All the shocked and angry,
Making all that noise,
Cause they lost their funding,
Well we can't help ya,
Can't find the coin,
To help your autistic young ones
That's a drag.

Scott's out for summer
Scott's out by recall
Scott's out forever.

No more scumbag
No more scam artist
No more parents' sad looks.

Well Scott's got no class
And he got no heart
And he sure ain't innocent
We can't even think of a word but recall.

Scott's out forever
Scott's out for summer
Scott's out by recall
Scott's administration is out completely.

 

The fearless wonderboy hit the ball out of the park in October 2010 and it took a year for the ball to finally land. I, and many others, thought McAuliffe was either crazy or suffering from AMS (acute mountain sickness) when he ran a commercial that featured him, Sheriff of Martin County Robert Crowder, and State Attorney William Cervone tearing apart candidate Rick Scott at the seams. Taking McAuliffe's lead, these three correctly prophesied that then candidate Rick Scott "just can't be trusted"and educated the electorate that Scott's company was "systematically defrauding medicare"by ripping off seniors and taxpayers.

I wrote a couple stories earlier this year about Governor Rick Scott and his close relationship with the Ballard brothers and have paid a high price for doing so. His punk press secretary Lane "me be Pompous and Righteous" Wright, called me up and ripped me a new one for writing the stories about the Governor. He stated that I was trash and that the Palm Beach Sun was a gossip newspaper not worth reading. Wright also assured me that he told the Governor to never, ever grant an interview to me or anyone else at the Palm Beach Sun. Wright claimed further that he had emailed Scott's Chief of Staff, Steve "the Scottdaffi Mac Daddy" MacNamara, with copies of my prior stories and that Mac Daddy told him that no way in hell would the Palm Beach Sun ever get an interview with the Governor. Mac Daddy also cancelled Scott's interview with Mr. Michael Putney, by far the most respected political reporter in South Florida, if not the entire State. Putney, who started his career in 1966, has a handful of Emmy awards and wrote for the National Observer and Time magazine. After his writing days, he became a broadcast journalist in 1981 and is currently the senior reporter and Sunday morning host at ABC channel 10 in South Florida.

Anyway, speaking of the dirty devil, last Thursday I was 15 feet from Scott after he gave a television interview. Scott walked right in front of me, there was no one else but two members of his security detail, and that slimeball completely ignored my attempt to meet him and shake his hand. What was remarkable about that whole scene was that Scott's failure to shake my hand was not do to his desire to avoid the media. I came across as a simple citizen who, once I got his attention, would have asked him some questions as a Palm Beach Sun reporter. In hindsight I guess I am lucky that Scott did not know that I write for the Sun, otherwise he may have had his bodyguards bust a cap or two in my ass to shut me up.

THE BAD NEWS

The bad news is that Florida keeps rolling down hill. In early October, Scott, a.k.a the skeletor, and scottdaffi, announced that he will be running for reelection in 2014. Huh, I though hell was not supposed to freeze over until at least 3014! Scott's horrifying announcement calls for a statewide plan of attack that is easy to understand by all the anthropologists, police, firefighters, correctional officers, state attorneys, teachers, environmentalists, homeless and hungry citizens that Scott has pissed off and crapped on. The palpable anger among these hardworking Floridians has boiled over to where Scott has the lowest approval rating of any governor in the United States, a pathetic 29%.

THE PLAN

After a night of reflective thought and some stiff drinks of a mighty fine single cask bourbon, I came up with a bold plan. (Note to my fans, instead of flowers can you please send me a bottle of Four Roses Limited Edition Single Barrel bourbon!) What we need ASAP is a constitutional amendment to be placed on the November 2012 ballot to allow for the recall of a Florida Governor. See my column next month for details on the recall amendment kickoff. Currently, the Florida Governor can only be removed from office via impeachment by the Florida Legislature. Once such a constitutional amendment is passed, then a recall of Scott would be possible, legally and practically. We owe the next generation to try and save what remains of our beloved Florida after Scott has done his best to scorch and trash it.

This month's ditty is my original take-off on a military marching cadence. I had a flashback to my Marine Corps days of marching on the "grinder"with my M-16, with a bunch of tough SOB'S, my fellow Marines. To be young and cocky (who ever heard of Viagra), those were the good old days!

I sure know, and you've been told,
Rick Scott is corrupt and is mighty cold!

Running down the street with my unemployment check,
I only got one week left ‘til I am penniless.

We gonna stand up, twitter up and run to the door,
600,000 voter signatures are needed for a recall war.

Jobs are scarce and hard to find,
thanks for canceling the high speed rail line.

2 and one half billion is some serious federal coin,
I needed that rail job to save my home.

We gonna stand up, twitter up and run to the door,
600,000 voter signatures are needed for a recall war.

Scotdaffi fired me to cut the tax base,
I am scared shitless because I am now homeless.

The fearless wonderboy was right,
Scott is a political dutz who is truly nuts.

We gonna stand up, twitter up and run to the door,
600,000 voter signatures are needed for a recall war.

Private prisons and now private state parks,
the skeletor keeps ripping giant farts.

Here's what we must do before it's too late,
we need to fight for right ‘til each dawn's daylight.

We gonna stand up, twitter up and run to the door,
600,000 voter signatures are needed for a recall war.

At the end of the day, the truth is might,
hit the rack Rick Scott and turn off the light.

She's Wasted Our Coin

This is the only conclusion that can be drawn when examining Ryan's track record as the Riviera Beach City Attorney. For those who may have missed it while away on summer vacation, Ryan sent a letter to the Palm Beach Post in which she cried in embarrassing horror about the editorial that declared her incompetent. Her letter reinforced how really screwed up Riviera Beach's City leadership is. Ryan has used the City coffers as though it were her own bottomless piggybank to target those who are critical of her kindergarten legal acumen. She constantly is trying to cover-up her incompetence and complete lack of legal ability and reasoning, by false bravado and telling outright lies. Citizens are amazed that there has not been the spontaneous combustion of Ryan's pants given the unfathomable number of lies she spews.

I was walking barefoot through the grass on the hottest day all summer, when I stepped squarely into a huge pile of dog shit. That was a nasty mess, but nothing as bad as having to look and listen to Ryan as she holds court over twice monthly City Council meetings. Ryan spent, without any public hearing or vote, over $400,000 coordinating the state and federal legal actions that removed my floating home from the Riviera Beach marina. She laughed like a rabid hyena (judge for yourself, the video is on YouTube), when her enforcers at the Riviera Beach police department physically threw me on the floor during my public comments at a City Council meeting. Ryan orchestrated the efforts of the City's outside counsel to purchase my floating home on the courthouse steps and then gloated at me, her #1 snowflake, while she directed that my floating home and all my furniture be immediately destroyed. Ryan assured me that I would be removed from "her" marina prior in her first failed attempt to evict my floating home. When the jury returned a verdict in my favor, she went into a hysterical tirade.

Ryan's bizarre legal reasoning knows no bounds. In a transcript of a closed door meeting of the City Council, Ryan stated that it was fine to expend taxpayer funds to hire a private investigator to follow me and Governor Jeb Bush around! She spent over $120,000 arguing that the Sunshine law does not require written minutes (a written recap) to be kept of public meetings even though the law clearly required the City to do so. She unsuccessfully fought this both at the circuit and appellate courts, all on the taxpayers' dime. Ryan repeatedly told the City Council that my settlement offer of $16,000 was given to the City Councilpersons in 2008, even though former Councilperson Lynne Hubbard, who was on the council from 2007 to 2009, stated in a sworn affidavit that Ryan never informed her of my offer.

Ryan's legal stupidity knows no bounds! Ryan was the brains behind the City of Riviera Beach suing in circuit court the Palm Beach County State Attorney in an expensive and ludicrous attempt to stop the State Attorney from getting the transcript of a January 2011 closed door meeting of the City Council. The City is no longer the plaintiff but now is the "felony" defendant, when the case was transferred to criminal court! During this January meeting, trying hard to live up to her reputation as the "Incompetento," Ryan allowed the City Councilpersons to conduct two votes on City business, both of which violated the Sunshine Law because these votes can only occur at public meetings. These two votes are the subject of a current criminal investigation by the State Attorney.
The former Chief Judge of Palm Beach County, the Honorable Edward Rogers, previously stated that Ryan is incompetent and should be fired but the City of Riviera Beach did not have the guts to fire an African American woman. Ryan enjoys her role as the Legal Dictator of Riviera Beach and is vile in how she governs. Ryan was responsible for causing permanent damage to a woman stricken with cancer when she authorized the electricity to her boat at the City marina to be turned off in an illegal self-help eviction. This caused the spoiling of a bone marrow injection in the boat refrigerator and, because the woman did not have the financial means to replace the medicine, her mobility was permanently damaged. Ryan's heartless and sick behavior almost resulted in the death of a number of dogs, when she also approved other self-help evictions that turned the electricity off to boats that used air conditioning and fans to cool their pets during hot summer days.

Apparently Ryan missed her law school classes on the Bill of Rights because she never seemed to learn about the First Amendment. This legal nitwit constantly opines that free speech can be censured, and that those who insist on demanding that the protections of the First Amendment be followed in Riviera Beach are troublemakers. She has repeatedly stated that it is perfectly acceptable to use aggressive police brunt force and arrest to stop citizens from exercising their First Amendment rights! This private counsel wannabee will take a literal shit when she fully understands that the First aMENdment is not when the male dominated Congress proposes or passes legislation that will negatively impact Women! Ryan does not understand discrimination and the Fourteenth Amendment. Discrimination to Ryan only applies when she uses her "discriminating taste" to determine which Councilperson to suck up to. Conversely she see nothing wrong with picking two black females as her last two assistant City attorneys, while trashing black male, white male and white female applications. Ryan also has no clue as to the State mandated competitive procurement procedures that municipalities must follow. Her legal reasoning that $6500 a month in rent for the City marina tiki bar was a better deal than an offer for $22,500, even though the City's own appraisal had it for $19,000, should qualify her for a new type of Darwin legal award. For the unfamiliar, a typical Darwin award honors people who ensure the long-term survival of the human race by removing themselves from the gene pool in a sublimely idiotic fashion. A Darwin legal award would suggest permanently disbarring lawyers to protect both the client and the public, with the added benefit of keeping legal malpractice premiums from skyrocketing.

During a City council meeting this summer, Councilpersons Billie Brooks and Shelby Lowe voted not to renew Ryan's contract. Councilperson Cedrick Thomas waxed on and on in his incoherent, rambling style of explaining why Ryan has done a great job of sucking up to him and how that justifies Ryan keeping her job. At the end it all came down to Councilperson Pardo, who wavered and after slapping Ryan for some of her legal decisions, she then voted to retain Ryan. This is quite amazing because in 2008 it was Pardo who stated that Ryan was incompetent and should have been fired years before.

This month's ditty, She's Wasted Our Coin, is an original rap song from Mr. Fane:

Cryin' and Lyin' Ryan has wasted our coin,
She spent 400k to stop a tall white boy from knockin' her off her throne,
Ryan likes to postulate but her legal theories are phony fabricates.

She is a nasty woman, how so true,
She turned off the juice to a white woman stricken with cancer too,
Destroying a houseboat brought her glee,
She walked around town for a month saying yippie kay yee,

Ryan spares no expense to cover-up, her legal incompetence,
She flies attorneys from out of town, to stop Mr. Fane from bringing her down,
Stepping in dog-shit is much more fun, than looking at Ryan ramble on,
It is time to take our city back, from this legal nitwit, that's a fact Jack!

There are rumors floating around about Ryan that should be investigated. What is the real reason that Ryan directed well over $100,000 to a maritime law firm in Tampa while there were plenty of maritime law firms in West Palm Beach? Does Ryan have any direct family or personal relationships with any law firms with whom the City does business? It is time to find out the truth! In the coming months with the help of our network of supporters, we will dig deeper and report back our findings.

Please forward any information, it can be anonymously if your prefer, to the Palm Beach Sun at Editor@palmbeachsun.net

News Flash-- Governor Scott's cry for help is heard around Tallahassee as he is being pinned in his office toilet bowl---"Brian Ballard and Lane Wright, when I get my head out of this toilet bowl I am going to waterboard both of you at the "Port of Palm Beach" to see what I can "dredge" up!!!"

The summer doldrums are upon us, along with the summer heat, the summer drought, and down-in-the-dumps Governor Rick Scott with an approval rating of only 29%. Governor Scott, you did not take my advice and use the flea spray on lobbyist Brian Ballard. Instead it was Ballard's lobbying partner at the firm Smith and Ballard, the esteemed former Secretary of State and Attorney General, Jim Smith, who hit the road with his client base after he finally had enough of his son-in-law, Brian Ballard. Now the question is, when Ballard is not sucking up to you and telling you how great you are, why are you being led around on a leash by your new 27-year old press secretary, Lane Wright? Before serving as your press secretary, this self-righteous know-it-all's claim to fame was writing a few stories for an online rag in Tallahassee because he could not get a real newspaper gig. Wright is flushing the remnants of your positive image down the toilet in his clueless efforts to serve as your talking head.

Why, Governor, are you insulating yourself with Ballard and Wright and tainting your public image in a way that can never be unspun? Did you know before you hired Wright that he slapped you in a March 15, 2011, online story by referring to you as the "self-titled jobs Governor"? Or, that he later admitted in his comments to the media that when it comes to creating jobs, you try hard but your dismal record is the fault of the Legislature? Huh? No wonder your job approval ratings are the lowest for any Florida Governor in generations (if ever). Your own staff spins stories like carnival workers spin cotton candy. How about being a leader and taking responsibility for your actions, Governor! What if you were to stop hiding behind these two men, both of whom could care less about your agenda and are simply using you to further their own personal objectives.

Jim Smith saw the light and realized that the slime factor was more than he could take. Smith didn't feel like showing up at the pearly gates and saying, "Ballard made me do it!" If Smith won't sell his soul, you should take his lesson to heart and keep all slimeballs and flea bags as far away from you as possible. By the way, Brian Ballard's and FDEP Deputy Secretary Bob Ballard's sister, Mary McCarty, was recently released from federal prison after being convicted for corruption as a Palm Beach County Commissioner. She is your type of lady -- born again with good communication skills. You could always give her a job as your assistant press secretary to teach Wright the basics.

GOVERNOR YOU DID NOT READ THE DIRECTIONS!
Please note: Entrenched lobbyists require at least three sprays!!!

A sad ditty to Fovernor Scot's popularity slide over the last six months, with thanks to Gene Raskin's iconic song, Those Were the Days, we now sing:

Once upon a time there was a 7-11,
where we used to drink a slurpee or two,
Remember how we laughed away the hours,
and dreamed of being Governor with drug testing for welfare deadbeats too!

Those were the days my friends, we thought they'd never end,
we used to laugh and campaign all day,
we used to travel by bus and the media made such a happy fuss,
those were the days, oh yes those were the days.

Then the six months since the inauguration went rushing by in such a flash,
We lost our positive vibe and ended up in a morass of political trash,
If by chance we capture that magic again,
my press secretary, Wright will blow it once again.

Those were the days my friends, we thought they'd never end,
we used to kowtow to Smith and Ballard at their bequest
we used to drop our pants so they could kiss our ass,
those were the days, oh yes those were the days.

Just tonight I looked in the mirror and nothing seemed the way it used to be,
in the glass I saw a strange reflection, was that governor covered in fleas really me?
Jim Smith dumped Ballard and went on his merry way,
is a strategy that I should also play?

Those were the days my friends,
we thought they'd never end,
for we were naïve and sure to have our way,
La La La La, those were the days, oh yes, those were the days...

The American people have been frustrated for ten years by the seemingly impossible task off tracking down one man, Osama bin Laden. No matter how much money the taxpayers threw at our intelligence services, the same lame answer was given, "We don't know where he is!" Government sources engaged in endless speculation on bin Laden's whereabouts, fluctuating with the political shifts in the wind. They claimed that bin Laden was killed during the massive bombing attacks in December 2001 at his Tora Bora cave hangout, or, if not, he would certainly be dead by now due to terminal kidney disease. Those tasked with the hunt for bin Laden were frequently quoted "off the record" in major media stories that he was hiding in the rough, ungoverned mountainous region of North Waziristan, moving around the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan and would never be found.

My perspective on where bin Laden has been all these years is different from these sources. To understand my viewpoint, I need to provide a little history of some hell holes I visited before I ended up in the cesspool of corruption, Riviera Beach.

I went to the Kosovo border in April 1999, three weeks after the NATO bombing campaign started, on a humanitarian project to help a friend find her sister and niece. Hundreds of thousands of Kosovo Albanians were streaming across the border into Macedonia after the Serbs ethnic cleansing campaign. It was an inspirational experience, one that left me with an appreciation for how fortunate we are to live in America.

September 11, 2001, was a wakeup call for all Americans. It caused a groundswell of patriotism along with motivating America to liberate Afghanistan from al-Qaeda and the Taliban. Over the couple months after 9/11, I thought of Kosovo and developed a plan to help the newly empowered Afghan women that were highlighted in the news. My fellow commodity traders agreed to donate used computers for the new schools purportedly being set up for women in Afghanistan. I was determined to help these new schools, but first I had to see them in person. I headed to Pakistan in December 2001 and hung out in Islamabad, where I met a guy I nicknamed "Wildman," for his reckless driving habits, including constantly running red-lights and driving 60 to 100 mph in downtown Islamabad. I ate many of my meals at the restaurant that Wildman managed, which is how we became friends. Wildman arranged for a driver and security for my visit to Afghanistan. The Afghan towns I visited near the Pakistan border were dusty hell-holes. The buildings were constructed with mud. There were huge plumes of dirt and dust that rose high in the air. People were walking around breathing through their shirts over their faces. I was approached by one woman who spoke decent English. I asked her if she was happy that the Taliban had been overthrown. The woman told me no, that the Taliban may have stoned woman, but that the Northern Alliance was into raping and forced marriages. She broke into tears and said that she was desperate to escape Afghanistan and start a new life in a country where a woman could be free. As far as the new Afghan schools where the donated computers were to be used, there were none. The schools were a big sham, just one of many feel-good schemes for the American people to donate to non-governmental organizations (NGO's), referred to as non-profit organizations in the States. In fact, the donations were siphoned off and put in someone's pocket.

Before I headed to the United Arab Emirates on my way back to the States, an acquaintance of Wildman told me to check out "Su Casa." This guest house was located only a short distance from embassy road, in a nice area of the Islamabad. During my visit, I had a conversation with a couple guys who apparently ran the place and were overseeing the remodeling of it. I asked them had they seen bin Laden lately, since Su Casa was one of his safe houses back in the early 1990's; it was also where Ramzi Yousef, one of the masterminds of the 1993 world trade center bombing was arrested. They laughed but were quite serious when they said bin Laden was a spoiled rich brat who was not going to be living in some cave. For what it's worth, they said that bin Laden liked indoor plumbing and television. According to these men, given his family's immense wealth, bin Laden would be living in an upscale neighborhood somewhere in Pakistan. They turned out to be 100% correct. The question is, how come U.S. intelligence spent 10 years running around tribal border areas looking for bin Laden, when all along he was hiding in plain site, in an upscale Pakistan neighborhood, in a million dollar house that had running water and satellite television?

Our newest Governor was elected as a dark horse, the most improbable long shot that came out of the pack to win at the wire. What was refreshing about Gov. Scott was his campaign promise to put the citizens of Florida first. His lieutenant governor, Jennifer Carroll, clearly reinforced his early philosophy when she told the Broward Republican Executive Committee that candidate Rick Scott "doesn't have any ties to Tallahassee, he doesn't have any ties to a lobbyist."

What has happened to our former "untainted" leader since he beat former Attorney General Bill McCollum in the Republican primary? Last August, the candidate Rick Scott superhero that was near and dear to the Tea Party attended their protest over the U. S. Sugar taxpayer-funded buyout scam, which was held in front of the South Florida Water Management District. Candidate Rick Scott proclaimed:

Unfortunately for U.S. Sugar, I can't be bought. As Governor, I will stand up to the Tallahassee special interests and fight against the irresponsible tax and spend policies that career politicians continue to support.

The next month candidate Rick Scott attended a fundraiser at the Palm Beach home of Mr. Jose "Pepe" Fanjul, the head of Florida Crystals who fought a noble and expensive legal battle in a failed effort to kill the U. S. Sugar scam. Everything was right in the world. And then Gov. Scott made the most improbable of moves, he joined forces with the U.S. Sugar lobbyist, Brian Ballard? A whole book could be written about Brian Ballard, along with his brother Bob, still deputy secretary of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP), and sister May McCarty, the disgraced Palm Beach County Commissioner now serving a 42 month sentence for public corruption in the Federal Prison Camp at Bryan, Texas. The highlight though, is why would Scott get tied up with Brian Ballard? Why would Gov. Scott get involved with one of the top dogs pushing the U.S. Sugar scam? Why would Gov. Scott make Brian Ballard the Finance Chairman of his Inauguration Committee? Remember, this is that same Brian Ballard that was a key force behind Bill McCollum's bid for Governor, a poorly advised candidate whose rabid attacks against Scott by his supporters were not only childish but helped alienate the voters against him and resulted in his primary defeat.

One of the answers may lie with another lobbyist, Bill Rubin of the Rubin Group. Scott calls "Billy…a good friend for a long time—gosh, since 1990? He's been a good friend." Well the question is, does Gov. Scott know that Billy was retained by Geo Group, a Boca Raton operator of private prisons, to be its lobbyist three weeks before last November's election? Steve Bousquet, St. Petersburg Times/Herald reporter, broke this story on the same day voters elected Scott; the election may have been even closer if this had been known earlier. That brings up a second question, did Scott know that Geo was first a client of the Smith and Ballard Group? The Smith by the way is former Secretary of State and Attorney General Jim Smith. It was easy for Ballard to get close to Smith, he simply married Smith's daughter, Kathryn. How about the potential conflict of Smith and Ballad also representing Correction Corp. of America (CCA), the nation's leading provider of correctional solution to federal, state and local government. What role did "Billy" have in bringing the outsider Brian Ballard, into Governor Scott's inner circle? Any truth to the story that Ballard gave Geo to Billy, whose lobbying revenues have been off in recent years, to curry favor and get close to Gov. Scott? That inner circle access for Brian Ballard keeps getting tighter, since Gov. Scott recently visited Brian Ballard's home in Tallahassee to attend his powerbrokers' Super Bowl party.

How can Gov. Scott put the citizens first, when the tangled web of Brian Ballard's contacts reach out to Brian's brother Bob, deputy Secretary of FDEP, the agency that determines who gets recommended for State submerged leases? Does Gov. Scott approve of Bob Ballard sitting down with the head of development for the Rybovich Superyacht repair facility, Mr. Carlos Viduiera, to negotiate a hotly contested State submerged land lease? Mr. Viduiera is also the executive director of the Marine Industries Association of South Florida and a client of Brian Ballard. I wonder if the Gov. would be angry to learn that Bob Ballard blew off the ethics rules that State employees must follow. The Gov. would probably be left speechless to learn that Bob Ballard approved a State submerged land lease that would privatize the Riviera Beach Municipal marina for the purpose of placing a Rybovich megayacht repair facility where a 400 slip public dry storage building is currently. This City marina had been donated "in perpetuity" to be used solely for public recreation back in 1913 and the submerged lands had also been dedicated by the State for recreational uses only. This had no impact on Bob Ballard, he pushed his brother's client agenda by making the unfathomable decision to agree to a State submerged land lease without first obtaining permission from either the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust fund (comprised of the Governor and Cabinet) or even the former FDEP Secretary! When I questioned Bob Ballard's lack of authority to make this decision with prior FDEP Secretary Mike Sole, he assured me that Ballard did not have that authority and would explain that to him. Unfortunately Mike, a man of integrity and a fellow Marine Corps officer who I never met while I was in the Corps, resigned last September. Bob Ballard wasted no time once Mike was gone in threatening me along with a South Florida developer with a pending FDEP submerged land lease application.

Gov. Scott are you going to continue to allow Brian Ballard to get access whenever he wants to meet with the new FDEP Secretary, while a condo developer not represented by a lobbyist cannot even get his phone calls returned? Your new FDEP Secretary Hershel Vinyard needs to also learn some manners in dealing with the media, after he ignored a couple simple questions from the Palm Beach Sun for this story.

Gov. you are driving down a one way road the wrong way. You are not paying attention while your deputy FDEP Secretary Bob Ballard makes a mockery of both your Executive Order 11-03, Revised Code of Ethics and his new boss. You also need to do some homework when it comes to Brian Ballard and his jailbird sister, Mary McCarty.

The Palm Beach Post editorial writer Joel Englehart put the complicated pieces together in a memorable editorial. With credit to him and the Palm Beach Post, what follows is a key portion:

The feds probably want to know not only what Commissioner McCarty has done for her husband but what she has done for her brother, Tallahassee lobbyist Brian Ballard. That's where Blake MacDiarmid comes in.

Mr. MacDiarmid managed Commissioner McCarty's 2002 campaign. He was an up-and-comer in Republican circles, where Commissioner McCarty reigns. But something went wrong. "Blake did not sufficiently kiss the ring," one observer said. Suddenly, Commissioner McCarty was undermining Mr. MacDiarmid at every turn. Candidates he had long represented told him no thank you. Clients couldn't hire him without risking Commissioner McCarty's wrath - and active opposition. Losing clients at that rate, Mr. MacDiarmid would pose no threat to Commissioner McCarty when she leaves the commission in 2010 to become a lobbyist. Assuming she's not in prison by then.

Mr. Ballard has been Boynton Beach's lobbyist for years. But the Boynton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency, which paid half his fee, decided that it needed separate representation. The CRA, then run by an appointed board, had the temerity to hire Tallahassee lobbyist Sebastian Aleksander and his partner: Blake MacDiarmid.

That relationship ended abruptly last year. After the Boynton commission made itself the CRA board, Commissioner McCarty's ally and ex-aide, Mayor Jerry Taylor, decided Messrs Aleksander and MacDiarmid had to go. The replacement? None other than Brian Ballard.

Commissioner McCarty has been pulling tricks like that for years. It's hardly something that will send her to prison. But the name Blake MacDiarmid on that search warrant shows that the feds know what she's up to. The raid means that they don't care for it at all.

So can a preemptory lesson be learned before it is too late Gov. Scott? One of the founding fathers of the United States of America, the man known as "The First American," Benjamin Franklin, said these words of eternal wisdom: "He that lieth down with Dogs, shall rise up with Fleas"

Too bad there was no flea spray around in those days for Ben to use on lobbyists, he unfortunately passed away prior to seeing this invention come true. However, Gov. Scott you have the great security in knowing that when Ballard or any lobbyist gets too close, you can now pull out your handy 16 ounce can of RAID® flea and lobbyist spray!

I congratulate Rybovich for finally seeing the light! I support Rybovich 100% with their new mega-yacht repair center at its existing 20th street boat yard in Riviera Beach. I was always hopeful that the Rybovich leadership would recognize that their 20th street boat yard was a superior solution for its new mega-yacht repair center and had discussed this option publicly at past Riviera Beach City Council meetings. This decision to end the battle to place the mega-yacht repair center at the Riviera Beach Municipal marina has saved me hundreds of thousands of dollars in future legal fees and countless hours of personal time and for that I am sincerely most grateful.

It is a win for the people that both the Riviera Beach Municipal marina will continue to be a 100% recreational facility in "perpetuity," as per Mr. Charles Newcomb's 1913 bequest, yet the economic opportunities of a mega-yacht repair center will still remain in Riviera Beach.

Now the only question remaining to be answered is, after the legal mess Riviera Beach Councilperson Dawn Pardo made for you at the City marina, will you still let her kiss your golden mega-yacht ring? (lol)

To an ever and lasting truce,
Fane Lozman

State Attorney Michael F. McAuliffe just hit the midpoint of his four-year term in office. Last year I wrote a couple stories about the man who I have nicknamed the "fearless wonderboy" for having climbed two of the world's highest mountains, but having yet to deal with the mountain of corruption in Riviera Beach. I recently sat down with the State Attorney to gather his perspective on his first two years in office as I put together my mid- term "Report Card."

McAuliffe comes across as an extremely intense and self-confident individual who has drawn on his background as a federal prosecutor in remaking the State Attorney's office to one with a more rigid and centralized chain of command. This has caused frustration among junior prosecutors who have seen their limited autonomy reigned in. Has this policy change contributed to the delays in the charging and prosecuting of high profile corruption cases? In one case, it certainly appears that way. More than two years have passed since the arrest of a police detective in the Riviera Beach overtime scandal, even though the supervising detective who benefited from the fraud is yet to be charged. The word on the street is that an arrest should be forthcoming in the near future, but it shows how trying to build a perfect case can result in a lot of wasted time that, at the end of the day, won't make a difference. Sometimes you need to take what you have, throw it at the wall, and let the jury put the pieces together for a successful prosecution.

McAuliffe does not seem to be bothered at all by delay if it allows for a bigger net to be cast or time to expand a corruption case. He is going to build his case and neither the time it takes to do so nor the public's frustration is factored into McAuliffe's analysis. This is a fairly typical approach for federal prosecutors while elected state prosecutors usually take a quick win whenever they can get it.

I saw this approach first-hand in two classic federal corruption cases. In the first, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois indicted 46 floor traders and brokers at the Chicago Board of Trade and Chicago Mercantile Exchange. At the time I was a member of the Chicago Board Options Exchange and that scandal was the talk of the trading floor for months. The second was Operation Silver Shovel, when six Chicago aldermen (the equivalent of a city commissioner) and a dozen other local officials were convicted of accepting bribes. What stands out about Silver Shovel was that the investigation took over four years before the first arrests were made. The U.S. Attorney had the discretion to charge one or two elected officials much earlier in the investigation, but held out for the motherload.

When asked about the public's frustration in having only one elected official charged with criminal misconduct in the course of his official duties over the last two years (former County Commissioner Jeff "Crybay" Koons), McAuliffe did not answer except to say that he had a hard working team in his public corruption unit. When asked about why his counterpart, Broward State Attorney Michael Satz had nailed 8 corrupt elected officials in the last two years while he had only busted one, McAuliffe dodged the question and replied that Satz's long-term track record did not reflect that level of success.

Certainly, McAuliffe has stepped up to the plate in other areas, and made his mark in a way that will leave a lasting legacy on ethics reform in Palm Beach County. McAuliffe had a vision that he took to the Palm Beach County Grand Jury and the result was the creation of an inspector general and ethics commission. Without his passion in pushing for this reform, it never would have happened.

McAuliffe has a positive working relationship with widely respected Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw. Bradshaw's recognition of the growing threat of gangs was the impetus for the formation of the Sheriff's gang unit. The State Attorney evaluated Bradshaw's successful model and created his own gang unit. This specialized unit inside the State Attorney's offices has already made its mark in successfully prosecuting multiple defendants to life terms under the RICO (Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organization) statute.

In addition to gangs, McAuliffe has also put his foot down when it comes to sexual predators. He has a special victims unit, with its own dedicated prosecutor, that identifies, investigates and prosecutes sexual predators and child pornographers. (Note: I hope the unit looks at the sexual predator who is on the Riviera Beach City Marina payroll and lives at the marina. His profile sheet on the marina bulletin board was taken down so no one knows the name of this monster. Why is this convicted felon hanging around children who frequent the marina and adjoining park?).

With respect to high profile cases that were the focus of heightened media fascination, the results are mixed. The State Attorney's office successfully prosecuted the horrific Dunbar Village Gang Rape case; life sentences for three defendants and a 30- year plea deal for a fourth. Conversely, the felony trial of a special education teacher, Ms. Allison Dinsmore, for which McAuliffe sought 20 years for felony animal abuse over the starving deaths of her pet cats, was an embarrassing bust when the jury found her to be not-guilty.

The State Attorney was confident that his office could handle its existing case load, but noted that he was short 25 attorneys and that his funding level needs to be increased. One of his key objectives is to reduce the number of assistant state attorneys who possess four to five years of experience from jumping to the private sector.

So crunching this all down, I give McAuliffe an overall grade of B- . He gets straight A's for his ethics overhaul, gang and sexual predator units, and a D for only one arrest of an elected official for public corruption. McAuliffe gets an F for failing to charge anyone in Riviera Beach who was singled out in the two audits by the Auditor General, even though the Joint Legislative Committee stated in its report findings that it felt there was criminal behavior by city officials that warranted an investigation. Further, McAuliffe has not wrapped up the Riviera Beach police overtime scandal; his office lost the recent high-profile case when Riviera Beach Police Officer Toombs was found not guilty of tipping off a murder suspect; and numerous Government-in-the-Sunshine law violations have been reported to his office and no one has ever been charged, the latest of which included the pending Sunshine law investigation into the Riviera Beach City Council.

There is the potential for considerable improvement in this grade over the next two years. The State Attorney told me that he will personally try a few cases, which will inspire his troops to step it up when they see him ripping apart a defendant. As General George Patton said, "America loves a winner and will not tolerate a loser." Riviera Beach citizens want a criminal indictment of Riviera Beach elected public officials before McAuliffe's term is up in 2012. When he makes that happen, McAuliffe will deserve a final grade of A.

Finally, I dedicate this month's corruption ditty to Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, a man who will continue to be known for at least the next 20 years as the only Palm Beach County Sheriff in the 21st Century that had a clue as to how to do his job! With thanks to Survivor, we can now all sing to the tune of "Eye of the Tiger":

Risin up
after climbing Mt. Denali and Aconcagu too
back in the courtroom
this time as Mr. State Attorney
did my time with administrative bullshit
once again a prosecutor with a will to thrive
so many times
it happens too fast
you trade your passion for glory
don't lose your grip on the dreams of the past
you must keep indicting corrupt politicos to keep them alive

It's the eye of the tiger
its the dream of the fight
risin up to the challenge of corruption
and the least known State Attorney stalks his prey every night
Riviera Beach you screwed with the wrong guy
and he's watching you with the eye of the tiger

Risin up
straight to the top
Satz and Rundle's conviction records can be beaten
there are so many targets of opportunity
corrupt politicians abound in this county

I have the guts, I will get the glory
went the distance to get this job,
I'm not gonna stop till I climb to the top
of that cesspool mountain near the Port,
RIVIERA BEACH!

 

The world is not supposed to come to an end until December 21, 2012 according to the Mayan calendar. The political world in Riviera Beach may explode before that if George "Crabass" Carter and Bruce "I beat my girlfriend" Guyton get elected. These two slimeballs are trying to slide through the March ballot like sh*t through a goose. Crabass is one piece of work. I had the opportunity to see up close how Crabass operates. He ran the Riviera Beach City marina into the ground and then turned around and took a job at Viking, the company chosen to redevelop the marina. Crabass then pushed Viking's agenda to have an industrial shipyard at the marina, on the grounds that the marina was in a terribly run down state. Hmmmm.

One of the few highlights of my floating home three day eviction trial that Crabass put me through was when I had the chance to cross examine him on the witness stand. It was a pleasure to emasculate that crybaby. Crabass's absurd testimony was a big reason that the jury ruled in my favor and denied the City's eviction. I remember looking at the incredulous looks on the jurors faces when Crabass made his tearful request to the judge to be excused from the witness stand only for the Judge to tell him he had to continue sitting there and answering my questions. One of the strangest answers from Crabass was when he feigned ignorance as to who Bob Healey was! Healey only happens to be his boss at Viking and the man who pays his salary (lol). Not surprisingly, Crabass is also an unpatriotic SOB to boot. He came up to me in front of some bystanders who witnessed the confrontation and told me that he hoped my brother, a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Air Force, would get blown up in Iraq!

Bruce "I beat my girlfriend" Guyton is another jerk so full of himself that it is amazingthat his head can fit through the doorway to City hall. A councilperson back in the 1990's, the Palm Beach Post has a trove of stories about this scumbag. Singer Island residents are still angry about his support for the noise ordinance and the extended hours at the Oceans Eleven North Night Club.

Looking through the Post archives we find:
September 8, 1994, Guyton was "stopped on suspicion of drunk driving," and "drove through two stop signs, swerved over the center line several times and was clocked at 62 mph in a 35mph zone." "Guyton refused to take roadside sobriety tests." Guyton was not charged after he called for a police supervisor who drove him from the scene.

November 7, 1994 the now infamous Guyton is charged with DUI (blood alcohol was .12) and found with a marijuana cigarette and several butts in the trunk of his car. Guyton was "badly injured" and was taken to St. Mary's orthopedic trauma unit after he crossed the center line and hit a car with two adults and a 12 year old child.

Palm Beach Post wrote two editorials, one on November 23, 1994, asking Guyton to resign and another one on December 2, 1994 asking the voters to replace him. At that time Guyton was the subject of a criminal investigation into accepting cash bribes and free food and liquor for his vote for a noise ordinance and extended hours at the Oceans Eleven North Club on Singer Island.

January 19, 1996, February 18, 1996 Guyton was arrested for domestic battery against his girlfriend Diana Mosley at her home. Guyton had "bloodstains on his clothes-bleeding from one hand." Ms. Mosley was "crying and hysterical, had bruises on one ear and blood on her face, shirt and legs." The charges were later dropped after it was determined that Guyton and Mosley did not live with each other.

February 8, 1996 The State Attorney found that although Guyton "had clearly violated the Sunshine Law" he was not charged because the audio tape evidence of his violations was improperly obtained.

We dedicate our latest ditty to our newest Palm Beach Sun fan, a sassy and funny lady who will remain nameless so that she will not be targeted by the Riviera Beach political slime machine.

With thanks to the Steve Miller Band, we can now all sing along to its #1 song, "The Joker,"
in DISHONOR of Riviera Beach Mayoral Candidate George "Crabass" Carter
and his running mate Bruce "I beat my girlfriend" Guyton.

Before reading further, you may want to puke first and get it over with.

Some people call me George "Crabass" Carter, yeah.
Some call me the space cadet of Riviera B,
Some people call me the great white dope,
Cause I speak of the pompitous of muzzling Fane's doggy.

People talk about me, baby.
Say I'm doing this city wrong, doing it wrong,
Well don't you worry baby,
Don't worry,
Cause I'm right here, right here, ready to do it harm.

Cause I'm a fake,
I'm a phony,
I'm a liar,
And I'm a cheat,
I play my bullshit to my own rap song,

I'm a joker,
My running mate Bruce Guyton is the smoker,
He's the real midnight toker,
He talks his trash like he wants to hurt Lozmaaaaaaaaaaaaaan.

You're the cutest city marina I ever did see,
Really love your Tiki Bar bitches want to shake their trees
Lovey-dovey, lovey-dovey, lovey-dovey all the time
Come on, City, you know that a crabass and a pot head belong.
(as Mayor and Councilman (bol=barf out loud))

Are you ready to puke yet? Don't feel bad, I did after I wrote this.
That crappy tequila I got for Christmas only made it worse.

 

 

The Riviera Beach marina referendum passed on November 2nd. The planned Rybovich industrial boatyard for megayachts was soundly defeated by the voters. On November 4th, Rybovich graciously acknowledged defeat and abandoned the project. It also dropped its $10 million lawsuits against two members of the Citizens Task Force who successfully put the referendum on the ballot. Councilperson Pardo was brought to tears by the defeat, now that she would no longer have access to Rybovich's corporate jet that had flown her to Tallahassee on at least one occasion. Even though Rybovich admitted defeat, Dawn Pardo, our resident dictator with a gavel, decided to up her slimeball reputation a couple more notches. Pardo successfully pushed both the City Council and Community Redevelopment Agency to file an appeal with the 4th District Court of Appeals in an attempt to nullify the results of the referendum vote!

This is not the first such effort by Pardo to stymie the public will. She previously pushed the City to file a lawsuit to stop the referendum prior to the election, one that failed when Judge Edward H. Fine ruled that the referendum would remain on the ballot. Pardo was furious with Judge Fine, the longest tenured Judge in Palm Beach County with 33 years on the bench and referred to him as a "fool." Pardo's ongoing futile efforts to thwart the will of the people are clear evidence of her narcissistic personality and disregard for those she represents. Pardo pursues power at all costs and lacks normal inhibitions in its pursuit. Her grandiose vision for the marina was for naught, and this has triggered a pattern of destructive behavior that warrants more than just the current citizen's initiated recall to remove her from office. State Attorney McAuliffe, a.k.a. the fearless wonderboy, needs to conclude his investigations and finally proceed to the issuance of some indictments. There is nothing confusing about Pardo's participation in a competitive bid rigging scam, when she refused to put the marina out for an RFP (request for proposal), and instead leased it to Rybovich without allowing industrial boatyards from around the world to compete for this unique property. (This was not the first time Pardo refused to follow the legally mandated competitive process. She just voted to approve the City waste contract to Waste Management, even though Waste Management was ranked 4th after the RFP process had been completed and did not even have the lowest price!) After having her campaign kick-off party at the City marina Tiki Bar, she conveniently voted to approve its lease renewal to include another 8000 square feet of City property, again without the statutory-mandated RFP. All of which cost the taxpayers millions by her continual disregard for the competitive procurement process.

The voters need to step up and recall Pardo from office. This City can neither afford nor tolerate the continued havoc that Pardo is wreaking on it.

www.recallrivierabeach.com

 

 

The collection of Signatures for the recall petition of the
entire Riviera Beach City Council has begun

Breaking News - The ballot referendum to stop the Riviera Beach City marina from being turned into an industrial boat yard passed by a vote of 54% to 46%. Our City Council, the "phony five" are finished. Their political credibility is less than a flushing toilet, a clogged one at that. The collection of recall signatures
began at the polls Nov. 2nd and will continue for 30 days.

This recall is based on the failure of each Councilperson to demand that a competitive process to lease the City marina for an industrial megayacht repair facility be undertaken prior to voting to allow Viking Developer, LLC, the City marina master developer, to sublease 40% of the City marina to Rybovich Riviera Beach LLC.
Residents are angry and frustrated by the prospect of losing the historic 100% public use of the marina by a process that was legally flawed and designed to benefit two large corporations, at the taxpayers' expense. First, leasing the marina as proposed is contrary to the will of the people, as evidenced by the 5600 plus signatures that forced the Council to add the referendum prohibiting leasing of the marina to megayacht facilities on this November's election ballot. Second, although the Council raised taxes on its property owners, it nonetheless voted to lease the marina to Rybovich at a ridiculously low rate, without allowing other companies from around the world to compete for the marina. This lease will reduce the current recreational dry and wet slips by over 80% and the lease revenue will be substantially less than what is generated by a wholly public recreational marina.

Please call 786-471-4423 to sign the petition or volunteer to help get signatures. You can also email us at info@recallrivierabeach.com.

 Don't let the door hit you on the way out, Pardo, Thomas, Davis, Brooks, and Lowe.

The recall process to remove all five Riviera Beach City Councilpersons began on September 23 when the Statement of Grounds for the Recall was served with the City Clerk. Please visit the recall website, www.recallrivierabeach.com for updates, media coverage, events, Recall Them All gear, and most importantly, how you can help us gather recall petition signatures to take our City back.

The five Councilmembers met the municipal recall requirement pursuant to Florida Statute 100.361 (d) 1. Malfeasance. They all voted to sublease a large portion of the marina for a megayacht repair facility, without going through a competitive process that would have given other companies the opportunity to compete for this unique public space.

Residents are angry and frustrated by the prospect of losing the public use of the marina by means of a process that was legally flawed and designed to benefit two large corporations, at the taxpayers' expense. First, leasing the marina as proposed is contrary to the will of the people, as evidenced by the 5600 plus signatures that forced the City to add a question prohibiting leasing of the marina to megayacht facilities on this November's election ballot. Not surprisingly, the City Councilmembers agreed to file the lawsuit last week against the Supervisor of Elections to remove the marina question from the ballot, their pompous egos once again at work trying to hold onto Rybovich's megayacht repair facility plan.

Second, although the Council raised taxes on its property owners last month, it nonetheless voted to lease the marina to a megayacht company at a ridiculously low rate, which resulted from a non-competitive procurement process. This lease will reduce the current recreational dry and wet slips by over 80% and the lease revenue will be substantially less than what is generated by a wholly public recreational marina.

This Council has not listened to the residents who have consistently voiced their opposition to the lease of the marina. Now that the recall has started, even if they wanted to, the bell can not be unrung. (State Attorney Michael F. McAuliffe, a.k.a. the fearless wonderboy, are you deaf?). The process of collecting the signatures of registered voters will start the latter part of October. The marina referendum question garnered 5600 signatures. We have 30 days to gather 2044 signatures, which is certainly attainable.

THE TIME IS NOW TO WIPE THE DAIS CLEAN AND LIVE THE AMERICAN DEMOCRATIC DREAM.

This special time in our City's history demands a ditty based on a song for the ages. As dedicated to Chaz Stevens, the creative force behind the recall website, and with thanks to the Beatles' iconic, "Let it Be," we can now sing:

When we find ourselves in times of trouble,
City watchdogs come to me,
Speaking words of wisdom,
Let it be.

And in our hour of anger,
With a double-dealing Council in front of thee,
Old-timers speaking words of wisdom,
Referendum and recall,
Let it be.

Before the five fraudsters trash more of our public places,
Like Spanish Courts and other historic places,
A recall is our answer,
Let it be, let it be.

For those that like to walk free in the marina,
Where the view is clear of megayachts and the light shines free,
If we recall the entire Council, we will forever solve our problem,
Let it be, let it be.

The marina was donated 100 years ago,
To be held for public use in perpetuity,
We must act now to uphold Charles Newcomb legacy,
A recreational marina is our only answer,
Let it be, Yeah let it be.

For up to date
information about the recall
visit us at RecallRivieraBeach.com
or call our Volunteer Hotline
at: 786-471-4423

 

Are you kidding me?! The ink was not dry on the Supervisor of Elections certification of the signatures for the November referendum ballot question, which, if passed, would save the Riviera Beach Municipal Marina from being turned into an industrial boat yard, when a slick media bomb exploded all over our City. TV's Mad Men ad wizards would have been proud of the flyer delivered door-to-door pumping up an industrial boat yard like it was the second coming of last year's federal stimulus package. One can only laugh at the assertion that our little public marina could somehow solve the unemployment problem in Palm Beach County. Unfortunately, the taxpayers will see less than 35% of the current revenue that the marina generates as a 100% public institution. But do not worry, those funky white boys will finally be able to make the serious coin needed to fuel their football field length yachts with the helicopters on top if we let them successfully divide and conquer us in our collective fight for the public good. We dedicate our latest corruption ditty to the spunkiest lady you will ever meet, Ms. Emma Bates, a true life heroine who burned through three pairs of new shoes in a near constant state of summer heat exhaustion coordinating the herculean effort of gathering the 5000 signatures needed for the referendum.

With thanks to Wild Cherry's "Play that funky music", we can now all sing:

Play those funky facts, Viking.
Play those funky facts, Rybovich.
Play those funky facts, corrupt council.
Lay down that bullsh*t and play those funky facts
till your marina rip-off dies.
Till it dies, oh till it dies.

The registered voters who signed the referendum petition are citizens who understand the meaning of respect and expect it from those they voted into office. The Riviera Beach Corruption Council certainly does not. The latest in a long string of slimy directives by the Council, once again spearheaded by Chairperson Dawn "Pay to Play" Pardo, was the funding of a legal analysis by the attorney of the City of Riviera Beach's Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) for the filing of a lawsuit against the City of Riviera Beach in an attempt to stop the referendum from going on the ballot. How many tens of thousands of dollars will be wasted on this nonsense? The Council could care less about its fiduciary duty to be guardians of the hard earned tax dollars that makes up the City's budget. Remember this is the same Council that spent over $300,000 to run me, my floating home, along with what marina director and current mayoral candidate George "Crabass" Carter ranted and lied was my violent dog (Lady is a lovable and playful 10 lb dachshund) out of the City marina.

Our citizens will win in this fight of good versus evil. We cannot be stopped by any slick games of our City government or the "funky fact" color flyers of Rybovich.

This most noble of movements to save our public marina, to stop the City Council from desecrating the grave of Mr. Charles Newcomb who donated the marina property 100 years ago for recreational purposes only, is one that demands that those who want to make a difference join forces with us now.

As a community we have come together; we will win this war against evil with or without the help of State Attorney Michael McAuliffe, a.k.a. the fearless wonderboy, indicting any corrupt officials prior to the election.

Our time is now! We all need to stay aggressive, to stay the course, to get out the vote and victory will be ours in November! Godspeed my fellow corruption fighters.

 

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The Articles below were written by Publisher, Baron Beatty.