Established in 2014 and published every Sunday, Tampa Bay Rants and Raves is a weekly airing of local and national news, politics, sports and historical notes from a politically incorrect viewpoint.

First thing on our mind:

We have it on pretty good authority that Capogna’s is going to reopen in a month or two with very little change from the original and many of the old staff!

Leading off: There should be a limit:

We note with dismay that the potheads are at it again. The supporters of 2024’s failed recreational pot amendment initiative say they will try to get the ill-advised measure back on the ballot in the 2026 election. From their prospective, it makes sense. 2026 is a midterm election that always draws fewer voters. Given the Trump wave last year, it is possible fewer moderate and conservative voters will show up next year, giving the pro-pot crowd a better chance at the required 60 percent for ratification. If they keep trying, they might just wear the electorate down. It would seem another constitutional amendment might be in order – a mandatory length of 6 or 8 or 10 years before a previously defeated proposal could reappear on a statewide ballot.

Tampa Bay, politics and notes:

Governor DeSantis’ recent proposal to eliminate third party petition collectors is another step in the right direction. A vote by mail type process would eliminate abuses carried out by petition collectors over the years.

It’s all coming together – NCAA, federal government and other sports organizations say “no” to men being able to compete in women’s sporting events.

Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez becomes the first graduate of Florida International University to head her alma mater.

Gee, it didn’t seem to take too long for some of our trade partners to blink.

250 people in Tampa protest deportation policies, while millions nationwide say, “it’s about time.”

Only in California – the state is trying to shake down energy companies for the cost of mitigating the state’s disastrous fires.

Seen on a big bold sign on an automobile: “Why ask me to press 1 for ENGLISH, then transfer me to someone who barely speaks it?”

Idle thought: Can we please get a Constitutional Amendment to set a retirement age for our congressmen – thereby ridding us of diminished fossils like Maxine Waters, Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Grassley (age 91) and Mitch McConnell.

Coke debuts six new, weird flavors. For the life of us, we can’t think of anything better than the original 6 and a half ounce bottle over ice.

Another Tampa Bay auto racing star passed away last week. Will Cagle made a name for himself both here in the bay area and on the short track circuits in New York and Pennsylvania. He was 86.

This week in 1963 (Feb. 12) construction begins on the iconic Gateway Arch in St. Louis.

Sports, media and other notes:

Tech news from the 5:05 Newsletter: The Australian Senate passed a law banning children under 16 from social media. This law will be enforced by adults who have to ask their children for technical support when they accidentally lock themselves out of their iPhones.

Speaking of the 5:05, we got a missive from the editorial department questioning our exclusion of Red Smith from our Mount Rushmore of sports columnists. A swing and a miss on our part. Our only excuse (weak) is Smith’s columns appeared only infrequently in our bay area newspapers.

Another victim of the cancer that is sports betting, MLB umpire Pat Holberg is fired for a violation of the league’s gambling protocols.

Speaking of victims, FSU is the latest victim of what have become pro-college sports. Longtime basketball coach Leonard Hamilton has announced he will step away at year’s end.

It’s one of those “don’t even think about it” questions asked in London, could the Super Bowl ever be played outside the U.S.? Same goes for the World Series, unless, of course, the Blue Jays were involved.

You’ve lived in Clearwater a long time if you remember Carter’s Army-Navy Store in downtown Clearwater on Cleveland Street.

One last thing: A great trivia question ruined

While Donald Trump’s victory in November left the majority of Americans happy; it ruined things for a bunch of political geeks. One of the great political trivia questions was “who was the only president to serve two, non-consecutive terms?” Now everybody knows it was Cleveland. But what they don’t know is his first name was Stephen, not Grover; that he was the first President to be married in the White House, his bride, Frances, being our youngest First Lady at 21and finally, he won the popular vote all three times he ran.

NEXT UP; Eyes in the sky; EV trucks; Play Ball!

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