DING DONG, THE WITCH IS DEAD!

Ding dong, the witch is dead! The specious slogan, “support the study” and the revolting prospect of more and bigger cruise ships clogging our harbor and more “five dollar cruisers” is dead on arrival. A drubbing of 74 percent of the dredge proponents should put this issue to rest making it political poison for any city commissioner still in favor of expansion of the cruise ship business in Key West. The biggest donors and players in this bid to further degrade the marine environment and the quality of life for the citizens of Key West don’t even live here. Of course, like any good “B” monster movie, the greed cartel will come back to life to attack us again, but for the moment we should all savor our little bit of schadenfreude.

Much credit goes to the leaders of the “Vote NO” campaign. Key West Committee for Responsible Tourism chairman, Jolly Benson (always outnumbered at pro/con discussions on the referendum) kept cool and presented clear and logical arguments for not going further with the Army Corps of Engineer’s “Study”. Thank you to Last Stand’s Naja Girard d’Albissin and Mark Songer who worked tirelessly to prevent this abomination from becoming a reality. Thanks to Elliot Baron for keeping us informed with the truth and countering the B.S. coming out of the pro-dredging camp. Most of all, thank you to my fellow citizens of Key West for proving we are a special community, with courage, soul and conviction to go up against the power elite and make our voices heard. This is our city!