The data points represent the GPS locations of lobster "casitas" or artificial habitat sites within the denoted preserves - virtually all being within various of the Florida Key Wildlife Sanctuaries, and all relevant sites falling within the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. These lobster casitas are illegal structures constructed on the bottom by fishermen, out of sight of law enforcement: just like political campaign contributions that entrap the votes and loyalties of powerful state politicians.
All were illegally deployed and were utilized to illegally harvest spiny lobster both prior to and during the lobstering season in Monroe County over the course of several years. The two data sets derive from two criminal prosecutions: Operation Freezer Burn, which is concluded with the exception of one of the 6 defendants currently appealing his conviction; and Operation Frost Bite, which involves 2 individuals who pled guilty and were to be sentenced in Key West today. (Judge King, for unstated reasons, continued a number of his Key West calendar matters and sentencing is being reset to a future date.) Collectively these 2 groups, alone, were actively working in excess of 1,300 such installations.
One question: what took law enforcement so long to bring a case against the fishermen illegally harvesting lobster and what took the FBI and DOJ so long to swoop down on the state capitol? Under then Governor Jeb Bush, hundreds of millions of state pension funds were invested with enthusiasm and lost with Lehman Brothers, the failed investment bank that immediately employed Bush as a consultant as soon as he left office, without question. So the question is equally asked of Florida voters, especially the Bible-thumping, flag waving sort given to ask such questions as, "What would Jesus do?" The impostors are running Tallahassee with fake sound bites and nasty PAC's, 527 committees, and money agendas. In Biblical times, the fishermen held an exalted place and the money-changers were chased from the temple. Why do voters embrace the reverse, today, in an unmoveable status quo in Tallahassee and county commissions and municipal governments throughout the state?
It is all scrambled in Florida and it is up to voters to sort out an end to this culture of political corruption.
7 comments:
Editorial comment: IMO the analogy is too strained here. No need to tie them together; man's propensity for gaming the system is universal, as is the lag between the game and its discovery.
These are the casita locations from GPS units of just a few unscrupulous fellows that like to dive lobster. Imagine how many there really are in Keys waters. And these along with many thousands of ghost lobster traps and degraded, ruined marine habitat probably account for the sharp decline in the lobster harvest over the last 2 decades. Maybe it's time for Keys commercial fishermen to realize that govt managers aren't really their friends and their salvation. And then they could stop having to haul those coolers of lobster, crab claws, snapper, and grouper to Tallahassee every year.
On a related point, the willing disregard of sensible fishing limits represents further decline in our ability to self-regulate and observe basic laws of social contract.
It's disgusting to go out on South Biscayne Bay and dutifully throw back undersized snook and snapper and see these idiots taking juveniles into their live well so they can fry up a four inch fish.
You do see this in fishing regions around the country also but it just seems way worse here.
G-eye
I am generally a fan of your writing, but I have to agree with sparky on this one. The analogy here is a little thin.
When is eyeonmiami going to start covering the latest in Broward? It's not going to take very long before the connection is made to the S FL real estate market. JMHO
You ask when is eyeonmiami going to start covering the latest in Broward? I guess when YOU start eyeonbroward.
That's funny. . . I needed a laugh. Yeh, your hands a full with Dade!
Speaking of corruption, anyone hear that Regalado, voted in because he opposed special treatment for big developments, now wants to give a big project special treatment by delaying Miami 21 because Publix doesn't want to pay for better design that Miami 21 would force them to create for a proposed store in Little Havana? Just when Miami 21 would benefit a neighborhood, Regalado wants to do a favor for a multi-billion-dollar corporation.
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