Hillsborough Suburbanites Rule — Again
Just checked the unusually high number of early votes cast in Hillsborough County, 25,356 in total. That is quite a bit higher than the other surrounding counties (Pinellas has just above 8,000 with roughly the same voting population). Breaking down the origin of those early votes, I found a 2-to-1 advantage for suburban voting locations…
Blair’s Faves
Hillsborough County Commissioner Brian Blair has made no secret of his support for candidate Brad Swanson in the past, but over the weekend he endorsed Swanson again in recorded telephone calls for registered Republican voters. Earlier, Blair touted judicial candidate Samantha Ward in a mailing to voters. That should help you make your voting decisions…
Election Day Roundup
Be sure to vote. And revel in the thought that today marks the last election that Katherine Harris will ever win: Viva la Gina. Primary predictions: The State of Sunshine, Florida Politics' readers. The WTF story of the day: somebody is cheesed off that Wendy's added a vanilla Frosty. Strictly prurient: Rupert Everett's tell-all chapter…
Florida, as we know …
Florida, as we know, is a civilization in decline, but fortunately it appears to be declining at a slow enough pace that you and I can still live our lives and bow out before the check comes. The F State, first, is a daily guide to your neighbors — a constant reminder that you need…
Morning Roundup Weekend Edition
Hope this weather holds all weekend, and with college football starting up again, life is good: The obvious winners are Paul de la Garza's time in the Middle East with Gen. Abizaid; Troxler reminds us who voted for the 2003 phone bill; Bo Michaels' scummy attacks on Jack Day continue, led by his consultants The…
Editor Chuck Shepherd(and “News of the Weird”)
The editor of The F State is Chuck Shepherd, creator of the weekly newspaper feature "News of the Weird," which appears in more than 250 papers and on several websites. You'll find the current weekly column, and a small archive, here. You can also get News of the Weird e-mailed to your box, free, every…
Editor Chuck Shepherd(and “News of the Weird”)
The editor of The F State is Chuck Shepherd, creator of the weekly newspaper feature "News of the Weird," which appears in more than 250 papers and on several websites. You'll find the current weekly column, and a small archive, here. You can also get News of the Weird e-mailed to your box, free, every…
Tips?
The F State is usually updated at least once a day, Monday through Friday, but there certainly may be additional posts daily, as well as weekend posts, as events dictate. Tips are welcomed, especially from north Florida and south Florida (in that Yr Editor lives in the middle). Write TheFState@tampabay.rr.com.
Morning Roundup, Friday edition
Best bets: Watermark, the leading GLBT publication, makes its political endorsements. (via The Buzz) More intrigue in the Pinellas school races. The latest on the Sprawlway Authority scandal. It keeps getting better and better.
District 11 Debate Podcast
An open congressional seat comes along about once in a decade, so the race between the five Democrats who want to succeed Jim Davis in the U.S. House is intense. Listen to them on the issues of gay rights, the plight of black men and boys, immigration, Cuba policy, minimum wage and the War in…
Morning Roundup
Thursday at a glance: Told ya so. As we predicted, Ed Helm's time at the top of the Pinellas Democratic Party is proving enormously destructive. The state party has asked his wife to stop using its name in a PAC she formed that is attacking Democratic candidates in Pinellas. It is threatening a lawsuit. "The…
The Attack of Ralph Hughes’ $1 million
As I pondered a few weeks back in Political Whore, Ralph Hughes’ well-funded PAC, Let’s Make the World a Better Place Because We Have Been Here, has struck. This morning on Fox 13 I caught what appears to be its first political TV ad, a hit piece on former state Rep. Sandy Murman. The sharply…
Swanson Defends Himself
The latest volley in the Brad Swanson vs. Rose Ferlita county commission race came this week in the mail. Swanson defends himself against a Ferlita brochure that details his failures in school and business by describing his problems as “youthful indiscretions during my post-teenage years at USF.†I wasn't the most attentive student at USF,…
Morning Roundup
As Ernesto fizzles, some recommended reading: I know this is a couple of days old, but for those playing the home version of the "Sean Daly Overwriting Contest," here are a couple of more entries from his latest, a review of Outkast's Idlewild: "flavored with juke joint stank and related speakeasery;" "jazzbo trippiness;" "fiendishly scattershot;"…
Idlewild
OutKast
The sommelier: a Labor Day rribute
Saluting those who pair wines and meals
Letters to the Editor
‘Only as safe as you feel,’ ‘Taste of Tuscany’
Once more, with soul
Digging into the retro pile
Guitar superstar
MUSIC
The hottest race
St. Pete’s House district is the No. 1 target in Florida — for both parties
Liquid gold
In praise of Pilsener, the lager that led the way
A cloudy past
THEATER
The Blotter
Bizarre crimes from the Tampa police department
The Planeteer
Primary Election Yearbook, Class of 2006
Get your ass to Mars
Ernesto, Plame leaker
Smoke & mirrors
Taking stock of the difference between magicians and frauds
Beach blanket bullseye
Gypsy Productions comes into its own with a first-rate treatment of a time-tested farce
Knock on wood
It’s part of a complete breakfast.
Spice island
Flavorful sauces add zing to the offerings at China Yuan
Campaign against cruelty
FUNDRAISER
The Planeteer
The Karaoke Club
But Seriously, Folks …
The Planet‘s picks in key 2006 primary races around Tampa Bay.
Crafting an arts scene
A cancer survivor’s return to Tampa brings together Bay Area crafters.
Spellbinder by Gabor Szabo
Backspin
Mother knows best
Mamele at Dutcher Auditorium
Outtakes
Capsule reviews from recently released movies
Counting the days
Counting Crows find precision and looseness
The Planeteer
Senior Prom Memories
Sources
Where the ‘Actual Quotes’ come from
WP’s picks for the week’s best shows
G. Love & Special Sauce, Nothing Promise Farewell Show
Conflict, forgiveness, renewal
Long Night’s Journey Into Day
Art imitates life
ART/HISTORY
Changing their tune
The song’s likely over for one independent music store in Pinellas, while another must relocate
Upcoming releases
Tues., Sept. 5
The Wine List
Events around the city
The gypsy life
Memories of living spaces left behind
No safety net
A Tampa man’s murder leads his family to seek answers through a documentary
