Well it’s here… or at the very least coming. And for everyone out there who says… “oh, I never run a red light, so it won’t bother me any”, the reality is that unless you are Gramda Myrtle, you probably do run one now and again by accident.

So… what does this mean? Well, if you know where the cameras are, you can sure “be on your best behavior” when you are in and around those intersections for sure.

The test cameras are going to be on Hiawasse, Kirkman and Conroy. Sadly… that’s all we know.

The major debate is whether or not the owner of the car or the driver will be responsible for paying the fine. Reality is, will the cameras be able to catch the driver AND the plate once the infraction occurs. If I had to guess, the owner is going to get the ticket and in that case, it’s going to be a long battle over the fairness of this.

No matter what else is said though, everyone should be careful. Or it could get expensive.

Hi readers! Metroblogging is currently conducting a small little reader survey. They want to know a bit about you… like were you born or hatched?? Just kidding, but seriously, if would take a minute out of your very busy schedule to click the link below and tell them all that demographic stuff that those stuffy marketing types want to know… we’d be most appreciative!!

Reader Survey

Florida voters favor eminent domain restrictions

In a poll of 625 registered voters, 89 percent said they supported having the state Legislature adopt “increased protections for property owners,” while only 9 percent opposed such a move.

The poll comes after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling earlier this year in a Connecticut case that found governments can use eminent domain to acquire private property and transfer it to a private developer. Eighty-eight percent of those polled disagreed with the U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

The opposition to the ruling was nearly uniform across party lines, with 89 percent of Democrats, 87 percent of Republicans and 87 percent of independent voters disagreeing with the ruling.

I say good for us. The government use of eminent domain to basically steal private property for developer use is disgusting and Orwellian. The only problem here is that this is just a poll and nothing more. Just because so many of us agree that something is unjust doesn’t make it illegal. With all of the development going on in and around Central Florida (especially in Downtown) I imagine there will be an eminent domain case popping up soon enough. Who knows, this might even be why Scruffy Murphy’s was “forced” to close down. I smell a rat, and it isn’t MIckey.

Well leave it to Wal-Mart to make it even more “one-stop-shopping”. Now it’s one stop for groceries, household items, hair cuts, glasses, tax returns…. and now stitches or a cast!

Yep, they went and broke the mold again and put upfront, menu like pricing on health care. And why not I suppose. Why not know in advance what something is going to cost you?? I mean for too long we go to Drs. and wait patiently to be seen (hours sometimes) and wonder how much it will all cost and need smelling salts when we finally see the bill.

Not anymore if Wal-Mart has their way. With a menu of services posted on the wall, like in a salon or a restaurant, it tells you that it will cost you $65 to see the Dr., $105 for the Dr. visit plus one test, $165 for two or more procedures….

Maybe we need retails to reform our health care system.

Developer, Wife Give $2.5M for UCF Medical School

Considering that Orlando is largest metro area in the U.S. without a medical school this could be a major boon to the city. Word is that we are in desperate need of more doctors in the city and it would be nice if could be churning them out on our own. With the addition of the interactive entertainment M.A. program in downtown Orlando is set to be kicking ass in educational development it seems.

Thoughts?

*cheap Simpsons reference, I had to do it though.

Orlando ponders parking

Having firsthand experience of the nightmare that is driving in downtown Orlando (especially when there is a “Fiesta in the Park” and all the streets are blocked off), I understand where city planners are coming from with this. It really is very cheap to park downtown when compared with other cities. So, there is not much incentive to walk or take the shuttle bus. The only thing that I wonder about is how they are going to handle downtown residents vs. daily business commuters vs. weekend visitors. It’s not like Orlando is a huge, self-contained city. Most residents need cars to get out to where stuff is. Meanwhile, there aren’t very many ways for a commuter to get into downtown to work from, say, Lake Mary or Apopka. Hopefully, they have more of a plan than just, “Let’s raise the parking rates.”

Yikes, we almost missed the Orlando Puppet Festival! It’s a celebration of puppet art (apparently, Orlando is a center for puppet artists, thanks to Disney). Among the producers is Jim Henson’s daughter, Heather.

Besides live puppet shows, they have been screening movies like Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal and a new silent horror puppet film, “Harker”. Plus, there is a retrospective of the work of Jerry Juhl, the Muppet writer who died in September.

We missed a bunch of it, but I think we’re going to go to one of the Saturday shows at the Downtown Media Arts Center. At noon, there is “The Jim Henson Company: A Celebration of 50 Years” (a screening of Labyrinth along with some of Jim Henson