The 2010 Laughingstock Tour is coming to Tampa

Well happy birthday to me!  Next Thursday, the day before my birthday, the Laughingstock Tour is coming to Tampa:

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden will visit the Tampa Bay area Thursday, Jan. 28, the day after his first State of the Union address, the White House has announced.

A White House spokeswoman just said no other details about the event are available, but will be announced soon.

Obama campaigned in Tampa several times as a candidate, but this will be his first visit as president, and it will be the first visit for Biden as vice president.

The article had sixteen pages of comments. I made it to page six before I read the first positive comment about the Dynamic Doobie’s impending trip here. Suffice to say, the natives are not thrilled. But why wouldn’t we feel blessed to be in the presence of The Anointed One and his trusty side kick Herr Plugs? Maybe this:
 

Florida unemployment continued its sharp climb toward record territory, hitting 11.8 percent in December, according to figures released Friday morning.

The number, up from November's 11.5 percent, is the highest since May 1975, when it was 11.9 percent. It represents nearly 1.1 million jobless out of a labor force of 9.2 million.

Florida's rate of job loss has moderated in recent months, but has still widened the gap with the rest of the country. The national unemployment rate is 10 percent.

In the Tampa Bay area, the jobless rate reached 12.4 percent, matching the rate for November, which had been revised upward from 12.3 percent….

 
Oh, but when it comes to Florida's unemployment it gets even better:
 

The fund dropped from $1.3 billion in 2008 to zero in August. Since then, the state has been borrowing about $300 million a month from the federal government to pay compensation claims, and that money eventually must be paid back.

Yeah, we be broke and we be getting broker by the moment. Any more hope and change and this state is going to fall apart at the seams.