By all accounts, the Great Cuban Trade debate staged Tuesday morning lived up to its billing.
Cuban-American attorney and Castro opponent Ralph Fernandez and Albert A. Fox Jr., the man who helped arrange Mayor Dick Greco's controversial trip to Cuba, squared off for the first time ever.
Both brought tons of supporting information to the Trenam Kemker Regional Leadership event, but most of all they brought passion.
Unfortunately, I had another obligation, but most of the 300-plus people in attendance were still buzzing about the conflicting opinions long after the morning event.
Passions were expected to run high, and Fernandez and Fox did not disappoint. Trenam Kemker attorney Rob Stern said it was the most informative and emotional discussion he had seen during the six years the firm had sponsored the breakfast gatherings.
So who scored the most points?
When I reached Fernandez on Tuesday afternoon, he was convinced he won over the undecided people in the audience. And Fox said that by contradicting Fernandez, he succeeded in prompting people to do their own research and draw their own conclusions.
After talking to both men, it's clear they don't agree on much of anything. One of the biggest issues is Fernandez's insistence that Castro has supported terrorism. Fox told me that was propaganda. Fernandez, who also noted European countries are planning to boycott Castro because of his recent persecution of dissidents, said there is overwhelming evidence to support his claim.
Fox also spoke of humanitarian efforts being made by those who travel to Cuba, and said more could be done if travel restrictions were lifted.
"You could have a mother in Cuba dying of cancer and not be able to send her $10,000," said Fox, president of the Washington-based Alliance For Reasonable Cuba Policy. "But you can send your favorite Iraqi cousin as much money as you want."
Fernandez said such humanitarian talk is just a cover for carpetbaggers hoping to take economic advantage of a good relationship with Castro.
"Don't be misled by these "I-found-it humanitarians' who take an old wheelchair to Cuba in a million-dollar yacht and then party for 10 days at Marina Hemingway with 15-year-old Cuban girls," Fernandez said.
Clearly, the best result of this healthy debate is awareness of the issue, and I'm glad we could have it in Tampa. They tell me you couldn't have this debate in Miami.
The 13 Ugly Men and the Charity For Women will play host to a lingerie show and wine tasting to benefit breast cancer research at Profusion on July 17. An incorrect date was listed in one of my recent columns.
Hey, read this limerick, culled from the July 21 broadcast of the weekly National Public Radio quiz show Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me.
We just want a club, no loose zippers.
Just some dancing, some drinks, we're good tippers.
But we'll go, I suppose
To where they shed clothes.
Oh, Portland has too many _________.
The answer is strippers, and while some believe Tampa has more nude clubs per capita than any city in the country, that actually may be Portland's claim to fame. In explaining the answer, the NPR Web site said a number of brochures and travel guides list Portland as having more burlesque houses than any other city in the country, and possibly the world.
Chances are there is no one who is actually going around and making that determination, and I'm not sure what I would say about someone who does choose to do such research.
But it is worth noting that despite this dubious distinction, Portland often ranks as one of the nation's most livable cities. Chew on that the next time someone gets up in arms about shutting down nude bars in Tampa.
