* “Cuban socialism has produced frustrated idealists and opportunists who support the system only out of a search for personal gain. Raul Castro, who replaced his brother Fidel as president, has only introduced cosmetic reform. An increasing number of Cubans are disillusioned with socialism and are demanding change.”–Award-winning Cuban blogger Yoani Sanchez.
* “I think she is really sort of a common-sense progressive. I think she has good liberal values, but she is also immensely practical and I think she will be fair to both parties.”–Former President Bill Clinton on Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan.
* “Today, a counterrevolution is under way. As the computer and cell phone become our main reading devices, the book is being pushed to the periphery of culture. According to recent studies by Ball State University and the federal government, the average American spends more than eight hours a day peering into a screen–but devotes just 20 minutes to reading books or other printed works.”–Nicholas Carr, San Francisco Chronicle.
* “Bud Chiles is nothing more than a tool of the Republican Party. The only role he would play in this election is being the only path for a Republican being governor of Florida in 2010. I’d like to know who gave him the advice to do it. He’s a nice enough fellow, but he’s got absolutely no qualifications to be governor except for his last name. It really is almost sad…Max Linn was more credible than him.”–Kirk Wagar, Miami attorney and President Barack Obama’s top Florida fund-raiser for the 2008 campaign.
* “There are lots of studies of what percent of active managers beat the market and the answer is, in any given year, it’s very low. Over the long term, it’s even lower. People who are doing it may just be lucky. It’s like a monkey with a dartboard.”–Andrew Biggs, resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and former deputy commissioner of the Social Security Administration, on the advisability of hedge-fund investing on behalf of Florida’s public pension fund.
* “This is a big day for beaches.”–The response of Indian Rocks Mayor Jim Lawrence to the recent ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court affirming public access to renourished beaches.
* “Now that high-speed rail between Tampa and Orlando will become a reality, it will be important to create connections between the downtown high-speed rail station and the airport as quickly as possible.”–TIA interim director John Wheat.
* “There are a lot of people in the black community who feel that black leadership is being attacked. They want to do whatever they can to protect black leadership in power from wrongful persecution.”–Hillsborough County Commissioner Kevin White on the racial dynamics surrounding the handling of suspended–but not fired–County Attorney Renee Lee.