Conexión Miami / PortMiami tunnel opens at last

Drainage flaws corrected, the PortMiami tunnel was opened on Sunday (Aug. 3), 75 days after the intended date. During the opening, Mayor Carlos Giménez referred to the approximately 30,000 new jobs this work of engineering would create and said that those who use this method of travel would pay no tolls.

With a construction budget of $1 billion, the latest civil “wonder of the city” would allow about 16,000 vehicles to travel through it every day, in a flow that would ease the traffic of heavy transport through the midtown streets and avenues. 

Two forced landings in just one week

Emergency landings are becoming almost routine. On Tuesday (July 29), about 12:30 p.m., a single-engine Cessna landed on the beach as a result of an engine failure. The landing took place near 57th Street and Collins Avenue in Miami Beach. Unlike the previous Sunday, when two people near Sarasota died when a private plane landed on them, nobody was hurt in this case.

Mourning as a stage for politicking 

As if 1,452 Palestinians and 64 Israelis hadn’t died in Gaza — or as if their death didn’t make its own statement — a large number of Jews gathered on Thursday (July 31) outside the Michael-Ann Russell Jewish Community Center in North Miami Beach.

There, Chaim Sacham, Israeli consul in Florida, said: “The Palestine people are Hamas’ hostages. Israel has agreed to six ceasefires but that terrorist organization has violated each and every one of them. We hope that this time it will respect the ceasefire.”

Sacham being who he is, we shouldn’t be surprised at his statement. However, the action of the current lieutenant governor of Florida, Carlos López-Cantera, seems to me to be shockingly opportunistic.

The state’s second-in-command — note: a Cuban-American — took advantage of the opportunity to re-launch his candidacy. He stepped up to the podium and said that he supported the Jews because his wife and mother practiced that religion.

Boy plays with fire, gets burned 

“Don’t play this game. Some people die and it hurts a log,” said Derick Robinson, 11, after being admitted to Kendall Regional Hospital’s burn unit. After seeing in Facebook how another minor set fire to himself, Derick attempted to do likewise after splashing alcohol on himself. His screams woke up his mother, who was resting in another room.

School items available tax-free 

It matters little if a politician — whatever his circumstances, his origin, his feud, his term of office — does worthwhile things, whether out of kindness or because he wants to be re-elected.

I say this in connection with Rick Scott, who this past weekend — the last weekend before the start of classes — again allowed the purchase of school items tax-free.

So, until Sunday (Aug. 3), the students’ parents or relatives could save the taxes due on all those items. For example: clothing, uniform or footwear costing under $100 each. Classroom utensils sold for under $15 and, for the first time, computers and accessories costing no more than $750.

Suspects in million-dollar swindle are arrested 

Three persons were arrested on suspicion of stealing more than $2 million from Miami-Dade Aviation. According to Emilio González, Miami-Dade Aviation director, they created a “shadow” corporation whose initials were the same as an established corporation, so as to re-route funds received from airlines, which in turn had come from taxpayers.

The money collected through the swindle, which was executed for two years, was used to pay for credit cards, car loans, university bills, and personal mortgages.

WANTED: Thugs who ambush mail carriers 

The Miami-Dade Post Office is offering a reward of $15,000 to anyone providing information that will lead to the arrest of the men who assaulted mail carriers recently in Little Havana and Broward County.

“One theft alarms us; two are too many. We have launched an investigation into these cases, which apparently are unrelated,” said Blanca Álvarez, U.S. Postal Service inspector. She reminded a listener that it is a federal crime to rob a mail carrier; punishment ranges from 10 to 25 years’ imprisonment. 

Bill against sexual assaults is introduced in Senate 

Young Miamian Andrea Pino on Wednesday (July 27) spoke in favor of a Senate bill aimed at reducing the number of sexual attacks in U.S. universities. The bill has bipartisan support.

At a press conference in Washington, Pino, the victim of one such attack while studying in North Carolina, said that the universities should publish their research on this subject so that relatives of the victims and future students could compare the results and work together toward the same end.

If the bill is passed by Congress — as everything seems to indicate — the universities that don’t comply will be fined.