Only in the Keys

[Ratickle]

I don't think that the Divorce Rose' should in any way cost more than the Referee Tears.

Divirce's always cost a lot more than making a Ref cry.....

 

[Ratickle]

New law cuts county funding for DEI, LGBTQ+ events in Florida Keys​

Story by Sarah Perkel, USA TODAY NETWORK

Monroe County funding intended to promote tourism will no longer be available to LGBTQ+ events in the Keys.

The change comes after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law on April 22 that “prohibits counties from funding, promoting, or taking official action related to DEI efforts,” and specifically blocks the county from “promoting or providing preferential treatment or special benefits” to a person or group based on their race, sex, ethnicity, gender identity or sexual orientation, according to a May 5 press release.

Monroe County and the Tourist Development Council — intended to manage the county’s tourism marketing efforts — are now “mandated to review event grant applications and funding allocations” to comply with the new state law.

Key West Pride will receive funding this year but not the next, given the effective date of the law is January 1, 2027. It's one of several events affected.

“The legislation also establishes enforcement provisions, including potential legal action by residents against counties that violate the law, and penalties for elected officials, including removal from office for misfeasance,” reads the release. “Monroe County emphasizes that these changes are not discretionary and are required to comply with state law.”

Rob Dougherty, executive director of the Key West Business Guild — a non-profit group dedicated to promoting LGBTQ+ tourism in Key West — said the change will result in a loss of tens of thousands of dollars in event funding. The guild operates the Gay Key West Visitor Center and helps organize Key West Pride.

“Off the top of my head, we’re going to lose $75,000 for Pride, $39,500 for Womenfest and $25,000 for Tropical Heat,” Dougherty said. The TDC also provided $58,000 per year to help fund the Gay Key West Visitors Center, he added.

Entire Article: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/othe...in-florida-keys/ar-AA23cPcO?ocid=BingNewsSerp

 

[fund razor]

Wait, does this mean they will cut funding for Bobcat's softball league?

 

[fund razor]

The joke is that for some reason, the softball players on Bobcat's team were calling me one year like 10-15 years ago.

A fabulous bunch of folks.

 

[fund razor]

Bobcat's not gay.
He's just photography-curious.

 

[Bobcat]

My Mom asked Me " You live in KW...Never Married....It's OK if You're gay.....I told Her ..."I'm not gay....I'm a Loser"

I think that hurt Her...

 

[fund razor]

There are jokes left to make here, but it's not the same without me sitting there grinning at you within your punching range so I'm just gonna stop.

 

[Bobcat]

1946 – Louis Taylor and his pony Napoleon were struck by an automobile as they rode down North Roosevelt Boulevard in Key West. Upon seeing headlights approaching, Taylor guided his steed close to the curb, but the car struck them anyway. Taylor was thrown 50 feet and his knee damaged; Napoleon was killed.
1956 – Captain Tommy Lones of the charter boat Gulf Stream caught a 2,300-pound great white shark while fishing in 110 feet of water off the Western Dry Rocks.

 

[Bobcat]

According to the Key West Police Department, the incident happened on Saturday in and around the Key West Bight Marina.
A KWPD report states that John Mack, 38, of La Grange, Illinois, had been drinking at Dantes Key West Pool Bar Restaurant, located at 955 Caroline St., and took the patrol car from an officer working an off-duty detail there.
Police said surveillance video from just before 6:20 p.m. showed Mack walking out of the pool bar with two friends and standing a couple of feet away from the patrol vehicle, then opening the door and getting inside. Authorities said he put the car in drive, almost hitting two of the other men.
The report states a security guard got the officers attention and other KWPD officers responded to the bar as Mack drove the cruiser around the marina parking lot.
Authorities said they later found Mack outside of the nearby Boat House Bar Grill. Police said he claimed he had had three to six Corona beers.
Police said he would fail a field sobriety test and sustained cuts from a fence after resisting arrest. They said he also refused a breathalyzer test.
On top of it all, police said Mack shouldnt have been driving any vehicle, much less a police cruiser. They said he only had an Illinois identification card, not a valid drivers license.
Officers arrested Mack on charges of DUI, burglary, grand theft, grand theft of law enforcement equipment, reckless driving, refusal to submit to DUI testing and resisting arrest without violence.
He no longer appeared in the active Florida Keys jail roster as of Tuesday.
#local10 #crimewatchmiami

 

[fund razor]

They leave Illinois following the Legend of the Bobcat.

Speaking of Bobcats, hey Bobcat... you doing the road trip this year?

 

[Bobcat]

I never know until the last minute.......

 

[fund razor]

Illinois guys. The Blues Brothers were the same way.

 

[sonicss31]

AI generated but cool.

 

[Bobcat]

1926 – A runaway Ford touring car commandeered by a two-year-old caused much excitement as it sped down Key West’s Simonton Street. The child had been left alone in the vehicle and began playing with controls causing it to engage. It stopped only when it crashed into a barbershop at the corner Division Street. The child lost two teeth.

 

[fund razor]

It's ok. They were baby teeth. He was only Little Spinks until around 6.

 

[Bobcat]

1923 – A whale shark estimated at 45,000 pounds was brought to Key West from Long Key where it had been captured. The New York Aquarium removed the hide for mounting.
1926 – After receiving a tip about an illegal liquor drop, the Coast Guard intercepted a rum-running vessel with 200 packages of booze at the entrance to Boca Chica Channel. Shots were fired to stop the vessel, and two Key West men were arrested. One later jumped overboard and escaped, but it was expected he would be quickly found.

 

[Bobcat]

MCSO - Florida Keys ·
Follow​

June 13 at 10:14 AM ·


A 23-year-old Miami Gardens, Florida man just released from jail on June 12, 2026, for fleeing on U.S. 1 promptly stole a vehicle in the Plantation Key Courthouse parking lot and fled from law enforcement again before being arrested a second time in less than a week.
The Sheriff’s Office charged Jefry Julian Chaucanes Vasquez with burglary of an unoccupied vehicle and theft, while the Florida Highway Patrol charged Chaucanes Vasquez with a litany of crimes linked to the vehicle theft and his subsequent fleeing on U.S. 1.
The incident on Friday began at approximately 5 p.m. when the Sheriff’s Office was notified that a Ford SUV stopped for reckless driving fled from the FHP near Mile Marker 83. The FHP was the primary agency in the incident while the Sheriff’s Office assisted. The Ford was stopped near Mile Marker 61 and the driver, Chaucanes Vasquez, was taken into custody and then to jail.
Chaucanes Vasquez burglarized another vehicle and stole an iPhone charger before stealing the Ford. The Sheriff’s Office charges stem from that matter.
Chaucanes Vasquez had just been released from jail stemming from a June 9, 2026, arrest in which he fled from the Sheriff’s Office on U.S. 1 while reaching speeds of 125 mph. The Sheriff’s Office charged him with DUI, fleeing and eluding, possession of a controlled substance without a prescription, reckless driving, and dangerous/excessive speeding in the June 9, 2026, incident.
There were no reported serious injuries in either inciden

 

[Bobcat]

• Age: 23 Gender: M Race: W
• Address: MIAMI GARDENS, FL
• Occupation: Unknown
• Arrest Location: 88770 OVERSEAS HWY, PLANTATION KEY
• Incident #:MCSO26CAD085929   -   Offense #: MCSO26OFF003924
• Charges:
  • 1 Felony Count(s) of 810.02.4b BURGL
  • 1 Misdemeanor Count(s) of 812.014.3a LARC
  • 1 Felony Count(s) of 316.1935.3a FLEE/ELUDE POLICE
  • 1 Misdemeanor Count(s) of 316.192.1a MOVING TRAFFIC VIOL
  • 1 Misdemeanor Count(s) of 843.02 RESIST OFFICER
  • 1 Misdemeanor Count(s) of 316.1922.1a MOVING TRAFFIC VIOLATION
  • 1 Felony Count(s) of 812.014.2c6 VEH THEFT
• Arraignment: Unknown at this time

 

[Bobcat]

1967 – Baseball great Ted Williams won the five-day Islamorada Gold Cup Tarpon Tournament and was named grand champion.

 

[fund razor]

When I was in the first or second grade, we saw a movie about Ted Williams. I assumed he was dead.
He didn't die until 2002.