October 19, 2026
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Deep Something

The site for ranting and reporting by John Masters

Author: B. John

Election Society Education Gay Issues Hate Groups Racism Featured Politics 

When the Culture War Comes for the School Board

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This entry is in the series Education
This entry is in the series 2026 Elections

The 1776 Project PAC says it is deeply concerned about reading scores. Fair enough. It also wants school-board candidates to answer for CRT, DEI, social-emotional learning, gender policy, and whether they will replace “equity-based” curriculum. Apparently phonics now comes with a political questionnaire.

The group has endorsed exactly one Hillsborough County School Board candidate: Brittany Lyssy. It has also reported nearly $72,000 in Hillsborough school-board spending on texting, mail production, and postage. That is a lot of national political money for a race that is supposed to be nonpartisan.

So the obvious question is not whether the 1776 Project cares about schools. It clearly does. The question is what kind of school board it wants to build here, and what it expects from the only Hillsborough candidate it chose to support.

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General 

Two Candidates, Two Very Different Ways of Paying In House District 64

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This entry is in the series 2026 Elections

How much does it cost to send someone to Tallahassee? And more importantly, who’s picking up the tab? Campaign finance reports may not be exciting, but the numbers in Florida House District 64 reveal a clear story. One candidate has raised most of his money from individual donors, while the other has received most of his support from political committees and Republican Party groups. The difference is striking.

Democrat Luis Salazar has raised over $64,000 from individuals, with hundreds of small donations. Republican Dan Weldon has raised about $12,000 from individual donors. At the same time, Republican Party organizations have given Weldon about $106,500 in cash and campaign services, such as staff, polling, research, and consulting. That’s about 62% of his total reported campaign resources. It seems Tallahassee provides more than just legislative advice.

It’s no surprise that political parties back their candidates. But how much support they give, compared to money from regular people, is worth a closer look. We’ve reviewed both candidates’ campaign finance reports, including where their money comes from and who pays for professional help. The results raise an important question for voters: Who is paying to put your next state representative in office?

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Congress Legislature Featured Politics 

Mike Beltran’s Voting Record Deserves a Closer Look

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This entry is in the series 2026 Elections

Mike Beltran wants to represent Hillsborough County in Congress. Before voters send him to Washington, they may want to look more closely at what he did during his six years in Tallahassee. From local zoning and tenant protections to public schools and nursing homes, Beltran often voted for laws that changed what local communities could decide for themselves.

He supported laws that lowered minimum nursing-home staffing requirements, expanded taxpayer-funded private-school vouchers, and required school districts to share more of their local construction funds with charter schools. He also backed limits on what teachers could teach about race and discrimination, as well as Florida’s abortion restrictions. It seems Tallahassee believed it knew what was best for almost everyone.

Meanwhile, Congresswoman Kathy Castor helped secure nearly $1.47 billion in federal grants for the Tampa Bay region, along with more funding for local infrastructure, housing, and community projects. Beltran’s record shows a different set of priorities. If he believed Tallahassee should have so much control over Hillsborough County, it raises questions about what he might do in Washington.

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Humor Deep Thoughts Entertainment Featured Fun Stuff 

Sixty-Seven and Still Under Warranty–I Hope.

B. John 89 Views 2 Comments , , , , ,

I’ve reached that interesting stage of life where I can spend 45 minutes lifting weights at the YMCA, walk a couple of miles, and then need a nap because staying young is exhausting. At 67, I’m probably in the best shape I’ve been in for decades, although my knees seem determined to dispute that claim.

Between Medicare, church committees, Florida politics, and my ongoing attempts to become a better Stoic, there’s certainly no shortage of things to keep me occupied. I’ve even gone back to work, which suggests either an admirable enthusiasm for life or a serious misunderstanding of what retirement is supposed to mean. And somehow, amid all that activity, I’ve discovered something I didn’t quite expect.

Getting older has given me a greater appreciation for ordinary days, good friends, meaningful work, and the people who make life worth living. I’ve had my share of difficult times, and I suspect there are more ahead. But at 67, I’m finding that the view from this particular stage of life is pretty darn good. Even if I occasionally forget why I walked into the kitchen.

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Featured Politics Society Education Gay Issues Crack Pots County Commission 

Stacy Hahn Helped Bring Tallahassee’s Culture War Into Hillsborough Schools

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This entry is in the series 2026 Elections

Stacy Hahn was not just caught up in Florida’s education culture war. She chose a side again and again. She stood with Gov. Ron DeSantis as he called book bans a “hoax,” voted to remove books even when review committees recommended keeping them, and was the only one to vote against a School Board proclamation for Pride Month.

Her record also shows the problem with the phrase “parental rights.” Parents could already limit what their own children checked out. Hahn supported something else: letting some parents decide what all families’ children could read. It seems parental rights only matter until a parent disagrees with Stacy Hahn.

This is personal for me. When I was growing up gay, I had no books to help me understand my feelings or to show me I was not alone. Somewhere in Hillsborough County, a child needs that same reassurance now. Censorship does not feel any softer to children just because it comes from someone with a doctorate and a pleasant smile.

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Politics Election Legislature Technology Featured Places Tampa 

Following the Money Behind Josie Tomkow

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This entry is in the series 2026 Elections

Campaign finance is so complicated that most voters give up before they get to the interesting part. That may be part of the point. Josie Tomkow has a regular campaign account and two political committees, with millions of dollars coming from business groups, health care interests, developers, insurers, political committees, and party organizations—often with names that don’t reveal who is really behind them.

Insurance stands out. About $92,500 came from companies, organizations, and people involved in property, auto, and casualty insurance. That’s notable on its own, but it’s even more interesting since Tomkow is now running as a candidate who wants to reform insurance, even though her voting record shows support for laws that reduced legal protections for policyholders. Her version of insurance reform has, at times, looked suspiciously like an aid package for the insurance industry.

There’s also at least $94,500 from donors directly connected to data centers, cloud computing, energy, or the infrastructure behind them. Add in big business and development money, plus $50,000 from Publix, and the donor list gets even more interesting. Maybe Publix just expects Tomkow to buy a lot of groceries. The rest of us might want to keep an eye on where the money goes.

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Business Economy Featured Politics County Commission 

Who Is Building Stacy Hahn’s Campaign?

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This entry is in the series 2026 Elections

Campaign finance reports rarely contain a smoking gun. Mostly, they contain checks—and Stacy Hahn’s reports include many from industries most affected by County Commission decisions. At least $63,850, or about 38% of her total contributions, came from construction, development, real estate, engineering, and architecture interests.

There is also the Tampa Bay Rays’ new ownership group. After Commissioner Donna Cameron Cepeda questioned public funding for a new stadium, more than $40,000 was donated by Rays owners and related companies to Hahn, her Republican primary opponent. It seems all those builders and developers decided on their own that Hillsborough County really needed Hahn on the Commission. Sometimes, civic enthusiasm spreads quickly.

Legal contributions do not prove corruption. But campaign money is not charity, either. With roads crowded, schools full, and neighborhoods often asked to make way for new projects, voters should ask a simple question: Can Hillsborough County afford more development-at-any-cost government, and who is paying for it?

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Family Featured Friends Fun Stuff Stoicism Deep Thoughts 

All the Seasons at Once

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This entry is in the series Journey Through Stoicism

A year and a half ago, a simple text from my pastor, Rev. Magrey deVega, introduced me to two Latin words I’d never heard before: memento mori. Remember that you must die. That short exchange led me to explore Stoicism, mostly out of intellectual curiosity. I had no idea how important those ancient ideas would become when life started throwing surprises my way.

This past Sunday, Magrey preached on Ecclesiastes and once again mentioned the Stoics. It seems he still has more homework for me. His sermon explored an interesting idea about life’s changing seasons. We usually think of those seasons as coming one after another, but what if several show up at the same time?

In the last eighteen months, I’ve grieved while rebuilding my professional life, found moments of happiness amid uncertainty, and discovered how much steadiness can come from ordinary daily routines. Magrey’s interpretation of Ecclesiastes gave biblical words to what I’d been learning through Stoicism. It also reminded me that many religious and philosophical traditions reach similar insights about change, acceptance, and our limited time.

In All the Seasons at Once, I look back at how a simple curiosity became something deeply personal, and how Ecclesiastes added a new layer to that journey. It’s a reflection on finding hope in uncertain times, learning to value ordinary days, and realizing that grief and happiness can sometimes happen together.

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Congress Featured Politics 

Gus Bilirakis: Who Benefits from His Votes?

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This entry is in the series 2026 Elections

After nearly 20 years in Congress, Gus Bilirakis has had plenty of opportunities to demonstrate whose interests he represents. Now, with Florida’s newly drawn Congressional District 12 stretching across parts of Hillsborough and Pasco counties, it’s worth looking at his record. For residents worried about health care, household expenses, and the rising cost of living, some of his votes raise uncomfortable questions.

Bilirakis supported legislation that the Congressional Budget Office projects will leave millions more Americans uninsured and reduce federal food assistance. He opposed bipartisan infrastructure funding and pandemic relief that provided direct help to families and communities. Apparently, there’s plenty of room in Washington to cut taxes, but far less enthusiasm for helping people pay their medical bills.

Then there’s the campaign money. Nearly 56% of Bilirakis’s direct campaign contributions come from political committees, including PACs associated with pharmaceutical manufacturers, health insurers, utilities, and telecommunications companies. Many of those industries have business before the congressional committee on which he serves. Campaign contributions don’t prove influence, of course. But after two decades in Washington, voters have every reason to ask a simple question: Who is Gus Bilirakis working for?

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Politics Election Legislature Religion Society Education Right Wingnuts Crack Pots Deep Thoughts Hate Groups Featured 

The Books They Don’t Want Our Children to Read

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This entry is in the series 2026 Elections
This entry is in the series Hate Groups
This entry is in the series Deep Questions
This entry is in the series Florida Legislature

Growing up, I didn’t have books that helped me understand who I was. People rarely talked openly about being gay,

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Infographic of Rep. Castor votes for disaster funding
Featured Media Places Tampa Politics Congress Election 

Kathy Castor Voted Against Hurricane Relief 11 Times? There’s Much More to That Story.

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This entry is in the series 2026 Elections

Kathy Castor voted against hurricane relief 11 times, supposedly blocking $151.43 billion in federal disaster assistance. That’s the accusation circulating in an article from West Orlando News, courtesy of the National Republican Congressional Committee. Eleven votes. More than $151 billion. You can almost hear the ominous music playing behind the next Republican campaign commercial.

There’s just one problem. When you examine the actual congressional records, the story begins to fall apart. The article counts votes against massive spending bills covering everything from FEMA to immigration enforcement, along with a procedural vote that had little to do with disaster relief itself. Apparently, voting against a bill containing dozens of provisions means you oppose every dollar in it. Congressional voting records are wonderfully useful things, particularly when you select only the votes that support your accusation.

Here’s what the article conveniently forgot to mention. Castor voted FOR $6.4 billion in FEMA disaster funding in 2011, FOR $15.25 billion in emergency disaster assistance in 2017, and FOR legislation providing $29 billion to FEMA following Hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024. That last bill passed 366–34. Every single vote against it came from a Republican. Funny how that little detail escaped the article’s attention.

The NRCC is entitled to campaign against Kathy Castor. Voters are entitled to know what Congress actually did. We’ve examined the votes, the bills, and the facts the original article left out. Before accepting the claim that Castor repeatedly voted against hurricane relief, read the full article. The congressional record tells a much different story, and the facts are considerably less flattering to the people spreading this accusation.

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