I am in favor of a statewide ban on fracking. Using fracking and fracking-like techniques in southwest Florida is not worth the risk to the environment, especially given the relatively small amount of poor-quality oil it would produce. Until such a ban is legislated, I support the continued right of local jurisdictions to prohibit fracking in their municipalities given the public welfare and economic risks involved.
Let’s agree that responsible gun owners don’t like what’s happening – the reckless use of firearms. People who have never held a gun in their lives don’t like what’s happening – the reckless use of firearms. We need everyone to come to the table and work on a sensible solution. Gun violence takes a number of different forms, and so do its solutions. We know that a single policy will not stop every shooting, but when taken in the aggregate, smart gun laws have a significant impact on public safety.
We cannot underestimate the environmental, economic, and public health crisis we are seeing today. We have seen organisms from every trophic level, every level of the food chain, wash up in great numbers along our beaches. Businesses are suffering; tourists are canceling their plans; people are experiencing serious health effects. This disaster has been years in the making, but it did not have to be this way.