Northeastern Scum Bringing Wicked Ways to Florida

Bike Week, one of several motorcycle-themed events held in crime-ridden Daytona Beach throughout the year, attracts a large crowd of hard-drinking, fun-loving, tattooed-in-places-you-shouldn't-be ordinary Americans who just want to have a wild, week-long party that might involve a little innocent meth, some harmless prostitution and the occasional trafficking in sex slaves. But now some New Yorker has come down and spoiled the fun for everyone.

Story found here.

Bridging the NASCAR Gap

While the Republicans hash out who they want as their nominee for the Senate race in Florida (Charlie "I Swear I'm Heterosexual" Crist, or Marco "I'm the Cuban Reagan" Rubio) one hopeful Democrat challenger is a South Florida Congressman named Kendrick Meek, and Kendrick's team has a brilliant idea. They're going to bring a little color to NASCAR. Meek is sponsoring a car in the Daytona Nationwide Series Race and wants you to join him and his family on Pit Road.

Why do I like this? Let's be honest, NASCAR has avoided blacks forever, and I'd bet for the most part blacks have avoided NASCAR. It's a redneck sport, truthfully. (Oh, come on. You know it is, even if it has been reaching out to include bikers and football fans, or the younger, full-sleeve tattoo set. Do a Google image search for NASCAR fans and let me know what page you get to when you finally find a black person who isn't the President.)

Meek's district includes Miami's Little Haiti neighborhood. It will be fun to watch him mingle with the crowd, many of whom will be overheard murmuring, "He's very articulate."

Panther vs Dad Ends in Tie

As a follow-up to my post-Super Bowl post that began with my Dad's encounter with the very rare Florida panther, some might be interested in a letter he wrote his sister about the sighting that got published in the Daytona Beach News Journal.

My Dad is kind of a badass, as evidenced by this Vietnam picture, where in his young Captain days, he sought to emulate General Douglas MacArthur with his corncob pipe. He got a pair of Purple Hearts on his two tours, this picture being taken after he returned to combat following his first injury. ("Lucky to Be Back in Combat" was the quote that doubled as a headline in his hometown paper at the time.) He served twenty years, 2 of which were spent in command of a nuclear missile battalion in Germany during the Cold War, and then went on to become an American Red Cross leader in Southern California and later a self-taught programmer, professor and supergeek. He's now a Florida retiree who remains pretty much unretired.

I think of my Dad as a "cool geek patriot" in the most respectful way. Now he is also a writer of adventure tales. Way to go, Dad.