Nothing brings political paranoia out like a recount, and Florida’s about to hold three statewide. Already, explosive rhetoric surrounds the process, but for all the nasty side comments and veiled accusations, the goal for now remains the same: a fair count of ballots.

It’s important to note, despite #FloridaRecount trending on Twitter the last few days, that recounts yet to begin. Elections offices have until noon today to submit tallies from Tuesday’s election.

In Sarasota and Manatee counties, the first tabulation appears done, outside overseas absentee ballots, which get a separate 10-day window to arrive.

Notably, all counties report extra votes trickling into totals that weren’t there Tuesday when most reporters filed stories on who won. As someone who pays close attention to vote totals regardless if elections are close, I can tell you that’s normal. It’s only razor-thin margins where such movement matters.

With the U.S. Senate, Governor and Agriculture Commission races, contests on Tuesday were 1-percent races, so shifts mean more. Florida’s largest counties took the longest to tabulate, and happen to be Democratic bastions, so Republicans saw margins decline. In the Agriculture race, we’ve gone from Republican Matt Caldwell holding near a 0.5 percent lead Tuesday night to Democrat Nikki Fried boasting a 0.04-percent advantage.

But with Broward and Palm Beach counties still counting, the situation grew more anxious. Republican Rick Scott, who saw a lead over Democrat Bill Nelson in the Senate race drop to less than a 0.25 percent margin, accused “unethical liberals” of trying to steal the election, comments Nelson said were “borne of desperation.” Scott also filed a lawsuit against election supervisors in the county. Likewise, Nelson’s camp says Scott made a “veiled threat” about stopping the vote, and filed a federal lawsuit to ensure every vote gets counted.

But it’s important to note as Nelson and Scott deliver caustic rhetoric, they both essentially seek the same thing in Broward and Palm Beach even if they hope for different election outcomes. Scott’s lawsuit demands officials finally provide a total number of pending votes and make ballots available for inspection. Nelson wants a speedy but thorough tabulation of every vote.

The first major news story I covered out of college was the Florida Recount in 2000. I participated in media inspections of ballots afterwards. Everybody should want the actions sought in Scott’s and Nelson’s lawsuits, for the sake of transparency, yes, but mostly so voters believe in this election’s integrity.

U.S. Rep.-elect Greg Steube, R-Sarasota, Friday called on the Justice Department to provide oversight on recounts. He called out elections officials for “gross incompetence” and failure to comply with a law requiring early and absentee ballots be tabulated within 30 minutes of polls closing. There’s tough talk, but I doubt many Democrats would disagree with his basic assessment.

Manatee Supervisor of Elections Mike Bennett, a Republican, shakes his head at Broward Supervisor Brenda Snipes. “She has never run a good election,” he says. Broward should have planned for high turnout and properly staffed. But, he says, it’s likely incompetence and not corruption at play.

Importantly, no officials, including anxious candidates, have yet called for legally cast votes to be left uncounted. We’ll see what happens at noon today.

There’s a long road ahead for Florida, one the Sunshine State knows too well. These three races will surely go to a machine recount triggered by a 0.5-percent margin. Two appear poised to go to a manual recount, which happens with 0.25 percent gap. We’ll see ballot challenges and both sides making claims of theft.

But as citizens, our goal should be the same—complete and transparent tabulations we can trust.

Jacob Ogles is contributing senior editor for SRQ Media Group. 

In school, we learned about winter, spring, summer and my favorite, fall.

But when my wife and I relocated to Florida in 2012, we quickly learned “THE SEASON” had an entirely different connotation.

Here, “THE SEASON” means that time of year when it seems half of the rest of the world comes to visit.

Locally, THE SEASON begins slowly each year as seasonal residents check in to open their “winter homes,” many even before Thanksgiving.

Of course, we have no problem handling the people who arrive in mass by January, but the cars, well, that’s a bit more challenging. Some background.

According to the Census bureau, the City of Sarasota’s full-time population is now about 57,000 people, a 16-percent increase since 1980. Despite our impressive downtown skyline, the city has only grown by 9,000 over the past 38 years.

Although the City has not grown much since 1980, Sarasota and Manatee County have grown by a whopping 130 percent. Since 1980, our two-county transportation planning region has morphed from 350,000 full time residents to 804,000, a gain approaching 500,000 people in the past 38 years.

This, in a state that has grown from 9.7 million residents to 21 million, becoming the third most populated state.

In Sarasota, we’ve hired a new team of planners to do all we can do to manage seasonal traffic, along with the 4 million annual visitors we experience each year.

In the bigger picture, it will take a regional approach and perhaps require improved transit options.

But when you’re caught up in the inevitable seasonal traffic jam, take a moment to remind yourself, it’s a great time of year to be in Sarasota, with so much to do and so few pot holes.

And have confidence our public works crews are committed, and have a perfect record so far, of keeping our roads clear of ice and snow, all season, to keep things moving.

When it comes to seasonal traffic, as Paul Harvey used to say, “And now you know, the Rest of the Story.”

I look forward to seeing you, around town.

Tom Barwin is the Sarasota city manager 

The word “liberal” is central to the identity of New College of Florida, though perhaps not in the way you’d think. Florida law designates New College as “the residential liberal arts honors college of the State of Florida” (see Florida Statutes section 1004.32).

So, we’re proud of the word liberal, even as we are very aware from political debate the term “liberal” and its partner “conservative” mean different things to different people. With the mid-term elections closing as I write, it is illuminating to examine the origins of these terms.   

Sources point to the first use of “liberal” and “conservative” as shorthand for policy ideals of political parties by the Whigs and Tories in 1800s Great Britain. The origins of both words, though, are much older.

Liberal, as in liberal arts, comes from the Latin liberalis. Historians and classicists tell us that refers to the subjects that free men studied, such as reading and writing, logic and rhetoric, which gave them skills needed to be effective citizens. The root word, however, is liber, which means “free,” and it is also the root of “liberate.”

Thus, a liberal education is at the heart of being a free citizen, and ideally that liberal education will liberate students from what Socrates called “the unexamined life.” A liberal education encourages students to question old ideas in the hope of finding new, better ways. That is precisely how we view a New College education—more than anything else, it provides the ability to think critically, which is vital in any pursuit.

But students cannot develop new knowledge and those better ways unless they comprehend the body of knowledge developed by those who came before them. In other words, knowledge production requires knowledge.

That brings us to the word “conservative,” which, too, comes from Latin, the verb conservare, to preserve. The central purpose of the world’s institutions of higher learning, for a millennium, has been to preserve knowledge for the benefit of future generations. Without it, we would have no knowledge on which to build, and each generation would be starting anew.

So to advance what we know and can do in the world, education should combine the best of both liberal and conservative, under those definitions. At New College, undergraduate students study biochemistry and mathematics and psychology, but they also study ancient Greek and art history and philosophy. Master’s degree data science students study programming, machine learning and statistical modeling, but they also study ethics and decision-making to conserve and advance the common good.

At a time when the forum of politics places liberal and conservative in opposition, we should turn to these original meanings, and think of them instead as complementary. To succeed as scholars or as citizens, for the betterment of higher education or our republic, we need to conserve and respect the knowledge of the past, and then look beyond it and act freely, embracing new and better ways without fear or hesitation.

Dr. Donal O’Shea is president of New College of Florida. 

The City of Sarasota, in conjunction with the Sarasota Patriotic Observance Committee, will host its annual Veterans Day Parade and Ceremony on Sunday, Nov. 11. The parade will begin at 10 a.m. at Osprey Avenue in downtown Sarasota and will move east to west on Main Street, ending at Gulfstream Avenue. The festivities will culminate in an 11 a.m. ceremony at Chaplain J.D. Hamel Park at the corner of Gulfstream Avenue and Main Street, recognizing the 11^th hour of the 11^th day of the 11^th month when the armistice was signed in 1918, ending World War I. 

This year’s ceremony will honor Vietnam veterans and all female veterans, including World War II female vets, with the theme “All Gave Some. Some Gave All.” The keynote speaker will be retired U.S. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Charles L. Thomas, who served for 28 years before teaching JROTC at Sarasota Military Academy.

The parade will feature the color guards from the Sarasota Police Department, Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office and Sarasota County Fire Department, antique military vehicles, a low-level flyover from a Sheriff’s Office helicopter, students from Riverview and Booker high schools, Sarasota Military Academy and the Venice Middle School Junior Marines, Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida, Boy Scouts of America and many other veterans groups, community organizations and local dignitaries. 

On November 1, friends of New College and distinguished alums gathered on the Bayfront behind College Hall for the 40th annual Clambake, the College’s signature fundraising event. This year’s Clambake netted over $350,000 for student scholarships, besting last year’s event by more than $100,000.  The total reflected sponsorships and individual tickets, in addition to proceeds from a live auction and paddle raise (led by auctioneer Michael Klauber) for Novo Collegiate scholarships.

“Thank you, everyone, for making this year’s Clambake such a success,” said MaryAnne Young, executive director of the New College Foundation. “Together, our community friends and alums rallied behind our goal of raising more money for scholarships than ever before. You made it happen!”

Foundation Executive Director Young noted donors gave more than $1 million for student scholarships during the most recent fiscal year. 

For more information about scholarships, contact the New College Foundation at 941-487-4800 or via email at foundation@ncf.edu. 

New College Foundation

Join Selah Freedom on Thursday, November 15th from 7:00PM - 9:00PM for an extraordinary evening to fight sex trafficking affecting American children on the rooftop of the Westin, downtown Sarasota, Co-Chaired by Marko Radisic and Elizabeth Moore.

This will not be a seated event. Enjoy heavy hors d'oeuvres, beverages and entertainment, a fabulous auction and moving survivor speaker!

Please contact Sponsorship@SelahFreedom.com with questions or for more information. 

Selah Freedom

The Exchange (formerly the Woman’s Exchange) has announced that is now accepting applications for its 2019-2020 grants and scholarship program. Last year, the organization awarded $250,000 to 19 regionally based arts and cultural organizations and 22 students. To be considered, all applications must be received by no later than 4 p.m. on January 31, 2019. For guidelines and application information, visit The Exchange’s website at www.sarasotawex.com.

“We’re honored to play an integral role in our region’s rich arts and cultural tapestry,” says Karen Koblenz, The Exchange’s executive director and CEO. “Since 1962, The Exchange has awarded $8 million to local non-profits and high school and college students pursuing a higher education in the arts. Every penny of this is generated through our consignment operation. We’re thankful to our many volunteers, consignors and shoppers for their ongoing support and patronage. These funds can be game-changing for our grantees, who often credit The Exchange for supporting pivotal moments in their success.” 

Koblenz points out that the organizational grants are for specific projects and outreach programs, including performances, exhibitions, education initiatives and special series. She explains that The Exchange’s board bases its granting decisions on the long-term stability and financial health of the organizations, the program’s overall appeal to the public and the educational impact these programs will have on area students. Individual scholarships are awarded based on grade point average, the individual’s artistic goals and achievements, and letters of recommendation.

“We’re especially interested in programs that explore diversity, nurture educational opportunities, and promote a vibrant and civically engaged community,” says Koblenz. “The cultural arts industry plays a pivotal role in our region’s economic health and serves as a magnet for tourism. We’re proud to invest in our home-grown creative talents.”  

The Exchange

In grateful recognition of our nation’s service members and veterans Tommy’s Express Car Wash will be offering free washes to past and present service members and their immediate family members. The free washes will be available on request during operating hours on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday of Veterans Day weekend (November 10-12).

“At Tommy’s Express it is our privilege to recognize our past and present servicemen and women and the value that they contribute to our communities each day. If you’ve served, Tommy’s Express would like to offer you our heartfelt appreciation in the best way we know how. We look forward to seeing you!”’

Tommy’s Express of Sarasota is located at 4615 S. Tamiami Trail/ North East of Procter Road. For more information please visit tommys-express.com.