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Corporate Welfare in Overalls: The Rural Shell Game of Florida Amendment 2
The television commercials for Florida Amendment 2 are almost entirely self-written. All you have to do is play the acoustic guitar, show the video of a dusty tractor, and then tell the heartwarming tale of a fourth-generation family farmer who is struggling. Although the story is touching, the sentimental presentation covers up a costly performance by the corporation.
Florida businesses currently have a standard exemption of $25,000 for tangible personal property, which covers a significant portion of the equipment needed by genuine small-scale growers. The main benefit of Amendment 2, however, goes to industrial agribusiness syndicates, huge commercial packing houses, and luxury agritourism event venues that operate fleets of machinery costing six figures.
When Tallahassee eliminates equipment taxes on commercial agricultural land, those multi-ton transport trucks do not stop chewing up county roads. The bill simply shifts. County commissions are left to either gut local services or force residential homeowners to make up the difference. Read the full breakdown of how Amendment 2 puts corporate welfare in overalls and leaves local taxpayers holding the tab.
Politics
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Josie Tomkow, Insurance Reform, and a Trail Worth Following
Florida homeowners have heard “insurance reform” so often that the phrase almost deserves its own ZIP code. But behind that label were years of very real changes to what happens when an insurance company denies or underpays a claim and a homeowner has to fight back.
Josie Tomkow voted yes, again and again, as Florida changed the rules around lawsuits, attorney fees, assignment-of-benefits claims, and insurer liability. Those laws may sound technical, but their effect can be painfully simple: even when policyholders have a valid dispute, taking an insurer to court can now carry more financial risk.
Then there is the campaign money. Tomkow’s contribution records show recurring support from insurers, insurance-industry organizations, civil-justice reform groups, and people tied directly to Florida’s insurance-policy world, including former Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier. This cycle alone, at least $2,500 has come from three interests closely connected to this issue.
No, campaign contributions do not come with thank-you notes for specific votes. But voters are entitled to look at the money, look at the voting record, and decide for themselves whether the two tell a story worth following.
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What Is the Money For?
A single mother stops at a traffic light and hands five dollars to a homeless person. Jeff Bezos pledges $10 billion to fight climate change. Bezos will accomplish far more with his gift. Yet the mother may have given up something she needed.
That distinction sits at the heart of my latest essay. The world’s richest people possess more money than they could spend across several lifetimes. Their fortunes keep growing while the planet warms, public institutions weaken, and millions struggle to survive. Their philanthropy does useful work, though it rarely costs them any comfort or power.
So what is all the remaining money for? The answer takes us through the Gilded Age, the widow’s offering, other religious traditions, private bunkers, life extension, and the strange belief that enough wealth can free someone from the fate shared by every human being.
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LGBT Issues
Here we discuss the politics of the LGBT movement, stories of events in the community, and anything else related to the LGBT community.
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What We Owe the Worker
People often see Labor Day as just the end of summer, but its history asks us to remember something more. The day began with workers fighting for safer workplaces, better pay, reasonable hours, and the right to organize. Those fights were never only about economics. They were about dignity.
The Stoics didn’t write about labor rights as we know them, but they believed strongly in justice, cooperation, and the common good. Marcus Aurelius reminded himself that people are meant to work together, and that harm to the community eventually harms everyone. This idea matters now, when many workers still have little control over their pay, safety, schedules, or ability to organize.
This Labor Day, let’s consider what Stoicism can still teach us about work, the value of workers, and what we owe each other in a society that says it honors labor.
Trump Wants the Midterms to Be About Trump
Donald Trump has looked at a 34 percent approval rating and reached a comforting conclusion: Americans have not seen enough Donald Trump. His super PAC is preparing midterm ads built around his record, his speeches, and clips of Trump praising Trump. Apparently, the nation has suffered from a shortage.
The ads will tout stock-market highs, factory output, falling overdose deaths, and other signs of the “Golden Age.” Families will still see grocery bills that keep climbing, gasoline near $4.09 a gallon, and a job market that lost ground in July. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has yet to buy anyone’s groceries.
Trump wants voters to treat the midterms as though his name appears on every ballot. They should accept the invitation. Then they should ask every Republican incumbent whether Trump’s record belongs to them too, which votes lowered costs back home, and why the greatest economy in history remains so difficult for most people to find.
When Justice Outruns Wisdom
“I told her I was ready to give up. I wasn’t. I was frustrated.”
What began as a communication bottleneck in a church office became a lesson in leadership. When drafts moved without review and a public link went live incorrectly, urgency surged. The concern was legitimate. The tone was not. Justice rose quickly. Wisdom lagged behind. Where has urgency outrun wisdom in your week?
In this new essay, I contemplate what the Stoics understood about anger, discipline, and leadership—and why the same dynamic I saw in myself is evident at the highest levels of national leadership. Anger is a signal. It is not a strategy. Wisdom must organize justice, or institutions begin to fray.
Read: When Justice Outruns Wisdom.
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