Island Issues

“Caveat Emptor” Should Be The Posted At All U.S. Universities; Florida Universities Won’t Tolerate Abusive Campus Behavior

“Caveat Emptor” Should Be The Posted At All U.S. Universities; Florida Universities Won’t Tolerate Abusive Campus Behavior

Imagine paying $80,000 to $90,000 or more annually to study at Cornell, MIT, Columbia, George Washington, etc. and then being told not to walk around the campus or attend classes because it’s too dangerous. Oh, your graduation ceremonies are cancelled too.

That’s what’s  happening at college campus across the country to Jewish students and those that defend them. And for their $80-90K  they’re threatened and physically attacked by other students and faculty members, being chased by students and professors screaming vile threats, pelting them with rocks and physically attacking them.

If you go to a dealer and purchase a new car, a major appliance, or any other equally pricey item, and it proves defective and unusable you’ll take it back for a full refund or sue them for fraud and false advertising.

If a customer went into a luxury car dealer and plopped down $90,000 for a new ride I doubt he’d anticipate or accept being belittled, taunted, and physically attacked by other showroom customers, called names by the sales manager and staff and told to get out because it’s too dangerous for him to be there.

Why are Jewish college students any different than any other consumer? Don’t they have a right to expect value for money? Shouldn’t they receive the product or service advertised? Don’t they deserve respect and courtesy? If they pay and don’t receive value for money why not take legal action? They aren’t getting what they paid for. In fact they’re being ripped off while at the same time being abused, cheated, and vilified.

Why aren’t they taking legal action against these scammers that are cheating them, lying to them, abusing them, and massively failing to live up to their promises of providing a quality education and a safe environment? These colleges and universities have billions of dollars in their endowments. I can’t imagine that there isn’t a contingent of litigation lawyers out there drooling over the prospect of dipping into those massive piles of cash with class action and individual suits. it’s become apparent the Democrat controlled city governments won’t help them and the useless Biden administration is catering to its far left contingent including the fruitcakes in the “Squad”, aka Hamas supporters.

The Custodial Union at Columbia is taking legal action against the university for failing to protect one of its members who was physically attacked and held as a hostage by the terrorist thugs on that campus. Good. I hope they win so big it results in “Second Coming” newspaper headlines.

The current chaotic college campus conflict reminds me of an old Monty Python skit where a guy pays to purchase an argument, walks into a room and is slapped in the face. He walked into a room labeled “Abuse.” That’s what happens to Jews who thought they were paying for an education at these phony Ivy League exploitation and mistreatment facilities.

Other students and faculty members are participating like Hitler Youth with their goofy headdresses and Hamas flags, chanting anti-American and antisemetic slogans. Aren’t they accomplices or accessories to these crimes?

The campus pro-Hamas and pro-Palestine protesters reek of colossal ignorance, especially the gay and transgender cults. How does promoting intolerance in the name of tolerance make sense? You would think that the college professors would educate their students on the matter. But they’re out there waving signs, shouting antisemitic chants, and praising sadistic Hamas murderers along with the students they indoctrinated. Has anybody on any of these campuses attended a single history or geography class?

Anyone with a kid in one of these institutions should yank him or her out as fast as they can. If they won’t come home, cut off all funding, the kid’s a lost cause.

In the 1930s and 40s these ignorant antisemitic twits would be gleefully seated in bleachers outside concentration camps cheering and applauding as the German Nazis led Jewish victims into gas chambers   

The college administrators, boards and university presidents are spineless cowards. They’re the Sergeant “I see nothing, I hear nothing, I know nothing”  Schultz’s of our day. A Nuremburg style trial should be in their future.

(An abridged version of this commentary is posted on BizPacReview , BPR, at ‘Caveat emptor’ should be motto of U.S. universities (bizpacreview.com)

***

It’s Called “The Sunshine State” For A Reason: I’m not the only person who thinks colleges have gotten out of hand and are scamming their students, tolerating and even encouraging destructive campus fanatics.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis warned protestors last Wednesday, May 8, that the Sunshine State’s college campuses that destructive behavior won’t be tolerated.

The governor said at the University of Florida that the protestors that have stormed and graffitied campus buildings, of  elite colleges and universities like Columbia University and UCLA will not be tolerated in these parts. He pointed out that many of these protestors and activists are not even students at the schools.

DeSantis said that these protestors are calling for the eradication of Israel and noted that while protestors can say what they want, they are essentially asking for a second Holocaust.

University of Florida President Ben Sasse is as non-nonsense as DeSantis. There’ll be no setting up encampments, vandalizing property, or menacing Jewish students hereabouts he says. No siree Bob!

“Actions have consequences,” said Sasse in an opinion editorial in the Saturday/Sunday May 2-5 Wall Street Journal. “If you cross the line on clearly prohibited activities, you will be thrown off campus and suspended. In Gainesville, that means a three-year prohibition from campus. We said it We meant it. We enforced it. We wish we didn’t have to. But the students weighed the cost, made the decisions, and will pay the consequences as adults. We’re a university, not a day-care.”

According to a citizen journalist who goes by “Stu” on X, a flier of “Allowable Activities” was disseminated on the University of Florida campus which reportedly resulted in some students choosing to break down their encampment.

The flier explains that “allowable activities” include: “Speech, expressing viewpoints and holding signs in hands.”

The list of “Prohibitive Items and Activities” was much longer:

  • No amplified sound
  • No demonstrations inside buildings
  • No littering
  • No camping
  • No sleeping
  • No unmanned signs
  • No blocking egress
  • No building structures (chairs, stakes, benches, tables)
  • No camping, including tents, sleeping bags, pillows, etc.
  • No disruption
  • No threats
  • No violence
  • No weapons
  • Any other items and/or activities deemed to be non-compliant with policy and regulations by university officials.

The “consequences for non-compliance” section of the proclamation may cause these lunatics to think twice, if they can think at all.

“Individuals found responsible for engaging in prohibited activities shall be trespassed from campus,” the flier explains. “Students will receive a three- year trespass and suspension. Employees will be trespassed and separated from employment.”

I’m betting universities in Florida will be raking in a lot more out-of-state tuition this coming fall after parents hear about the state’s no-tolerance  policies.

***

Newlyweds, Pajamadave Voorhees, and his bride, Natalie, (far left) with family members.

And Now For Something Completely Different: Following are a few personal random takeaway items and thoughts about last week’s  Amelia island Shrimp Festival 2024:

  • It was fun, seeing, grown former neighborhood kids, their kids, aunts, uncles, friends etc., and friends that only visit during this event.
  • The Amelia Island Museum continues to serve one of the best gumbos – crammed with shrimp and sausage – that I’ve eaten outside of New Orleans – at its booth, the corner of Centre and North 2nd Street South.
  • I only heard positive comments about the musicians playing at the festival venues.
  • If there were any protesters for or against anything I didn’t see or hear them other than those being slurred out on bar stools in local pubs, and even then it was mostly sports arguments.
  • It was fun for the entire family, an event that appealed to grandma and grandpa, mom, dad, and the kids. There were no loud raunchy lyrics screamed or rapped at audiences from local stages.
  • It was refreshing seeing symbols of patriotism on display at local booths and built into handmade items sold by skilled craftsmen such as the American Legion Post 54’s food booth manned by local Legionnaires, all veterans.
  • The Thursday parade offered something for everyone ranging from the talented high school marching bands and local first responders to politicians and even the wedding of local restauranteur and bar owner Pajamadave Voorhees and his bride Natalie on the cannon-blasting pirate float.
  • The streets peppered with locals dressed as pirates handing out beads and being photographed with tourists and their kids.
  • Tristny Ta, Miss.Shrimp Festival 2023, crowning her sister Jenny Ta, Miss Shrimp Festival 2024.
  • Kids wearing pirate hats, waving plastic swords and hollering “Aaaarg!”

***

The Fat Men From Space, recently landed at two Fernandina eateries to share opinions of their hamburgers – The Patio and Big Al’s Chicken Shack.

Big Al’s burger

Big Al’s Chicken Shack, 1120 South 14th Street. How many times have we wrestled with this eternal question? Would you rather have fried chicken at a burger place or a cheeseburger at a fried chicken place? Well,  I have some news to soothe you my fellow gourmands. Consider a cheeseburger from Al’s Chicken Shack. For $12.99 you get a half pounder plus one of about 10 sides. (I went with onion rings because I could!)  What sets this burger apart is the taste. When it arrives at your table, it’s literally still sizzling! This Spaceman couldn’t tell if it was done on a griddle or an actual grill. A fresh bun and even fresher lettuce, tomato and MORE onion and some pickles make this meal one to sing about. RIP. Jimmy Buffett! I’m a patriot at heart, so the American cheese was a welcome addition to this lunch party. It smelled nearly as good as it tasted, and it tasted delicious.

So here’s my recommendation, burger fans, swing by Al’s Chicken Shack and enjoy one of their cheeseburgers. While you’re at it, consider getting some of Al’s fried chicken gizzards for someone you love, (or despise, depending on your mood) as you enjoy your meal. You’ll get well fed, you still have a few shekels left in your pocket, AND your grouchy neighbor who raised Hell for crash landing your spaceship in his hibiscus gets a deep fried treat, too. Who said there’s no magic left in this world?

The Patio Burger

The Patio, 416 Ash St. corner of 5th St. South,  Fernandina Beach.  A burger from the Patio Place is an OK burger. It’s not the worst you’ll have, and it’s not the best you’ll ever have. It’s a standard thick pub-like burger. It was cooked to order nicely. The lettuce, tomato and cheese toppings were fine. I wasn’t a fan of the top of the bun being toasted technique. It made biting into the burger a little bit tougher than a soft bun. I got the fries on the side. Much like the burger the fries were OK and the price for the combination was even better at $9.95. The service was outstanding. No waiting for a table. Our server was quick to help us and absolutely great. Paying for the bill table side is super convenient too. The Patio Place is a great spot downtown, but I think there’s a lot better items on the menu than the patio burger.

Folks that have recommendations for burgers for the Fat Men to evaluate please us know here and we’ll beam them up to the Fat guys. The joints recommended hereabouts have to serve a burger for lunch, be in Nassau County and can’t be part of a regional or national chain.

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11 Comments

Jan Preus - 14. May, 2024 - Reply

Great blog. I grew up in the 50’s and 60’s and attended college in the late 60’s and early 70’s. Having been raised in a small Florida town in a very sheltered environment, I was ill prepared for college. It was the time of students sporting long hair, wearing bell-bottoms, smoking marijuana, espousing free love, and protesting the Vietnam war; all of which fascinated me and terrified my parents. That all seems innocuous compared to what is happening on college campuses today. One wonders if these kids are being taught anything that will prepare them to become contributing members of society? I am amazed that parents continue to pay such exorbitant tuition for what students are being taught in colleges today. Wake up, people!
On a positive note, most of what we experience living on this lovely island are the more joyful aspects of life. Aren’t we blessed.

J. D. Vance - 16. May, 2024 - Reply

Jan, I assure you that nobody who is active on this blog is willing to provide their offspring with a college education.

Moderate Majority - 16. May, 2024 - Reply

I assure you that some of us have encouraged our kids to think for themselves. These false flag narratives, espoused by an older ill-informed generation emersed in tribal politics, imposed upon their children in a quid pro quo transaction for funding a college education, is an affront to the American lexicon: liberty, freedom, and democracy. My wife and I are moderate Independents. At ages 18 and 20, one son leans left and the other is a die-hard MAGA Trumper. Oh, and both are in college (chosen by them) and funded by Florida Prepaid plans. My wife and I fear the pattern of politically, racially, and ideologically motivated attacks on public higher education by our right-wing governor and his supporters more than whatever is happening on campus and in the classroom. But regardless of our fears, we are confident in the ability and intelligence of our sons to choose their own paths.

Toad of Truth - 16. May, 2024 - Reply

Come Thanksgiving, do you throw the damn liberal out of the house so y’all can eat in peace? They ain’t thankful for the edecation you buy them or the sacrafices that were made to make amerika great.

M. Cohen, the Fixer - 12. May, 2024 - Reply

I am pumped for tomorrow.

Hunter Walker - 13. May, 2024 - Reply

Why should anyone believe you, M. Cohen? You were disbarred in NY for a felony conviction of LYING under oath. I guess you plan on doing the same today?

Neil Borum - 10. May, 2024 - Reply

Good for the University of Florida!

Jeff McDowell - 10. May, 2024 - Reply

Great blog, Dave. I spent a lot of time downtown during Shrimp fest and I often caught myself smiling and thinking, how NORMAL and RELAXING it was to just stroll our downtown and see friends and neighbors enjoying themselves. Out of town visitors must be envious of those who live here. It was safe, clean and just delightful. The Thurs Parade was a BLAST to watch, culminating in a pirate ship wedding on 2nd St. (Natalie has her hands full!). Where else can you see shrimp pedaling tricycles down the street? Kudos to the various committees who helped organize the event.
As for ivy league college campuses, well, that’s a whole another kettle of spoiled fish. How easy is it to infiltrate a college campus these days and fill the minds of students with dangerous misguided trash? When I attended FAU in the 1980s, I couldn’t hardly get a girl into my dorm room for some fun without being called out by security. All I can hope is our Jewish friends, many who heavily donate to these schools. withhold their money to make a point and show these brain dead young people how the world works.

Jim Gray - 10. May, 2024 - Reply

Try the burgers at the Legion. They are served on Wednesday only 12 – 1:45. Russell does a great job!

Hunter Walker - 12. May, 2024 - Reply

I know Dave did a write up on the The Surf’s burger already, but I had the smash burger this week, 2 large, fresh patties with the works (includes cheese) and side, $15. Very good.

George Miller - 10. May, 2024 - Reply

I’m disappointed that our so-called leadership has mostly enabled the sad and sometimes dangerous campus clown shows. But one of the reasons we came to Florida is the resistance shown to woke, politically correct thinking.

I’m glad that you have taken the lead in shining a light on burger quality in the area. It is a vital service to the community! Not at the top of the list, but a surprisingly good value, is the special burger combo from Huddle House on St. Rd 200- I paid an incredible $5.95 for a reasonably good burger, really good fries and a drink.