I made the mistake of reading Wade Tatangelo’s “Surviving Gasparilla” piece. I should have quit while I was ahead after the good read that Wayne Garcia invariably provides. Tatangelo’s sophomoric screed seemed little more than another excuse to work “fuck,” “pissing” and “assholes” into a column. Well done. Suggestion: Next time, try waiting until you’re [...]
They seem like three disparate incidents: *The individuals who were attacked by a tiger in the San Francisco Zoo. *The Riverview residents who were chased from their homes by a toxic cloud. *The Florida politician who is determined to deal legislatively with those who let their pants hang too low in our public schools. Then [...]
Of course it was the right decision to call a halt to the Children’s Gasparilla Parade. Lightning, aluminum stands and crowded floats could have been the perfect storm of tragedy. And, of course, it was sad – for those thousands of disappointed children and their families. It was especially sad because the Children’s Parade is [...]
Call it a shibboleth moment. Or just an adult-in-charge moment. But let’s hear it for Hillsborough Circuit Judge Daniel Perry, who recently put the hugely inconsequential but highly publicized case of ex-American Idol contestant Jessica Sierra into proper context. Finally. “You’re not a celebrity; you’re a drug addict,” said Perry. Good for him. And, hopefully, [...]
Much has been written about the embarrassing episode at USF involving one of its more prominent athletes, Bulls’ senior linebacker Ben Moffitt. USF marketed him as “Linebacker. Leader. Husband. Father.” According to his estranged wife, USF could have included: “Sham student.” Mrs. Moffitt says she wrote “every single paper he has ever written in five [...]
So, Bobby Joe Helms, the “Hyde Park Rapist,” is being released. Again. After serving most of the past 22 years in prison and a treatment center. Three points. First, his plea deal plus discipline problems plus a violation of his treatment-center release lengthened his stay from his original 10-year sentence. Even still, that’s less than [...]
Sure, we’re still three years out, but wherever there’s a lame-duck office-holder, there’s successor speculation. In the case of Tampa, where Mayor Pam Iorio is in her second — and final — term, there’s no lack of could-be contenders for City Hall 2011. Any list would surely include incumbent City Council members, most of whom [...]
Can we leave Tiger Woods alone? He’s the best golfer ever and one of the world’s richest athletes. He’s also scandal free, which is a lot more than can be said about many of his prominent athletic contemporaries. He’s even married to the mother of his child. But because a part of his lineage, which [...]
Ah, the popping of leather, the pinging of aluminum. Can spring be far behind? If it’s the second week of January, it must mean another collegiate baseball season is officially afoot. And at the University of Tampa, this is a big deal. And not just because of that nifty, aesthetically landscaped, 2-year-old venue at Cass [...]
Brandon lost. In wrestling circles, that’s downright oxymoronic. It comes with a national record of 459 consecutive dual match victories. Until last week, Brandon High School hadn’t dropped a match in more than a generation. Actually, the year was 1973. As in Watergate, the Arab oil embargo and a U.S.-Vietnam cease fire. The year “The [...]
