A weekly look at the Tampa Bay area and national politics from a conservative viewpoint – plus a helping of sports and lifestyle items. Warning: not everything printed here should be taken at face value.

Scientology and the Times

First a disclaimer – do not count us as a member of the cult’s fan club. But “Florida’s Best Newspaper’s” (FBN) recent piece on Scientology’s distribution of their magazine Freedom pegged the hypocrisy meter. FBN lays waste to the cult for distributing their publication in the early morning hours. When does FBN deliver – high noon? But the biggest sin of the cult publication was criticizing FBN’s coverage of Mr. Miscavige and his merry band. FBN’s creed seems to be “We’ll criticize (justly or unjustly) all we want, but don’t you dare criticize us.” Interestingly, after our lead piece was written for this issue of TBRR, we (and many others) received an email from the reporter who wrote the most recent article seemingly trying to justify the newspaper’s actions.

Great Tampa Bay, politics and stuff:

1. Breaking news – Clearwater city officials extend traffic light cameras, claim safety is the motivating factor and do it with a straight face.

2. On another city note, cash irregularities again in the city’s parks and rec department – a department that should have been swept out with a broom well over a year ago.

3. Another year, another year of Congress ignoring Florida’s wishes to be on DST year-round. Senators Rubio and Scott have done their part but we continue to be rebuffed. Let’s see, Florida has 29 electoral votes. Maybe we need to impress that on whatever party wants the White House in 2020.

4. We note the passing of Clearwater’s Jana Carpenter at age 64. Jana was a champion for the unborn and other human beings termed disposable by today’s secular society. She will be missed.

5. With the new St. Pete Pier nearing construction, you’ve lived in Pinellas a long time if you remember one of the original pier’s tenants was Tampa Bay’s first television station WSUN-TV Chanel 38 which signed on in 1953.

Sports, the media and other stuff:

6. If only Mike Evans could play quarterback.

7. World’s largest outdoor cocktail party to stay in Jacksonville at least through 2023 despite some mild protest from Georgia’s head football guy. Hey, you don’t drop the New Year’s ball in Milwaukee and you don’t play the Florida-Georgia game anywhere but Jacksonville.

8. With all the managerial moves headlining the offseason, one very significant move flew under the radar – the retirement of Dodgers pitching coach Rick Honeycutt after 14 notable seasons of guiding a very successful LA pitching staff.

9. It took an historical World Series (in which the visiting teams won all seven games) to upset our sports whiz Achmed Walled’s (pronounced wall-ED) pre-season pick of Houston to win it all. Congrats to Davy Martinez.

10. World Series reflection: if we were starting a baseball franchise, give us either of the guys managing those two teams and our team would do just fine.

Pressure on front offices to perform in 2020

Now that the World Series has concluded and several managerial vacancies are being filled, the spotlight turns to team front offices. Two general managers were let go in the wake of the 2019 season – Boston’s Dave Dombrowski and Pittsburgh’s Neal Huntington. This compares to six managerial firings – two managers Bruce Bochy and Ned Yost left of their own accord. But the pressure will be on the front offices of the Angels, Cubs, Giants, Mariners, Mets and Phils – teams that despite heavy payrolls have been absent from the playoffs too many times in recent history. The front offices are where there could be considerable bloodshed next postseason.

NEXT UP: White House BFFs; George Fenneman; Misguided school bill

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