Conexion Miami / Bitten in the butt

Cuba seems to bring out the worst in Florida politics – especially around election time. This time it was Charlie Crist who was (figuratively speaking) bitten in the butt… by a donor. We’re talking about David Straz, one of Tampa Bay’s leading businessmen and philanthropists, who endorsed Crist and vowed “to support him in a big way.” It turns out he had planned to go with Charlie on his trip to Cuba. Crist, very Obama-like, postponed the trip for after the election. Since then the campaign has not seen a penny from Straz.

Restaurants, hotels and clean water

The Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, representing over 10,000 hoteliers, theme parks, restaurateurs and suppliers is supporting Amendment 1 on the November ballot, reports SaintPetersblog. Florida’s Water and Land Legacy is the group behind the proposal which seeks to dedicate 20 years of state’s documentary-stamp tax revenue for the acquirement, conservation, management, and restoration of Florida’s water and land resources. Documentary stamp taxes are paid whenever real estate is sold.

Pam Bondi’s can’t make up her mind

About a week after overhearing Pam Bondi say she has “many, many gay friends,” the Florida attorney general filed appeals last week on several rulings overturning the state’s ban on gay marriage. The motion argues the sole legal issue is the constitutional validity of the state ban and any changes should come from voters, not the courts. Florida voters approved the ban in 2008.

Polls on governor’s race

In the latest wave of polls, Rasmussen has Florida’s gubernatorial race a statistical dead heat, with Democrat Charlie Crist leading Gov. Rick Scott by a 42-40 margin. There is, however, an important caveat: the poll did not include Libertarian Adrian Wyllie, who has been getting small levels of support in most recent polls that have included him. In a poll conducted by conservative, pro-business Associated Industries of Florida, Scott leads by a 47-41 margin. The lead shrinks to a 44-41 margin with Wyllie in the race. Folks, it’s anybody’s race…

Where’s the $$ being spent?

The governor’s race will be decided in the middle of the state, Progreso Weekly has predicted for months. It turns out that “30 percent of all ad-race spending since March has been in the Tampa Bay area. Orlando is in second, with 22 percent of all dollars burned on TV. Together, these two swing areas of the swing state account for 53 percent of the spending,” according to TampaBay.com. West Palm Beach, a large media market that’s far cheaper than Miami’s, is third with 15.4 percent.

Giant snails and soup

Last week we learned of giant shrimp found in Florida. The Miami Herald has now reported that in Davie, a small South Florida town, “the battle has begun against a particularly slimy and dangerous species that has invaded South Florida.” These giant snails are being called “threats to human health, houses and agriculture.” And no one knows exactly how the snails got here. Speculation is that practitioners of Ifa Orisha brought the giant snails here from Nigeria and adjacent countries. Devotees consume soup made from the snail.

Cheeseburger, cheeseburger

A press release recently received by Progreso Weekly informs us that Sept. 18 is National Cheeseburger Day. This comes from a public relations agent who handles a restaurant that specializes in burgers. So we’re not exactly sure how true this is… but we love those juicy burgers and have decided to run with this. We’ll go with the cheddar, bacon and grilled onions. Tomato and lettuce on the side, please.

Jobs, jobs, jobs

Jobs and the economy remain the most important issues facing Florida, though they’re declining dramatically as the economy improves, according to a new survey of adults by the University of South Florida. One important finding of the survey: A 61-percent majority say the most important quality for leaders is “honesty” or “integrity” – qualities rated far more important than cited “vision,” “intelligence,” or even consensus-building ability.

Marijuana sales in Colorado

Not that marijuana is legal in Florida. And even if we were to approve the medicinal type… it would not apply to us. But we found this interesting. Revenue figures out of Colorado show that legal recreational marijuana sales have surpassed medical marijuana sales. Total revenue from marijuana taxes, licenses and fees topped 7 million dollars in June, and is likely to keep rising as more retail outlets enter the market.

Rich towns

Business Insider conducted an interesting study in search of the most affluent towns in each state. Indian Rivers Shores (just north of Palm Beach and close to Vero Beach) leads the way in Florida. The median income there was $129,885. A California town has the highest median income nationally; Hidden Hills’ median income was a whopping $250,000. It was followed by Chevy Chase in Maryland also at a quarter million. By the way, there are many members of congress who live in Chevy Chase.

Wage theft

Wage theft is a nationwide epidemic that cost American workers as much as $50 billion a year, a new Economic Policy Institute report finds. The total amount of money recovered for the victims of wage theft who retained private lawyers or complained to federal or state agencies was at least $933 million in 2012, almost three times greater than all the money stolen in robberies that year.

Credit card debt

In a study just released, CardHub projects that credit card debt will increase from $41.9 billion to $54.8 billion (41% more than in 2013). Other key stats: $6,802 – The average household’s credit card balance (up from $6,628 in the first quarter of 2014). By the end of the year, this number is expected to be well over $7,000; and $298.5 billion – CardHub tells us that by the end of 2014, consumers will have defaulted on nearly $300 billion in credit card debt since 2009.

Sex pays. No sex gets you fired.

We try to stay clear of what people do at home (or in this case in secret rooms at their businesses). But hey! It’s Versailles Restaurant – where they’ve been planning Castro’s ouster for half a century. Miami New Times reports that “a former worker has filed a discrimination and harassment lawsuit” against owner Felipe Valls Sr. A court document states that Ayler Ayala was first employed in 2005. She claims that Valls Sr. would visit her at work, “order a Cuban pastry that costs about $1.50, and routinely pay for the tab and place a $100.00 bill in Plaintiff’s pocket.” Now she claims she was terminated after she got tired of the old man in 2008.

Apparently there’s video of the debauchery, which included other women and sex toys… And it all happened in a secret room somewhere in the restaurant property. It’s still not out on You Tube.