Everyone knows, as Jim Croce wrote: "you don't tug on Superman's cape, you don't spit into the wind, and you don't pull the mask off that old Lone Ranger."
Nor would it make sense to appear to disrespect the powerful Republican chairman of the biggest committee in the U.S. House of Representatives, the one that sets priorities and requests money for U.S. transportation and infrastructure projects.
Everyone knows that except Big Jim, and maybe Florida Republican Gov. Rick Scott, who's got his own jet, if not a two-piece custom made pool cue, and spent $73 million of his own money as an "investment" to become the "CEO of Florida, Inc." (or what the "little people" call "Governor") and maybe get a chance to privatize Medicaid as an added perk.
He also bought into a chance to tangle with U.S. Rep. John Mica, not that there's anything wrong with challenging an entrenched Congressman - that's what the Tea Party is supposedly all about.
But disagreeing with Mica might be a lot different from disrespecting Mica, if that's what's happening.
We soon shall see.
Last month Scott rejected $2.4 billion for a Florida high-speed rail project that Mica alternatively touts and disses, depending upon whether his own conservative base in central Florida might be tuning in.
But Mica has put some energy into Florida high-speed rail plans, not to mention a huge amount of political capital in 2009 to get the Republican-owned Florida Legislature to support a commuter rail system for central Florida, that if you stretch the station connections a little in Orlando, could help feed the high-speed rail line.
What might be just as stupid as Scott turning down $2.4 billion in federal money from "Yankees" and others around the country, along with getting back some of the income taxes that Floridians have already pitched in that may now go instead to help business and travel in New York or California, was that Scott apparently didn't give Mica much heads up or rationale about his decision to unilaterally kill Florida's high-speed rail project on a Wednesday morning last month.
Mica said in a story that appeared in the St. Augustine Record this week that Scott seemed encouraging about high-speed rail at first:
"He said he'd look at it. But he never even gave it a chance. (When he turned down the money) I was stunned, quite frankly," Mica said.
Now Mica wants to put money into deepening channels leading in and out of Jacksonville's port, but acknowledges Washington may not be pleased with Florida these days.
Again, from the St. Augustine Record:
"The governor will learn, as other people learn, that sometimes you have to work with folks, and you don't always get what you want. Projects aren't cheap and Mr. Scott will find that out."
MISTER Scott?
Yeah, right, maybe a little sarcasm on Tuesday.
Can't wait to find out how Mica addressed Scott on Friday when the governor also put a hold on Mica's central Florida commuter SunRail project, via Facebook of all places, making Mica look more than a little silly, it would seem.
Well, we know how Jim Croce put it:
"Last week he took all my money, and it may sound funny, but I come to get my money back."
Cross posted at Beach Peanuts