* “We believe that nuclear weapons must be eliminated. We don’t want to build atomic weapons. But if we didn’t believe so and intended to possess nuclear weapons, no power could stop us.”–Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
* “I was not chosen to be president to restore capitalism to Cuba. I was elected to defend, maintain and continue to perfect socialism, not destroy it.”–Cuban President Raul Castro.
* “The dark secret is there is no such thing as a secure unclassified network. Law firms, think tanks, newspapers–if there’s something of interest, you should assume you’ve been penetrated.”–James Lewis, Center for Strategic and International Studies cybersecurity expert.
* “Across-the-board cuts are an ethical abdication.”–Michael Gerson, Washington Post.
* “I believe the Obama administration should approve the Keystone pipeline, which would transport oil mined and processed from the tar sands of Alberta, Canada, to refineries in the Gulf of Mexico. Like it or not, fossil fuels are going to remain the world’s dominant energy source for the foreseeable future, and we are far better off getting our oil from Canada than, say Venezuela.”–Joe Nocera, New York Times.
* “Buy a shotgun, buy a shotgun.”–Vice President Joe Biden’s advice to those considering a semi-automatic weapon to protect their homes.
* “One of the paradoxes of solitary confinement is that, as starved as people become for companionship, the experience typically leaves them unfit for social interaction.”–Dr. Atul Gawande, a surgeon who writes on public health issues.
* “Most persons now in solitary confinement will someday be back on America’s streets, some of them rendered psychotic by what are called correctional institutions.”–George Will, Washington Post.
* “In the House, the sitting president’s party has gained seats only twice in midterms since 1938. The GOP should be very worried about 2016, but for 2014 things look pretty good.”–Mike Murphy, Time magazine.
* “Argo was so top secret that the film’s director is unknown to the Academy.”–Oscars’ host Seth MacFarlane.
* “I know what Floridians care about. People generally are not hard right. Nor are they hard left. They just want to get the right thing done for most people.”–Former Gov. Charlie Crist.
* “To get Florida on the right track, the Legislature must repeal the nuclear tax and create laws that will allow for a transparent utility planning process that will bring us affordable energy options such as energy efficiency and renewables. This keeps precious energy dollars and jobs right here at home.”–Rep. Dwight Dudley, D-St. Petersburg.
* “Is the university’s need for money that great that they’d be willing to put up the name of a corporation that has the worst reputation in the world for the treatment of people in their care? It’s a sad day when money trumps morality.”–Sen. Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, commenting on Florida Atlantic University’s football facility being named GEO Group Stadium. GEO, which paid FAU $6 million, is the nation’s second-largest prison operator.
* “If sequestration hits and you’re planning on flying out of Tampa International Airport to a major city like New York or Chicago, you should expect that your flight will be delayed.”–TIA spokeswoman Janet Zink.
* “If you are reasonably well-organized, then you can accomplish more in life.”–Kip Tindell, CEO of The Container Store, which is opening its first Tampa Bay store–across from International Plaza–this month.
* “New businesses are growing here, so it’s a very vibrant city.”–Gary Prosterman, owner and principal of Memphis-based Development Services Inc., the lead company in the team developing Tampa’s vacant federal courthouse into a 130-room, Le Meridien boutique hotel.
* “If it were up to me, the state bird would be the tower crane.”–Mayor Bob Buckhorn.