* “It probably is about time to judge the Euro Zone as a failed idea–and rarely is it wise to double down on failed ideas.”–Tyler Cowen, New York Times.
* “Plata o plomo.”–The Mexican drug cartel’s offer (“silver or lead”) to government officials– meaning a bribe or a bullet.
* “Special Operations forces exemplify the ethic of smart power–fast and flexible, constantly adapting, learning new languages and cultures, dedicated to forming partnerships where we can work together.”–Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in Tampa as the keynote speaker at the Special Operations Forces Industry Conference Gala Dinner.
* “Romney isn’t a racist, but some in his party clearly believe he can’t win without a heavy turnout of people who cannot stomach the notion of a black guy in the White House.”–Carl Hiaasen, Miami Herald.
* “It’s a tragic commentary to be able to say that young black males have a greater chance of reaching maturity on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan than on the streets of Philadelphia, Chicago, Detroit, Oakland, Newark and other cities.”–Walter E. Williams, professor of economics at George Mason University.
* “‘Obamacare is socialized medicine,’ says the Republican Party. No, no–excuse me–socialized medicine is what we have now! People without insurance can go to an emergency ward or throw themselves on the mercy of a doctor, and the cost of all this uncompensated care is shared by all those who have insurance, raising your rates and mine. That is socialized medicine and that is what Obamacare ends.”–Thomas L. Friedman, New York Times.
* “We’ve only had 93 arrests for the entire week. I think the news is not what happened. It’s what didn’t happen.”–Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarty’s assessment of the NATO summit.
* “This is a forced march to digital.”–Newspaper consultant Ken Doctor after the announcement that the New Orleans Times-Picayune was cutting staff and scaling back to three times a week.
* “The (Catholic) Church would be wiser to take the path laid out for us by (President John) Kennedy than the path laid out for us by Santorum.”–Former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo.
* “I can’t conceive of Jeb Bush being the vice president of anything. I see him being a presidential candidate, not this go-round but in the future.”–Incoming Florida Senate President Don Gaetz.
* “The housing numbers for the state of Florida continue to signal recovery.”–John Tucillo, Florida Realtors chief economist.
* “Now we have many more sizable businesses headquartered or operating in Florida. So more growth should be starting to happen internally here. … We will be less dependent on (move-in) growth itself.”–Mark Vitner, Wells Fargo senior economist.
* “The better the company does globally, the better the staffing payroll and stability and employee growth will be locally.”–Jabil Circuit Inc. CEO Tim Main.
* “I’ve got to salute him. He was playing politics, and the rest of us weren’t. We were playing by Marquis of Queensbury rules. He got what he wanted.”–University of North Florida President John Delaney on George LeMieux’s aggressive campaign to replace Mel Martinez in the U.S. Senate in 2009.
* “Maybe it’s time to stop and take a look at how the state assesses students.”–Pinellas County Schools Superintendent John Stewart.
* “It’s just my job to finish the job.”–Mayor Bob Buckhorn on continuing work on the decades-long Riverwalk project.
* “He can drive up, give me a call and I will hook him up with a good Cuban sandwich. I know he can’t find them in Miami.–TPD Chief Jane Castor’s message for Miami Police Chief Manuel Orosa.
* “Just how they decorated the locker room in all USA stuff and my jersey is hanging there … it gives me chills now just thinking about it, knowing that I was playing for Team USA.”–Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nate Thompson on playing for the U.S. at the recent World Hockey Championship.