Kudos to the 1st District Court of Appeal

That something upsets you is not enough reason for an appeals court to overturn a valid ruling by a lower court. That was the message loud and clear to the Florida Education Association on its suit against tax credit scholarships to private schools. The tax credit plan, formulated during the Jeb Bush administration, recognized that private schools, in large measure, deliver a better level of education but many potential students were excluded for financial reasons. The monies for the program come from corporate pockets in the form of tax credits rather than taxpayer dollars. We hope the FEA will now move on and focus on making our public schools better.

Tampa Bay, politics and stuff:

1. We remember hearing several elected officials on the Metropolitan Planning Organization circa 2000 warning that making Ft. Harrison Avenue single lane would turn it into a parking lot. Their objections fell on deaf ears. It might be time to revisit that decision.

2. Proof that this blog pretty much writes itself. St. Pete City Council dominated by Democrats votes to spend taxpayer dollars on landscaping the party’s offices. The money was minimal, the action, later reversed, was moronic.

3. In case you forgot, Tuesday is primary election day with a few interesting races. In Pinellas, two of the easiest calls are judicial and property appraisal professionals being challenged by career politicians.

4. Factoid: the state of Florida has never had a Presidential or Vice- Presidential candidate on a major party ticket. It is the largest state with that “distinction”.

5. You’ve lived in Pinellas County a long time if you remember the delightful Bath Club on North Redington Beach.

The diamond, the media and other stuff:

6. The Wall Street Journal advanced an idea that makes way too much sense to ever be adopted. Instead of building (or half building) Olympic venues to service a few weeks of competition, build four or so permanent locations scattered about North America, Europe and Asia that would not go to waste after a single Olympics – saving bundles of money. One suggestion is to have perhaps two summer and two winter sites to rotate every four years.

7. Headline that needed drastic revision from “Florida’s Best Newspaper” - Walmart expands curbside pickup program in Tampa Bay –projecting an image of a giant garbage truck with a Walmart logo on its side. The story actually had to do with grocery pick-ups at selected stores.

8. They are still four games out in the Wild Card race as this is written but keep an eye on the Kansas City Royals down the stretch.

9. Sad to say, Josh Hamilton is going to be the subject of those “whatever happened to” columns in the near future.

10. The passing of Tampa’s Monsignor Laurence Higgins marks the end of an era. He was more influential in the Catholic and secular community than most bishops – as was Clearwater’s Monsignor Thomas Colreavy in the 1950s and 60s. Both men were larger than life.

Show off on the diamond, but you better be good

Showboats like Carlos Gomez and Yasiel Puig can get away with their acts – as long as they are productive. Gomez, known primarily for Cadillac-ing around the bases after he hits a home run, and Puig who seems to delight in throwing to the wrong base or completely airmailing a throw from the outfield have worn out their welcomes in Houston and LA respectively. Gomez was released by the Astros and Puig sent to the minors by the Dodgers. When their production went south so did the level of tolerance for their acts by their clubs. Same can be said for reliever Jonathan Papelbon, not a showboat but a cancer in the clubhouse. It shouldn’t be that way but more than a few clubs will tolerate all sorts of bush league stuff – as long as the guy produces.

SNEAK PEEK AT NEXT WEEK – AN ARMCHAIR VIEW OF TUESDAY’S RESULTS