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The Price of Sprawl logo (Pic via priceofsprawl.com) Nearly a year after the so-called “Hometown Democracy” amendment was soundly defeated in the state of Florida, the group that backed it has unveiled a website detailing the negative effects of urban sprawl in various counties throughout the state. The Hometown Democracy/Amendment 4 initiative would have required a voter referendum whenever a local government amended its comprehensive land-use plan, giving citizens a role in approving urban development. Lesley Blackner, president of Hometown Democracy, argued that “irresponsible overdevelopment leads to higher taxes and lower quality of life” and Amendment 4 would “give voters the right to decide if a proposed change to the community plan is worthwhile for the community.” Yet voters overwhelmingly rejected the amendment at the ballot box, perhaps due to efforts by the well-funded group that opposed it, Citizens for Lower Taxes and a Stronger Economy

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced that it deported record numbers of immigrants in fiscal year 2011 on the same day immigrant advocates announced a national day of action called “Obama, Immigration and the Latino Community.” A press release issued by Presente.org and Florida Immigrant Coalition states: Latinos, immigrants and their allies will hold a National Day of Action called “Obama, Immigration and the Latino Community” on Tuesday, October 18 in 10 cities across the nation – Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Dallas, Houston, Miami, Milwaukee, New York, San Francisco, and Tucson. In conjunction with Presente.org , Latino community leaders, clergy, and family members devastated by the controversial Secure Communities (SCOMM) racial profiling program and the immigrant detention policies of President Obama will participate in simultaneous screenings of PBS Frontline special, “Lost in Detention,” airing in the evening on October 18

Anti-abortion-rights media group Heroic Media recently launched a new online strategy that violates Google policy. The Texas-based organization -- best known

Following censure earlier this year from the national conservative research group the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, the Texas State Board of Education’s hotly

Just when I thought the Wright controversy was affecting superdelegates thoughts on Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), I find out that Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) plans

The Boston Globe ran a fantastic story Sunday about the lessons Congress can learn from the passage 20 years ago of a successful cap-and-trade program to combat

In the battle for the Republican nomination for president, Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann edged out former Massachusetts Gov.

With presidential hopeful Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s blessing, as of this month, Texas women’s health clinics and hospitals that provide medical and

The Christian Family Coalition says “anti-American extremists and racists” forced the cancellation of an appearance by Rep. Allen West, R-Fort Lauderdale, at an upcoming Wilton Manors Business Association meeting. # In response to West’s announced appearance , Michael Rajner, legislative director of the Florida GLBT Democratic Caucus, demanded that Celeste Ellich, president of the Business Association, disinvite West

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla. (Pic via Facebook) The American Conservative Union announced today that Sen

Amid a furor over its recent redesign, and with privacy concerns tailing its every move, Facebook has filed paperwork to start its own political action

Pro-immigration reform groups are stepping up local efforts to help illegal immigrants deal with police, learn English and understand deportation proceedings,

Personhood USA co-founder Keith Mason (Pic via personhoodusa.com) Personhood Arkansas, an affiliate of Personhood USA, has submitted amendment language to the state that would define life as beginning at the moment of conception.

McClatchy does a good job outlining the omissions, exaggerations and misstatements in former Vice President Dick Cheney’s speech at the American Enterprise

On the last day of Florida’s legislative session, Sen. Evelyn Lynn, R-Daytona Beach, received the ACLU of Florida’s “Defender of Freedom” award for the week.

GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich (Pic by Gage Skidmore, via Wikimedia Commons ) GOP 2012 presidential candidate Newt Gingrich has hired people close to Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., to head his campaign in Florida. The Miami Herald reports : Some of the biggest and deep-pocketed Republican heavy-hitters opened their wallets Monday for Sen.

In a new YouTube clip titled “Mike Haridopolos–Pink Slip Puppet,” the progressive group Florida Watch Action uses a series of short sound bites to tie Florida Senate President and U.S.

Americans will recognize National Latino AIDS Awareness Day this Saturday, amid a rising number of HIV/AIDS cases for Latinos across the U.S. National Latino AIDS Awareness Day ( NLAAD ), “held each year in commemoration of the last day of Hispanic Heritage Month, represents a call to action for Hispanics/Latinos to protect their lives and the lives of those they love by getting tested and learning about HIV .” According to a report (.pdf) issued by the Florida Latino AIDS Advisory Group in May, “the proportion of newly reported HIV cases among adult Hispanics (age 13+) increased from 16% in 2000 to 21% in 2009. In Florida, in 2009, the HIV case rate among adult Hispanic men was 2 times higher than that for white men and 2 times higher for adult Hispanic women than that among white women.” The Advisory Group, established by Florida’s Bureau of HIV/AIDS , adds that “the survival time from AIDS diagnosis to death significantly shorter for Hispanics than whites

Cable and Internet provider Comcast has launched a program to provide affordable high-speed Internet access to low-income families that have at least one child receiving free school lunches through the National School Lunch Program . # According to Community Broadband Networks, “as a condition of its massive merger with NBC , the federal government is requiring Comcast to make affordable Internet connections available to 2.5 million low-income households for the next two years.” The organizaton adds that “it was only after the federal government mandated a low-cost option for disadvantaged households that Comcast realized everyone could benefit from access to the Internet.” # Community Broadband Networks provides “news, information, research, and connections to the nation-wide movement of building broadband networks that are directly accountable to the community they serve.” # The Miami Herald reported last week that the Miami-Dade School district will partner with Comcast to offer needy families discount high-speed Internet, computers and training.

BOSTON -- A little while after noon, a steady crowd of Democratic voters streamed into the Cathedral High School Gymnasium to cast votes for their party’s

As has been widely reported, police crackdowns on the Occupy movement in cities across the country have extended beyond the protesters to include attacks on journalists as a way to stanch news of police action. Ten reporters were arrested in New York when police cleared Zuccotti Park on Tuesday, including reporters for the AP, NPR, and the New York Daily News, according to watchdog organization Free Press. The organization announced today it has launched a campaign “targeted at mayors around the country to demand they honor the 1st Amendment and drop all charges against journalists.” “If the mayor of our country’s largest city thinks protecting the press means silencing them, we’re in big trouble,” wrote Free Press Program Director Josh Stearns at the organization’s website

As an addendum to this post, one thing that you do see on the #IranElection hashtag are requests for help with proxy servers and other means of either

The Minnesota for Marriage coalition, which is pushing a 2012 constitutional amendment to define marriage as between one man and one woman, is mobilizing against state campaign finance rules that require disclosure of donors.

President Barack Obama (Pic by The White House, via Flickr ) Women’s health advocates all over the country were stunned yesterday when Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius reversed an FDA request to expand access to over-the-counter emergency contraception for teenagers under the age of 17. In press releases denouncing the decision, a common theme has emerged: President Obama has followed in the footsteps of his predecessor, George W.