DeSantis signs bill requiring FL students, professors to register political views with state

[ZiprHead]

New law will survey Florida students, professors on political views

Colleges could lose funding if survey of "ideas and perspectives" fails to satisfy state's GOP-run legislature

www.salon.com

Public universities in Florida will be required to survey both faculty and students on their political beliefs and viewpoints, with the institutions at risk of losing their funding if the responses are not satisfactory to the state's Republican-led legislature.

The unprecedented project, which was tucked into a law signed Tuesday by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, is part of a long-running, nationwide right-wing push to promote "intellectual diversity" on campuses — though worries over a lack of details on the survey's privacy protections, and questions over what the results may ultimately be used for, hover over the venture.

Based on the bill's language, survey responses will not necessarily be anonymous — sparking worries among many professors and other university staff that they may be targeted, held back in their careers or even fired for their beliefs.

According to the bill's sponsor, state Sen. Ray Rodrigues, faculty will not be promoted or fired based on their responses, but, as The Tampa Bay Times reported Tuesday, the bill itself does not back up those claims.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

The measure, which goes into effect July 1, does not specify what will be done with the survey results. But DeSantis and Sen. Ray Rodrigues, the sponsor of the bill, suggested on Tuesday that budget cuts could be looming if universities and colleges are found to be “indoctrinating” students.

Slippery slope? More like a cliff. I like how diversity is incredibly important when it means more people that share their views.

People should mock and ignore this guy at their own peril. This guy is a competent Trump fascist, and is among the leading candidates for the US Presidency. This type of program isn't even Red Flag territory. This is Authoritarianism. The idea that a college campus needs people to have relatively equal counts on opinions is ridiculous. This is Moore-Coulter on truth.

 

[laughing dog]

This is fascinating. The bill's purpose is "o discover "the extent to which competing ideas and perspectives are presented" at public universities, and whether students "feel free to express beliefs and viewpoints on campus and in the classroom." but it also "prevents officials from limiting campus speech that "may be uncomfortable, disagreeable or offensive". But according to the article "Republicans have long held that universities promote left-wing ideologies and discriminate against conservative students and staff."

Seems to me the Florida GOP speaks with forked tongue if funding of these public universities is tied to the survey results.

 

[Toni]

Really? The GOP has been loudly telling us who they are at least since Barry Goldwater. Currently, fucking Liz Cheney is being lauded as a voice of reason. They may have occasional psychotic events, prolonged by the attendant fundraising potential, but they’ve been all about controlling what they fear: black people, women, the free exchange of ideas, since the McCarthy era.

 

[Gospel]

Affirmative action for fascists. I think I need to let my governor know that fascists aren't a protected class.

 

[Bomb#20]

Here's a link to the law. https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2021/233/BillText/er/PDF

As far as I can see, the Salon headline, "DeSantis signs bill requiring Florida students, professors to register political views with state", appears to be a fabrication. There is no indication in the bill to suggest that answering the state's questions will be compulsory.

 

[Jarhyn]

Here's a link to the law. https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2021/233/BillText/er/PDF

As far as I can see, the Salon headline, "DeSantis signs bill requiring Florida students, professors to register political views with state", appears to be a fabrication. There is no indication in the bill to suggest that answering the state's questions will be compulsory.

Yes there is. Namely in the levying of funding decisions on the basis of response rates.

This is a very passive-aggressive way to force the institutions themselves to drive out high responses through compulsory collection. Non-submission is essentially akin to the school closing.

We can already see the effect the model of the law will have on schools and it is, de-facto, a threat to either respond comprehensively or be shut down.

This is a "requirement" buried between the lines of the bill, but we can all see it so take that "but it doesn't outright say" bullshit and pound sand with it.

 

[Ford]

This is hilarious. The state with the "don't say gay" law and one of many states attempting to ban the teaching of Critical Race Theory claims they don't want to "...limit students', faculty members', or staff members' access to, or observation of, ideas and opinions that they may find uncomfortable, unwelcome, disagreeable, or offensive."

You've gotta be fucking kidding me.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

55 (b) The State Board of Education shall require each
56 Florida College System institution to conduct an annual
57 assessment of the intellectual freedom and viewpoint diversity
58 at that institution. The State Board of Education shall select
59 or create an objective, nonpartisan, and statistically valid
60 survey to be used by each institution which considers the extent
61 to which competing ideas and perspectives are presented and
62 members of the college community, including students, faculty,
63 and staff, feel free to express their beliefs and viewpoints on
64 campus and in the classroom. The State Board of Education shall
65 annually compile and publish the assessments by September 1 of
66 each year, beginning on September 1, 2022. The State Board of
67 Education may adopt rules to implement this paragraph.

"It used to be thought that a university campus was a place where you'd be exposed to a lot of different ideas," DeSantis said at a press conference following the bill signing. "Unfortunately, now the norm is, these are more intellectually repressive environments. You have orthodoxies that are promoted, and other viewpoints are shunned or even suppressed."

Taking these two in context with one another, the article is dead on balls accurate. This whole thing is absurd!

Take survey, results indicate that most students feel free to express their opinions. Conclusion, schools are not allowing enough conservative students in the classroom.

 

[Jarhyn]

This is hilarious. The state with the "don't say gay" law and one of many states attempting to ban the teaching of Critical Race Theory claims they don't want to "...limit students', faculty members', or staff members' access to, or observation of, ideas and opinions that they may find uncomfortable, unwelcome, disagreeable, or offensive."

You've gotta be fucking kidding me.

To anyone with even a remotely functional ability to read between those lines, he is loudly saying "the only views I really want them to have access to are my views."

 

[Gospel]

DeSantis needs to add protection from people like DeSantis that find CRT uncomfortable, unwelcome, disagreeable & offensive.

Edit: Come to think of it, this law might be a good thing after all. I mean, it doesn't stop any view in particular (including CRT) so... He took it out of primary school, sprinkled a touch of caution on secondary school but fully protects it in postsecondary schools. am I reading this right?

 

[Bomb#20]

There is no indication in the bill to suggest that answering the state's questions will be compulsory.

Yes there is. Namely in the levying of funding decisions on the basis of response rates.

This is a very passive-aggressive way to force the institutions themselves to drive out high responses through compulsory collection. Non-submission is essentially akin to the school closing.

We can already see the effect the model of the law will have on schools and it is, de-facto, a threat to either respond comprehensively or be shut down.

This is a "requirement" buried between the lines of the bill, but we can all see it so take that "but it doesn't outright say" <expletive deleted> and pound sand with it.

So your theory is that students who leave a survey question blank will be expelled? You're in la-la land. And your theory is that when the expelled students inevitably sue, the courts will rule in favor of the schools that expelled them over it? You're in the la-la land on the far side of regular la-la land.

Wait, I know how you can prove you're right: more scatology. That will make your case for you.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

There is no indication in the bill to suggest that answering the state's questions will be compulsory.

Yes there is. Namely in the levying of funding decisions on the basis of response rates.

This is a very passive-aggressive way to force the institutions themselves to drive out high responses through compulsory collection. Non-submission is essentially akin to the school closing.

We can already see the effect the model of the law will have on schools and it is, de-facto, a threat to either respond comprehensively or be shut down.

This is a "requirement" buried between the lines of the bill, but we can all see it so take that "but it doesn't outright say" <expletive deleted> and pound sand with it.

So your theory is that students who leave a survey question blank will be expelled? You're in la-la land. And your theory is that when the expelled students inevitably sue, the courts will rule in favor of the schools that expelled them over it? You're in the la-la land on the far side of regular la-la land.

Wait, I know how you can prove you're right: more scatology. That will make your case for you.

The law requires the schools to survey. The survey will be meaningless without people answering the questions. The Governor is threatening funding over this. Nothing in the law indicates students can be expelled, but the schools are being compelled to make students answer the questions.

 

[Jarhyn]

There is no indication in the bill to suggest that answering the state's questions will be compulsory.

Yes there is. Namely in the levying of funding decisions on the basis of response rates.

This is a very passive-aggressive way to force the institutions themselves to drive out high responses through compulsory collection. Non-submission is essentially akin to the school closing.

We can already see the effect the model of the law will have on schools and it is, de-facto, a threat to either respond comprehensively or be shut down.

This is a "requirement" buried between the lines of the bill, but we can all see it so take that "but it doesn't outright say" <expletive deleted> and pound sand with it.

So your theory is that students who leave a survey question blank will be expelled? You're in la-la land. And your theory is that when the expelled students inevitably sue, the courts will rule in favor of the schools that expelled them over it? You're in the la-la land on the far side of regular la-la land.

Wait, I know how you can prove you're right: more scatology. That will make your case for you.

Not expelled. But "have financial aid reconsidered", have instructors lean on students, or just close the institution entirely due to non-response.

It's kind of like firing someone who you can't find cause to fire: instead of firing them, you "eliminate their position".

It's the same effect, but covered over with bullshit language.

We all see that suspiciously weapon-shaped piece of the law there, and labeling it "totally not a weapon" does not actually make it thus.

 

[Ford]

Desantis was very clear in the statement quoted above. He feels that students simply aren't being exposed to enough conservative content or opinions, and that this law is meant to prevent opinions HE finds offensive.

The right wing does not want a diversity of opinions. Or diversity in general. Republican politicians across the country are (and have been) running on banning the teaching of CRT - to elementary school students who aren't being taught it, but given their druthers they'd also ban it all the way up the food chain.

Desantis is playing to the base, and the idea that he just wants kids exposed to as many diverse viewpoints as possible is fucking laughable.

 

[Bomb#20]

So your theory is that students who leave a survey question blank will be expelled? You're in la-la land. And your theory is that when the expelled students inevitably sue, the courts will rule in favor of the schools that expelled them over it? You're in the la-la land on the far side of regular la-la land.

The law requires the schools to survey. The survey will be meaningless without people answering the questions. The Governor is threatening funding over this. Nothing in the law indicates students can be expelled, but the schools are being compelled to make students answer the questions.

That's ridiculous. The school will ask its students, say, "Which political party do you align with?" The survey results will be something like "53% Democrat, 28% Republican, 6% Other, 13% Decline to state". The school will submit that to the Board of Education. The Board of Education will file it somewhere and a bureaucrat will make a note that the school complied with the law.

 

[Jarhyn]

So your theory is that students who leave a survey question blank will be expelled? You're in la-la land. And your theory is that when the expelled students inevitably sue, the courts will rule in favor of the schools that expelled them over it? You're in the la-la land on the far side of regular la-la land.

The law requires the schools to survey. The survey will be meaningless without people answering the questions. The Governor is threatening funding over this. Nothing in the law indicates students can be expelled, but the schools are being compelled to make students answer the questions.

That's ridiculous. The school will ask its students, say, "Which political party do you align with?" The survey results will be something like "53% Democrat, 28% Republican, 6% Other, 13% Decline to state". The school will submit that to the Board of Education. The Board of Education will file it somewhere and a bureaucrat will make a note that the school complied with the law.

And then the state has full rights to disclose not only that this state institution is liberal, pull all their funding for "imbalanced viewpoints", but also publish the name of every liberal respondent.

No sane progressive is going to trust DeSantis with a disclosure of their political views, and so the school cannot expect to reach compliance...

 

[Ford]

So your theory is that students who leave a survey question blank will be expelled? You're in la-la land. And your theory is that when the expelled students inevitably sue, the courts will rule in favor of the schools that expelled them over it? You're in the la-la land on the far side of regular la-la land.

The law requires the schools to survey. The survey will be meaningless without people answering the questions. The Governor is threatening funding over this. Nothing in the law indicates students can be expelled, but the schools are being compelled to make students answer the questions.

That's ridiculous. The school will ask its students, say, "Which political party do you align with?" The survey results will be something like "53% Democrat, 28% Republican, 6% Other, 13% Decline to state". The school will submit that to the Board of Education. The Board of Education will file it somewhere and a bureaucrat will make a note that the school complied with the law.

The proper answer to "which political party do you align with?" is "that's none of your goddamned business, you useless sack of meat."

Nobody - not students, not administrators, not teachers, not staff - should feel the least bit compelled to answer a survey on personal political leanings. The state of Florida has no business even asking the question of these folks. Full stop.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

So your theory is that students who leave a survey question blank will be expelled? You're in la-la land. And your theory is that when the expelled students inevitably sue, the courts will rule in favor of the schools that expelled them over it? You're in the la-la land on the far side of regular la-la land.

The law requires the schools to survey. The survey will be meaningless without people answering the questions. The Governor is threatening funding over this. Nothing in the law indicates students can be expelled, but the schools are being compelled to make students answer the questions.

That's ridiculous. The school will ask its students....

Well, from the law quoted above, the "school" isn't asking anything. The school are distributing surveys developed by the State Board of Education, which is a committee appointed by the Governor of Florida.

The survey results will be something like "53% Democrat, 28% Republican, 6% Other, 13% Decline to state". The school will submit that to the Board of Education. The Board of Education will file it somewhere and a bureaucrat will make a note that the school complied with the law.

Jebus, you can't be that naïve. This is a fishing expedition for data that they can manipulate and meddle with the schools.

 

[laughing dog]

So your theory is that students who leave a survey question blank will be expelled? You're in la-la land. And your theory is that when the expelled students inevitably sue, the courts will rule in favor of the schools that expelled them over it? You're in the la-la land on the far side of regular la-la land.

The law requires the schools to survey. The survey will be meaningless without people answering the questions. The Governor is threatening funding over this. Nothing in the law indicates students can be expelled, but the schools are being compelled to make students answer the questions.

That's ridiculous. The school will ask its students, say, "Which political party do you align with?" The survey results will be something like "53% Democrat, 28% Republican, 6% Other, 13% Decline to state". The school will submit that to the Board of Education. The Board of Education will file it somewhere and a bureaucrat will make a note that the school complied with the law.

Do you seriously think that the sole purpose of this survey is to collect data on attitudes? DeSantis is on record saying that public universities should lose funding if they are not sufficiently diverse in their viewpoints. Do you think Gov. Desantis was worried about the lack of socialist, communist, satanist, Islamist or Jewish viewpoints at this public universities?