Category: ‘STATE’

Rick Scott gets booed in Orlando

November 22, 2013 Posted by Frank M

Is it super polarized in Florida already or is it just around Governor Rick Scott?

This week in a simple photo opp announcing Orlando’s new Major League Soccer expansion team, the ‘Jobs Governor’ got jobbed when he was relentlessly booed.

The jovial crowd got vicious when organizers announced Scott wanted to say a few words. Judging from the accompanying YouTube video, whatever polite ra-ra-ing the state’s chief executive had intended on spewing was not welcomed. The boos trounced his statement, and knowing he was beat Scott yanked himself from the spotlight.

Unfortunately for him, he didn’t get the dignity of just walking off stage. He had to stand there, in all his shame, grinning and bearing it in front of a hostile crowd who wanted blood. Even the worst of Open Mic-ers get to run off and drown their sorrows privately, perhaps even on the house by way of a sympathetic bartender.

Luckily the night was one of celebration in Central Florida, as they became a two-team city. Scott gratefully lost himself in the crowd.

Can Scott expect more of this has he mounts his right-wing re-election campaign? Are the polls that have Charlie Crist in double digit leads against Scott manifesting in public?

Or is it too early, and Orlando City Lions fans just democratic at the polls?

Either way: funny video.

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Google maps Florida’s beaches; Florida pays $120,000

November 14, 2013 Posted by Frank M


Photo by VisitFlorida

Agoraphobics rejoice, the beach is coming to you -sans all the sandy people.

After four months, every slouchy corner of Florida’s ocean-front goodness has been recorded for the eventual perusing of anyone with a browser and questionable time on their hands.

This week concluded the painstakingly thorough capturing of Florida’s 825 miles of beaches in images for Google Maps. The enterprise was a partnership between Google and VisitFlorida, the state’s tourism and marketing arm, that will produce an interactive first-person view of Florida’s famous natural attraction.

And by partnership we mean Florida put up $120,000+ to use Google’s 360 degree cameras, and the search engine giant agreed to pay the Sunshine State a token amount to buy the pictures. According to the Tampa Bay Times, Google will pay $1,000 for the detailed pictures of all the state’s coastline.

The state would have gotten more had they accepted just ONE share of Google stock; currently at $1,032.47.

(more…)

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Charlie Crist announces his run on Facebook with a picture of his campaign sign.

November 4, 2013 Posted by Frank M

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It was fairly official months ago even without the formality of an announcement, but over the weekend Charlie Crist made it (kinda?) official when he posted on Facebook a picture of his campaign sign for the 2014 gubernatorial run. Just Days before he officially staged a rally. Which incidentally is later today.

“The people’s Governor” makes up the majority of the sign with a sunrise pictured above it. Crist’s name appears only by way of a URL to his website.  

More telling is the official campaigning disclosure on the bottom of the sign: “Political advertisement paid for and approved by Charlie Crist, Democrat, for Governor.”

So much for waiting for the rally. It was set for 9:30 this morning at Whitted Park in Crist-Stronghold St. Pete.

It’s not the first time Crist makes a big announcement through social media. When he officially changed his political party registration, he posted up a picture of him and his wife accompanied by the official document. What a romantic!

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He was at a White House reception with the newly re-elected Barack Obama.

An embrace with Obama at a stimulus event was campaign fodder during Crist’s failed senatorial run. He didn’t make it out of the Republican Primary, defeated by the Tea-Party’s choice- the safely right-wing Marco Rubio.  

Crist then switched to an independent to run in the general election. He lost.

At the time, Crist was thought to have left an easy re-election to the state capitol for a fairly secure national seat. He had been flirting with the national spot light ever since the John Mccain campaign floated Crist as a possible choice for Veep in 2008. 

All of it didn’t work out.

Now the former Republican Governor will come at the current Republican Governor, Rick Scott, from the left. 

Or atleast, Charlie Crist’s version of the left.

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