On Friday, March 5, 2021, at approximately 8:20 a.m., the Gainesville Police Department’s (GPD) non-emergency dispatch number received a phone call notifying them that the memorial stone for GPD Officer Scott Baird, located at the 1800 block of NW 16th Terrace (Officer Scott Baird Boulevard), had been destroyed.

A GPD officer responded to the scene and discovered the stone had been smashed into several pieces.

The memorial stone was originally placed there by Gainesville neighbors a few years after Officer Scott Baird was tragically killed while trying to move a batting cage out of the roadway. GPD officers, family, and friends recently gathered on February 12, 2021 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Officer Baird’s line-of-duty death.

A gun-rights organization said that President Joe Biden’s gun control proposal would potentially make about 105 million law-abiding gun owners into criminals.

“While we can agree that there are several ‘common sense’ and long overdue changes needed to our nation’s gun laws, we firmly believe that the path forward should be focused on supporting and protecting responsible, law-abiding Americans—not criminalizing and punishing them,” the U.S. Concealed Carry Association said in a letter to Biden this week.

The group—which, according to the group’s website, has about 556,000 members—said the president’s push for gun control on the anniversary of the Parkland, Florida mass shooting was needless.

“The U.S. Concealed Carry Association exists to help responsible Americans avoid danger, save lives, and keep their families safe, and we believe that our elected leaders in Washington have an incredible obligation to pursue these same goals,” the group added.

The group noted that in 2020, a significant number of people purchased firearms in the midst of historic riots and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The FBI stated last month that it processed a record 39.7 million firearm background checks in 2020, which bested the previous high of 10 million. Reports said that as many as 8.5 million purchased their first firearm in 2020, according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Meanwhile, a number of gun and ammunition manufacturers reported shortages amid the surge in demand.

Biden earlier this month said that he would push Congress to enact more gun control measures, including allowing gun manufacturers to face lawsuits, banning “assault weapons,” and placing bans on high-capacity magazines. His pick for Attorney General, Merrick Garland, told lawmakers on Monday that he would support the White House’s stance on gun control.

“This Administration will not wait for the next mass shooting to heed that call. We will take action to end our epidemic of gun violence and make our schools and communities safer. Today, I am calling on Congress to enact commonsense gun law reforms, including requiring background checks on all gun sales, banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, and eliminating immunity for gun manufacturers who knowingly put weapons of war on our streets,” Biden said earlier this month.

Pro-Second Amendment groups have noted that the term “assault weapon” has a nebulous meaning, with some saying that it is a made-up term that was invented by the anti-gun lobby in the 1980s. “Assault rifle” is a term sometimes used by the military to define a rifle that has select-fire capabilities, or the ability to switch between semi-automatic or fully automatic. For example, the much-derided AR-15 doesn’t have select-fire capability and only operates as a semi-automatic rifle.

The U.S. Concealed Carry Association further added that “record numbers of Americans have been purchasing firearms to keep themselves and their loved ones safe,” adding that “women and minorities are now leading the way as the fastest-growing groups of concealed carry permit holders in the country.”

White House officials, furthermore, have said Biden would take on the largest gun-rights group, the National Rifle Association (NRA).

“But I will say that the president is somebody, throughout his career, who has advocated for smart gun, smart gun safety measures,” press secretary Jen Psaki said earlier this month. “He is not afraid of standing up to the NRA – he has done it multiple times.”

Federal Communications Commissioner Brendan Carr called an effort by House Democrats to pressure cable providers into removing Fox News and other conservative networks a “chilling transgression” of free speech, and asked his colleagues on the commission to denounce the lawmakers.

“By writing letters to the cable providers and other regulated entities that carry these news media outlets, the Democrats are sending a message that is as clear as it is troubling — these regulated entities will pay a price if the targeted newsrooms do not conform to Democrats’ preferred political narratives,” Carr said in a Monday statement. “This is a chilling transgression of the free speech rights that every media outlet in this country enjoys.”

In a Monday letter, California Reps. Anna Eshoo (D) and Jerry McNerney (D) demanded that television providers including AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, Apple, and Amazon say whether they planned to continue providing Fox News on their platforms, in addition to Newsmax and One America News.

“Debate on matters of public interest should be robust, uninhibited and wide open,” Carr said. “More speech is better than less. Yet the concerted effort by Democrats to drive political dissent from the public square represents a marked departure from these First Amendment norms. A newsroom’s decision about what stories to cover and how to frame them should be beyond the reach of any government official, not targeted by them.

“To the House Democrats that used their official letterhead to launch this inquiry, I would say this: Your demand to know the ‘moral principles’ that guide a private entity’s decision about what news to carry cannot be reconciled with bedrock principles of free speech and journalistic freedom,” he added. “I call on my FCC colleagues to join me in publicly denouncing this attempt to stifle political speech and independent news judgment.”

President Joe Biden hasn’t said whether he will appoint Rosenworcel as the agency’s permanent chair, and he has yet to name a commissioner to fill a fifth seat left vacant by former Chairman Ajit Pai’s January departure

It has been eight years since the last time EA Sports released an NCAA football game, but that looks to change as the video game publisher announced on Tuesday that EA Sports College Football will be returning.

Though it is not yet known when NCAA Football will exactly return, this is certainly a step in the right direction, one that many fans have been waiting for since its untimely end with NCAA Football 2014.

According to EA Sports vice president and general manager, Daryl Holt, via ESPN, the game will feature over 100 teams in the game, partnering with collegiate licensing company CLC, giving the game all of the traditions, uniforms and playbooks to go into the game.      

“As we look for the momentum that we’re building on in sports, it all starts with the passion of our fans and the opportunities of what they are interested in,” Holt said via ESPN. “I don’t think a visit where I go outside wearing a piece of EA Sports branded apparel, that someone doesn’t go, ‘Hey, when is college football coming back?'”

The Florida Gators were recently one of the ten teams featured in EA Sports Madden 2020 Face of the Franchise Mode. Former Gators quarterback Tim Tebow was also a cover athlete for NCAA Football 11

The University of Tennessee is investigating its football program for “alleged recruiting violations and alleged impermissible benefits to athletes,” according to Blake Toppmeyer of the Knoxville News Sentinel.

“Anytime in college football or college athletics, you have typical compliance stuff,” head coach Jeremy Pruitt said of the investigation after Saturday’s 34-13 loss to Texas A&M. “That is all I know.”

Pruitt had not been interviewed as of Sunday for the investigation, though “football assistant coaches, athletes and support staffers” were interviewed. 

Mark Schlabach of ESPN reported Saturday that the recruitment of Amarius Mims—the No. 7 player in the Class of 2021 and the No. 3 offensive tackle, per 247Sports.com—was a part of the investigation. Mims ultimately signed with Georgia, though Tennessee was a finalist. 

Alachua County Commission passed Bonuses and Salary increases (10/13)

County Manager Bonus: $10,000
County Manager New Salary: $201,416

County Attorney Bonus: $10,000
County Attorney New Salary: $169,744

The Notre Dame-Wake Forest football game scheduled for Saturday has been postponed after the Irish announced 13 players are in isolation.

In a statement Tuesday, Notre Dame said seven players tested positive for coronavirus out of 94 tests done Monday. Combined with testing results from last week, 13 players are in isolation, with 10 in quarantine. As a result, Notre Dame has paused all football-related activities. The two schools are working on a date to reschedule the game.

For those of us living on the west side of Alachua County, the concept of carving out anew County has been debated for some time. Interest seems to be increasing, especially with the home rule limitation being being proposed in the Alachua County charter revisions.

If you are interested in voicing support for more discussion and consideration of this initiative, Commissioner Tim Marden has developed an online petition. It is available at the   Springs County petition.