Category: Tampa Bay

That well-chronicled sigh of relief throughout Seminole Heights when the serial-killer suspect was arrested has been replaced in the headlines with a different sentiment. Greed. Not everyone is satisfied in how the reward money was allocated. Not everyone thinks the arrest of a prime suspect and a neighborhood’s release from the grip of fright and paranoia is sufficient reward. It’s an unfortunate postscript to a story that was also about community bonding.

There are accidents and then there are gun “accidents.” Some things just randomly, unfortunately happen. That’s life. But with a weapon subplot, it’s no mere “accident.” It’s the tragic–even predictable–upshot of a gun culture.

First things first.

A very Merry Christmas to all of you. Thank you for your readership. Thank you for caring. We don’t always agree, and it would be scary if we did. But we need an involved community and appropriate forums, including print, like never before. Let’s just have each other’s backs and not accept the unacceptable. We’re existentially threatened. All (left) hands on deck.

The good news is that the good guys still outnumber the bad guys, but it’s not good enough if too few care enough to vote responsibly.

So, what do we want for Christmas?

How about a diverse, seriously-democratic electorate that is demanding, committed and caring–not lazy, uninformed and easily pandered to. Is that too much to ask for, Santa?

Too bad the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation doesn’t do accountability mulligans. If it did, it could award enough money–sans matching-funds commitment–for promised teacher pay hikes, new construction and air conditioning for Hillsborough County schools.

USF deserves a major shout-out for being named America’s top-performing public university for Latino students. It’s all about graduation rates and eliminating the gap between Latino and white students. Currently, 66.2 percent of USF’s Latino students graduate in six years.

Adelante, Toros.

All cities value and revere their histories. But it’s especially noteworthy and relevant for a city such as Tampa, a city where most people are not from here. Where locals’ roots are as likely to be Chicago or Philadelphia as Seminole Heights or Hyde Park. Where knowing the history of where you live can be both a learning and a bonding experience.

That’s why Tampa’s Historical Monument Trail along the Riverwalk is so important. With the recent addition of six more busts, honoring noteworthy individuals who have helped shape the history of Tampa and Hillsborough County, there are now 30 such monuments. They are diverse–Anglo, Black, Hispanic, female and male–reminders of who we are and who came before us. In short, how we got here.

“The Trail allows us to remember and honor those who were so committed and dedicated  to moving our community forward,” said Mayor Bob Buckhorn at the unveiling ceremony. “It is a place where our citizens not only connect along this incredible Riverwalk, but they will also be able to connect to one another through shared history that brought them to it.”

Indeed, cities can’t realize their potential unless they have an understanding and appreciation of their past, their identity. Tampa, more than most, needs such a venue. Tampa, more than most, has a fascinating back story to share–from historic Ybor City to an ever-evolving, new-urbanism downtown.

And for the record, the six historical additions include a certain Ybor City lector/tri-lingual newspaper founder who continues to leave his mark on this city. For readers of La Gaceta, the name and legacy of Victoriano Manteiga are familiar.

It was only fitting that Delonda Walker, the McDonald’s worker who turned in a gun that led to the arrest of the Seminole Heights serial-killer suspect, be given all of the ($110,000) reward money. Forget about the technicalities of calling a hotline number. Without her acting on suspicion, Seminole Heights is arguably still a tense community with possibly a fifth victim adding to the gut fear and paranoia.

It’s also significant that Walker is African-American. For those who still champion the “no-snitch” culture in the black community, this is a rebuke. This is what involved residents do when they act in communal self interest. And it doesn’t happen without the police and city hall having earned the confidence and respect of a community under siege.

What with news-making USF in our backyard, we don’t hear as much about the University of Tampa as we should. It’s more than ever-ratcheting growth and baseball championships. Case in point: UT was one of only two (UF is the other) Florida universities to have its graduate business school programs make the Bloomberg Businessweek top 100. UT’s Sykes School of Business was ranked 78th. Go, Spartans.

It’s not the Bucs’ worst nightmare. Yet. But it’s uncomfortably close. Wasting a high draft choice on a failed kicker never seemed like such an innocent miscalculation.

Sexual groping allegations against quarterback Jameis Winston are hardly in the Harvey Weinstein league. But for Winston, his viability as the highly-touted, highly-paid, highly-marketed face of the franchise is in jeopardy. It’s never good when the NFL–under increasing pressure to clean up its image–is investigating your quarterback catalyst. This is national news.

Given his back story, Winston cannot afford to stray. His margin of error is zero. To his credit, he has, heretofore, represented the Buccaneer organization in commendable fashion.

But that past is beyond problematic. Last December he settled a high-profile lawsuit with a woman who accused him of rape when both were students at FSU. The details were disgusting, but Winston and the Bucs thought the matter was behind them. Not.

Allegations that he groped a female Uber driver last year have now surfaced at the worst possible time as Weinstein, Louis C.K., Kevin Spacey, Roy Moore and the like have created a self-sustaining, creepy news cycle that Winston is now part of. And if you are the Bucs, you are again reliving the Jameis Winston/Marcus Mariota draft dilemma that never goes away.

As for Mariota, whose Tennessee Titans team is on course to make the playoffs, he has become a solid NFL quarterback, one who continues to make better decisions on–and off–the field than Winston. But, yes, he did throw four interceptions against Pittsburgh last week.

As for the Bucs, this has to be an agonizing waiting game as this matter gets inevitably lawyered up. What’s at stake is more than their quarterback. Their identity and their credibility are part of this crucible.

Whether it’s philanthropists such as Les and Pam Muma and Frank and Carol Morsani or entrepreneurs and business magnates such as Richard Gonzmart and Jeff Vinik, Tampa is very lucky to have their significant impact on our area. From the University of South Florida to restaurants in The Heights and Hyde Park to Water Street Tampa. What they have most obviously in common in this: Their involvement is a vote of confidence for our city and an investment in its future.