An authentic Cuban Cigar

I picked up a family at the airport that had arived from Cuba (Tampa has direct flights to Havana). The man gave me a gift of a real Cuban Covina cigar. This is the brand that Fidel Castro smoked. It is illegal to sell them in the United States but you can bring in a small amount for personal consumption. I will smoke this on a special occasion. The photo below confirms it is authentic. I got it off a Havana website.

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What happened to Tommy Duncan and Sticks of Fire blog?

The image below is a 2005 TBT article I still have about the Tampa blogger scene. The big boy was Tommy Duncan. He stopped blogging around 2008, and was never seen again. Here is what Creative Loafing said about that era: "The 40-something blogger founded the most-often-cited independent Tampa Bay news blog, Sticks of Fire, in Feb. 2004, and the site, without much financial assistance from advertising, is still going strong today with a stable of more than a dozen regular contributors. In 2005, Duncan was featured in a tbt* story about the young lions of the local Internet. Today, about half of them have fallen by the wayside or (in the case of famous sexy blogger Rachel Moran) moved to New Jersey. Duncan keeps on posting. The local digital scene has grown, but he's not sure it has improved in quality."

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Hillsborough County bans Uber today as taxi company

The HCPT and Hillsborough County public commission today affirmed Uber is an illegal taxi company and bared them from operating in the Tampa area. This is wonderful news to longtime drivers like me. An Uber attorney asked Hillsborough County to make new rules to fit the trendy ridesharing movement pioneered by his company and Lyft, but was told flatly on Wednesday that Uber is an illegal taxi service. The county's Public Transportation Commission unanimously affirmed that an appointed officer had enough evidence to fine Uber, based in San Francisco, for providing hiring and public taxi services without proper licensing. Uber attorney Drew Sorrell held to the company's argument that it isn't in transportation. As a technology company, it doesn't need to follow transportation regulations as they are written. "There's a perfectly good way to do this, and that is to write the rules so that they fit," said Sorrell, of the Lowndes Drosdick Doster Kantor

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The Price of gas is now lower then when Obama took office

The day Obama became President (notice the price of gas) It's about time! The photo above was taken at the Racetrack gas station the day Obama took office in 2009. The photo below that is at the same station today and its back to the same level. Gas is a major expense for taxi drivers. Nothing could be better news than to see gas continue to fall. Gas is lower today then six years ago Are you going to give the credit to Obama? Is it his economic and energy policies that have led to this fall? I would like to believe that but I can't. If it were not for Obama's green energy policies, gas may even be lower then it is today. He has tried to kill the coal industry. He won't allow off shore drilling. He has stopped the pipeline from being built. Thank God, the fracking guys have been able to create a new source of oil and lower the demand for middle east crude. This president (and his fans) for years wanted investigations into the oil companies because they t

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The political decision process on Uber

Today at the hockey arena in downtown Tampa, all of the local Tampa Bay state representatives and senators gathered for the transportation hearing. What was first and foremost on the agenda was the subject of uber and its relationship to the Tampa Bay community. Both sides offered their reasons many of them anecdotal in nature. (Senator Jeff Brandes from St Petersburg, the one Center in the picture, came across as an arrogant asshole. He was rude and belligerent and combative with all speakers. This is an example of someone who bullied his way into a political position, no doubt. Sorry for the sidebar). State senator Arthenia Joyner was the best of the lot. She asked the most pointed questions and dug deep into the real issues. She pointed out to the room that seemed surprised to find out that all of the fees that apply to the cab companies by regulation uber has none of that. There are insurance requirements, licenses and fees, and fees associated with the airport authority, m

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Uber hits roadblock in Florida

Ubers exponential growth has not been without problems. After amazing advances throughout the United States and Europe, they have hit a roadblock in Florida. Uber is now fighting it out with Miami and Tampa, where they are currently illegal. Understand it is against the law to ride in an uber car in Tampa. It's currently against the law for an uber car to be dispatched in under an hour. Tampa and Miami classify ride-share as a limousine company. The rules are a $50 minimum, and 1 hour advance notification. Why? This rule is to protect taxi ccompanies and drivers, who've invested in medallions. Travis Kalanick says these rules are crazy. he says he is spending too much time fighting the officials in Florida. he says he would rather be at the Miami Shore Club. that is a swanky boutique hotel in South Beach. google it and see if you have the money to stay there. As much as people say they like uber, they are contributing to the demise of a regulated industry that serves the

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St. Petersburg Taxi tells the truth about Uber and ride share

Albert is a cab driver that follows the rules and pays his insurance, license, and operation fees Guest post by Albert Zee: Uber problem in Tampa Bay.....Taxi industry has been under siege since 2007-2008 due to economical collapse of 2008, then surge in new taxi cab start ups between 2010-204 which were still mostly operating according to all the rules and regulations prolonged recovery. Then uber came around with "great solution" to our transportation problems and said, what regulations, what commercial insurance, what background checks and what cars (we don't need to own any and our drivers don't need to be regulated because we are "rideshare" company), we will invade and steal the market by offering rides at half a price, we will put all those law obeying "taxi cartels" out of business by creating bogus press releases about advantages of uber, by lying to public, drivers and politicians, they don't know any better any ways. Curren

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I was sick in the ER

I was sick in the ER today. My head was swimming; I was off balance; I have high blood pressure; I was in trouble. An Iranian driver gave me a ride to the ER. The good news was they could find nothing wrong. My meds have my bp under control and my motor skills were good. Their best guess was its an inner ear issue, and told me to see an ENT specialist.

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PTC ticketing Uber and Lyft drivers

The HCPTC got tired of waiting for the Florida Legislature to do something about the rules of ride share. Now, they are taking matters into their own hands. They are detaining and writing tickets of $700 to the illegal drivers. Next, they will begin impounding vehicles. This should be expected. When you have no charters, licenses, insurance, you are as bogus as the day is long. Could you open a bar without a liquor license? Could you open a radio station without an FCC license? Could you open a barber shop without the proper permits? No to all the above. So why does Uber think they can get around the law by just existing and ignoring all the rules and regulations that everyone else has to play by?

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A homeless story

It was hard to get to mad at this guy today. He was just trying to survive like I am. I have been driving for 14 years and I have regularly picked "Dave" up over the years. He used to live on Wisconsin ave until he was evicted. I picked him up today at the Crosstown Inn, a sort of rundown motel at Dale Mabry and Gandy. He needed to go to Metropolitan Ministries because that is where his mail is now being delivered. I agreed to take him and pick up his Social Security check and then, take him to Amscot. Sounded simple. It got a little complicated. He went inside the Mission, which was crowded with people picking up boxes of food and waiting in line inside for what the sign on the door said "food, money, living expenses" and other things like that. I could not help but notice that the parking lot was full of new and late model cars. Go see for yourself. Just go by. That really pissed me off. Many time in my life, I have had to sell a car or other

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Uber was warned about rapist driver

These women are members of congress and are protesting Uber (I tried to warn you about Uber) Nidhi Shah said she complained to the web-based taxi service after the driver stared at her and smiled "creepily" during a November 26 journey in the Indian capital. "I took a cab with Shiv Kumar Yadav in Delhi on Nov 26th. Scares me beyond belief," Shah tweeted late Tuesday. "He was staring at me and smiling -- made me feel quite uncomfortable." Shah told the NDTV news channel she felt she should report the driver to the company. "I had a bad feeling about him," she said. US-based Uber has been banned from operating in Delhi after the passenger in her mid-20s accused Yadav, 32, of raping her when she fell asleep in his cab on Friday night. On Tuesday it emerged that Yadav, who is now in custody, was working for the company while on bail on multiple charges including assault, robbery and rape. Yadav was charged with molestation in 2003,

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