Dictator DeSantis?

[ZiprHead]

Special Olympics drops COVID-19 vaccine requirement after Florida threatens $27.5M in fines

Special Olympics officials rescind its COVID vaccination requirement after Florida and Gov. Ron DeSantis threatens to impose $27.5 million in fines.

www.usatoday.com

Competitors will no longer need a COVID-19 vaccine to participate in the Special Olympics.

The state of Florida and Gov. Ron DeSantis had threatened the Special Olympics with $27.5 million worth of fines over the organization's vaccination requirements.

The Florida Department of Health sent a letter – obtained and first reported by ABC News – to the organization this week explaining their intentions to fine them for violating statutes that prohibit businesses and charitable organizations in Florida from requiring proof of vaccination to enter.

Special Olympics officials rescinded the requirement Thursday in response and released a statement Friday ahead of the Games in Orlando:

"Special Olympics, Inc. (SOI) announced on June 2, 2022, that it is lifting the vaccine requirement for delegation members attending the 2022 Special Olympics USA Games being held in Orlando, Florida, June 5-12, as required by state of Florida officials on May 27, based upon the Florida Department of Health’s interpretation of Florida law."

 

[Jason Harvestdancer]

I thought that government punishment for saying things that the government doesn't like was prohibited by the US Constitution.

When you accept gifts from the government, such as a special tax status, you will eventually discover just how expensive the free shit is.

 

[ZiprHead]

Stop W.O.K.E Act (Florida) (2022)

A federal judge blocked Florida's Stop W.O.K.E. Act saying that it violates the First Amendment by limiting professors at state schools from expressing certain viewpoints related to race, sex and country of origin when relevant to the curriculum.

www.mtsu.edu

In 2022, with the support of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, the Florida state legislature adopted a law known as the “Stop W.O.K.E. Act.," the acronym standing for "Wrong to our Kids and Employees.” The bill was also known as the Individual Freedom Act (IFA). The law prohibited teaching or instruction that “espouses, promotes, advances, inculcates, or compels” students or employees to believe any of eight concepts.

Law prohibits teaching certain concepts related to race​

The prohibited teachings were that:

Members of one race, color, national origin, or sex are morally superior to members of another race, color, national origin, or sex.

A person by virtue of his or her race, color, national origin, or sex is inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously.

A person’s moral character or status as either privileged or oppressed is necessarily determined by his or her race, color, national origin, or sex.

Members of one race, color, national origin, or sex cannot and should not attempt to treat others without respect to race, color, national origin, or sex.

A person, by virtue of his or her race, color, national origin, or sex bears responsibility for, or should be discriminated against or receive adverse treatment because of actions committed in the past by other members of the same race, color, national origin, or sex.

A person, by virtue of his or her race, color, national origin, or sex should be discriminated against or received adverse treatment to achieve diversity, equity, or inclusion.

A person, by virtue of his or her race, color, sex, or national origin, bears personal responsibility for and must feel guilt, anguish or other forms of psychological distress because of actions, in which the person played no part, committed in the past by other members of the same race, color, national origin, or sec.

Such virtues as merit, excellence, hard work, fairness, neutrality, objectivity, and racial colorblindedness are racist or sexist, or were created by members of a particular race, color, national origin, or sex to oppress members of another race, color, national origin, or sex.

Professors who violated the law could face disciplinary action including termination of their jobs, and state schools that violated the statute could lose performance funding, which constituted a significant portion of their budgets.

The law was challenged both by students and professors.

Federal judge temporarily blocks law on First Amendment grounds​

In November 2022, U.S. District Judge Mark E. Walker for the Northern District of Florida issued a preliminary injunction preventing enforcement of the law. He concluded in Pernell v. Florida Board of Governors that the plaintiffs would likely prevail in their claim that the law violated the First Amendment because it discriminated against speech based on viewpoint and was too vague.

Florida attempting to create 'Ministry of Truth,' judge says​

In wrapping up the decision, Judge Walker likened the situation in Florida to the situation that had prompted Professor Charles Beard to resign as president of Columbia University when the government attempted to dismiss professors who did not support World War I.

Walker cited Justice Felix Frankfurter’s observing that professors are the “priests of our democracy” and, in another reference to Orwell’s "1984," charged that Florida was attempting to create “its own Ministry of Truth under the guise of the Individual Freedom Act, declaring which viewpoints shall be orthodox and which shall be verboten in its university classrooms.”

He further admonished that “both robust intellectual inquiry and democracy require light to thrive” and that “our professors are critical to a healthy democracy."

“If our ‘priests of democracy’ are not allowed to shed light on challenging ideas, then democracy will die in darkness.”

 

[ZiprHead]

Hide your books to avoid felony charges, Fla. schools tell teachers

Students arrived in some Florida public school classrooms this month to find their teachers’ bookshelves wrapped in paper — or entirely barren of books — after district officials launched a review of the texts’ appropriateness under a new state law.

School officials in at least two counties, Manatee and Duval, have directed teachers this month to remove or wrap up their classroom libraries, according to records obtained by The Washington Post. The removals come in response to fresh guidance issued by the Florida Department of Education in mid-January, after the State Board of Education ruled that a law restricting the books a district may possess applies not only to schoolwide libraries but to teachers’ classroom collections, too.

Breaking the law is a third-degree felony, meaning that a teacher could face up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine for displaying or giving students a disallowed book.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Yup... nothing wrong here. What fascist prototype follows this madness when DeSantis tries to run for President? Florida lacks a Democrat party opposition.

 

[scombrid]

St. Agnes Catholic Church in Naples, FL a couple of days ago.

 

[ZiprHead]

Look at all those guys in dresses!!!

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

I didn't know they did group weddings at that church.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Meanwhile, Desantis wants to save the Florida public from costly teachers in college that don't anything. IE, he wants to meddle in Public College.

DeSantis’ plan also would allow university boards of trustees and presidents to conduct reviews of tenured faculty members “at any time,” in addition to the periodic reviews that already take place.

“They can be let go if they’re not performing to expectations,” DeSantis said to applause from an audience assembled at State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota.

“The most significant dead-weight cost to a university is unproductive tenured faculty,” he said. “Why would we want to saddle you the taxpayers with that cost?”

In a related proposal regarding university presidents, DeSantis aims to reestablish “their authority over the hiring process.” Currently, according to a flier distributed by the governor’s staff, “faculty committees can tie the hands of university presidents and bind them to only consider a small pool of recommended candidates.”

Anyone remember when the GOP was all about "local control".

It gets better (worse).

He also proposes changes in standards and course content “to ensure higher education is rooted in the values of liberty and western tradition.”

DeSantis said all students graduating from Florida universities would be required to take general education courses that include “actual history and actual philosophy that has shaped western civilization.”

WTF does that even mean? I only took a handle of classes in liberal arts, but they were generally on subject matter (American Government, History, Psychology) not an overall agenda.

In my American Government class, we learned about the Constitutional law side of things, what it is, how we got there. DeSantis seems more interested in a propaganda course that just says 'We are awesome and exceptional'. My US History course centered on three particular points in American History. Canada and Commonwealth was about... okay that was a shitty course, taught by a teacher that shouldn't be there. My psychology course was about generalized psychology. And my engineering courses were all about science and math. No agendas. Isolated areas of study. That is what college is!

And the people he has put in charge to oversee this?

Ray Rodrigues, chancellor of the State University System, praised the governor and Legislature for supporting Florida’s public universities while other states have cut back.

”We believe in pursuing academic excellence and that is our goal,” Rodrigues said. “We reject indoctrination.”

It is like when Homer's brother tells the designer to call back and say the exact opposite of what he wanted to say. "Beyond reproach!"

 

[southernhybrid]

Hide your books to avoid felony charges, Fla. schools tell teachers

Students arrived in some Florida public school classrooms this month to find their teachers’ bookshelves wrapped in paper — or entirely barren of books — after district officials launched a review of the texts’ appropriateness under a new state law.

School officials in at least two counties, Manatee and Duval, have directed teachers this month to remove or wrap up their classroom libraries, according to records obtained by The Washington Post. The removals come in response to fresh guidance issued by the Florida Department of Education in mid-January, after the State Board of Education ruled that a law restricting the books a district may possess applies not only to schoolwide libraries but to teachers’ classroom collections, too.

Breaking the law is a third-degree felony, meaning that a teacher could face up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine for displaying or giving students a disallowed book.

I read that same article at lunchtime. I was appalled. I think that some organizations including the ACLU are trying to have that overturned as a violation of the 1st amendment. I'm not sure where I read about that, but it needs to happen. But, then again, can we trust SCOTUS to make the right decision if it goes that far? Scary. There is no question that DeSantis is a fascist, and people like him are leading us in that direction. I don't understand how so many Floridians voted for that man. Florida has changed so much for the worse over the last decade. I wish people would stop getting the so called news from far right places.

 

[Politesse]

Florida has changed so much for the worse over the last decade.

I mean, it was brought into the Union explicitly so we would have better access to the Caribbean slave markets and more effectively cut off the Southern escape route for our runaways ... History has always been and always will be a contentious issue in Florida schools. So are gun rights, immigration policy, and most of the other issues he takes extreme stances on. DeSantis just took advantage of an existing set of biases to build a twisted political career, like any other populist authoritarian.

 

[Elixir]

I wish people would stop getting the so called news from far right places.

Oh, but they make everything so easy to understand! They know we are in pain, they tell us who is causing it, and promise to alleviate it. What more could a person ask who works too hard to pay much attention to politics? Seriously - more could they ask?

The complete willingness of the Trump GOP to overtly indulge in the most perverse activities and lies, creates an asymmetrical political battlefield. It is what enables them to maintain minority rule. It’s probably too late to lock up the top 100 conspirators in this last escapade, so there’s no end in sight for the lies, crimes and treason, wherever there’s a buck to be grabbed.
DOJ is probably already too late, SCOTUS is Team MAGA and memories are fading. There should have been massive bloodshed on 1/6.

 

[Oleg]

I read that same article at lunchtime. I was appalled.

You should be appalled. The reporting on this has been almost purposely erroneous.

The Truth behind the Great Florida Classroom Library Freak-Out | National Review

Florida education commissioner Manny Diaz says teachers covered up their classroom libraries as part of a ‘stunt’ to make DeSantis look bad.

www.nationalreview.com

The new school transparency law, HB 1467, does not address penalties. But a separate Florida lawthat deals with the distribution of “harmful materials” to minors, indicates that it is a felony to provide kids with “explicit” materials — depictions or recordings of “nudity or sexual conduct, sexual excitement, sexual battery, bestiality, or sadomasochistic abuse.”

It is not a new law, Diaz noted, and it doesn’t just apply to schools. It is illegal in Florida for a teacher — or any adult — to provide harmful or pornographic materials to minors. And it was illegal last year, and the year before that, and the year before that.

 

[crazyfingers]

DeDantis is an asshole of the first order

DeSantis proposes banning diversity and inclusion initiatives at Florida universities | CNN Politics

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday that he intends to ban state universities from spending money on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in hopes that they will "wither on the vine" without funding.

www.cnn.com

 

[Arctish]

I read that same article at lunchtime. I was appalled.

You should be appalled. The reporting on this has been almost purposely erroneous.

The Truth behind the Great Florida Classroom Library Freak-Out | National Review

Florida education commissioner Manny Diaz says teachers covered up their classroom libraries as part of a ‘stunt’ to make DeSantis look bad.

www.nationalreview.com

The new school transparency law, HB 1467, does not address penalties. But a separate Florida lawthat deals with the distribution of “harmful materials” to minors, indicates that it is a felony to provide kids with “explicit” materials — depictions or recordings of “nudity or sexual conduct, sexual excitement, sexual battery, bestiality, or sadomasochistic abuse.”

It is not a new law, Diaz noted, and it doesn’t just apply to schools. It is illegal in Florida for a teacher — or any adult — to provide harmful or pornographic materials to minors. And it was illegal last year, and the year before that, and the year before that.

Who gets to decide what's harmful?

Uproar over controversial sex education books in Miami-Dade

Is it Mr. Serrano, the county director of County Citizens Defending Freedom, a hard core right wing anti-LGBTQ group affiliated with Turning Point USA, who wants all information about sex and sexuality to be restricted in schools?

Is it Ms. Felt, who has been organizing parents to attend school board meetings to oppose the denial of information to students in school by people like Mr. Serrano who are imposing their religious beliefs on everyone?

Is it professional educators and health care workers, who understand the need for educating teenagers about matters of sex and sexuality because they see the consequences of failing to do so on a regular basis?

Or is it Gov. De Santis, because he's the current top dog in Florida politics?

 

[southernhybrid]

Florida has changed so much for the worse over the last decade.

I mean, it was brought into the Union explicitly so we would have better access to the Caribbean slave markets and more effectively cut off the Southern escape route for our runaways ... History has always been and always will be a contentious issue in Florida schools. So are gun rights, immigration policy, and most of the other issues he takes extreme stances on. DeSantis just took advantage of an existing set of biases to build a twisted political career, like any other populist authoritarian.

That may be, but I lived in Florida for a few years during the early 90s and it was nothing like it is now. My husband was born and raised in South Florida and it was controlled by Democrats for most of the years that he was growing up. He has an engineering degree from a Florida University and no-one was trying to dictate what could be taught or what books could be read during those years.

We lived in a more conservative part of Florida but it wasn't as extreme as it is currently. Regardless of Florida's early history, Florida has gone through many changes and the current one is very extreme.

 

[Politesse]

Florida has changed so much for the worse over the last decade.

I mean, it was brought into the Union explicitly so we would have better access to the Caribbean slave markets and more effectively cut off the Southern escape route for our runaways ... History has always been and always will be a contentious issue in Florida schools. So are gun rights, immigration policy, and most of the other issues he takes extreme stances on. DeSantis just took advantage of an existing set of biases to build a twisted political career, like any other populist authoritarian.

That may be, but I lived in Florida for a few years during the early 90s and it was nothing like it is now. My husband was born and raised in South Florida and it was controlled by Democrats for most of the years that he was growing up. He has an engineering degree from a Florida University and no-one was trying to dictate what could be taught or what books could be read during those years.

We lived in a more conservative part of Florida but it wasn't as extreme as it is currently. Regardless of Florida's early history, Florida has gone through many changes and the current one is very extreme.

I think that is likely true, and of course there are all manner of people with all manner of political persuasions living in Florida even now. UF is in fact a great school as I measure these things, with a strong commitment to social justice in fact. But these were always touchy subjects, what DeSantis has built his career on. When you bring a touchy subject into the light, people seem to think they are being presented with a choice of whether to feel remorse or whether to get very angry, and they fall in along predictable Party lines.

I use UF's Vodou archive quite a bit; I'm starting to wonder I ought to be salvaging copies of some of their videos and articles while they are still available...

 

[Elixir]

I was a spoiled toddler when we had a beach house/winter home in Naples FL. (Mid 1950s)
Very idyllic, beachcombing, fishing, exploring Everglades. My parents (Mom mostly since dad was often away on his ketch treasure hunting) had a black maid. One day my mom gave her a ride home and I went along.
OMFG! They lived in a big dirt lot full of little wooden boxes on short stilts. Not houses, just flimsy boxes. No plumbing, electricity, pavement - no NOTHING. Just little naked kids playing in the dirt, ogling the oddity of an actual automobile in their space.
To say I was shocked would be an epic understatement. I couldn’t even formulate the question “why do they live like that?” But it made a really deep impression.
By 6th grade my dad was two years dead, mom had sold the beach house and moved us to Philadelphia ‘burbs where the public schools were highly rated.
The school was probably 30% black kids, but despite the forced “integration“, was FAPP segregated except in sports. THAT answered a lot of questions for me, and laid the table for my rejection of the white supremacy that allowed for little naked kids playing in the dirt while their Mom toiled away keeping up the relative mansion that was our beach house.
In retrospect, my dropping out of school and leaving home at 17 was a natural outgrowth of that rejection, and put me politically and forever in the progressive column.
We are all products of our experiences.

Florida has changed very little over the last 65 years in respect to racism. It’s just less overt now. DeSantis is a perfect fit.

 

[Jarhyn]

Florida has changed so much for the worse over the last decade.

I mean, it was brought into the Union explicitly so we would have better access to the Caribbean slave markets and more effectively cut off the Southern escape route for our runaways ... History has always been and always will be a contentious issue in Florida schools. So are gun rights, immigration policy, and most of the other issues he takes extreme stances on. DeSantis just took advantage of an existing set of biases to build a twisted political career, like any other populist authoritarian.

That may be, but I lived in Florida for a few years during the early 90s and it was nothing like it is now. My husband was born and raised in South Florida and it was controlled by Democrats for most of the years that he was growing up. He has an engineering degree from a Florida University and no-one was trying to dictate what could be taught or what books could be read during those years.

We lived in a more conservative part of Florida but it wasn't as extreme as it is currently. Regardless of Florida's early history, Florida has gone through many changes and the current one is very extreme.

I think that is likely true, and of course there are all manner of people with all manner of political persuasions living in Florida even now. UF is in fact a great school as I measure these things, with a strong commitment to social justice in fact. But these were always touchy subjects, what DeSantis has built his career on. When you bring a touchy subject into the light, people seem to think they are being presented with a choice of whether to feel remorse or whether to get very angry, and they fall in along predictable Party lines.

I use UF's Vodou archive quite a bit; I'm starting to wonder I ought to be salvaging copies of some of their videos and articles while they are still available...

You could express this concern to them and offer to host a mirror of the content?

That way if they pull it due to state concerns, they can link off-site to your mirror, and nothing actually changes other than the data being hosted off-site (at your site)

 

[Politesse]

Florida has changed so much for the worse over the last decade.

I mean, it was brought into the Union explicitly so we would have better access to the Caribbean slave markets and more effectively cut off the Southern escape route for our runaways ... History has always been and always will be a contentious issue in Florida schools. So are gun rights, immigration policy, and most of the other issues he takes extreme stances on. DeSantis just took advantage of an existing set of biases to build a twisted political career, like any other populist authoritarian.

That may be, but I lived in Florida for a few years during the early 90s and it was nothing like it is now. My husband was born and raised in South Florida and it was controlled by Democrats for most of the years that he was growing up. He has an engineering degree from a Florida University and no-one was trying to dictate what could be taught or what books could be read during those years.

We lived in a more conservative part of Florida but it wasn't as extreme as it is currently. Regardless of Florida's early history, Florida has gone through many changes and the current one is very extreme.

I think that is likely true, and of course there are all manner of people with all manner of political persuasions living in Florida even now. UF is in fact a great school as I measure these things, with a strong commitment to social justice in fact. But these were always touchy subjects, what DeSantis has built his career on. When you bring a touchy subject into the light, people seem to think they are being presented with a choice of whether to feel remorse or whether to get very angry, and they fall in along predictable Party lines.

I use UF's Vodou archive quite a bit; I'm starting to wonder I ought to be salvaging copies of some of their videos and articles while they are still available...

You could express this concern to them and offer to host a mirror of the content?

That way if they pull it due to state concerns, they can link off-site to your mirror, and nothing actually changes other than the data being hosted off-site (at your site)

A nice thought, but its an enormous site; I think they'd probably need a partner library. I could drop a line and inquire whether they're pursuing options.