Installing Hurricane Shutters

The Miami Herald posted a small graphic, titled Hurricane Shutters, which is a small computer generated how-to guide for the installment of hurricane shutters.

It was easy to understand and gave easy to follow step-by-step instruction on how to properly install a hurricane shutter.

The only thing I thought was odd with this graphic, was the timing.  This type of graphic I would expect to see during the start of the hurricane season, and not towards the end of the season.

Deadly Journeys for Mexicans

The Miami Herald featured another powerful multimedia slideshow, titled Tough Road North Walking from Mexico to Tucson.

The audio slideshow which has been exported to play as a flash movie, is a combination of narration and striking photographs documenting this sad journey for Mexicans.

I would have liked to share the slide show and embed it in my blog, but since it was from a flash program, it did not come with any sharing capabilities, so I have put in a link for the slideshow on the Herald website.

$15 Billion in Loans for Auto Industry

Facing massive job losses, the White House and congressional Democrats are working to provide about $15 billion in loans to prevent Detroit's weakened auto industry from collapsing.

According to the Miami Herald article, Congress, White House work to Help Auto Industry, the legislation, which was being crafted this weekend, would act as a lifeline to General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC while meeting demands from many skeptical lawmakers that Congress refrain from writing a blank check for the beleaguered industry.

Several officials in both parties said a key breakthrough on the long-stalled bailout came when Pelosi bowed to Bush's demand that the aid come from a fund set aside for the production of environmentally friendlier cars.

Caroline Kennedy Considers Senate Seat

Caroline Kennedy, daughter of America’s most storied political family who for many years fiercely guarded her privacy, is considering whether to pursue the Senate seat expected to be vacated by Hillary Rodham Clinton early next year.

According to the New York Times, in their article Kenedy is Said to Cast her Eye on Senate Seat, Ms. Kennedy called Gov. David A. Paterson on Wednesday to discuss the position, Mr. Paterson confirmed Friday. 

The governor will choose a replacement for Mrs. Clinton upon her expected confirmation as secretary of state next month.

Bill Cunnigham's Fashion Moment

New York Times' Bill Cunningham, once again sets to the streets of New York to hunt down and analyze the latest fashions.

In this style multimedia project, titled On the Street: Riding High, Cunningham analyzes the trend of the winter boot.

Alongside his descriptive narration on some of the history and background of boots, he has inserted his photographs, which are almost candid-like images of pedestrians walking along the streets of New York.

Obama's Plan for the Economy

President-elect Barack Obama committed Saturday to the largest public works building program since the creation of the interstate highway system, as he seeks to put together a plan to resuscitate the reeling economy.

According to the New York Times article, Obama Pledges Massive Public Works Project, Mr. Obama and his team are working with Congressional leaders to fashion a spending package that could invest hundreds of billions of dollars into the economy. 

A large part of that would be infrastructure projects such as building or repairing roads, bridges, schools, sewer systems and other public utilities. 

Democrats hope the new Congress that takes office in early January could pass such a measure in time for Mr. Obama to sign almost instantly after taking office Jan. 20.

First Cuban-American Female City Manager

Two years shy of her retirement, West Miami City Manager Yolanda Aguilar, the first Cuban-American female city manager in the United States, reflects on her 26 years of service and whether she should stay on with the city, or spend her retirement baking cookies with her two granddaughters.

Born in Cuba, Yolanda Aguilar arrived in the United States in 1960 at the age of two. She was raised by both her parents and grandparents in their original West Miami home, in which her mother still resides in today.

Graduating from La Salle High School, Aguilar never attained a college degree, and was married at the young age of eighteen to her high school sweetheart.

“I never regretted my decision and 33 years later I am still happily married,” West Miami City Manager Yolanda Aguilar said. “I have struggled but in the end I am where I needed to be.”

Following the birth of her first child, Armando Jr. Aguilar, she spent the first six months as a stay-at-home mom. When the growing expenses of raising a family became too much, Aguilar set out in search for a job.

“It started off with that I needed a job close to home, since I had a young son that I needed to take care off,” Aguilar said. “So I went to my city, where I applied for a clerical position.”

On January 1, 1982, Aguilar was hired as the Water Department Clerk for the City of West Miami. A year later, following the recommendation of previous City Clerk, Boots Kleiner, the then mayor and city commission appointed Aguilar to hold the position of City Clerk.

“I worked 11 years as the City Clerk of West Miami,” Yolanda said. “It became a job where I realized that public service was rewarding and that you can do so much more for others.”

In 1994, Aguilar was appointed as the new City Manager of West Miami, in a unanimous decision by the then Mayor, Rebecca Sosa, and the City Commission.

“I would like to see more women undertake what she has done and excel as she has,” long time friend and West Miami resident Sarah Menendez said. “She has been very transparent, tight on the budget and never misused any funds.”

In a small city with a total population of 5,587 people, Onboard Informatics and City-data.com calculated that the majority of occupational females in the City of West Miami, a total of eleven percent work as secretaries and administrative assistants. Eight percent actually achieve clerical positions, but almost none achieve government leadership positions.  

However, such positions don’t come without the expected challenges and hurdles public officials need to overcome on an almost daily basis.

In 2006, Yolanda Aguilar was under fire, by both city officials and police officers, for firing Police Chief Eber Afre, after he had suspended Police Capt. Nelson Andreu without documented cause.

“I am paid to be the City’s watchdog,” Aguilar said. “There are things you don’t compromise, and my integrity is nonnegotiable.”  

One of Aguilar’s first real challenges as City Manager was that of a 52-percent budget deficit in the City of west Miami.

“My first real challenge as City Manager, was to recommend measures to bring the city back to financial soundness,” Aguilar said.

The City of West Miami was placed on a Possible Financial Crisis Watch List, following a financial audit.

“In a state of financial crisis, through the collective efforts of then Mayor Rebecca Sosa and the passion and leadership of the city and the legislature, we were able to emerge from a 52-percent budget deficit,” Aguilar said. “It was tough in a small city like ours.”

Eight years later, Aguilar was offered the opportunity to serve as City Clerk for the City of Coral Gables.

“I have the highest respect for her, both personally and professionally,” City of Coral Gables Interim City Manager Maria Alberro Jimenez said. “While I was disappointed that she left Coral Gables to return to ‘her’ West Miami, I recognize her love for that city as well as ours”.

Following a five-month service, Aguilar left the City of Coral Gables, and returned as City Manager to West Miami.

“I thought that the position would be a little bit more professionally challenging, and even though I was welcomed with open arms, I felt that both professionally and personally I had to go back to my city were I could make a difference,” Aguilar said.

Upon her return as City Manager to the City of West Miami, Aguilar together with the city’s leaders, set in motion various projects, including a multipurpose facility for the community, the development along the commercial corridors, a massive drainage improvement job, as well as an official web site for the City of West Miami.  

“The overall economy needs to improve so that we can achieve these goals,” Aguilar said. “The decline in revenue in the last 18 months could take the city back into some sort of financial crisis in the near future, so we need to work in terms of budget revenue.”

The City of West Miami lost over 1-million dollars of revenue within the last 18 months, in part due to the decision of reducing garbage pick-up fees as well as overall cuts in funding from the government.

“My goal is to have a multipurpose facility which will be a venue for the arts and culture to accommodate our city and community, as well as the development along the commercial corridors of our city before I retire,” Aguilar said. “I believe that these projects which are in the pipeline will guarantee the much needed revenue for our city and improve the general aesthetics.”

Aguilar’s greatest legacy however, was the completion of $13-million dollars in drainage improvements for the city.

“It is through the collective efforts of the city that we have create a massive a 13-million dollar drainage improvement project, which promises to alleviate past flooding episodes, that kept some of the homes flooded for a period of weeks,” Aguilar said. “Any visions we share as a team, is for the greater well-being of the city; I was simply the conduit that was needed to accomplish the project.”

Approximately 10-million dollars out of the 12.5-million were efforts of the then Mayor, Rebeca Sosa and her work through the Local Mitigation group formed after the 1999 and 2000 storms. These storms left three communities in Dade-County, including West Miami, under water for over eight days.

“Yolanda was very instrumental when working with the mayor and commission to improve the city’s sewer system,” Menendez said. “She worked hard to increase certain fees to develop this project.”

The city has received an additional 2.5-million dollars from the State of Florida through the South Florida Water Management District to complete the last phase of the project.

“Yolanda is the ultimate professional, she has great energy, great intellect and a true commitment to the force of public service,” Jimenez said.

To Yolanda Aguilar, the ties with her community are of extreme importance, especially in a city so small in size.

“It’s the small details, such as giving a senior citizen a ride home in our own vehicle, that make a difference,” Aguilar said. “That is how personal we are.”

While Aguilar’s retirement is imminent, West Miami residents hope that she will extend her service for their City for a couple more years.

“Yolanda has been a stability to West Miami, and I would most definitely like her to stay on with the city for at least five more years,” Menendez said. “She has the strength and youth to continue.”

Two years away from her official retirement, Aguilar will probably have the option of continuing her position as City Manager if she decides to go into the drop program.

“I am not going to fade away, that’s for sure,” Aguilar said. “I can either choose to stay on with the city, or stay home and bake cookies with my granddaughters.”

Coral Gables the City Beautiful

New York Times Text Messages

A couple of weeks ago, during the presidential elections, I logged on to the New York Times' text messaging feature, and requested that the latest news be texted to me.

I expected to get an immediate update as soon as the presidential candidate had been announced, instead I received three text messages back to back shortly after signing up.

The first message read, "Live Blogging Election Night", the second message read, "Covering the Coverage" and the third read, "Polls  Begin Closing in Final Hours of Epic Campaign".

Following these three text messages, I never received the big news of who had become our new president, instead I had to surf the internet to find out which of the two candidates had won.

As a matter of fact, three weeks later, I have yet to receive another text message from the New York Times, maybe they just forgot about me.

The Fight Against Global Warming Faces a New Enemy

All over the world, the threat to jobs, profits and government tax revenues posed by the financial crisis has cast doubt on commitments to cap emissions or phase out polluting factories.

According to the New York Times, the on-line article, Economic Slump May Limit Moves on Clean Energy, states that the combat in global warming and the plans to wean businesses and consumers from utilizing fossil fuels, may have come to a stand still, due to a poor global economy and plunging prices of coal and oil. 

However, according to the NY Times, President Barack Obama and the European Union have vowed to stick to their commitments to cap emissions of carbon dioxide and invest in new green technologies.

However, even with the input of the new US President and that of European Union, the financial crisis has rippled across the nation, affecting other powerfull nations such as Europe and Asia.

It's unlikely that other leaders will join to support Obama's and the European Union's cause to combat global warming.

Miami Herald's Fun Approach in this Season's Event Calendar

The Miami Herald featured an interestingly different if not fun way of utilizing a graphic to share this seasons special events and must be places.

The featured graphic, The Season, targets one special event per month, such as the Miami Book Fair International in November and Art Basel in December.

The graphic introduces the reader what there is to see and where to be seen in the next upcoming months. Each graphic is accompanied with a small synopsis of what to wear during these events, as well as several photographs of suggested attire.

Also included in the graphic is a small synopsis of the event and its history, as well as a basic itinerary of each event.

The graphic is definitely more engaging than some boring timeline or a list of events listed under each month. The only kink with the graphic is the loading time for it to materialize on the user's screen.

However, it's frustrating that the graphics on the Miami Herald do not give the user the option of sharing it's content with others, in-contrast to their shareable videos or photo slideshows.

City of Coral Gables Agrees on the University of Miami to Pay Impact Fees

In a unanimous vote by Coral Gables Commissioners, the University of Miami has been added to the impact-fee ordinance that was passed in 2007.

Due to the planned expansion of the school, UM has been included in Coral Gables' program to mitigate traffic issues and increase cost of providing service due to growth.

According to Miami Herald's article, University of Miami to start paying Gables for increased burden, the City of Coral Gables had tied up UM's campus area development plan for two years while it tried to negotiate an agreement that would give UM more leeway to build in its inner core and provide the city with an impact fee to reduce the institution's impact on adjacent neighborhoods.

The article also stated that the University of Miami will have to start paying to fund road and infrastructure improvements, once the plan has been approved.

The Miami Herald Reviews the Blackberry Storm

                                                    

The above video is part of the Miami Herald's 60-second reviews featuring Bridget Carey's brief synopsis of Verizon's BlackBerry Storm cell phone.

Her short videos give insight into the newest little gadget that lands on the market.  She makes sure to state the perks of the gadget as well as the kinks.

For instance, Carey states that the Storm's touch screen is easy to use and understand, since one has to apply pressure on the screen as if clicking a real button, thus making an accidental selection almost impossible.  

However, some of the Sorm's flaws include the occasional longer processing time to open a command and that it does not have as big as a selection of applications as the IPhone or the Teen Mobile G1.

Traffic Light Cameras in South Florida

Traffic light cameras are slowly infiltrating South Florida, and with that the fear that Big Brother will be watching.  While it is said that these cameras will increase intersection safety, some believe that the true purpose of these cameras, is to generate revenue for cities.

According to the article, Red-light cameras may get green light in Hollywood, featured in the Miami Herald, roughly half a dozen South Florida cities have installed red-light camera systems, and others including Fort lauderdale and Miami are considering them.

In Hollywood, city commissioners are thinking of endorsing these cameras that would allow police to fine violators $125 for ignoring red lights at some of the selected intersections. However, at the price of $50,000 per intersection, are these red-light cameras worth the cost, when most cities are already facing budget cuts?

While the use of these cameras could influence drivers to stop at red-lights, thus eliminating accidents caused by red-light runners and freeing police officers to focus on other more important tasks, the Big Brother privacy concern remains an important issue.

In reality the use of these cameras might be no different than the government having tabs on your whereabouts through your cell phone, you would drive down the streets, knowing that someone was watching you and monitoring everyplace you would go.

The New York Times Utilizes Immediacy

In the center of the home page of the New York Times, the top story is King.

The top story is always accompanied with an image of some sort and a larger and friendly to the eye headline.  

But even the top story gets old, and online the King often lasts less than an hour, only to be replaced with another more timely if not relevant top story.

So what happens to the King, the top story you glanced at earlier?  What if you wanted another glimpse and now its gone, lost in the whirlwind of search engines and databases.

Well, the NY Times is not so quick to see their latest King's head role, instead the top story that once was King, is simply moved below the new top story.  It is still easily accessible to the reader without much stress and searching.

Additionally, the NY Times always posts the time that the story was released on the home page, making it easily accessible for the reader to determine which is the latest news and how long the top story actually sat on its so called throne. 

New York Times Headlines

The New York Times web site's use of headlines is very similar to that of traditional print headlines.  They are often witty, have an underlying meaning or are simply used as a phrase to summarizing the story using some key words that the reader can easily identify.

However, none of the headlines would do well in a search engine, since there are no specific key words, with the exception of names which are used in stories centered upon a specific person.

In addition, the headlines which serve as links to the full story are exactly the same when the new page comes up.  This is one of the most important aspects when using headlines on the web.  

It is frustrating for the reader to click on a specific headline, only to end up with a page that has a different headline.  Even though the story might be the same, a reader who simply glances over the headline might think they were sent to the wrong page and return to the home page to either restart their search or exit the site entirely.

Thus, headlines are a key component of on-line journalism. They can either make or break the reader.

New York Times Multimedia

The New York Times hosts some of the best multimedia packages, but whether it's a video, a sound-slide, audio or some type of interactive chart or graph they all have one thing in common.

All of the multimedia packages that are featured on the NY Times web page are available for the reader to share.  In fact, they give you various choices from which to share their featured media. 

There are three tabs to chose from: E-mail, Save or Share. The Share tab is the most useful since it allows the reader to establish a direct connection to the multimedia package that can be shared with others.

The Share tab allows you to use Linkedin, Digg, Facebook, Mixx, Yahoo! Buzz, and Permalink as doorways from which to share their media.

The New York Times Home Page Layout

The overall layout of the New York Times' home page is a whirlwind of headlines and links that create a sense of chaos and visual exhaustion.  While the usage of white space dominates the overall page, giving it the illusion of a clean and balanced layout there is just too much information on the page.

The sections that are clearly defined and easy to view is the main story, the video box and a bar which includes various topics called Inside NYTimes.com.  The main story is easy to view as it is boxed in and accompanied by an image and lager headline.  The video box is also boxed in and accompanied by a larger image making it easy to view for the reader.

The side bar however, is a jumble of titles of sections, that make it hard for the reader to find what they are looking for.  And the advertising which is mainly located on the right side of the page is split up by various boxes such as the stock market results, which make it more difficult to distinguish one from the other.

The New York Times Home Page

For the last two months, this blog has received daily RSS feeds from The New York Times, linking mainly to their home page and latest news stories.

Having viewed and skimmed through their home page on a weekly if not daily basis, I have gathered that they follow some of the key concepts that define journalism.  Indeed, the home page displays fairness, attribution, accuracy, relevance, as well as newness.

One of the main factors found in journalism is fairness, which includes reporting both sides of the story and remaining unbiased throughout the process.  Until the last day in which the election results finally came in, the NY Times has done a good job of posting stories on both presidential candidates and in reporting both the good and the ugly of each candidate.  The home page constantly updated their main photograph, primarily switching between Obama and McCain.

Another important factor to consider is attribution, in which not only the facts are reported, but also the source of these facts and where they came from.  The NY Times for instance, always lists the author's by line at the beginning of each story, and concludes with the names of the individuals that contributed to the overall story.

Accuracy goes hand in hand with attribution in the sense that the facts that were indeed attained are in fact accurate.  From what I have read most of the posted articles are indeed accurate, but more importantly, when there has been a mistake, they make it their priority to update the story with a corrected version.  

Relevance, was in fact the keyword for the topics that were chosen to compliment the Presidential Election.  And while the home page was centered around Obama vs. McCain, they made sure to squeeze in some other international news breaking stories throughout the day.

Finally, newness is what ensures that the reader keeps coming back to visit the home page. When there is a subject of interest, the reader expects to be updated throughout the day with any new information, wether it's a new photograph, the addition of some multimedia package or simply a new headline.  if there is nothing new, then the reader will look elsewhere on the world wide web.  Just today, as the NY Times covered the Obama visit to the White House, a new photograph was up every time I went on the home page.

Poll feed to the Miami Herald at St. Michael's Church

Tuesday morning, voters found short and quick moving lines as they arrived at precincts 548 and 562 at St. Michael’s Church in Little Havana.

“I got here at 6:20 a.m. just in case, but once the polls opened at 7 a.m. I only had to wait fifteen minutes,” Miami Dade Student and first-time voter Odel Mosquera said. “It definitely was not as bad as the lines during early voting.”

Within the first hour, Precinct 548’s line increased to 110 people, whereas Precinct 562 only had a line of 55 waiting to vote. Officials were letting in five at a time, as both lines were moving into the same building.

“This was my first time voting, and it went faster than what I expected. Hopefully there won’t be any problems with the machines,” Mosquera said. “Inside, all booths were occupied, and they would just rotate you out when someone finished.”

Not all voters however, found the waiting time to be short. Voters, who had waited in the wrong precinct line, were sent back to make a new line at their correct precinct number. Others left without casting their ballot.

“I arrived right at 7 a.m. and waited the entire line, only to be told that I had been in the wrong line and that I had to make the other line for my precinct,” Berta Lopez, 58 said. “I had to start all over again, and did not get out until 9 a.m.”

Many voters arrived not knowing which precinct they belonged to, and while some where helped others were sent away.

“I came in asking what precinct I belonged to, since I was taking my elderly mother who is 87 years old to wait in the line and I wanted to make sure we would not have to wait twice,” Ada Ramirez, 62 said. “They told me that I had to wait the line before they could help me.”

Ramirez, who decides to take the matter into her own hands, calls the 311 helpline to find out what precinct she belongs to. Having found her precinct number, Ramirez decides to help fellow voters also unaware of their precinct number only to be faced with another obstacle.

“When I called again, the lines were busy, and I couldn’t help the others,” Ramirez said.

In addition to the confusion between the two facing precinct lines, no signage was posted to indicate which precinct number they represented.

“I didn’t know that there were going to be two precincts at this site,” Juan E. Elias, 60 said. “I didn’t even know what line I was waiting in.”

Each line only had one worker to help direct the flow of people, and when they were questioned as to why there was no signage posted, the response was that they were not given enough. The clerk in attendance refused to comment.

St. Michael's Church Precincts 548 and 562 Polling Update: Miami Herald Tweet 8

Two hours after opening, the lines of both precincts have diminished to half the size since this morning.  l:2987 W Flagler Street, Miami.

St. Michael's Church Precincts 548 and 562 Polling Update: Miami Herald Tweet 7

The line for precinct 562 on the other hand only had a line of about 55 waiting to be let in.  l:2987 W Flagler Street, Miami.

St. Michael's Church Precincts 548 and 562 Polling Update: Miami Herald Tweet 6

Forty minutes after opening the line increased to 110 people at precinct 548.  Officials letting in 5 at a time.  l:2987 W Flagler Street, Miami.

St. Michael's Church Precincts 548 and 562 Polling Update: Miami Herald Tweet 5

Official have taken some who were unaware of their precinct number into the building to find out.  l:2987 W Flagler Street, Miami.

St. Michael's Church Precincts 548 and 562 Polling Update: Miami Herald Tweet 4

Voters who waited in the wrong line, were sent to make a new line on the other side with the other precinct.  l:2987 W Flagler Street, Miami.

St. Michael's Church Precincts 548 and 562 Polling Update: Miami Herald Tweet 3

Voters are upset and confused, not knowing to which of the two precincts they belong to.  l:2987 W Flagler Street, Miami.

St. Michael's Church Precincts 548 and 562 Polling Update: Miami Herald Tweet 2

Officials expect a 15 to 20 minute wait for each of the two lines outside the precincts.  l:2987 W Flagler Street, Miami.

St. Michael's Church Precincts 548 and 562 Polling Update: Miami Herald Tweet 1

At precincts 548 and 562 at St. Michael's Church, the doors opened promptly at 7 a.m. l:2987 W Flagler Street, Miami.

Where McCain and Obama Stand Graphic

The Miami Herald posted another informative visual graphic on their website by the name of Where the Candidates Stand, which brings to light some of the key issues of both candidates and where they stand.

The interactive graphic consists of two half's.  The fist half is a compilation of graphic images which represent some of the key issues.  In the second half of the graphic there are the two images of the Presidential Candidates above a box, which fills with information as soon as the user clicks on one of the graphics.

The key issues to pick from include, taxes, defense, veterans, immigration, trade, environment, Cuba, Middle East, Russia, Iraq, Iran, social security, health insurance, deficit, education, energy and agriculture.

This graphic is simple, quick and a visual source of information for any user who wants to get a quick overview of the key issues and how both candidates stand when faced with each of thes issues.  It also easily distinguishes the differences between both candidates in a chart-like graphic.

Presidential Candidates Obama and McCain Timeline

One of the multimedia projects put together by the Miami Herald is that of a graphic titled The Lives Of The Candidates.  The graphic consists of a timeline used to document some of the achievements of the two up-running Presidential Candidates: John McCain and Barack Obama.

It is an informative and visual piece, which gives easy access to some of the history involving both candidates.  The user can easily navigate over the year of interest, and read a blurb of that years description accompanied with a relating photograph.

Only through the timeline does one visually realize the rather large 25-year age difference between both candidates.  It also stated that McCain graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy at the bottom of his class, whereas Obama graduated Magna Cum Laude from Harvard Law School.

This small biographical timeline is a perfect source of information, for someone who has not read up on any information on either candidate, and does not have the time to read through a lengthy article before casting his/her vote.

Jackie Nespral, Life as an Anchor

Jackie Nespral shares her life story as an anchor with Coral Gables War Memorial Senior Citizens, during their monthly lecture luncheon.

Nespral, who originally was a University of Miami psychology major, stepped into journalism quite by accident.

Nespral's name was entered into the Orange Bowl Queens Pageant by her mother, which in turn triggered a chain reaction from winning the pageant to getting a job on the Latin American show, Sabado Gigante.

Upon the completion of her degree at UM, Nespral decided that entertainment was not her passion, and hoped that news television would suit her better.  Nespral left Univision, got herself an agent and shortly after interviewed in New York City for the NBC Today Show. 

At the young age of 25, Jackie Nespral was hired as one of NBC's network anchors, and had the opportunity to interview on an international forum.

"I had the opportunity to interview all kinds of people, including my long-time hero, Barbara Walters," Nespral said.

Even though she loved NY, Nespral decided to return to Miami, commuting for several years between both cities.

Following the expiration of her contract, Nespral gained a permanent position in Miami.

"I went from interviewing international presidents to local politicians," Nespral said.

OxyContin Health Insurance Scam

In a second wave since the initial arrest in 2005’s OxyContin health insurance scam, the Miami-Dade Police and State Department arrested 62 additional people, of which 56 were government employees, including a police officer, a felony court clerk, two corrections officers and 17 school bus drivers.

“We get people who get arrested for drug abuse and possession all the time, but it’s different when government employees are involved,” Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office Media Relations Spokesperson Terrie Chavez said.

All 62 people face charges of racketeering, conspiracy to commit racketeering and grand theft. According to prosecutors, the six so called recruiters found these public employees willing to use their health benefits for prescription fraud.

The initial scam dates to January of 2003, when six recruiters enlisted a group of mostly local government employees, to participate in an illegal drug ring in which they fraudulently obtained prescriptions from physician Ronald Harris for the painkiller known as OxyContin.

“The same doctor, Ronald Harris, was involved in both cases,” Chavez said. “In the initial arrest in 2005, all of the people that went down with him were the same type of people as in this current case.”

According to Federal Court documents, Dr. Ronald Harris, who is represented by the court appointed Jan Smith, has revoked his initial plea, and plans to plead guilty on five counts in a future hearing.

“During Ronal Harris’s initial arrest, a lessened plea was negotiated for further information, which eventually lead to these arrests,” Chavez said.

In August of 2005, a total of 29 defendants were charged by the Federal Prosecutors Office; 22 of which were county and city school board employees.

These public employees presented their prescriptions at local pharmacies to obtain the OxyContin tablets, which they would then sell for quick cash to their recruiters or pushers.

“The real villains are these pushers, who target the weak,” Chavez said. “They target bus drivers, who find themselves without employment for three to four months out of the year, with the prospect of easy money.”

In addition to claiming fraudulent prescriptions, the employees submitted their insurance claims to their employer issued health insurance company, fraudulently claiming reimbursement for the cost of the prescriptions.  

For government employees, it was their taxpayer-subsidized health insurance benefits that allowed them to fill fake prescriptions for the painkiller and provide the drug to black market dealers.

“For the number of folks working for the government, including myself, there are a great deal of benefits which the private sector does not have,” Chavez said.” “When you abuse your benefits all of us end up paying for it, and these people abused their benefits.”

Since the initial roundup in August of 2005 by Mark Trouville, Special Agent in Charge of the Miami Drug Enforcement Administration, the State Department has conducted a three-year investigation to bring down this second wave of criminals.

“The first case was a federal indictment since it was an organized racketeering group,” Chavez said. “After that we continued our own investigation, and everything trickled down from there. You have to collect good evidence to prosecute, and with the first 29 they had hard evidence.”

As stated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, OxyContin is a prescription painkiller used for moderate to high pain relief associated with injuries, bursitis, dislocations, fractures, neuralgia, arthritis, lower back pain, and pain associated with cancer. It contains oxycodone, the medication's active ingredient, in a timed-release tablet. However, when abused, the drug can be deadly.

“It is a drug commonly misused to get high, but its purpose is to aid cancer patients to relieve pain,” Chavez said.

Authorities estimate that approximately 130 medically unnecessary prescriptions for OxyContin, more than 12,000 tablets, were presented to the pharmacies with an estimated street value of $400,000.

“There can never be an excuse for helping put dangerous drugs onto our streets,” Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle stated in a press release. “When public employees are a part of the problem and when public medical benefits are used to make the scheme work, these are shameful events. They are also crimes.”

According to Miami-Dade County Public Schools spokesman John Schuster, district employees who were arrested will be reassigned to positions were they will not come in contact with students.

“The impact we are most concerned with is people losing faith in their government workers,” Chavez said. “Luckily these school employees only passed the drugs back to their pushers, but there is always a lingering doubt in parents’ mind.”

The Miami Herald Features Cirque Du Soleil Sneak Peek

In this multimedia presentation, the Miami Herald featured a video on Cirque Du Soleil as it gave residents of Miami a sneak peek of their upcoming show, Corteo. 

Two of their acts were performed on the Lincoln Road Mall in Miami Beach to give people a taste of what Corteo is about. 

Fashion On The Street In NY by Bill Cunningham

The New York Times featured a small multimedia sound slideshow titled On the Street I Windward, by photographer Bill Cunningham.

The slideshow is a visual journalistic piece, describing the different forms of fashion that have made their way to the streets following an early start into winter.

Cunningham's voice accompanies his images, as he gives a descriptive narrative of the fashions as well as the decorative and natural signs of the approaching season.

This is a great example of a sound-slide, since both the audio and the photographs go well with one-another, and while individually they are both strong pieces, neither would do well on its own in this kind of format.

Presidential Debate Poll

Following Friday’s presidential debate, the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute released their Swing State polls on October 1, suggesting that Sen. Barack Obama favors over 50 percent in Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

The poll consists of a study conducted prior to the presidential debate, in comparison to a study conducted subsequently to the debate.

The poll concluded that following the debate, Obama‘s favorability increased by two percent in Florida, one percent in Ohio and five percent in Pennsylvania, whereas Sen. John McCain’s remained the same in both Florida and Ohio and dropped down to four percent in Pennsylvania.

“It is difficult to find a modern competitive presidential race that has swung so dramatically, so quickly and so sharply this late in the campaign,” Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute said in a press release on October 1. “In the last 20 days, Sen. Barack Obama has gone from seven points down to eight points up in Florida, while widening his leads to eight points in Ohio and 15 points in Pennsylvania.”

The importance these three states play to the overall poll is due to the fact that no presidential candidate has been elected president since 1960 without taking two of these three large swing states.

Even prior to Friday’s debate, a polling study conducted by Quinnipiac University from September 11 showed that Florida’s favorability towards Obama had increased from 43 to 49 percent whereas McCain’s dropped from 50 to 43 percent.

“Sen. John McCain has his work cut out for him if he is to win the presidency and there does not appear to be a role model for such a comeback in the last half century,” Brown said.
While the polls suggested that more than 84 percent of voters in each state did not change their mind following the debate, 13 to 17 percent of voters in each of the three states say that Obama did a better job and 15 to 27 percent of independent voters believed Obama to have won the debate.

“Sen. Obama clearly won the debate, voters say. Their opinion of Gov. Sarah Palin has gone south and the Wall Street meltdown has been a dagger to McCain’s political heart,” Brown said. “Roughly a third of voters, and almost as large a share of the key independent vote, say McCain did more harm than good in trying to resolve the financial crisis, and the share of voters who see the economy as the top issue has risen from roughly half to six in ten.”