The News Bulletin’s “From the Pulpit” features inspirational parables or messages from north Okaloosa County ministers.

Saturday, (“Family values shape the nation’s future,” Page A5), Okaloosa Baptist Association missions director Eugene Strickland suggested that home life, family influence and faith in a higher power can help shape the nation.

Though not exclusive to Christians, instilling in children ideals such as honesty, charity, respect, kindness and forgiveness can make a world of difference.

Forget the Crusades, the Inquisition and other historical events contrarily begun in Christianity’s name; such incidents counter these ideals. Espousing values and passing them on to future generations — within a Christian household or not — contributes to a closer community of residents who respect each other.

Every day we see the difference. Pessimism, jealousy, power plays and rivalries arise where faith, hope and mutual respect are scarce; where people judge others because of differences rather than work through opposing worldviews; and where selfish pursuits surpass the greater good.

For the News Bulletin’s part, we constantly balance the scales as we strive to inform the community about serious, often contentious topics, which can’t be ignored, while ensuring overall coverage tells north Okaloosa’s complete story, including developments that bring pride to the community.

Government and business reporting, along with occasional editorials, must be fearless and cover all sides with due diligence, taking care to not sensationalize issues or inadvertently present caricatures of real people.

Strickland’s column hit home because my Catholic faith daily guides decisions in my work and personal life.

That doesn’t mean the News Bulletin has a certain worldview; it shouldn’t, and it doesn’t. However, particularly on the tough issues, we strive to report with compassion, as opposed to sensation — ensuring staff reports have factual support, evenhanded coverage and purpose other than to fill pages.

National news outlets increasingly take alternative approaches that feel like media malpractice.

Take David Gregory asking The Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald on “Meet the Press” whether his reporting constitutes “aiding and abetting” NSA leaker Edward Snowden.

Such accusations would have caused a chilling effect for landmark investigative reporting, namely with Daniel Ellsberg’s leaking of the Pentagon Papers. The question seemed political, having no basis in reality, kowtowing with a federal push to diminish the media’s role, as seen with the government’s probe of Associated Press phone records. 

It was a loaded question, of the “have you stopped beating your wife?” brand that colleges teach journalism students to avoid but national reporters use anyway. 

Then there’s the nonstop Paula Deen coverage, which aims to crucify the chef and TV host based on repugnant remarks that she may have made 30 years ago, for which she has apologized.

Initial coverage of the court case alleging racial and sexual discrimination is merited, but should news organizations bring in a panel of imaging experts to deconstruct and judge Deen’s apology on the “Today” show?

Maybe I oversimplify things but a heartfelt apology is a heartfelt apology, and people deserve second chances if they show or attempt to show genuine remorse. I’d be able to understand critics’ efforts to boycott and trash Deen if she told Matt Lauer she stood by her alleged, racially tinged remarks, but that wasn’t the case.

So is it necessary to rake a 66-year-old grandmother — that’s who she is first, before a businesswoman — over the coals in this manner? Particularly with millions reading and watching such so-called expert analysis, feeding the masses opinions about someone they don’t personally know?

There’s that attempt to offer second chances and forgiveness again, and I’m struck by how much Strickland’s words ring true.

Certainly, being a public figure like Deen entails plenty of scrutiny and, at times, adversity. It’s no different with our local leaders since the position comes with perceived power. However, north Okaloosa is a small community, so we try to balance reporting with perspective.

Saturday, we reported on one resident’s critique of the Crestview City Council, but other government stories focus on less heated, business-as-usual topics. Wednesday’s edition will include a roundup of community leaders’ summer reading lists, including comments from some of our city leaders, which further helps readers see our public servants as more than politicians who often receive deserved scrutiny for their decisions.

I like to think we go the extra mile, and try to present a well-rounded picture of the north county: the highlights, lowlights and everything in between.

When we have newsroom discussions to determine whom to contact, what facts to gather or test, or how to re-word something with neutrality, I have faith that it’s because each of us learned to do unto others as we would have them do unto us.

Then I wish those larger news organizations would do the same.

What's your view? Write a letter to the editor or tweet News Bulletin Editor Thomas Boni @cnbeditor.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: EDITOR’S DESK: Striving for fearless, fair reporting

Crestview is my hometown and I have always wanted to move back when my husband retires from the Navy.

Now that I have lived in places like Hawaii, Dallas, Jacksonville, even Pensacola and Cantonment, unless changes are made, we won't be retiring to Crestview.

There are so many people, it's worse now then when I was growing up.

There are not enough businesses to provide jobs for adults and teenagers, which means there are still only a limited amount of places to shop retail, grocery and restaurants.

There are even fewer entertainment options for family, teen or adult outings. There’s the bowling alley, the skating rink, the movies, Twin Hills Park and a few hole-in-the-wall bars.

Bringing in more businesses would provide jobs to parents and young adults trying to make a living without having to spend the extra money and time to travel out of town for work.

It gives teenagers the opportunity to have a job, which in turn teaches them responsibility and hopefully keeps them out of trouble.

With a larger selection of businesses, the community would be more inclined to spend their time and their money in their hometown.

So many people can't afford leaving Crestview to go shopping or for entertainment, so they are stuck with the limited options that Crestview has to offer.

Maybe having more jobs available would help to eliminate (the incidence) of people committing crimes just to get by.

I don't feel as if the larger businesses will hurt the locally owned businesses like some tend to think. In Jacksonville, sometimes I see the local businesses with more cars in the parking lot than the chain stores that they are nestled between.

I won’t lie: sometimes it takes over 30 minutes to go 7 miles down the road. But in that 7 miles, I have a large mall, at least six grocery stores, Lowe’s, Home Depot, Target, Wal-Mart, endless restaurants — chain and locally owned — along with numerous strip malls, several thrift stores and furniture stores, all of them with customers inside.

At least with all of this, I have options. If one place doesn't have what I am looking for, the next store down the road might. If I want seafood and I don't like one place, I have five more to try. Even though it's a big place, you still have neighborhoods that are quiet, peaceful and laid back.

Now matter how big a town gets, you always have options where you want to live.

I was raised going to church at Woodlawn Baptist. I have since visited that church and have seen how they have changed to keep the youth and young adults interested and active in church. I am sure other churches there have grown in the same manner.

If they can do it, why can't the city take notice and grow with the changing of time as well?

Just because the city grows doesn't mean you have to take the "small town" feel away from it.

Change doesn't have to divide the people of Crestview; hopefully it will bring everyone closer together!

—–

What's your view? Write a letter to the editor.

http://www.crestviewbulletin.com/opinion/send-a-letter

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: GUEST COLUMN: More businesses would solve numerous problems

Northwood Elementary School’s decision to cease yearbook publication has concerned at least a couple of parents who see the annual as a household staple.

The leadership committee that lowered the axe, facing budget cuts and rising production costs, said there was no other choice. Many households, facing sequestration and other budget crises, can’t afford a copy.

Call me old-fashioned, but it’s hard to imagine a rainy day or some occasion when boredom or the need for nostalgia arises and you can’t go into the closet, burrow through old boxes and find that earliest version of a face book.

Some will say, “Well, you have your memories.” But is that true?

Looking at old photos can call up more memories than usual because your brain doesn’t need the excess for everyday living.

A fifth-grade yearbook reminds me of a girl absentmindedly rubbing an uncapped ink pen against her Oxford shirt while listening to a class lecture. I’m transported to 1994, and smile as the teacher interrupts the class to alert her that she ruined her shirt. Then I laugh and think, “Why is that the first memory that comes to mind?”

I stop cold upon glimpsing a fellow Boy Scout who died that year from an accidental gunshot while hunting. The Kenny Chesney song comes to mind. “Who would he be today?” I wonder.

Upon seeing the elderly afterschool care staff, some who have passed, I’m struck by the feeling of deep admiration that starkly contrasts a child’s attitude about grown-ups who could punish you if you get in trouble.

Across the country, the yearbook is dying. Electronic yearbooks and social media like Facebook are the supposed replacements.

But is that shortsighted?

They say that once something hits cyberspace, it’s there forever. However, I can think of several dotcoms that were riding high before dying. While printed products can endure for generations in boxes on shelves, where no one can touch them, a webhost can cut the cord — literally — and it’s over.

Some companies, like TreeRing, have capitalized on the concern, printing personalized yearbooks at no cost to schools, with no minimum order requirements. The company’s website says it will even plant a tree for each book ordered. It seems like an ideal option for cash-strapped schools.

Locally, two Northwood teachers stepped up and created memory books for their third-graders.

Hats off to you, Erin Adams and Paige Parker. It’s this editor’s opinion that yearbooks are an integral part of the school experience.

They remind us to laugh, cry and reflect on the past.

What's your view? Write a letter to the editor or tweet News Bulletin Editor Thomas Boni @cnbeditor.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: EDITOR'S DESK: Amid the yearbook’s death, alternatives emerge

For the first 100 days following a presidential inauguration, the newly installed chief executive is afforded time to "get his feet on the ground" and be free of critical comments. 

In essence, the commander in chief is on a perceived honeymoon.

It has been my intention to do likewise with the newly installed Crestview City Council. With the arrival of April came a 60 percent turnover in council personnel, each of whom was new to his elected position. Since then, the council generally has taken something of a verbal beating by citizens. 

The News Bulletin’s Hubbub section rarely is devoid of a critical comment urging the council to do one thing or another.

Having been in their seats, and having studied municipal government while pursuing my post-secondary education, I am well aware that much of what the council members are being asked to do is not within their power.

How many times do we hear that it is the role of the city to bring all sorts of businesses into the municipality? 

How many times do people complain that there is a lack of chain restaurants within the city limits?

How many times are comments made about the lack of good jobs?

How many times are there demands for improved roads and a bypass around the city?

Sometimes, the observations expressed are more humorous than a comic strip! Folks need to learn a bit more about the role of city council before making such comments. 

First, it is not the role of a governmental body to bring restaurants to a city. The reason some chain restaurants will not locate in the Crestview area is "traffic flow," defined as "the number of vehicular movements past a given point within a certain time period." 

One might try to compare the Hub City with Fort Walton Beach, since both are almost equal in population. But look at the surrounding areas. We have no other municipality bouncing up against our borders. “Down south,” there are several smaller cities and towns, plus two military installations, and innumerable tourists driving by specific points during any given period.

On numerous occasions, folks talk about reviving shops "downtown," but there is little knowledge within the population as to why several locations have been left to deteriorate and thus are unappealing to entrepreneurs. 

Further, how many businesses have tried locating along Main Street, only to close because of poor support from the buying public?

Good jobs are always wanted in any given location, and the reasons for a business to locate, or not locate, in a particular area are many.

Primarily, a business looks for an educationally prepared work force. Look at the businesses at the Bob Sikes airport just east of town. They have virtually drained more highly qualified individuals from the work force and placed them in reasonably high-paying jobs. 

Look at city council and realize that government’s role is to make things more accommodating for business and industry; it is the role of chambers of commerce, economic development councils and others to lure those desired businesses, whether they be industrial, service or retail establishments, to come to town.

So stop complaining and start talking to those who — if they are doing their jobs — have knowledge of businesses willing to relocate or expand into the local area.

Bob Allen is a retired city council member who lives in Crestview.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: MY VIEW: Let’s not confuse Crestview city council’s role

A post on Okaloosa County Commissioner Wayne Harris’ Facebook page has drawn considerable attention.

The post, from Thursday, criticizes a federal health care mandate forcing Christian organizations except churches to provide contraception coverage. The solution is voting for politicians favoring Christian religions, not Islam, according to the text, which says: “Have you ever seen a Muslim do anything that contributes positively to the American way of life?”

We shared the post on our Facebook page. Readers divided in familiar camps: those who believed we were manufacturing controversy, and those who understood the merits of sharing it. The latter group noted that our comment on the post stated facts, offered no judgments, and asked readers to weigh in with their views.

Some readers said they know what’s in the commissioner’s heart, but that’s the concern. We can rely only on facts — in this case, content that featured voter direction and anti-Muslim sentiments.

We can cut the commissioner some slack because the comment was not original. Most of the text came from a 2012 chain email during Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign. However, public officials in the age of social media should proofread their submissions before sending them to a mass audience.

The quoted post lacks attribution, so any constituent reading the commissioner’s publicly accessible page — particularly those less Internet-literate, who don't understand that entering a couple of times after a prelude to the post suggests the following text was taken from another source — could believe Harris himself penned the appeal. Additionally, no part of the post says, “I disavow this part” or “I support this part,” which might have relieved Muslim Okaloosans.

Our sharing the post with readers wasn’t intended to judge the commissioner or make implications — none that his endorsing the post, with minimal notations or delineations, already made.

Many people may think this is a non-issue, as Facebook is an informal communication tool.

Is it, though? A public official, even on a personal page, could break Florida’s broad Public Records Law with the slightest hint of a conversation with another public official on municipal matters. Since that potential exists, shouldn’t elected leaders exhibit the same gravitas as when they’re on the campaign trail?

Politicians’ social media posts, likes and shares may seem like quick transmissions of funny or clever messages for their party-line proponents, but they mean much more to constituents who see these messages as insight to beliefs on policy.

When you’re a public official, it doesn’t matter if it’s a personal page; if it’s in black and white, it’s gospel to constituents. It’s no hindrance, but rather a credit, that you and your posts are held to higher standards.

Since Facebook posts are premeditated and have a beginning, middle and end, they can be taken at face value. And we must hold public officials accountable for their content.

Readers, particularly those bemoaning our efforts to keep public officials accountable, shouldn’t expect — and will never receive — less than that.

What's your view? Write a letter to the editor or tweet News Bulletin Editor Thomas Boni @cnbeditor.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: EDITOR'S DESK: Hold public officials’ social media posts to high standards

A tempest in a teapot has been brewing since readers learned that Okaloosa County Schools allowed principal applicants beyond county limits for the 2013-14 school year.

Still, one Okaloosan slipped in among the north county schools’ new leaders.

Northwood Elementary’s new prinicipal, Donna Goode, comes from Huntsville, Ala.; Riverside Elementary’s Tammy Matz, from Mishawaka, Ind.; and Shoal River Middle’s Cheree Davis leaves Edwins Elementary in Fort Walton Beach for Crestview, her hometown.

Each principal is experienced and tested.

A banner achievement in Goode’s 25-year teaching career and 14 years in administration is bringing Owens Cross Roads Elementary School from a D to an A in one year, according to Okaloosa Schools Superintendent Mary Beth Jackson.

Matz brings 12 years’ administration experience, and she’s already prepared for Common Core State Standards, the county’s new curriculum that will replace the FCAT in 2014.

Davis, who hadn’t been a principal before the 2011-12 school year, has led Edwins to new heights, spearheading a facility renovation project and breakfast program that lifted student morale and boosted kids’ health. Such changes to one of Okaloosa’s oldest schools prompted many parents’ attention.

Northwood, Riverside and Shoal River have capable leaders, but a number of readers have criticized the district after learning that a committee allowed candidates outside the district due to a purportedly shallow applicant pool.

We have received phone calls, Facebook messages and postings on our website — many with harsh words for the superintendent, questioning anyone suggesting Okaloosa’s teachers are less than suitable for administrative positions.

But is it all just a misunderstanding?

Teachers instruct and motivate students, instill life lessons and ultimately change lives. We recently received a phone call about a teacher whose actions, compassion and generosity surpass her position’s base requirements. And there are others like her, the caller said.

We know. Saturday’s edition concluded a 12-part series on north Okaloosa’s Teachers of the Year.

No one, including the school district’s administrators, has discounted our teachers’ value.

It’s just that the job requirements and descriptions differ.

Entry-level elementary, middle and high school principal positions typically require a master’s degree, as opposed to a teacher’s bachelor’s degree, according to the United States Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics.

And some traits that readers have told us qualify their favorite teachers for an administrative position don’t necessarily move the needle.

Unusual generosity in time and money make a teacher memorable, but a principal’s primary duties include supervising staff, monitoring teacher and student performance and managing the school budget — which means making unemotional decisions that often include more nos than yeses.

Two different jobs require two different skill sets, and there’s nothing wrong with that, or with the school district committee’s inclusive search for administrative positions — unless you believe that one job is more important than the other, which we don’t.

What's your view? Write a letter to the editor or tweet News Bulletin Editor Thomas Boni @cnbeditor.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: EDITOR'S DESK: School district’s principal search no outrage

Sometimes I am amazed by the sheer ignorance of some of the comments and letters you receive.

Your newspaper does an excellent job of explaining things happening in the Crestview area in simple, easy to understand articles. Do your letter writers just not read them all the way through? Did they sleep through civics class?

"Krystal, mall hold-ups part of a pattern" (June 1, Page A4) is typical of this ignorance.

Does the writer not understand that Austin has 820,000 people while our area has about 30,000?

Does he really expect that restaurant chains and chain stores will flock to an area less than 4 percent the size of the city he visited?

If he wants the services of a big city, he needs to move to a big city.

In one of the many new phone books dumped at the end of my driveway this month, not counting fast food places like McDonald's and KFC, I counted more than 40 places at which to sit down and have a great meal without having to cross Shoal River.

While we're at it, what is this bizarre demand for chain restaurants?

Who wants boring old frozen lobsters when places like Earl's, Wayne's, the Fish Net and Country Chicken and Fish serve local seafood fresh?

Have those chronic complainers even bothered to try a sensational meal at the Wild Olive, Mia's or Christopher's Uncorked Bistro? Are their tastes so limited they need an out of town company cook to create the only food they'll eat?

Do they really think eating in a junk shop atmosphere with bargain decorations from Goodwill littering the walls is the epitome of fine dining?

The writer said that "impact fees and the tax rate" keep away the chains he craves.

Didn't he read in those same pages that our City Council has repealed impact fees to the tune of more than $1 million for the mall planned by Lowe's?

He and fellow commenters love to toss the word "corruption" around when things don't go his way. Could he at least go by the library to look up the actual meaning of the word in a dictionary?

I have not read of any official allegations of corruption in your newspaper.

If the writer understood how city government worked, he would know there is already a management plan for Crestview called the comprehensive plan, which was recently updated.

But I guess your writer doesn't understand that Highway 85 is a state road, not a city road, and city government cannot do anything to widen it, pave it, time the stop lights better or build a bypass on a state or county road.

One thing I do know is that people like your reader love complaining, but hate supporting their city — even just to learn how it works.

I have been here just over 10 years, and after years of living in a city with all the malls and chain restaurants your writer desires, I would rather be nowhere else.

This is the warmest, friendliest place I've ever lived, even if the mayor and city council won't put on their hardhats to go build an Olive Garden — after they have dug new lanes for Highway 85, of course.

By Matthew Bryant, Crestview

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: GUEST COLUMN: Chronic complainers should consider Crestview’s strengths

My wife and I just returned from the Austin, Texas area for a Memorial Day visit with friends, and I literally got a sick, depressed feeling when I started to enter Crestview.

If we didn't have decent jobs here (not in Crestview), we would have turned around and left. The first night there, it took us an hour to decide where to eat — compared to the 30 seconds it takes here.

Krystal will end up in the same place every other business in the last 10 years that tried to come to Crestucky has — in Destin! They have our Target, Olive Garden and several others.

Someone needs to do an investigation covering past and current council members to see what kind of money Destin is paying them to force the north end of the county to keep them alive during the off season.

I've talked to several business owners that would love to bring some franchises to the area, but impact fees and the tax rate keep most out.

Are you seriously telling me the city would rather have $0 tax revenue than to receive millions in annual revenue and provide some jobs for the community because they don't want to give businesses a break to locate here?

Only one thing could possibly explain that: corruption or personal interest in keeping business out.

Since when is it the responsibility of the business owners to pay for the city’s lack of a traffic management plan? Highway 85 should have been widened to six lanes like Fort Walton Beach and Niceville years ago. Krystal will not make the afternoon parking lot any worse.

Just like the hold-up on the new mall project — same game, different name.

See a pattern here, people?

I don't know about you, but I'd rather spend my money here than have to drive to Destin.

Based on the city of Crestview's history over the last 25 years, I'm willing to bet my next paycheck we don't get the Krystal or the mall.

Everyone needs to go to the workshop the city is having at 4 p.m. June 4 at City Hall and voice your support for these businesses.

If we do not push for it folks, it won't happen!

What's your view? Write a letter to the editor.  

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: GUEST COLUMN: Krystal, mall hold-ups part of a pattern