John Masters, Author at Deep Something

When Elected Officials Skip the Phone Call and Go Straight to the Pitchfork

February 5, 2026February 5, 2026 B. John 42 Views 0 Comments Civic Engagement, Florida Politics, Student walkout, education policy, Hillsborough County, DeSantis administration, ICE protest, fact-checking, school governance

Apparently, in Florida politics, the due-diligence phase has been replaced by vibes, outrage, and a quick dash to social media. Two Hillsborough County Republican legislators worked themselves into a moral panic over students protesting ICE at a local high school — and then skipped the most basic step of governance: checking the facts. Instead of making a phone call, they fired off a letter demanding an investigation and the permanent revocation of a principal’s educator license. Because when you hear something alarming, why verify it when you can threaten someone’s career instead?

Here’s the inconvenient truth they missed: the protest happened after instructional time. Not during class. Not instead of math or English. After. That small detail didn’t stop Florida’s education commissioner — a hand-picked appointee of the governor — from piling on with a scolding warning about “diverting students from instruction.” Strong language, zero curiosity. What followed wasn’t leadership or oversight. It was performative outrage, public intimidation, and a clear message to educators and students alike: civic engagement is welcome only when it stays quiet, invisible, and politically convenient.

Politics Religion Society

The Universal Liturgy: Civic Duty as the Fruit of Faith

February 5, 2026 B. John 54 Views 0 Comments Wesleyan theology, faith and democracy, justice and compassion, public square, Civic Engagement, social holiness, moral responsibility

What if voting, showing up at a council meeting, or speaking up for a neighbor weren’t just civic responsibilities, but acts of faith? Many of us treat spirituality as a private matter, safely contained within the walls of a sanctuary. But across religious traditions, the message is consistent: faith that never enters the public square is incomplete.

From John Wesley’s insistence on social holiness, to the prophets’ demand for justice, to Eastern teachings on interconnectedness, belief is proven through action. Civic life is where compassion becomes concrete, and values are tested. Read the full essay to explore why civic engagement may be the most honest expression of faith we have right now.

Featured Places Tampa Politics Election Legislature

The Ideological Tourist: Why Josie Tomkow is the Wrong Prescription for Tampa

February 4, 2026February 5, 2026 B. John 98 Views 0 Comments Carpetbagging, Health Committee, Public Health, Ideological Tourist, Campaign of Terror, Tampa Bay, Florida Politics, Senate District 14, Josie Tomkow

This entry is part 7 of 7 in the series 2026 Elections

Josie Tomkow is a career politician currently engaged in an audacious act of “ideological tourism.” Having spent years in rural Polk County, she is now attempting to transplant her record of institutionalized cruelty into the heart of South Tampa and Downtown. As the Chair of the House Health and Human Services Committee, she hasn’t just been a witness to the state’s “campaign of terror” against marginalized communities—she has been its gatekeeper. From overseeing draconian abortion bans to weaponizing healthcare against the LGBTQ+ community, Tomkow has treated the law as a tool for “othering” rather than a safeguard for the public.

For a district that serves as the engine of Florida’s medical and research sector, Tomkow’s record is a fundamental mismatch. While Tampa’s doctors and researchers rely on scientific consensus, Tomkow has been the primary legislative enabler for a reckless anti-science agenda that threatens our schools and retirees. She is a “carpetbagger” who views our community as a political fallback, yet she brings with her a “patrimonial” system that prioritizes extremist loyalty over the actual health of our citizens. It is time to tell this opportunist that Tampa’s values—and our healthcare—are not for sale.

Entertainment Featured Humor

Nothing Says “This Season of Life” Like a Cremation Luncheon Invite

February 4, 2026 B. John 84 Views 0 Comments Reflection, mortality, aging, end of life planning, grief and remembrance, humor in aging, caregiving

Yesterday’s mail brought me a milestone. Not a birthday card or a Medicare handbook, but a glossy luncheon invitation from the National Cremation Society. Apparently, once Medicare enters your life, the end-of-life marketing ecosystem wakes up and decides it’s time to talk.

The flyer promised “Personalized Affordable Options” and a “Professional Service Guarantee”—phrases that raise more questions than they answer. Since I grew up in the funeral business, I had to laugh. But underneath the humor is something real. Planning for death isn’t really about logistics; it’s about caring for the people who are left behind.

This essay starts with jokes, but it ends with what matters most: grief, love, and why the way we leave matters more to the living than to the dead.

Society Methodism Stoicism Featured Places Tampa Religion

Civic Duty as Lived Responsibility

February 1, 2026 B. John 108 Views 0 Comments Stoicism, faith in action, justice, civic duty, social responsibility, community care, volunteerism, Wesleyan theology

This entry is part 57 of 57 in the series Journey Through Stoicism

Where will someone sleep in your city tonight? Civic duty rarely announces itself. It does not arrive as a moment of clarity or a flood of inspiration. More often, it looks like routine. Mats laid out across a facility space. Meals delivered and set out. Volunteers arriving in shifts through the night so others can sleep indoors when the temperature drops.

We talk about civic duty as an idea, but it is better understood as a practice. It begins when concern becomes action. Not because the work feels noble, but because shared life demands it. When a community faces need, and some people have the capacity to respond, responsibility follows. Not as heroism. As participation.

This essay reflects on civic duty as lived responsibility. Drawing on Stoic philosophy, Wesleyan theology, and a wider moral consensus across traditions, it asks what it really means to show up for others when the work is repetitive, incomplete, and often unseen.

Featured Politics Election

The Constitutional Squatter: Is Jay Collins Even Eligible to Lead?

January 15, 2026January 15, 2026 B. John 359 Views 0 Comments Senate District 14, Tampa Politics, Residency Requirements, Operation BBQ Relief, Florida Constitution, Florida Fighters PAC, Carpetbagging, Dark Money, Patrimonialism

This entry is part 6 of 7 in the series 2026 Elections

For months, we’ve watched Tallahassee treat Senate District 14 like a “GOP Arrivals Lounge”—a place where political tourists drop a carpetbag just long enough to get their voter registration stamped.

Our latest investigation into Jay Collins pulls back the curtain on a system where residency is a shell game and public service is a family business.

Featured Places Tampa Politics Election Legislature Economy

Steel-Toed Integrity

January 10, 2026February 4, 2026 B. John 264 Views 0 Comments IBEW, Tampa Politics, Veteran, Working Families, Senate District 14, Brian Nathan, Steel-Toed Integrity

This entry is part 5 of 7 in the series 2026 Elections

When something breaks in the real world, you don’t call a politician to give a speech; you call someone with a toolbox to fix it. That is the leadership Brian Nathan offers Senate District 14. A Navy veteran and IBEW electrician who chose Tampa as his home during the Great Recession, Brian brings a craftsman’s perspective to a political system that is deeply broken.

Read about Brian’s vision for “steel-toed integrity”—a philosophy born on the job site that prioritizes practical solutions for working families over political theater. He is running to fight for affordable housing, good-paying local jobs, and quality education.

Featured Politics Legislature

The Price of Loyalty

January 9, 2026 B. John 190 Views 0 Comments South Tampa, Florida Politics, Senate District 14, Josie Tomkow, Brian Nathan, Special Election, Property Insurance, Tort Reform, Insurance Crisis

This entry is part 4 of 7 in the series 2026 Elections

While South Tampa homeowners struggle with skyrocketing premiums, Josie Tomkow voted for insurance bailouts that stripped away consumer rights without guaranteeing a single cent in rate reductions. In this special election, we have a choice between an IBEW electrician who pays his own bills and a career politician funded by the insurance lobby.

Economy Featured Places Tampa Politics Legislature

The High Price of “Nice”: What Karen Gonzalez Pittman is Actually Costing South Tampa

January 7, 2026January 7, 2026 B. John 411 Views 0 Comments South Tampa Politics, Florida Property Insurance, Florida Legislature, District 65, Cost of Living, Culture Wars, Fiscal Responsibility, Florida GOP, Karen Gonzalez Pittman

This entry is part 3 of 7 in the series 2026 Elections

Is your State Rep costing you money?

On paper, Representative Karen Gonzalez Pittman fits South Tampa perfectly. She’s polished, presentable, and active in the community. If you met her at a Palma Ceia mixer, you’d think, “Now, there’s a reasonable person.” But for the wealthy and aspirational residents of District 65, voting for Pittman has become an expensive illusion. You think you’re voting for stability, but you’re actually paying a premium for a representative who consistently prioritizes Tallahassee’s culture war performance art over your bank account.

The most glaring receipt is your property insurance bill. For years, the Republican supermajority, of which Pittman is a loyal member, has promised that if we protected insurance companies from lawsuits, rates would trickle down. Pittman voted for every one of those protections. Yet, while your premiums have doubled, she and her colleagues have spent the legislative session banning books and policing bathrooms rather than fixing the financial crisis that is actually threatening our property values.

There’s a high cost to the “anti-woke” agenda, and South Tampa homeowners are paying it. This is a clear example of Patrimonialism: the state is run for insiders, while regular people get worse service and pay more. It’s time to see what her “nice” image is really costing you.

Person standing in audience with a microphone

Religion Society Methodism Stoicism Featured Politics

Justice as Responsibility: A Companion Examination

January 7, 2026 B. John 147 Views 1 Comment faith and ethics, justice as practice, Stoic philosophy, justice, Christian ethics, Social Justice, moral responsibility, civic virtue, moral coherence

This entry is part 56 of 57 in the series Journey Through Stoicism

This entry is part 5 of 5 in the series The Stoic Virtues

Justice is one of the most frequently used moral words in public life, and one of the least examined. It appears in politics, religion, social movements, and law. Because it is so familiar, we often assume we mean the same thing when we use it. We usually do not.

Serious moral traditions have resisted reducing justice to feeling or slogan. Stoic philosophy, Christian ethics, and modern research all return to a similar conclusion: Justice is not primarily about emotion or ideology. It is about responsibility. Responsibility to others, to the common good, and to living in a way that keeps belief and behavior aligned.

Seen this way, justice is not a moment or a performance. It is discipline. A steady practice carried out over time. It asks for clarity without cruelty, conviction without self-righteousness, and persistence without spectacle. Justice endures not because it is loud, but because it is rooted.

Culture Featured Politics Religion Society Stoicism

Justice as a Way of Life

January 6, 2026January 7, 2026 B. John 188 Views 1 Comment justice, Stoic Virtues, Social Justice, Christian ethics, civic responsibility, faith in action, everyday justice, moral courage

This entry is part 4 of 5 in the series The Stoic Virtues

This entry is part 55 of 57 in the series Journey Through Stoicism

Justice is a word we hear all the time, but people often understand it differently. It shows up in courtrooms, sermons, protest signs, and political speeches. Before it became a slogan, justice was seen as a way to live. Not just a stance or an opinion, but a mode of living.

For me, justice starts with faith. The prophet Micah says it simply: Do justice. Love mercy. Walk humbly with God. This command is not abstract. Justice is not something to admire from afar. It is something you do, often quietly, sometimes without certainty, and sometimes at a real cost.

I have seen justice take shape in public gatherings and protest marches, but I have also seen it in smaller, steadier acts. Helping someone get a meal. Standing up for a person who cannot speak for themselves. Showing up again when the work seems slow and unfinished. Justice does not always announce itself. Most often, it looks like ordinary people refusing to look away.

← Previous