Good morning, and welcome back to the grind. Here’s a six-pack of news items that may have fallen through the cracks over the weekend.
- A tale of international intrigue involving accusations of war profiteering is set to unfold this week in a South Florida courtroom.
- Federal regulators singled out 11 South Florida hospitals for having too many patients readmitted. From the Sun-Sentinel:
Health experts tick off the main reasons: Some patients were sent home before they were ready. Some got sick from infections caught in the hospital. Some were too weak to care for themselves and had little or no help at home. Some got poor instructions or didn’t understand how to take medicines. Some never picked up prescribed drugs from pharmacies.
- Food Not Bombs activists say feeding the homeless is worth the time spent in jail for violating city ordinances, and are spreading word of their fight in Orlando around the state.
- The New York Times looks at political operatives who stalk candidates with cameras, looking for gaffes and fodder for future attack ads.
- Quote of the day: “I don’t believe the sidewalks are going to roll up as they did after the Apollo program. It’s not as grim as some would have you believe … All this being said, today really sucked.” — State Rep. Ritch Workman, R-Melbourne, on the Space Shuttle’s final launch from Cape Canaveral, via the News Service of Florida.
- Number of the day: $8 — approximate amount a Brevard County homeowners with homes worth $150,000 can expect to save on their property tax bills, thanks to cuts in levies that fund water management districts, according to an editorial by Florida Today.
