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If Matthew, 32, a personal-injury lawyer who lives in Bridgeport, gets any kind of a campaign going — which he does not have now — it could guarantee a win for Lipinski.
I asked Matthew who was helping him because, well, putting up someone to drain votes from another candidate is a common ploy.
“There are not any power players behind me,” he said.
•In Newman’s favor, progressives have grown as a potent political force locally and nationally.
•Also in Newman’s favor: 2020 is a presidential year, likely to bring out Democrats who skipped 2018. These voters will trend younger and more female — a boost to Newman.
•Lipinski’s fundraising is weak. In the first quarter, Newman raised $209,962 to Lipinski’s $127,343. He has $424,733 cash-on-hand to her $181,170 balance. Newman is also carrying a $160,635 debt from 2018.
•What we don’t know: if the public unions will jump in heavily for Newman and if the No Labels organization — which hid behind front groups to bankroll a drive to bolster Lipinski — will again be involved.
•Will Trump backers return to the 2020 Illinois 3rd District primary? It depends in part on whether the Republicans roll over like they did last time, failing to muster a candidate, leaving the field free for a self-proclaimed Nazi and Holocaust denier to win the GOP nomination by default.
Offensive to some and just bizarre to others, the sale of stereotypical images of Jews as good luck charms started in Poland in the 1960s.
Visit a few main marketplaces or trinket shops in Warsaw or Krakow, and you’re almost guaranteed to find a figurine or picture of a haredi Orthodox Jew counting money.
Others, like Jonny Daniels, founder of the From the Depths group that promotes dialogue between Jews and Poles, dismiss it as an “insensitive but ultimately harmless expression of nostalgia,” similar to how some view cigar store Native Americans in the United States.
Historians Greg and Alice Luckhardt offer an interesting glimpse into Martin County's past.
Recorded history, which is dependent on human interpretation for accuracy, can be subject to dispute, unintentional error and even mystery, when pertinent information is not available or properly noted.
Through many sources, researchers can often ‘discover’ little known established facts, which through the years have been overlooked or forgotten, possibly altering, perhaps enhancing the generally accepted historical record.
Presented forthwith, a few examples, relating to the region of Martin County.
Most local history buffs are familiar with the story of the Ashley Gang and its leader, John, who lost an eye when accidentally shot by a gang member during escape from a bank robbery.
Ashley was fitted with a glass eye, but often wore a patch. There is, however, some controversy regarding John’s glass eye.
Palm Beach Sheriff Bob Baker, Ashley’s nemesis, having coveted the eye as a memento for a key fob, was presented with the confiscated keepsake by a deputy, present at the ‘shootout’ and demise of the notorious convict in 1924.
One story of that situation relates that Laura Upthegrove, Ashley’s moll and girlfriend, demanded the eye be returned for burial with John.
There has been speculation through the years that it was not interred with Ashley at the family’s cemetery grave site in Gomez, but rather kept by Laura when returned.
Furthermore, a legend states that the Upthegrove family retained the eye even after Laura’s suicide death in 1927, being claimed by descendants to be the original.
As such, it was sold years later to a wealthy collector of Ashley Gang artifacts.
It remains a mystery as to whether the eye is indeed the original, probably only truly to be solved by excavating the grave for inspection, which is very unlikely.
It’s a documented fact that Laura Upthegrove, girlfriend of infamous outlaw, John Ashley, was married more than once, but never to Ashley.
Some either dispute or are unaware of a third marriage a few years after John’s death.
According to research, possibly on a whim, Monday, August 1, 1927, in Highlands County, Florida, Laura B. Upthegrove married 34 year-old bachelor Charles Milton Swindel, a mechanic. The wedding was performed by County Judge A.E. Lawrence.
On Saturday, Aug. 6, 1927, five days later, Laura, committed suicide. Since she was married to Charles only a few days, the marriage is not widely known, but verifiable by records for Highlands County.
Old newspapers are often a good source of forgotten info or trivial facts, sometimes clarifying or even disputing a recorded, supposedly accurate aspect of history. Information attained at the time of an event is perhaps more accurate than that ascertained from memory at some future date.
The Francis Marion Platt two-story wood and brick home in Stuart was built on the St. Lucie River in 1904, the Platts having relocated to Stuart from Indiantown for the children to attend school.
Sometimes called the ‘Owl House’ due to the configuration of the four-pointed gabled roof in resembling that bird, it was so designed by a sea captain to protect the structure from hurricane winds.
One official source for the house’s interesting history states that it was sold to Charles and Ethel Porter in 1908, remaining in that family until the ‘70s.
However, research has revealed an article in the Fort Pierce News, dated April 8, 1910, stating the purchase date of the home was in early April 1910 and that the Porters were moving in at once since the Platts had returned to Indiantown.
Sometimes incorrect sources, although deemed reliable, can proliferate history’s recorded inaccuracies.
First newspaper Enterprise or Times?
The Stuart Times is generally credited as being the town’s first newspaper, Vol.1, No. 1 being published in 1913.
Another paper, Stuart Enterprise, of which at least one issue is known to have been printed in 1907, was revealed in an article in the Palm Beach Post of that era. No copies are known to exist; the newspaper failed in 1908.
When was the Belle Flora house fire?
Another example of forgotten information is the Belle Flora House and fire, April 13, 1916, in downtown Stuart, evidently not generally known to local historians, but rediscovered in old news stories.
Research, primarily in newspapers of long ago has also provided clues to a forgotten location of a city hall in Stuart and a post office in a section of a building downtown.
Occasionally news articles and the general public can assist in solving a mystery.
A vignette written by the Luckhardts and published in the Stuart News in October 2013, related a story of Captain Bill Pitchford of Jensen finding a treasure chest filled with gold coins in a cave in the Bahamas in 1953, the basic information reported in an article in the Fort Pierce Tribune at that time.
The iron chest found by Pitchford was believed to be lost or misplaced, but would soon be located after the vignette detailing Bill’s search for the treasure was published in the Stuart News.
Evidently it was not permanently donated to the University of Miami as thought or for some other reason was returned to Pitchford.
In November 2013, Dr. Richard Totilas of Jensen Beach contacted historian Sandra Thurlow, claiming to have the Pitchford treasure chest, stored in his garage for years.
The chest had actually been in Captain Pitchford's possession until he died in May 1974, after which it was inherited by Bill’s widow, Marjorie.
She gave it to a friend, Margaret Beagle, who owned an antique shop in Jensen Beach, where it was on display.
When Beagle decided to close the shop years later, she offered the chest to Rosemary Totilas, Marjorie Pitchford’s daughter, stepdaughter of Captain Bill.
Rosemary was married to Dr. Richard Totilas at the time. After the couple’s divorce, Rosemary allowed Rich to keep the chest.
Thurlow contacted Alice Luckhardt and the two convinced Totilas to donate the chest to the Stuart Heritage Museum, as a permanent exhibit.
A ceremony was held on Dec. 3, 2013, whereby the Pitchford treasure chest, sans gold coins, was officially presented to the Museum; a front page article in The Stuart News told the story the next day.
While researching some old newspapers in 2009, the Luckhardts found an article describing a movie being filmed in the ‘20s, costing thousands of dollars, and picturing Stuart’s many attributes.
Included were views of the area’s beautiful waterways and structures, equivalent to a careful tour of inspection of the city and environs, to be one of the most comprehensive ever produced in Florida! It was planned as a promotional film to entice visitors to the little community.
Another similar promotional movie was made in 1931.
The Luckhardts mentioned the article to the editor of The Stuart News, commenting how great it would be historically to somehow find a copy of that vintage movie.
The editor thought it would be an interesting story for the paper. It was written and published, requesting information from anyone concerning the whereabouts of the film.
A News reader associated with the Audubon Society realized there were several old movies in a closet at the Possum Long Nature Center, scheduled to be discarded.
He contacted the Luckhardts, who viewed the footage of one such film from 1964 with an available antique projector and determined it should definitely be preserved, although it was not the film sought in the article.
The 16mm film was converted to digital video and donated to the Stuart Heritage Museum. It can be viewed on http://www.stuartheritagemuseum.com/exhibits/.
It's still a mystery as to what happened to the promotional films from the 1920s and '30s. Why weren't copies preserved for historical purposes or do the films indeed exist somewhere, yet to be discovered?
Local history books generally contain basic important information about Martin County, providing an invaluable reference, but there are a few mysteries, many interesting stories and little known facts not officially recorded in such archives, some detailed herein, while perhaps other info is waiting to be discovered. H...
SPECIAL NOTE: If any reader has ever wondered about some local mystery or questions an aspect of the community’s history, contact the Luckhardts (gandavignettes@gmail.com) for a potential story on the subject. If it’s interesting and enough information can be determined, maybe that mystery or questioned history can be ...
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — It's become clear, what's in the water at some Florida schools could be exposing young minds to a dangerous toxin.
A new bill filed by Democratic Senator Lauren Book who represents parts of Broward County, aims to protect students from the kind of lead-laced water that has already forced some schools districts to amp up testing policies or turn off the flow of water at school water fountains and sinks.
Senate Bill 66 requires Florida schools built pre-1986 track the water sources where students can consume water by installing barcodes on those sources like water fountains and sinks. But the bill's most notable detail includes a first-of-its-kind mandate in Florida that schools built before 1986 also install an approv...
"I think it's needed," said Dr. Lynn Ringenberg, a Tampa pediatrician who is also an Emeritus Pediatrics Professor at the University of South Florida. Ringenberg also co-founded the Florida Chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility. The non-profit organization is dedicated to protecting people from environmental ...
"There is no safe level of lead," said Dr. Ringenberg. "Lead is a potent neurotoxin. It gets into the brain and even at low levels can cause damage," she said.
Earlier this month, we first uncovered how the majority of Florida school districts either do not test for the metal toxin or only partially test. Florida, like most states, do not require schools test for lead.
Last month, Sarasota County Schools started testing for the first time following headlines in neighboring school districts where lead levels tested above the EPA's federal standard for action of 15 ppb (parts per billion). While the district has yet to share its results, it's head of construction planning and facilitie...
"At this point we've learned at least enough to know that's one of the options," he said.
Senator Book's bill does not address who would pay for mandated water filters at schools. Her office has not responded to multiple calls and emails.
Dr. Ringenberg knows money will fuel debate, but believes not passing the bill will result in a price tag a lot tougher to swallow.
"We need to do whatever we can to protect our children's health, they're brain health, and give them every opportunity to be the best they can be in our world," she said.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is one of the Silicon Valley leaders advocating for a universal basic income to be implemented as a result of automation displacing more workers.
With figures ranging from 33-year old Facebook Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg to 90-year-old Nobel Prize-winning economist Vernon Smith endorsing a universal basic income, the idea may soon enter the U.S. political mainstream. But Americans are being sold on a dangerous version of the UBI, designed as a resour...
Smith recently wrote an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal, calling on President Donald Trump to privatize the interstate highway system to set up a fund that would pay every American a basic income, the way the Alaska Permanent Fund pays every Alaskan a share of the state's oil revenues.
Zuckerberg, too, is a fan of the Alaska dividend scheme (which doesn't pay enough to qualify as real basic income) and approves of the state's native corporations paying a share of their profits to the indigenous population. He likes this kind of universal income scheme because "first, it's funded by natural resources ...
There's a further bridge between Smith's idea and the Silicon Valley vision of a UBI. "Surface transportation rights of way would be opened to new mass-transit innovations at a time when driverless vehicles are making their entrance," Smith wrote. The newly privatized roads, then, would generate income from fees paid b...
That ties into the idea, put forward recently by John Thornhill in the Financial Times, that Facebook (and, presumably, Google and other companies that make money by selling their users' personal data to advertisers) fund a basic income scheme to give back some of the money from these data sales.
The scale, boldness and ingenuity of tying together a revamp of physical infrastructure (for private owners would, according to Smith, maintain it better than the government does), the rents collected from a growing digital infrastructure, and an answer to tech-driven unemployment (Elon Musk, Zuckerberg and other Silic...
To proponents of the Silicon Valley school of thought on UBI, basic income is a tool to ensure public buy-in to the tech industry's idea of an automated future in which people are mainly useful as consumers rather than as workers. Such a future is inevitable, they tell us, but don't be scared because machine owners wil...
This is a vastly different approach to UBI schemes discussed in Europe, notably in Finland, where a pilot project is taking place now, and in the Netherlands. Of course, versions of the Silicon Valley approach have been aired in Europe, too: For example, failed French presidential candidate Benoit Hamon advocated a rob...
To me, the sharing approach is less humiliating and dehumanizing than the rent-like payoff. It has more to do with erasing inequality than with getting people to accept the dominance (and associated benevolence) of a machine-owning elite. It makes sure citizens are asked about redistribution mechanisms (i.e. tax rates ...
In truth, people and nations don't have to accept a future in which a small group of companies — and, let's face it, successful tech firms are a small, oligopolistic group — controls the fruits of what they call progress. It's up to them to tax and regulate the monopolies and oligopolies. The opaque digital advertising...
At this point, regulators and legislators shouldn't be scared of stifling technological innovation. Even if it slows down somewhat as a result of some monopoly-busting, tax loophole elimination, and applying traditional-industry regulation to tech businesses that pretend they are not part of traditional industries, tha...
While pop culture is exploring Paleo diets, indigenous people have been practicing this from time immemorial. Here are some great cookbooks featuring recipes from Indigenous people across Turtle Island to inspire every day acts of cultural resurgence in the kitchen.
It’s that time of year, leaves are changing, the cool winds are blowing in, and the autumn harvest is rich with hearty delights! While pop culture is exploring Paleo diets, indigenous people have been practicing this from time immemorial.
Here are some great cookbooks featuring recipes from indigenous people across Turtle Island to inspire every day acts of cultural resurgence in the kitchen.
Let us know what your favourite indigenous cookbooks are, especially those little-known community cookbooks!
Where People Feast focuses on Canadian west coast native cuisine, which takes advantage of the area's abundant seafood, game, fruits, and vegetables — with ingredients both exotic (oolichan, venison, grouse) and common (salmon, crab, berries).
Dolly Watts and her daughter Annie are from the Gitk'san First Nation in British Columbia, and are the proprietors of the Liliget Feast House in Vancouver, the only First Nations fine dining establishment of its kind. For almost two decades, Dolly and (later) Annie have focused on serving native cuisine that is both tr...
(Arsenal Pulp Press)by Andrew George Jr.
Andrew George, of the Wet'suwet'en Nation in Canada, is a well-respected chef and instructor who has spent the last 25 years promoting the traditions of First Nations food. In A Feast for All Seasons, written with Robert Gairns, he has compiled [indigenous] recipes that feature ingredients from the land, sea, and sky; ...
The 120 recipes include delectable, make-at-home dishes such as: Salmon and Fiddlehead Stirfry, Stuffed Wild Duck, Barbecued Oysters, Pan-fried Rabbit with Wild Cranberry Glaze, Clam Fritters, and Wild Blueberry Cookies. The book also features recipes with exotic ingredients that provide a fascinating glimpse into the ...
This carefully researched cookbook presents 150 authentic recipes from across the United Sates incorporating many indigenous ingredients hailed today for their healthfulness and flavor, including: wild rice, corn, beans, sunflower seeds, venison, buffalo, fowl, and fish. Spirit of the Harvest features traditional dishe...
Andrew George Jr. was head chef for Aboriginal foods at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. His imaginative menus reflect the diverse new culinary landscape while being mindful of an ages-old reverence for the land and sea, reflecting the growing interest in a cuisine that is rapidly moving into the mainstream to be...
Andrew also works actively at making native foods healthier and more nutritious; his recipes are lighter, less caloric, and include Asian touches, such as bison ribs with Thai spices, and a sushi roll with various cooked fish wrapped in nori. Other dishes include venison barley soup, wild berry crumble, sea asparagus s...
This wonderful cookbook features traditional foods like Roast Partridge, Roast Venison, Sweet and Sour Rabbit, Blueberry Fish Pudding, Roast Goose, Fish Soup, Rabbit Sandwich Spread, Roast Beaver, Berry Cobbler, Smoked Sucker, and other delights.
(Mohawk Indian Housing Corporation)Community cookbook sponsored by Mohawk Indian Housing Corp.
*The Paleolithic diet, also popularly referred to as the caveman diet, Stone Age diet and hunter-gatherer diet, is a modern nutritional diet designed to emulate, insofar as possible using modern foods, the diet of wild plants and animals eaten by humans during the Paleolithic era.
This article was initially published in Muskrat Magazine. Edited and republished with permission.

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