One Year Anniversary with Dr. Alan Bliss

[00:00:01] Mike Mike Mike Mike Mike, Mike, Mike, Mike, Mike, Mike, Mike, a conversation about politics, government and Jacksonville. With 50-year opinion leaders, Mike Hightower, Mike Tolbert, an award-winning broadcaster and longtime political observer, Mike Miller.

[00:00:18] Welcome once again to another episode of Mike's Unlike Nice to Happy With This, we're all here today. We've got Mike Hightower, we've got Mike Tolbert, and we've got our sponsor Alan Bliss from the Johnsonville Historical Society. It's a very special day for us.

[00:00:33] This is our 50-second episode, so we're drawing to a close our first year podcast and we're just delighted to have got this place. And that's how I'm going to begin to do guys everything

[00:00:44] we would get a full year in here. I had my doubts. I mean, I knew that there's no one to say we had enough flow. Collecting history to know what we were talking about a little

[00:00:55] bit, and I thought we were current enough on stuff going on. How was concerned that we would like each other? And then we could get, oh, you were concerned that we wouldn't like each other? That we could be concerned that we might. Oh, we might like each other.

[00:01:09] The father was never a doubt that we wouldn't. With the fact that, you know, the fact of the matter is that we've done pretty damn well. And we've got some great guests. I mean, that's what's not I think that's what's cared us. You have had some remarkable

[00:01:24] guests. It's too bad he couldn't come up with more guests. His first name was Mike. Yeah, really. We worked out and we got a lot of people. We had to put an add in folio and

[00:01:34] add the post office and get all that's about as far as I've heard this shows become so popular that there are people out there who are actually thinking about changing their names to Mike,

[00:01:46] just to have a chance. I'm happy I was sicking that when I sat down while we were thinking about that for you. Mike Miller still smoke smoking his sendo from that comment.

[00:01:54] Yeah, I did do that. No, I did you think he would work? Yeah, at first I first I didn't want to share. I mean, Mike and I knew each other for 50 years. So I was really

[00:02:08] hoping to work because, you know, for 50 years, he is just red daughter and he evened my time to pay back to her health. But then I was afraid that he wouldn't show you know,

[00:02:18] he's a silly motion or he wouldn't have a thought or be concerned about anything. He's out of bringing him out. That's why things about caliber and he's not excitable. And so we

[00:02:30] were afraid that it would just be really boring, but he helped us out. Back it up. Back it just he stepped up his gay stemmed out his name and back in December of 2023 when we

[00:02:43] did show number 22. That's how we started out and saying this is how the program came about. Let's talk about how this whole thing got started. I think that's you. You think that's me? That's you. I can tell you that go ahead, that you were the one who proposed

[00:03:01] that we get together and do this Mike Miller. So I got on the plane and and how tower how tower seemed to buy in hook line and sinker. And I was kind of apprehensive. Why

[00:03:13] were you apprehensive? I never knew that as it was high tower involved. Oh, I got it. No, all right, that'll do it. It's been great. How did you win this? I'm a country common knowledge. I don't like new things. You know, let's keep it like

[00:03:31] it is kind of a guy. Mike, is I real from a gentleman on the show? Yeah, exactly. Thanks. Oh, you know if we look back, it's hard to believe this is our 22nd episode.

[00:03:41] It's just a little bit small. We had no idea that we would even get along. We had no idea. Well, we knew you were very articulate because if you were radio experienced, right?

[00:03:52] But we had no idea that either one of us is communication this kind of a venue and we have validated that we're not. I think the amateurish quality of the three of us

[00:04:03] comes across very well, don't you? And it's kind of endearing. I would remind you that I think it was you, Miller who said, whatever our goals or maybe you will. It's somebody

[00:04:13] said, who or what are our goals and my goal was simple to say a fun. Yeah. How met my goals? To put it blow play dog. Why need you guys agree to do this? And

[00:04:24] had nothing else going on. Oh, okay. But no, you know what? When you get to get there, I each one of those things that you have that's important is memory. Yeah. And to be able

[00:04:38] to share memories, I think that's the way that we have some relevance. I think it's very important. So I think what we've been able to do is sort of create a cake here where

[00:04:48] we have a lot of memories. But if I didn't, and then actually then the part of a witness history that we have to share. And then we'd again, we know enough about what's going on

[00:04:58] currently, sometimes relate those and get people to talk to us. Yeah. And I think the other thing was, and I think my ability brought it up. There aren't many folks out there that are

[00:05:11] doing this. And you know, with all the respect, you know, we're all from legends. We're sort of reset point in life that I can think of, we kind of say what we want. And everybody is

[00:05:22] pretty much a segment that they're going to say about it. Anyway, so it sort of gives us the freedom to do that. Yeah. And but on a serious note, the fact was that Allen, you know,

[00:05:31] you and the historic facade, I wanted to do it. I think it was, I think it was the challenge in an honor. And we were sure that, you know, if you watch this, we were sort of doing this.

[00:05:40] As we were all sort of building the train, we were laying the tracks at the same time. We periodically went off the tracks. Or that was most misdeflivered. But when we got back

[00:05:51] on track, but they gave me, they came fun. And I think to my 12th or seven was the guests that we were, we had at the time. But the upper part was there was a lot going on in Jacksonville that

[00:06:03] a lot of us individually could relate to given as Mike said, you know, we've got 50 years experience here. So, you know, why the faces may change some of the issues or the environment

[00:06:19] so well, remember you guys saying that you'll go, I said, how long are we going to do this? And you said as long as I'm having fun on goal for as long as we can do it. Yeah, because that's

[00:06:27] really what Mike told us said. And when we said what's our goal, he said, to have fun. And, you know, it's evolved into that. And it's, and it's been fun watching our friendship develop.

[00:06:41] I mean, we've known each other. We never really chothered collectively like this. And as we said, there was no script. So, Mike and I've known each other for more than 50 years. I got to know

[00:06:52] Mike Miller as a neighbor. And it just, as Mike told me, it sort of evolved into friendship. And it just evolved something neat and a valuable experience. So this is important.

[00:07:05] I thought, so it was at this table about a year ago, I guess, that I first learned about this project from Mike Tolberg. Mike and I had begun a series of oral history interviews,

[00:07:19] and which rises out of what Mike just said. You know, he said a point you guys are at a point where you've accumulated a lot of memories, a lot of experiences. And you are, you are all at the

[00:07:31] point where you've got a lot to share. You've got a lot that is accessible to you in terms of memory. I, you are, you are lucid but rich with experiences. And I wanted to start getting that from Mike

[00:07:46] Tolberg. And then in the course of conversation he casually dropped in this idea, this project and I, without knowing how you were going to execute on and tie instinctively realized that this was something that was potentially pretty high value. And I just, and possibly said,

[00:08:01] wow, which there was some way that, you know, the historical society could be a part of helping with that. And Mike, every of the opportunist said, well, I'm sure we can find some work this out. Yeah, we worked that out. We worked it out. Well, you know,

[00:08:19] did not take a genius to recognize then, and especially knowing it now that if you guys partnered with us, they kind of gave us some instant credit will to you. You know, and so that was

[00:08:35] important to me. And it gave us a place, you gave us a place but to collect money from people who wanted to support us and put it into the nonprofit and then help us do put on our showy to

[00:08:48] we. So it's been a grand partnership. The part of the value of this aside from the value of the content for the listening audience, the people who are subscribed to the podcast series and the

[00:08:59] people we don't, and they can don't even know about who you know, who listen to them, watch it. Part of the value beyond all of that, which is obvious on the face of it is that you are building

[00:09:10] a archive, a collection, a resource for the people, the years, the decades, the generations to come. I know that's not up or most in your mind as you're talking through the issues of the moment,

[00:09:23] but last night I listened to the, to the last week's project, the podcast with on Darnel Smith. Yeah, well done. Well, I executed. Darnel of course, a great Jacksonville said is an fascinating set of stories and what an artifact that interview that recording is

[00:09:40] going to be 10, 16, 20, 50 years from now. Well, and I'll give you another example too, and it was him. When we decided to do the Jazz Festival show, with Tolberate, who was the founder the originator, the producer, going all the way back to three Mayport, right?

[00:09:59] Three Mayport. I mean, this was such a fountain of information and you talk about historical contribution to this city of which again is one of the reasons why I targeted Tolberate to be part of this program. It's because of that institutional knowledge and history

[00:10:16] and all of the things that he has brought to this community besides his association with Drake, which is legendary. Yeah, but that's just an example and then this guy, between the work he had done for Florida Blue, the work he had done at J.E.A.,

[00:10:34] the knowledge he had of what was going on in Tallahassee, which I know is going to work. He did as the Republican poor and that was the other part. You were going to talk about some of the

[00:10:44] about 10 Gilmore. I think it's being one of your favorite shows that we have done. Alan, I found it interesting. I thought over the course of this last year, we've had historians as our guests. Yeah, we had Dr. Croats, Jim Crook, and we had Dr.

[00:11:02] Jim Deal more. Right? Dr. Alan Bliss, yourself. Dr. Wayne Wood. And then I found it really interesting that Marihiri Ashi, the Duke Hunt Five, a CEO of the Duke Hunt Five, when she was on that shelf talking about the history of the Duke Hunt Five Foundation.

[00:11:21] She was full of history about Jacksonville, Adam, how she immersed herself in that much history and such a short period of time. And you asked him, I'm very estimate of these historians.

[00:11:31] You know, and when you kind of look at each of the guests that we had on there because of your sponsorship, each one of those things to your point has given the people who listened to it

[00:11:42] or watched it or however, something that I didn't know. We walked away because every show I think he had to honor us, it said, you know, wow, I didn't know that. And each one of those people

[00:11:52] had said that. So to go back to the archive, each one of those shows there was an aha moment that we didn't know about. Typically when we had like my vendor, Dr. Mark Bender on. I mean,

[00:12:04] Mike and I, in the pilot takes, we always sort of thought of from a political perspective, how Florida was started was a blue state. We thought it was a purple state and while I remember

[00:12:15] he said, oh, it's red. Get a little bit of a background. And I can just remember the expression all our face, we're like, what? He went to red. But those retirees often never union folks.

[00:12:25] They were middle class working folks that had ties to Democratic Party. That isn't the case anymore. Most of our senior type folks tend to lean much more Republican and they are coming here in

[00:12:37] droves and that's really shifting to make up. And if you look at the registration in Florida, we used to be a plus two plus three D. We're plus three and growing Republican.

[00:12:46] This talk about some of the guests right here. I think this is the group I want to do. All right, we've had, uh, I made a list here some of them. David Miller, Mark Clamping, Dr. Bender,

[00:12:58] Nate Monroe, Mark Woods and David Barrel Island of the TU, Andrew Pentazzy from the Tribatory, Laurie Boyer, Matt Corleach and that forward in the Arnold Smith. And that's just a sampling. Yeah, yeah, every week. And we have not had to my knowledge other than my blasting,

[00:13:16] anybody turn a stand? Exactly. Yeah. So there you go. It, you know, so I guess the question is it's not how we were going to ask this question out. How do you see your show?

[00:13:33] It's a, it is a project that has currency in our contemporary mom and I see that as an asset and a gift in the diet. But as I also said, this is something that we're building your building

[00:13:48] for the future and I'm, I'm awfully happy to be a part of that, awfully happy for the Jacksonville history center to be a part of that. Part of what a local public history organization does

[00:13:59] is not just collect in stories and artifacts and documents and photos, you know, from the, from the deep recesses of the past. We are about collecting the memories, the artifacts, the evidence of Jacksonville in the present in hand, our oral history project is a great example of that.

[00:14:19] But Mike's on Mike, I see at his really sort of working in tandem with our oral history project and continuing to build out something that's going to be of tremendous value. I'm always thinking about the sounds that will maybe counterintuitive coming from somebody who's a professional historian.

[00:14:36] But I'm always thinking about the future. I'm always thinking about the people who are going to come after us. Right. And the work that we're doing here with this organization is meant to be

[00:14:46] a contribution and frankly, a gift to Jacksonville's future. And if I can carry that thought a little bit further, I would just say that the work of the Jacksonville history center is our mission

[00:15:02] statement is to strike them citizenship through public history education. And the point of that is to say how do you expect people to care about the future of a place like Jacksonville if they don't know

[00:15:16] anything about it? If they don't know about the people in events of its past. So that's our work, that's the value proposition of what we do and that project of letting people understand something

[00:15:28] about this place in the contemporary moment and use that have that be something that contributes to their sense of investment and its future. That's part of what the Microsoft Mike podcast is doing. You know, speaking of history, I recall one about earlier's earliest guess was former Sheriff

[00:15:46] Matt Globert, he and who came on to talk about his new book he'd written and early is incredible life. And in some ways, he was a historian of the festive early years where he was growing up when I left that morning, I walked into a mob of

[00:16:12] Cluclox Clansman and white supremac and they had ax handles and baseball bats. Now what was kind of peculiar? I didn't see one person with the old ax handle. It was there were all brand new

[00:16:30] and they quickly encircled me and they started to hit me and it was a police officer standing just outside of the circle where I was in the middle and they were calling me all kind of names

[00:16:51] other than Nathaniel and actually hitting me. And so I got an opportunity to run to the officer and ask him, please help me and he said you better get out of here before they kill you

[00:17:11] in our ran. You know, one of my favorite guests and I know as yours as well was Michael Kruse. We didn't mention him before he's the outstanding reporter for political and wrote that in depth insightful, lengthy article profile if you will, objection bills political,

[00:17:29] pop-ritupe, Suzy Riles. According to all reports, it's working in presidents, presidential campaign. All three of us know Suzy, we were all quoted in the article for better or for worse. I tell you, you've made a point out how it makes you better about how many people

[00:17:45] that we've interviewed and the type of people that we've interviewed. Yeah, to your point, it was just interesting. The number of people one, you know, to kind of remember, all of us have a friendship with all known Suzy we work with Suzy. She's touched their lives.

[00:18:06] No, I mean, it always good, but that's Suzy. I mean, you know, but, you know, for each of us, and I personally, she helped me more than you'll ever know in my family. But she's taught

[00:18:23] us, she's taught us a lot. Now we did always agree with what she was trying to teach us, but she did. But I think the thing that we all were amazed at, one when we saw the article in political,

[00:18:36] and then realized after talking to my proposed that she sat twice with him. And that is so not Suzy, why? She has always been behind the curtain all that. And we sort of taught everyone

[00:18:52] how to be behind the curtain. And it was amazing just that she sat with him and talked with him and shared so much personal information that she, there are a lot of us, one didn't know

[00:19:08] or we had heard about it. But she was willing to do that. And to me that bridge is back what you were just saying about the podcast. Here's someone now we're bringing up months away from

[00:19:20] a national election. There's no question that whether present Trump wins or not, the role of Suzy, while his played in that campaign is going to be historical. And the fact was that the first

[00:19:35] person to have an in-depth interview with her was on this podcast and first to go at the article and then he was on there and he talked about that. So it really kind of goes, eh, before

[00:19:46] circle what you're saying when you talk about that contemporary, Suzy, while it's one of those individuals and it's right up there and we had that chance to do it. And for a lot of us, it gave us

[00:19:57] a chance to sort of, in my case personally, to sort of reflect on all that I had learned from her. And then watching is this campaign, national campaign is it? A couple of all of us has said at one

[00:20:09] point or another that is classic textbook singing whilst. Yeah, towards the end of the interview, I asked the question of Cruz and I referenced it back to my father who used to when he got

[00:20:21] upset with me and said, Miller what makes you tick? And I asked him that question about Suzy and what I guess I hope the takeaway would be, is that readers would come away from that story

[00:20:36] thinking of her a little bit more as a full person. As we all are rather than simply an in-nate or a helper, a political advisor who's great or awful, she is as we all are

[00:20:57] you know, a mixture of things for a mixture of reasons. And so I would hope to take away is a little bit more nuanced than we sometimes see in the current political and politics adjacent

[00:21:08] discourse. Ellen, did you read the article? Did it? But I have a chance to read that article. By Michael Cruz? Yeah. I like sure that what was your impression? I was struck by some of the same things that you mentioned. I have no experience with Suzy

[00:21:23] while we've never met with never had any dealings. I'd obviously I knew who she was and I knew something about her citizenship in Jacksonville for previous engagement with the New City

[00:21:33] life of this city in the life of the state of Florida. So I knew all of that, but I was surprised as you guys mentioned that she agreed to discuss what she's been working on with the journalist

[00:21:47] and did it in a way that was seemingly candid. I didn't think that she said anything to that journalist that she didn't intend to say. And so I would say, I'd say, that's tech. I have to say,

[00:22:03] but that was a great interview. That was a great bike saw Mike podcast and that will be a valuable artifact for the future. It'll be more valuable. I think for people who have rented Cruz's article.

[00:22:14] I think so too. Well, I also is as I was just as I said, you know three to have much time. There's going to be an election. However that, however the outcome of that is and whatever

[00:22:28] with a present Trump is reelected, it is elected or not. There will be argue through and about Suzy while this role in a relationship role, certainly in that. And that comes back to your contemporary thing. And she's a part of our community and there are people who know

[00:22:47] her, you know it's going to be interesting. So what do I have about that since after after this campaign, if I've got any chips, I might say, would you come on the podcast? Oh, gosh,

[00:22:58] went that before. Well, you guys owe me big time. Well, that's okay. Well, actually by your wine after we're there. Tell me, yeah, we do get whatever hand that's what in the out of the

[00:23:08] way he election though. I hope that his wilds will decide to return to Jacksonville, not just for the episode, but the children become a Jacksonville. So there's something. She is a homeier. Okay. And her daughter's her daughter's serving two daughters in her grandson and she is a homeier.

[00:23:23] Okay. That's great. I'm going to be interested just to see what she ends up doing after this thing is over whether he wins or loses. Yeah. I like to see what she's going to be doing.

[00:23:30] Yeah. It's history in the making. Yeah. It will be somebody who definitely will be. We, we at all when we decide to put the short together, we all kind of talked about let's get some favorite

[00:23:40] clips that we have from previous shows and put them into this program. And you given us an idea which I think would be a good one, which is for this one. Our website and our Facebook page,

[00:23:51] we ought to put a link up to Cruises particle that he did on political at a real line folks to your wife and the pity and condescending to this, we can put some context in itself. Yeah.

[00:24:01] We'll go ahead and put the link to Michael Cruises political masterpiece on Susie Wow. So after we have to re upload this program, so that's going to be really good too.

[00:24:13] You're going to talk about them jazz festival. I kind of tipped it a little bit here earlier with well, I think it was absolutely more for wow. We talked about the origins of the Jacksonville

[00:24:25] Jazz Festival and I can remember what we were talking about getting to do this. Our colleague here, our senior, our legend, Mike Tolber is the creator of that is Mike Miller said and I don't think it might know or I realize how that was put together

[00:24:46] in the background and the role of the dice or whatever you want. They're all of doing that and here in my share that story which she taught and and sort of helped us understand how you brought

[00:24:59] something that was an idea in his head and was able to leverage his friends and married Godbowl's friends and put together something that has now become a part of our community forever. As a matter

[00:25:13] fact, I can remember going home and just saying that they shared it with my two mother Mike is I went home and was telling my wife about we're doing this podcast on the jazz festival and

[00:25:25] my wife's suit said, oh, I was there. I was in the lunch here and I went, why didn't you know that and she went, yeah because I was traveling, I think wherever it was I was in the hall and

[00:25:36] she said, yeah, and I said, well, where was she said? We went early, she went with a friend of her teacher friend and she said, we were right up front and lunch here. She said, took a fall to get home

[00:25:46] but we didn't have anything to do and we sat up front. I didn't know that, but I did that episode which I think we're going to show parts up. It was extraordinary and to this day, Mike, what

[00:25:59] year are we now in the jazz festival at this 44? I think we just did 44, didn't we? Yeah and it is now it's part of the dance. It just had advocacy, but it's also just part of the history of music.

[00:26:14] It's the heritage of music and it was here in Jacksonville. I don't know why you should be talking about that. You don't want to get it? Well, first of all let's listen to what Mike didn't say on

[00:26:27] the podcast. Well, here's what even this part, I have sat up. It's here because I have to say half of the memories. Yeah. The one back and I got totally in a couple of memories and this is

[00:26:38] something this is somewhat what I said. For that first first meal is Robinson Starrants with well in recent. By the time Dara Reese came to me in the United Kingdom, I made a clock over or

[00:26:48] ever, the crowd was, this man is what's going to get and it was huge and late in the year that Dara Reese was coming next and they started cheating Dara Dara Dara and I'm sure we're going to

[00:27:03] cover it and Jacksonville beat you so well. So he's sick and to get his in stains, she had the real through the crowd. So he wants the crowd, you watch a crowd, boy, she walked between

[00:27:19] you and Dara Dara Dara and then her influence was just out of sight. It was unrememivable and I remember sitting there, I probably heard something this milk but I remember sitting with it

[00:27:33] in the breeze was going, you know, I've watched them breathe and I watched them shrimp both and they were just going up and down and I'm thinking this is his greatest habit right here man,

[00:27:43] I'm getting a bit of this. Okay, my guess beside what we've just seen is there's some other memories that you share with us. Obviously there are a ton one of my favorites isn't from the second

[00:27:55] year. He had rain like hell late in the day on the second year so we had to call all of the festival for the rest of the night and two guests that had not performed waiting to perform were buddy

[00:28:08] rich in his band and Deli's in February and Buddy had gone all first and then she was going to play with them. See with them and we had to not go into cancel their acts and the people wouldn't go home

[00:28:25] they would not leave and they were yo and Deli to help herself and so I'm in the back of the police car and they handed the microphone to say tell these people to get out of here so I

[00:28:36] asked them to please go home well when it got back after they saw it leaving we had to get rich and Deli out of the out of my port back downtown where you can imagine the chaos with all the traffic

[00:28:49] in the rain and everything and so I told us they just followed this red truck so I got a recreation work and name red and drove a dead truck and I said hey do you got a wire cut or

[00:29:03] something you could have changed wait while I was playing with he says sure the so we're in a rain now we go to the main port gate it gets out I said that's it he gets out he cuts that chain all

[00:29:16] takes it off the gate pops open the gate gets in his truck and takes off and they're behind us because they was here my main port property oh my port only is in the runaway it's

[00:29:27] I thought you could you did that today you guys should have shot before you were cool the whole blinds are all blinds and they were going back on our goodness so that's this one

[00:29:38] there's a lot more like the egg with this one typically there need be a book there you know that you could be a book there yeah maybe a movie yeah yeah I can't like I tried to do

[00:29:48] that's tremendous stuff um this talk about next year when you got what would you guys like to see us do what happened we done that you would like to see us do and I know we didn't re-erce this

[00:30:03] and I didn't set this question up for anybody but I'm interested in knowing and our producer Scott Westerman I'm sure is going to be interested in worrying to know what do we want to do next

[00:30:13] I think I'd like to just improve on the quality keep everything fine like we've been in and make sure we get to write kind of gifts to talk about the rights of these people who are

[00:30:22] challenged us in the weekend challenge bash uh despite some trepidations I'd like to be able to say what I got on my mind and then it's too bad no thought we in charge your in-chains are tagline

[00:30:34] it like that like that like that like gosh you haven't done that no up and now even though I better can you and I thought oh well let me say a never podcast that we are probably gonna issue yeah well

[00:30:45] Mr. Sponsor what would you like to see Mike's as like I'm a future it's I mean you've you've touched on some great Jacksonville stories in the course of this last year programming

[00:30:55] uh I'd love to see you pick up where some of those stories have at least pause not ended but where they have at least reached a shift of years and inflection point uh one of the interesting

[00:31:09] stories of Jacksonville's civic life over this past several years has been that of its um municipal owned utility J.E.A. and that's a story that I think is still in play

[00:31:22] I do to hand uh you you brought that up to date most recently with the resignation of J. Sto Aaron's on successor and a little bit of mystery around that event and he's speculated about that

[00:31:37] so there was speculation I'd say that I think that up when you know when the opportunity presents itself for at least let's not lose sight of that let's not lose sight of some of the other

[00:31:47] developing stories um this is 2024 it is Mike high tower point and out work now what told I'm 110, 110, 110, some 120 some odd days out from a national election we've got some other election uh activity going on so that's gonna be it off to keep everybody busy here for the

[00:32:06] foreseeable future we've got a new evolving set of developments with public and private education here so I was as good that's a lively topic there's just been a shift in leadership the uh interception and administration with the new all-cony public school had a new school board

[00:32:20] though becoming on to because we have elections that's right awarding you the yep so uh wholesale leadership change at that level in an environment where people really see public and public education as being challenged by a lot of different factors and private education trying to meet the market

[00:32:39] there's I think there are a lot of stories to be told there uh resilience adaptation to sea level rise that's a story that's been going on for some time I don't know that you

[00:32:50] have had a guest yet on this I'm gonna know but that might not be a band one to try to program and could and maybe a panel on that right because there are a lot of different perspectives on

[00:33:01] that and Jacksonville being a navy town and uh as well as a coastal city of sea port or river port uh really a place that's sensitive to that there's no shortage of ideas yeah and anyways you were

[00:33:14] saying yeah thank you right now it's just taking is we've just you know we got the just in in bark of a mayor and uh the jy words on a 1.4 billion dollar investment the largest investment

[00:33:27] ever in the history of Jacksonville so that is going to be a two or three year evolution there's still parts of that agreement that still need to be worked out but there's already 1.4 billion dollars investment we've already talked a little bit as you talk about things that

[00:33:42] are coming up we hear this that they've talked about a billion dollar new jail yes um that's all of her eyes and uh there's the issue of the concern that we just read about in today's

[00:33:54] tape about problems with healthcare and deaths at the present jail um we've got downtown downtown parks that are gonna be coming out with the outside pretty soon so to your point

[00:34:09] Alan there gonna be a lot of things going on that's going to change one now and how Jacksonville looks but how people think about him for those big kick at items and you know one of us that we've all

[00:34:22] talked about jazzle sometimes in the past as always tried to do it on the cheap we wanted it enhanced quality of life but we work willing to pay for it well we've got some big

[00:34:31] kick at items and now we're then we're we're there and we're gonna how are we gonna do that and how are we gonna balance that and the other thing I think is which I think is going to be

[00:34:41] interesting to see how all this evolves is that you have a with the election coming up but you got a democratic narrative is pulled off some incredible successes with a Republican city council

[00:34:55] and in a red city and how how she is going to continue to be successful and we're gonna have those elections so I think as you said we're gonna have an involving opportunity to have people

[00:35:09] and be able to discuss that and thanks to all we're able to do that. There's a lot of what you descend my chitower about the stories that are coming up in the ways that that mics on Mike

[00:35:21] and address them you know but we have a lively fourth estate in duol county it's much more diverse it's much more segmented than it was in the kind of days of traditional print and broadcast media so

[00:35:33] it's a lot more divided but the kind of coverage that we see in those segmented media is driven by in a lot of cases people who are not what we would call long term veterans of local public life

[00:35:48] and on local news scene so we've got to do another story with got a retiring core of experience journalists who are moving on here and the next generation of journalists moving in behind them

[00:35:59] people who are early to maybe at the most mid career professionals the stories that we're talking about that you guys and you are guys that that you are covering with your interviewies do you cover

[00:36:12] those with a greater depth of historic memory and a sense of sort of the backstory to that you know you just made a comment about the appropriation the contract for the new stadium how that's the biggest single capital investment in Jacksonville's history that's noteworthy and you talk about

[00:36:32] you talk about incidents that you talk about things like the jail project that's a story with a history right where all of these things really to a historian it's instinctively true you know

[00:36:43] there there is a legacy in a story and kind of a backstory and a past to all of these things that are our issues to deal with in the contemporary moment i think that's what it

[00:36:54] gives the likes on mic brings to these stories and the storytelling that you're working on you can do things that contemporary journalists just don't have the time the resources or maybe the institutional memory to do those are over how we're taking as you were thinking

[00:37:10] that one we've got to feel I think that hopefully there will be guests out there that will want to come in there that we can ask the questions or chief in them up but I think they're out there

[00:37:22] I think the opportunity that we're going to have in part in with you but the three of us is the opportunity as you say these big kick at items but i go back to my buddy or my

[00:37:35] Tolper when he and Jake were there i mean that was a big deal when Jake put together the business together the billion dollar decade and we're just talking about why is she here that they

[00:37:49] billion one you got the jail coming up and we haven't even talked about the cba and then we're talking about the parks downtown and we've heard about the trio the historical percent i mean we started

[00:38:01] in this up or was it that she got what said you know at some point of billion here building there we're gonna talk about money i mean you know when you kind of look at that

[00:38:10] gentlemen i mean there is coming down the road there's an opportunity for Jacksonville to move into a new tier but if we want to do that then it's going to cost and are we

[00:38:23] are we willing to do that and feel good about it or are we going to be dragged into those new upper tier but the future is coming yeah and it's really kind of it's it there's a

[00:38:35] challenge but there's a it's kind of for some of us who've been around forever it's it's going to be a nice and highly to watch this happens and i think they're with the new generation of young

[00:38:45] people and then you up the people who are moving here um i think they're going to demand from their elected officials and those decision makers if you want me to stay here then you need to i'll help

[00:38:57] you make their investment but you need to step up as a decision maker and make this place that i want to stay here i want to invest here and raise a family here those young people are

[00:39:07] more likely to be respected to that invitation and to say what you're saying if they know something about how Jacksonville got to the position is really saying right now right tomorrow

[00:39:17] evening i'm going to be speaking at uh a jacks chamber group called next up jacks it is a young professional organization and it's it's a rising really to mid career people who are interested in

[00:39:30] the set of quite for the city and my job is to tell them something about how the city got to be what it is and to engage them in this idea that knowing something about it is going to make them

[00:39:41] more investor talk to anyone other show that i want to do next year and i don't know if he's going to like doing this or not but this fellow here started the emerging leader is program with the chamber

[00:39:51] of commerce and spin it. We're in recent ice-howard urgent emerging leader that's right and at some point when he's willing to actually talk about what goes on behind those closed doors that he

[00:40:03] won't even let me and to see uh i'd like to have a monitor talk about the people who go into there what they're thinking what they want i think they've made a great hour i hope they could

[00:40:13] do well let me let me put it a little bit but it is still the but just in how number two things number one the group that you're talking about is the group that is below the emerging leaders

[00:40:23] emerging leaders program came out of the program that you're doing this this is the group that is above that but they are connected what is that for did that originator your leadership

[00:40:33] yeah i said it's an urgent yeah it was a mentoring program and then the chamber was nice enough to name it and we're by way we're in class eight we should buy a who was pretty cool i gotta wrap it up

[00:40:44] let me just take a moment to again publicly thank these two guys because it would be no mics on my gifit or word for a high tower and for toberd when we came up with this concept uh

[00:40:56] and i'm talking to myself and other close friends that i have about it and whether or not to do it and then we were kind of putting together what the format would be i said there are only two

[00:41:07] people i know in this town who would be able to address those things that i have in my mind that i would like this kind of a podcast to address so my deepest gratitude for our friendship

[00:41:19] and for the the year that you spent together with all of us to do this and to you Alan plus uh obviously uh the only way that we can keep the lights on the hammerfall and is because of

[00:41:32] the help that we're getting from the historical society and the donors who are all while their donations to help support this thank you all glad i echo that gratitude as i said at the

[00:41:42] of this recording session here today it's an honor to be engaged with this it's high value it reads and gift to the future thank you nice two guys are gonna give to me it's a chain

[00:41:53] that version is a dollar tonight yeah thank you all thank you all and thank you here hosting us if it is dark yes i'm what societies in the center thank you we will be we will be thank

[00:42:06] you all for joining us and catch us on your favorite podcast or platform and uh next week there'll be another show we are gonna put up that link by the way to Michael Cruz's article in

[00:42:16] political so i have a chance to review that and if you get a chance take a look at episode 44 you'll find it on youtube as well as on our Facebook page thanks for joining us have a good week

[00:42:25] everybody and we'll see you again y'all take care bye bikes on Mike with Mike toldart, Mike hi tower and Mike Miller can be found on your favorite podcasting platform, Facebook and youtube visit the website at micsonmic.com join us next time for more conversation with micsonmic