Election

The mid term results are in, and I'm chuckling to myself as I expected I would. Mencken was SO dead on about the collective intelligence of the American public...

Marco Rubio's going to be our next US senator. He's too conservative for my taste, but I have to root for the guy. He's the son of Cuban immigrants (oh wait - they still call themselves "exiles" even though they've been here 50 years and their offspring are now, um, US senators) and grew up poor. He's not the brightest fellow --he had to start out at Santa Fe College before he could get into UF, and then UM Law, but he's certainly relentless.

Most importantly, he seems to be a national GOP darling, so hopefully that will be good for Florida. I wouldn't be surprised to see him run for president sooner or later, and possible win. He's good looking and charming.

Alex Sink is neither. She lost the governor's race to a guy, Rick Scott, who belongs in federal prison. But, as we all learned in junior high, popular and rich and charming always beats frumpy and smart --issues don't count.

I went to an Alex Sink fundraiser a fe months back. My friend Joel, hoping to secure a judgeship for his sister, committed to raising money for Sink. He hosted a lunch at a restaurant on the Miami River. My partner Paul and I gave money and ate fried seafood.

I sat next to the Democratic candidate. Within 5 minutes, I was so bored with her, I was involving myself in a conversation with 2 Gator lawyers about how good the team was going to be with their new QB Brantley. "Better than with Tebow" was their absurd conclusion...

Sink was frumpy and charmless. She seemed smart, of course, but on the way back to the car, Paul and I told Joel, in most subtle terms, that his investment in the political future of Florida was questionable. "That's one boring, annoying, unlikeable woman" we said...

So we knew then that Sink was sunk. Even her name was downcast and wrong for victory. Vote for the Titanic!

So, my decision to get out of the personal injury business seems well timed. Between Rick Scott and the GOP Florida legislature, the most draconian anti-plaintiffs laws are on the near horizon. Bad faith law, the hammer we use to get insurance companies to settle cases, will evaporate. That will effectively kill the PI business, in my opinion. With no financial incentive to settle, insurers will string cases along for years...bankrupting PI firms along the way.

Oh well.

Hemingway had the right philosophy. All we can do is try to secure our own lives and happiness. If we get caught up in things like idealism, and altruism, the stupidity and naivete of our fellow citizens will shoot us down.

Rick Scott as governor of Florida. Amazing...