Editorial: Gigs and garlands

Monday
Jan 1, 2018 at 12:38 AM Jan 1, 2018 at 12:42 AM

Gigs and garlands

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Netheader:

Happy New Year! Today, of course, is Jan. 1, the beginning of a new year and for many of us, a fresh outlook on life. Beyond the purely personal, the flipping of the calendar from the old year to new is also a moment for government to initiate new laws or begin new undertakings.

For example, the Emancipation Proclamation, which nominally freed the slaves in the Confederacy, took effect today in 1863. In 1892, Ellis Island became the new gateway for officially processing immigrants into America. In 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minster Winston Churchill led the creation of the United Nations, which started with 26 countries. In 1881, the French began construction of the Panama Canal, which on Jan. 1, 2000, reverted back to Panama, 86 years after Americans, who took over the effort in 1904, completed the project.

Yet we would not see today as the time for resolutions and new outlooks were it not for Julius Caesar.

In 45 B.C., Caesar proclaimed the Julian calendar to be the new measurement of the days and months, with Jan. 1 as the start of the new year. According to timeanddate.com, the previous calendar was based on the phases of the moon, and required a committee of people to track the addition or subtraction of days to keep things aligned with the changes of the seasons. Although the Roman calendar had been in effect for nearly 700 years, the time-keeping method sometimes involved adding whole months in order to keep it in synch. Caesar revolutionized that after consulting a Greek astronomer, Sosigenes, who based the calendar on the earth's revolutions around the sun. The Julian calendar remained in effect until revised by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582, who dropped 10 days from the calendar.

GARLAND: We commend Publix and Procter & Gamble for again helping raise money for Special Olympics. Shoppers who donate the the organization at Publix stores between Jan. 4 and Jan. 20 will receive coupons for savings on a wide arrays of P&G products. It's a worthy cause and we thank donors in advance for helping contribute to the $40 million the companies have raised for Special Olympics over the past quarter-century.

GARLAND: Speaking of Jan. 20, that is the anticipated launch date for Haines City's new Mobile City Hall. The brainchild of City Manager Deric Feacher, the project features a vehicle that will travel to various parts of town to allow citizens to access many government services found at City Hall, without them having to travel to the brick-and-mortar version. We commend this innovative idea, which Feacher acknowledged that he borrowed from Boston, as a way to improve relations between government officials and the people they serve.

GARLAND: Lakeland Regional Health CEO Elaine Thompson earns a garland after landing on the list of the 130 Women Hospital and Health System Leaders to Know, as compiled by the influential Becker’s Hospital Review. The publication recognized these women for their management and leadership skills. In Thompson's case, Becker's cited her work to establish the hospital's affiliations with Mayo Clinic Care Network, USF Health, Nemours Children's Health System and Orlando Health. Becker's also noted LRH has expanded its physician practices and ambulatory care centers under Thompson, and created performance standards that improved emergency department operations. Lakeland is indeed fortunate to have Thompson running this major community asset.

GARLAND: Polk County and the Lakeland Magic, the minor league basketball team here affiliated with the Orlando Magic, are still getting to know each other. But we applaud the team for stepping out into the community recently. Players recently joined with Habitat for Humanity of East Polk County to help complete a new three-bedroom, two-bath home for Ken-Jerica Jones of Lake Alfred. Beyond helping with a charitable effort, the team's work in Lake Alfred demonstrates that the Magic are not just Lakeland's team, but, as will be evident when its new practice facility is completed in Winter Haven, belongs to all of Polk County. Well done.

GARLAND: We salute the Greater St. Paul Missionary Baptist Institutional Church in Lakeland. Members of the church created 100 fleece blankets to be donated to the homeless or to local nursing home residents. Besides those, middle school students at the church's Greater St. Paul Academy helped out with another 25 blankets for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. A wonderful demonstration of charitable and community spirit.

GIG: We gig Gov. Rick Scott, whose staff recently took down his Project Sunburst internet site. Stung by allegations of conducting state business in secret, Scott launched Project Sunburst during his first term to promote transparency and open government. The governor and his top staff pledged to put all their emails on the website. But Scott's spokesman recently said it was taken down because the email system was outdated and too expensive to replace. Good idea, hobbled by flawed execution. We urge the governor to bring it back, and more importantly, to maintain it more completely.

Monday
Jan 1, 2018 at 12:38 AM Jan 1, 2018 at 12:42 AM

Gigs and garlands

SMS:

Netheader:

Happy New Year! Today, of course, is Jan. 1, the beginning of a new year and for many of us, a fresh outlook on life. Beyond the purely personal, the flipping of the calendar from the old year to new is also a moment for government to initiate new laws or begin new undertakings.

For example, the Emancipation Proclamation, which nominally freed the slaves in the Confederacy, took effect today in 1863. In 1892, Ellis Island became the new gateway for officially processing immigrants into America. In 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minster Winston Churchill led the creation of the United Nations, which started with 26 countries. In 1881, the French began construction of the Panama Canal, which on Jan. 1, 2000, reverted back to Panama, 86 years after Americans, who took over the effort in 1904, completed the project.

Yet we would not see today as the time for resolutions and new outlooks were it not for Julius Caesar.

In 45 B.C., Caesar proclaimed the Julian calendar to be the new measurement of the days and months, with Jan. 1 as the start of the new year. According to timeanddate.com, the previous calendar was based on the phases of the moon, and required a committee of people to track the addition or subtraction of days to keep things aligned with the changes of the seasons. Although the Roman calendar had been in effect for nearly 700 years, the time-keeping method sometimes involved adding whole months in order to keep it in synch. Caesar revolutionized that after consulting a Greek astronomer, Sosigenes, who based the calendar on the earth's revolutions around the sun. The Julian calendar remained in effect until revised by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582, who dropped 10 days from the calendar.

GARLAND: We commend Publix and Procter & Gamble for again helping raise money for Special Olympics. Shoppers who donate the the organization at Publix stores between Jan. 4 and Jan. 20 will receive coupons for savings on a wide arrays of P&G products. It's a worthy cause and we thank donors in advance for helping contribute to the $40 million the companies have raised for Special Olympics over the past quarter-century.

GARLAND: Speaking of Jan. 20, that is the anticipated launch date for Haines City's new Mobile City Hall. The brainchild of City Manager Deric Feacher, the project features a vehicle that will travel to various parts of town to allow citizens to access many government services found at City Hall, without them having to travel to the brick-and-mortar version. We commend this innovative idea, which Feacher acknowledged that he borrowed from Boston, as a way to improve relations between government officials and the people they serve.

GARLAND: Lakeland Regional Health CEO Elaine Thompson earns a garland after landing on the list of the 130 Women Hospital and Health System Leaders to Know, as compiled by the influential Becker’s Hospital Review. The publication recognized these women for their management and leadership skills. In Thompson's case, Becker's cited her work to establish the hospital's affiliations with Mayo Clinic Care Network, USF Health, Nemours Children's Health System and Orlando Health. Becker's also noted LRH has expanded its physician practices and ambulatory care centers under Thompson, and created performance standards that improved emergency department operations. Lakeland is indeed fortunate to have Thompson running this major community asset.

GARLAND: Polk County and the Lakeland Magic, the minor league basketball team here affiliated with the Orlando Magic, are still getting to know each other. But we applaud the team for stepping out into the community recently. Players recently joined with Habitat for Humanity of East Polk County to help complete a new three-bedroom, two-bath home for Ken-Jerica Jones of Lake Alfred. Beyond helping with a charitable effort, the team's work in Lake Alfred demonstrates that the Magic are not just Lakeland's team, but, as will be evident when its new practice facility is completed in Winter Haven, belongs to all of Polk County. Well done.

GARLAND: We salute the Greater St. Paul Missionary Baptist Institutional Church in Lakeland. Members of the church created 100 fleece blankets to be donated to the homeless or to local nursing home residents. Besides those, middle school students at the church's Greater St. Paul Academy helped out with another 25 blankets for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. A wonderful demonstration of charitable and community spirit.

GIG: We gig Gov. Rick Scott, whose staff recently took down his Project Sunburst internet site. Stung by allegations of conducting state business in secret, Scott launched Project Sunburst during his first term to promote transparency and open government. The governor and his top staff pledged to put all their emails on the website. But Scott's spokesman recently said it was taken down because the email system was outdated and too expensive to replace. Good idea, hobbled by flawed execution. We urge the governor to bring it back, and more importantly, to maintain it more completely.

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