Since 2002. Published Wednesdays and Saturdays
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| [Do-It- yourself Sewer Connection] Somebody complained about a price of $2,500 to make the sewer connection. If that included the permits, septic abandonment, and restoration of the property, then it is a very good price. But if you want to do it yourself as resident homeowner, you can. It is not rocket science, but it’s probably more work than you think. You still have to pay permits, pay for septic pump out, pay for tank fill, and either break your back or pay machine rental. Remember that the top has to come off that septic tank (or at least get broken up) unless you make a cistern out of it. You also have to make a hole in the bottom and you definitely do not want to be in the tank to do that. Even if you do a pitiful job, it will probably still be better than the plumbing firm that is sometimes pronounced “sleazier”. And there is actually another that is worse that did work this year in Big Coppitt. The plumbing inspector does not check for solid support under the pipe. If there is settlement later and the pipe leaks or breaks, you will be paying for clearing blockages or re-laying the pipe, so make sure to watch for that. If you had an older home and got shafted by getting a grinder pump, you might be looking at another $4,000 or so just to provide the electric, and you would find that your piping and septic abandonment was not much less than an all gravity connection. |
 The Key West gunfight videos were unbelievable! Thank God the officer had his vest on. I understand the Sheriff has issued a mandatory wear policy. Thanks Sheriff. The criminal claims MCSO shot first. So what? He’s a convicted felon who should not have a gun in the first place and was wanted for armed robbery.
Sheriff, remove the restriction of having the AR15 locked down in the trunk. I watched the video multiple times. Your officer spent 13 vital seconds trying to get the AR15 unpacked and shouldered. I heard Office Lariz firing defensively before he retreated back into camera view and the other officer was able to get the AR up and running. Sheriff please allow all your officers the right to defend themselves unfettered. When they come on duty, allow them to unlock, and install a magazine into the AR. Actually chambering a round should be left to the officers’ decision. Give both these guys commendations and paid vacations. I am proud they work for you and protect me. As an aside, the shooter’s little brother was on the front page of the Citizen Saturday after threatening a KWPD officer. He got charged with a felony too. He was also charged with a crime in Orlando on October 30th. Nice family. And to the officer who was shot firing defensively from a prone and semi-prone position, excellent work sir! Kudos to your training and your physical and mental prowess. |
| Thanks for the post of the Stock Island police shootout in the last edition. I saw the videos from both dash cams. The two videos do not seem to correlate well at all, and I think they raise more questions than they answer. See what you think. The comments to the KWTN videos may help you notice some things, but I would like to hear what others notice. Video |
 [“Ramrod’s near shore and canal water quality is moderately good”] Do you eat at restaurants whose food is “moderately good”? Do you drive on moderately good tires? I remember when the canals had tropical fish in them. I remember when the water was blue (not algae green) and I remember when our water quality was “good”. Keep selling yourself on buying a home on an island with a moderately closed canal system and keep telling yourself you can see the bottom. You can’t, and those are Cassiopeia jellyfish which need very little oxygen to live.
One County Commish told me that the near-shore waters of the Florida Keys no longer meet State or Federal clean water standards. “Moderately good”, heh! |
We share one of the most beautiful spots in the world. Piners Rule! |
| [“What restaurants use MSG”] A better question would be, what restaurants serve all fresh fish, not just some types of fresh fish? Some restaurants buy frozen hogfish, but serve fresh grouper. Tourists ask me all the time where to get fresh fish. I have to send them to Key West’s Half Shell Raw Bar. All restaurants up here are deceptive and their answers and can’t be trusted. |
[“Small engine repair”] Now that Lawnmowerman in BPK and Lawnmowers and More in Marathon are out of business, the nearest place I could locate to fix my McCulloch electric chain saw is in Tavernier. Please post any info about any small engine repair shops asap! |
| [Endangered Species Program] The ESA allows importation of endangered species only for scientific research, enhancement of propagation, or survival of the species. However, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), which implements the ESA, has broadly interpreted the term “enhancement” to include trophy hunting of protected species, and trophy hunters often take advantage of the loopholes to find ways to take “their trophies” across the U.S. border, under the guise of scientific research and other permits for exemption. |
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| [13’ Boat Sails to Cuba] Shawn Michael Luskey stole a 13-foot Boston Whaler with a 40 horsepower outboard from Murray Marine and went to Cuba where he was arrested. I don’t know how he did it. It was windy as hell and rougher than s**t! |
[Truthiness] Candidates for election cannot just say anything about their past and get mad at the media for exposing their fibs. |
| [Orchid Fans] There are big doings in the works at KWOS. First of all, this Sunday, Nov. 15 we are pleased to welcome our speaker, internationally known Martin Motes. He will speak on vandas, & you know what spectacular vandas he has created.
For those of you who can’t come to the meeting on Sunday, you will have one more chance to meet Dr. Motes. He has consented to stay over and meet with the Garden Club at 10:30 Monday morning. Then on Sunday, Dec.6 from 11 to 2 we will have our annual holiday brunch at Key West Harbor on Stock Island. The flyer on Page 3 of the attached Newsletter gives you all details, including the menu. The Club is on Stock Island, 6000 Peninsular Ave. From Key West take US1 to MacDonald Ave on Stock Island. Follow MacDonald, which turns into Maloney, all the way to the stop sign. Turn Left onto Peninsular. You will see a large boat storage bldg. on your right – entrance driveway immediately past bldg. on right. Enter & go to electric gate which will open automatically. Bear left to entrance of the restaurant. Take the elevator to the 2nd floor. From the North go to the blinking light at CVS, turn left onto 3rd St. At stop sign turn left onto MacDonald/Maloney & follow above directions. Not as complicated as it seems. The cost is $25 per person. The reservation deadline is Nov. 28, so bring your payment to the Nov. 15 mtg. Or send your check for $25 per person, made out to KWOS, to Florence Bousquet, 4 Shore Dr. Bay Point, Key West, FL 33040. Because of the party there is no regular meeting in December. Plans are already in full swing for our biennial AOS judged show March 4,5 & 6. Full Menu > Ongoing Events |
 [Tortuga] As a kid I remember very well, very well indeed, watching turtles being processed. That is such a sanitized word, processed. The Turtle Kraal’s in Key West was a slaughter house. I will not go into detail on how they went about “processing” the turtles. I will say they did their job well.By 1970 the turtle population had been devastated. Through the courageous efforts of visionary conservationists, in cooperation with the Governor of Florida, the first catch size regulations were enacted on March 23rd, 1971, establishing that any turtle smaller than 41 inches was to be released. Turtle canneries went out of business, and the turtle trade came to an end in ’71 with the passage of the Endangered Species Act. Caribbean turtle populations have somewhat recovered but continue to struggle against natural and manmade, life threatening obstacles. Destruction of habitat, reckless disposal of consumable waste products, poorly maintained traps and nets, improperly discarded monofilament and the degradation of marine waters through chemical spillage and improper discharge continue to threaten these vulnerable and gentle creatures of the sea. |
| (Ed: I’m late publishing the Coconut Telegraph today because of my web host’s network problem. Sorry for the inconvenience) |
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| Aikido is a martial art for folks that plan to defend themselves. Southernmost Aikikai has classes 3 days a week for men woman and children at Foreverfit Studio on Cudjoe Key. Come visit, take a look, see our Facebook page “Southernmost Aikikai” Movement, focus, off line, receiving the energy of aggression an redirecting that energy. Call 305 304 5100. Classes 7 pm-8:30 Mondays, Thursdays, Saturdays 11 am. Full Menu > Ongoing Events |
[“Gunfight at the KW Corral”] Dashboard video released by the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office Thursday of the dramatic Oct. 24 firefight between deputies and an armed robbery suspect shows both sides fired myriad times in a violent exchange of gunfire. I heard that as many as 30 bullets were fired–and they only hit the guy twice? I wonder where the others went? Through somebody’s living room? |
| [“High cost of connecting to sewer”] You should be able to pull the permit as an Owner/Builder” thus eliminating the need for a contractor. |
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| [Complaint Department] The Coconut Telegraph makes me laugh. All it is now is a local gossip column and worthless local information site. When you had the Political Section on the bottom, it worked for all of us. All of us that can think and realize International Politics is the most important thing going because it shows realists how the world is about to crash and burn! So what if it is disheartening to non-intellects, there is no other blog to speak one’s mind or to find some reality about what is happening. Dog Park News is as irrelevant as the air-heads that write about that! (Ed: You make me laugh with‘non-intellects’. Just because I hate National Politics doesn’t mean I have a little intellect. I’ll bet mine is bigger than yours [although you’d better challenge me quickly because it is shrinking].) |
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| [Norway’s Atlantic Road] If a tsunami hit the Keys this is what would be left? Video |
Singer/songwriter Jimmy Buffett opens his 90-minute set Thursday night at the Casa Marina Resort with his Coral Reefer Band. Between songs, Buffett shared many stories about his early days in Key West in the early 1970s, stating that ‘surely the statute of limitations has passed. (photo by Rob O’Neil, The Citizen) |
| Key West web cams. Link |
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| [Windows 10 Upgrade] Everyone on Windows 7 and Windows 8 can’t fail to have noticed the Windows 10 upgrade reminders popping up regularly, and indeed Redmond intends to push the operating system as a recommended update early on next year (be warned, those of you who don’t manually vet your updates).
Tech support recommends a rollback to Windows 7 or 8.1 if you encounter problems. Tech support reps need to get their job done, and with Windows 10 being so new – and potentially tricky with older hardware – sometimes the easiest solution is just to revert to the previous OS where everything was working. At any rate, the earlier you upgrade to a new OS, the more of a gamble it is – obviously as time goes by, more and more problems which are encountered by earlier adopters get fixed, and the smoother the operating system becomes. With Windows 10, it’s also worth thinking about a fresh install as opposed to an in-place upgrade over your existing Windows installation. A clean install from scratch is less likely to run into issues. |
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Being a Vet means ya lived If you are a Veteran you and your immediate family can go to Dolphin Research Center on Wednesday, Nov 11 for free. Call 305-289-1121 for details. |
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| FKAA has been making changes to the meter reading and billing system. I have heard multiple reports of people billed for the previously paid bill as well as the recent use. Check your bill carefully if it seems high. FKAA has good customer service reps who can fix the mistake if you call them 305-296-2454. |
[Tea For Two] I guess Victorians liked to get silly too. Now if we can just lighten up some. |
| [RICO Bubba Bust] The letter requesting a full federal criminal investigation of FKAA’s extortion of grinder pump easements is now posted on line. We think that if an investigation was started on the complaint issues in the letter, the rest of the dirty Bubba politics, fraud and suspected graft would also play in to get us the RICO Bubba Bust that is way behind schedule. The address of the US Attorney is on the posted letter. You are highly encouraged to write a letter or email of support and encouragement for an investigation. Unless you want more of the same of course. Link |
 When you’re dead you’re done (so let the good times roll). There is no afterlife. Those who come back from the dead talk about the ‘tunnel’ and ‘bright light’. I know exactly what they are talking about as I’ve experienced the same during the peak of many of my acid trips at the very point when I regressed to the atomic level. Others experienced the same. When you’re temporarily dead your brain still works, but not so good, and it still ‘flashes’ or senses movement, but that’s about it. There is no tunnel or ‘other side’. It’s most likely that the brain is in neutral, coasting and that ‘white light’ is it’s default screen. Don’t you wonder why no one ever sees hell’s fire? People confuse the brain in neutral with heaven, but that’s just wishful thinking. |
| [Crosswalks in Key West] I’ve been reading about the complaints about the crosswalks that cut right across N Roosevelt Blvd in KW with no light or warning to drivers and mostly dismissed this as perhaps the drivers need to pay more attention. Not so. I was driving ‘north’ (east) away from town in the right lane at a moderate speed early Monday afternoon when I was suddenly surprised by a pedestrian walking right in front of me! My view was blocked by the car in the left lane which had just gone by her, which probably blocked her view of me. This was the closest I’ve ever come, after decades of driving, to hitting a pedestrian. It is very unnerving and dangerous, needless to say. |
Last week’s SEMA car show photos. Here’s something to look at while you’re supposed to be working. Hand-tooled auto body. Link |
| [Shit-kickin’ TV] From Archie Campbell’s television show in 1954 at Knoxville, TN. Archie Campbell called the accordion the “stomach Steinway”. Video |
 [Conspiracy Theorists] We continue to favor the outlandish explanation over the simple one; we are more readily deceived by a great deception—by a hairy creature with wings and a female face—than by a modest one. When computers go down, it seems far more likely that they were hacked by a group of conspirators than that they simultaneously malfunctioned. A jet vanishes: It is more plausible that it was secreted away by a Middle Eastern country than that it might be sitting, in fragments, on the ocean floor. We like to lose ourselves in a cause, to ground our private hurts in public outrages. We do not like for others to refute our beliefs any more than we like for them to deny our hallucinations. |
| The chemical sprayed on the 2010 BP oil spill may not have helped crucial petroleum-munching microbes get rid of the slick, a new study suggests. And that leads to more questions about where much of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill went. If the new results are true, up to half the oil can’t be accounted for. |
[Gun Nuts] It’s not safe in the Middle East nor is it safe on the streets of America. There is very little difference. The Mideast has Muslim bombers, while we, here, have a variety of gun nuts indiscriminately shooting us every day. They are all over the country. No one is safe and the Second Amendment is to blame. It backfired and causes more trouble than the founding fathers ever dreamed of. They never thought we would be murdering each other like a bunch of Muslim radicals. The only difference is that we’re used to it so we won’t do anything about it. At least the Mideast tries to do something about it. |
| [Sanctuary Newsletter] In This Issue: Sanctuary Celebrates 25 Years! Lobster Monitoring Study, Golf Tournament Recap, NewsMakers, Upcoming Events. Link |
[University of Missouri president leaves over race complaints] I thought for sure he would drag this out for a long time until I heard that the University would have to pay $1000.000 fine if they canceled this Saturday’s football game because of the players’ protest. Money is power. |
| [Crosswalk in Key Largo] In regard to the current situation in Key Largo with the light at the crosswalk. Our sheriff R.R., said something very poignant on a radio interview. Having served so long, he is well aware of the area’s history and he recalled how before there was ever a light, there was very rarely a daytime event, like now with the light. Gee! Maybe a little less government regulation would be better for everybody. Maybe something our sheriff isn’t aware of, is that some years ago, several Northern European towns got rid of a lot of their intersection lights and signs. Gee, maybe a little less government regulation would be better for everybody. Which seems to beg the question: Why is it legal for me to grow my peppers, basil, cilantro, etc. in my backyard, but I am not allowed to grow a simple plant for a tea [marijuana] that helps my back, joints, and eyesight? Do I need a government regulation for that? |
[Cleaning Concrete] Let’s see, if a gallon of gasoline costs $3 and a gallon of dish detergent costs $15,then is sure seems to be cheaper to dump a gallon of gas on my concrete deck to clean off the black mold. Maybe if I light it it would scrub itself too? What could go wrong? |
| [Sewer Discrimination] So how does this work? In the City of Marathon there are 167 grinder pumps. Every one of them are in the row. No resident was extorted to give up their private property, to hire an electric contractor, to pay for electricity for the pumps, extra permits, etc. Their pumps were just put in the road. So why does the BOCC want to discriminate against the taxpayers in the CRWS? Does it have anything to do with the 2.7 million dollars the BOCC took from the Monroe County Infrastructure Tax Fund and gave it to the FDOT to fix the St.[?] of Florida’s infrastructure. It’s not like the taxpayers of Monroe County don’t have any infrastructure of their own to spend this tax money on. So the BOCC just said screw our citizens, they don’t know what’s good for them, so we’ll decide and a repaired St. of Florida old falling down bridge is more important to the City of Marathon than a quality central sewer system is for the Florida Keys. Thank you BOCC for putting the taxpayers of Monroe County in their proper place. |
[High Energy Little Girl] Little girl slays samurai routine with an epic ending! Looked up the definition of “badass” and this is what I got. Video |
| [Let’s See What Honda Can Do] This is the most fascinating commercial to come down the pike in a long time. Video |
[Sarcasm] I see everyone with headphones on, staring at their phones. Not a single soul is looking up. What is happening with this world? |
| Dustin‘s Outboard Service, 305-304- 5189. Seems kind of dumb not to be listed in the free Business directory section of this web site. (Ed: It is now. Business Directory > Boats Needs) |
Coconuts’ Ukulele Band is meeting tonight at 7 pm. No experience necessary. Just come out for some fun! Coconuts, down town Big Pine Key. |
| He who creates a poison, also has the cure. He who creates a virus, also has the antidote. He who creates chaos, also has the ability to create peace. He who sparks hate, also has the ability to transform it to love. He who creates misery, also has the ability to destroy it with kindness. He who creates sadness, also has the ability to to convert it to happiness. He who creates darkness, can also be awakened to produce illumination. He who spreads fear, can also be shaken to spread comfort. Any problems created by the left hand of man, can also be solved with the right. |
[Hotel Rip-Offs] The average nightly cost of a Key West hotel room for Friday and Saturday of Fantasy Fest jumped from about $238 last year to $413 this year. This is why we need AirBnB’s in the Keys. The only one opposing them is the hotel monopoly. |
| [“Homemade breakfast sausage at Fausto’s”] Isn’t that the ‘hood that has no cats, dogs, or iguanas running around? |
Number of war dead for all wars. Link |
| I wouldn’t give money to any organization that feeds/harbors outdoor wildlife killers, no matter what little other good they may do. |
Redneck limo |
| [Rig Bone] It only took me 60 years to realize women are only as smart as my rig bone! |
 [FTR] Mr. Obama has killed (for now) the Keystone Pipe Line. He claims that it is not in the best interests of the U.S.
He tells us that it will have a negative environmental impact. That is a direct contraction to reports of his own State Department. In January of 2014 the State Department released its final environmental assessment. That report concluded that it was unlikely that the pipeline would impact global greenhouse gas emissions. The assessment concludes that the tar sands would be exploited whether or not the pipe line was built. The crude oil produced would still be produced and used globally. (continued at … National Politics) |
| [Paranoia] The way things seem to be going in the government and the computer industry, we are about to be stripped of our computers and left with smartphones that track everything we do day and night. This scares the shiite out of me! |
| Submit anything but National Politics to island@bigpinekey.com |
