Things To Do In SW Florida

Alpha Phi Alpha, the nation’s oldest historically Black fraternity, is joining a growing list of groups canceling their Orlando conventions over political concerns.

The fraternity is pulling its 2025 convention out of Florida because of a “hostile” political environment created by Gov. Ron DeSantis, General President Willis L. Lonzer III said in a prepared statement.

“In this environment of manufactured division and attacks on the Black community, Alpha Phi Alpha refuses to direct a projected $4.6 million convention economic impact to a place hostile to the communities we serve,” he said.

The event was planned for the Rosen Shingle Creek hotel and was expected to draw about 4,000 to 6,000 fraternity members in addition to family members and guests, said Eric Webb, an Alpha Phi Alpha spokesman.

In its announcement, Alpha Phi Alpha cited concerns about Florida’s new curriculum standards for African American history. In particular, controversy has erupted over a requirement that teachers include lessons on “how slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit.” read more

By Sam Kemmis | NerdWallet

It’s not just you: Shopping for airfare is harder than ever. Choosing between basic economy and regular economy fares and navigating add-on fees makes booking more complicated, and that’s no accident. Airlines are harnessing lessons from a still-emerging academic field known as behavioral economics to nudge customers into spending more.

“Behavioral economics was developed by incorporating ideas from psychology into standard economic theories,” says Cait Lamberton, a professor of marketing at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. “If you see a deal that is available for only a short amount of time, and you pay more than you usually would, standard economics would say you’ve made an irrational decision. Behavioral economics says that no, what your brain is doing is responding to scarcity.”

These seemingly irrational choices are called “biases,” many of which can affect how we shop.

For example, “loss aversion” makes us hyper-sensitive to losing money and more likely to buy something like trip protection. The “decoy effect” makes us more likely to choose between two suboptimal options when a third, even worse option is presented. For example, airlines may offer a decoy like an expensive premium ticket with fewer amenities, which may make the cheaper premium ticket with more benefits look more appealing. read more

Universal Orlando has unleashed details about every haunted house and all scare zones for its upcoming Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Florida. Visitors will encounter the new “Exorcist” movie, go underground for classic monsters and meet Dr. Oddfellow in multiple ways at the theme park.

There’s also a shout-out to an original Islands of Adventure attraction incorporated into one of HHN’s five original haunted houses.

Universal identified three of the 2023 houses over several months. But rather than a drip-drip-drip method of releasing the remainder of attractions, on Friday it dropped the entire lineup of mazes and scare zones plus other information about the event, which kicks off Sept. 1.

The 10 houses this year, starting with the newly revealed, include:

• The Exorcist: Believer, based on a film of the same name that’s set to be released Oct. 13. The house’s story includes a street market in Haiti, a three-eyed doll, a demonic portal and a pair of 12-year-old girls who “exhibit unsettling behavior,” according to Universal’s news release. read more