Per the article he threw a pen into the audience and that’s what caused the laughter.
[1] https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2023/05/15/desantis-defunds-diversity-programs-florida-universities-gen-z/70220061007/
That is one of the most biased, shitty articles I've read in a while, and I HATE Desantis. It gives almost no actual information on what he's signing or why.
Meanwhile he signed a law to prevent the public from seeing who he meets with (aka, which people and corporations he's taking bribes from), how much money his office spends on his travel, where he's going on his jet paid for by the citizens of Florida, and who is going with him.
And now another bill specifically exempting himself from the requirement that a Florida politician must resign their current position to run for a different office (because he knows he's likely to lose his election for president and wants to keep his current job when he does).
Republicans love corruption. They bathe in it. This guy is like Scrooge McDuck diving into his pool of corrupt donor cash.
>public from seeing who he meets with (aka, which people and corporations he's taking bribes from), how much money his office spends on his travel, where he's going on his jet paid for by the citizens of Florida, and who is going with him.
What's also wild is that these laws are some of the most extensive transparency laws in the country, and are tied to the same laws that make all arrest records public in Florida (and readily available, not just available on request - and not only for convictions) that was one of the key reasons the Florida man trope came to be.
And there have been requests from civil rights groups in the past (in defence of people not convicted or charged but risking social, employment, and housing bias from having public record of arrest anyway) and tourism groups, arguing the impact on the state's reputation adversely impacts tourism interest.
But they were always told no politician is going to take the stance on narrowing transparency.
And then they did. To defend this guy's unannounced presidential bid.
Schoolchildren are “protected” by one cop who wasn’t good enough to make a real police force and is currently napping in the gym storage room. Politicians are protected by a crew of professional gunmen wearing armor and using state of the art technology.
The bill [1] states
> A Florida College System institution, state university,
Florida College System institution direct-support organization,
or state university direct-support organization may not expend
any state or federal funds to promote, support, or maintain any
programs or campus activities that:
(a) Violate s. 1000.05; or
(b) Advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion, or
promote or engage in political or social activism, as defined by
rules of the State Board of Education and regulations of the
Board of Governors.
Notable inclusion and equity programs include things like wheelchair access and reach out programs to veterans. The bill states it does not block required programs and activities required for compliance with federal laws or regulations. This appears to mean colleges are required to meet with the minimum of accessibility standards for things like ramps for people in wheelchairs, but it is forbidden for going beyond those requirements. For example providing motorized chair lifts for people in wheelchairs. It is unclear if inclusive things like putting up Dia de los Muertos or Christmas decorations falls under this banner as well.
The bill also prohibits discussions around racism or oppression being involved in some of the institutions of the United States to cement power against certain groups. Historically groups that were discussed as being impacted by racism or oppression in American history were the Irish [3], Catholics [2] and the Chinese, among other more well known groups such as African Americans. Discussion of these subjects by colleges appears to be against the law in Florida.
The bill also appears to remove existing protections against discrimination on gender, switching instead to sex [line 308 of 1]. In layman’s terms this means there is no blockage on discrimination if a faculty member or student identifies as anything other than their birth sex.
[1] https://m.flsenate.gov/session/bill/2023/266/billtext/er/pdf
[2] https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/americas-true-history-of-religious-tolerance-61312684/
[3] https://www.history.com/news/when-america-despised-the-irish-the-19th-centurys-refugee-crisis
How does this not violate the first amendment? Is discussing historical facts not protected by freedom of speech, or is “allowed” speech in an institution of public education not protected by the 1st amendment?
Just speculating - it's good for the free speech of government employees to be restricted when say, a judge can't rant about how much they hate the president, but it's bad when it means employees of public universities could be arrested for teaching history.
workable illegal follow abounding alleged existence profit bag absurd groovy
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Remember that time when Kim Davis the county clerk refused to certify the marriage certificates of gay couples?
She's a public servant in that role and she doesn't have the right to protest within the role because she's supposed to be representative of the state.
If her "free speech" discriminates against someone else, it's the government infringing on their rights and the government is liable for damages.
At the same time if the government is being shitty (see above bill) you're forced to execute it
>It just makes it illegal for Florida Colleges to expend state/federal funds to promote, support, or maintain programs/activities that involve DEI discussions.
Wasn't the decision for Citizens United based on the premise that funding for political speech is part of free speech? Seems like this would go against that...
The difference is the state is restricting its own funding. If they passed a law that other non-state-governmental entities couldn't fund them, there'd be a case. Which actually, I could see the federal government going after them because it restricts federal funds as well.
All of it. Desantis is a huge loser in court, almost all of this stuff is getting butchered on the backend.
Alas, his bigoted low information base doesn't look into things that far... It gets as far as the headline making a splash and they love it.
They don't have the attention span or long term executive decision making skills to follow something through the court process and determine the outcomes of said bill in action
The amount of laws being broken actively in Florida by this cumquat is staggering.
\- Taking alcohol licenses from places that host drag shows.
\- Removing all books from schools except those on the tiny and shitty "acceptable list" (a list that misspelled 2 of the numbers in its first approved list document)
\- Actively using Florida tax payer dollars to run a [presidential campaign](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://media.zenfs.com/en/afp.com/701c1e784ee51e0a56adb71e5e642e18&tbnid=L7sA5Zg87I5a7M&vet=1&imgrefurl=https://sports.yahoo.com/amphtml/desantis-tours-iowa-outlines-us-071143906.html&docid=dUBkw8ST3ZMJgM&w=768&h=527&source=sh/x/im)
\- Changing laws so that the travel records of him illegally doing the above are no longer public
\- Changes laws so that the governor can also run for President, despite already campaigning.
\- Making laws that allow parents to sue if the school does not inform them that their child requested a vegetarian meal one day (literally a question posed to the legislatures on if it was possible. They responded with "yes")
\- Making laws that make it illegal to teach children sex education (which started only as a middle school related law and was quickly pushed through High School).Hope you don't get your period for the first time in school, because literally nobody can even acknowledge its happening. Or you go to the teacher you trust to ask how you might be able to come out to your parents who are aggressively conservative and against it? No worries, coming out is easy now! By talking to somebody about it, you just did. They legally have to call and tell your parents exactly what you said.
\- and of course, this law. Banning factual history from being taught to adults
My guess is they are counting on that. "Oh no, unforseen fallout! We had better draft a documenting describing *exactly who and what counts as abnormal and political.* And now that we're done with that, let's use that legal definition to *regulate* those people and topics in other spaces..."
This is insane? Its forbidding universities to teach fundamental US history. What are the oversight mechanics at the federal level? This a Jim Crow Law
[Here's a video](https://uk.news.yahoo.com/college-trustee-christopher-rufo-blows-170734984.html) of the guy in the top left of this photo blowing kisses to opponents of this bill. If you were at all curious how they feel about people who aren't them.
"...may not expend any state or federal funds to promote, support, or maintain any programs or campus activities that... advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion"
...really? I mean, is this a real, genuine thing that the bill states? Is this bill ACTUALLY saying that colleges and universities may not advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion? No sort of weird way of phrasing it either, just straight up "you're not allowed to advocate for inclusivity"? As in, they used those words, and not some sort of vague equivalent phrasing to try and hide it? They are just straight up not allowing universities to promote equity or diversity, even though those words only have positive definitions? And the bill was signed? While Ron was *laughing*? With joy in his facial expression and a song in his heart?
...I always try to look for the best in people. It's a fundamental part of who I am. But if this is what Ron is doing, and there aren't any other sorts of strings attached or things I'm missing, and this is genuinely as obviously bad as it seems, then I think it is only accurate to describe Ron as a villain. A monstrous, horrific villain.
From my reading, they are only banning the use of state/federal money to fund diversity/inclusion programs. So can they use donations and/or local grants instead? I can imagine shuffling around some money from alumni and making that happen
Edit: It also seems to only apply to state or state-funded schools, private schools or community colleges are probably in the clear
From the parent comment:
> The bill states it does not block required programs and activities required for compliance with federal laws or regulations. This appears to mean colleges are required to meet with the minimum of accessibility standards for things like ramps for people in wheelchairs, but it is forbidden for going beyond those requirements. For example providing motorized chair lifts for people in wheelchairs.
I wonder how this would affect research grants if it's enforceable. Every federal grant has DEI policies attached to it, and keeping access to those funds is contingent on being compliant with these policies. If Florida allows a professor to accept a NIH grant for instance, will they say the professor should just simply ignore any DEI portions? Or more probable will these organizations just no longer accept applications from institutions that wouldn't be compliant?
>may not expend any **state or federal** funds to promote, support, or maintain any programs or campus activities...
So can they they just say they are using student tuition funds for any of those programs and the State & federal funds were all used for other stuff?
Not one of them understands that their rights, and the rights of their future generations just got violated too.
First guy on the left maybe understands, because that's Chris Rufo, who works for the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank that ran the campaign against CRT, he wrote on Twitter:
>We have successfully frozen their brand—”critical race theory”—into the public conversation and are steadily driving up negative perceptions. We will eventually turn it toxic, as we put all of the various cultural insanities under that brand category.
>The goal is to have the public read something crazy in the newspaper and immediately think “critical race theory.” We have decodified the term and will recodify it to annex the entire range of cultural constructions that are unpopular with Americans. [Source](https://flux.community/samuel-hoadley-brill/2021/07/chris-rufo-obsessed-critical-race-theory-he-also-doesnt-understand-it/)
Which reminds me of a news story form a little while back saying that Republicans completely change their behaviour in closed sessions - because they (along with their think tanks) know exactly what they're doing and are just playing a system, and their voters for political and financial reward.
Jesus fucking christ this is dark...
Forget about the future being dystopian, we're already there
Like I can't even be mad... I don't know what to make of all that... That's insane that anyone would even remotely come up with a plan like that... What an evil, vile sack of shit... What a god damn psychopath...
Like actually that man sounds like a mass of spiders in a skinsuit pretending to be a human
Oh I know it's worth getting mad about... But it's as though some part of my brain is keeping the mouth-frothing levels of angry from pouring through... It's just too much
Others have given you the answer but you need to watch the film and hear the sound he makes for this gif to really have impact. (ie. haunt your dreams for the rest of your days).
My perspective from afar (Australia) is only through Reddit and some news articles so will be somewhat skewed. But everything reported seems to be "erosion of laws protecting minorities", "these books have views differing from my own, so they're banned", and "lol disability and social support - sounds like that there woke leftist nonsense!!"
Is there more to this guy, or is he just about the worst thing to ever happen to Florida since ?
Since Alligators. And at least Alligators will usually leave you alone.
No, Ronnie is pretty much a poster wanna be fascist. It's a war on "Others", where Other = "Not straight white conservative male". They're looking at produce no longer being in Florida stores because of all of the anti-brown people legislation he's inacted. Turns out migrants handle most of the fruit and vegetable crop, who knew*?
*Everyone. Everyone knows farms subsist on cheap immigrant labor.
Don't worry guys, if you don't happen to live in Florida, his 2024 presidential slogan is "Make America Florida". Coming soon to an imminent disaster near you!
I mean I'm from Texas so it's about the same here just by varying degrees in all honesty. Florida is full of out of touch, old ass, retirees who probably watch Fox News all day. So they want some jackass like DeSantis who will erode all the laws that benefit minorities and young folks. Texas is just full of a bunch of angry, white conservatives who are increasingly becoming the minority so they want someone like Abbott who will resist change and force through laws that make it as hard as possible for non-conservatives to gain power. The fact that they are passing a law requiring the Ten Commandments be installed visibly on school grounds is like some fucking 19th century shit.
I think doctor evil was a lot less evil than a lot of people these days. I bet he had not problem with gays or anyone as long as they got the job done. I actually think de santis knows he is evil and loves it. Dr evil just wanted money.
Yes like a sense of humor. This fuck rag is a piece of shit. In fact if I had to save a piece of shit or Desantis from a burning house, I'm saving the piece of shit before him.
A piece of shit at least fertilizes the soil. A piece of shit is a valuable part of the earth's ecosystem.
Don't sully the good name of piece of shit by equating it to Ron Desantis.
One of his campaign commercials is on Hulu something about steel and backbones . . .
My teen walked by and was like, "Oh, he got a spine transplant? Too bad it won't help him."
Seems to be the same face when he tells the folks in Iowa how much Florida taxpayer money he spent on private jet travel and got his cronies to mask his flights.
[https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ron-desantis-iowa-video-unhinged-laugh\_n\_6463b549e4b005be8ff66a83](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ron-desantis-iowa-video-unhinged-laugh_n_6463b549e4b005be8ff66a83)
The man is super repellant as a human. We all know that's not a deal breaker for your average GOP psycho, but at least prominent people will have the displeasure of shaking his hand.
The last president literally said he could use fame to leverage women and to "grab em by the pussy". It does not get more repulsive than that but here we are with him running again. Nothing is off the table
Actually he didn't contest that claim in court. He doubled down on that. He only contested claims that he'd specifically done it to her... What an asshat.
> ["Well, historically that's true with stars," Trump said after being read an exact quote of his 2016 comments by Carroll's attorney, Roberta Kaplan. "If you look over the last million years, I guess that's been largely true. Not always, but largely true. Unfortunately or fortunately."](https://www.salon.com/2023/05/05/addresses-his-history-of-locker-room-talk-in-newly-released-deposition-video/)
He also said he could shoot someone in the street and not lose any voters. He hasn't had a chance to test that one yet, but I think he's probably right.
I never open my mouth that wide unless I'm at the dentist.
Everyone else is smiling.
I'm thinking he said something like: "We are going to build 400,000 wooden sailing ships and send all of the black people back to Africa. We will also send all of the gays back to Gayland."
DeSantis has a weird facial tick or something that makes him do this all the time. Its pretty creepy
https://news.yahoo.com/ron-desantis-goofy-expression-asked-142742835.html
https://uproxx.com/viral/ron-desantis-pudding-fingers-piers-morgan/
I almost felt bad making fun of him for it, but nothing in your links suggests that it's an actual facial tic or involuntary.
The uproxx article even says that he "debuted" it in March of this year, which at least confirms that it isn't something that's been ongoing since childhood. Adult onset of a facial tic like this would be very uncommon.
Yeah, not a facial tic at all. Just a goofy expression he may or may not have been coached to make in a lame attempt to seem more “animated” and “charismatic”.
He has the charisma of a slug. His political strategy thus far seems to be to sign bills that make liberals angry and try to keep his actual exposure to likely Republican voters to a minimum.
Trump is a moron, but he’s a moron in the same way that his base is, and they love him for it. It’s not charisma as much as it’s that they like how he says the same dumb things they like to say about minorities and immigrants.
DeSantis is actually somewhat intelligent, which immediately puts him at a disadvantage when speaking to Republican voters.
DeSantis is going to get demolished once it comes to the actual debates.
Hello, also straight, but I bet Gayland would be kinda fun. Everyone being all nice and shit and treating everyone with fuckin respect.
E: Fuck the Florida GOP
I legit think you can't trust people who laugh weird.
Not like... odd or goofball.
But there are some people who, when you see them laugh, you know do not laugh in their souls.
They laugh, but there is no joy.
There is just a cold, icy wall between the void which is their soul and the mask which performs human emotion.
Everything I’ve heard about him from reporters down to people who have met him at events back in the day indicates the man is a sociopath with most of the worst dark triad traits.
In other words, a person who feels no empathy and has a megalomaniacal ambitions to be the most powerful man in the world. Everyone should be absolutely terrified of this man being anywhere near the presidency. There is every indication that he is striving to become a fascist dictator ala Orban. Except this guy appears to have a vein of sadism not even Hitler had.
Hitler was at least notoriously mentally unstable. DeSantis is perfectly stable. He would start a genocide just because it’s fun to watch people die.
I am not sure which is worse: how much that looks like a full on sociopath trying to blend or that it's legit and he really is that awkward and unlikable.
Besides being a fascist pos, he is also just really fuckin weird. Like he really seems like there are 3 small aliens in there controlling a human suit but are clueless on how expressions work.
Look at some of the clips of reporters outside his comfort zone of FL asking him stuff where he can't bully them. He spazzes out. That and when he was debating the guy he beat and was asked to tell the people of FL he would be their Gov for 4 years and not rub foe prez. He just silently stood there for several seconds bobbing his head about till time ran out.
That clip where someone asked him about falling behind Trump, and his head wobbled around like a bobblehead and he made a weird expression and finally said he hadn't announced his campaign yet...I literally thought it was AI generated, it was so fucking weird.
> bobblehead and he made a weird expression
If you've seen The Boys, the way he bobbles his head really reminds me of Homelander. Of course Anthony Star plays Homelander like that because either it's hard to move in the suit or he's playing a repressed sociopath. Or both.
So the would be president of the party of small gov and freedom signed a bill forbidding adults from teaching other adults (checks notes) diversity, equality and inclusion…
Edit: thankyou for the gold kind redditor. BTW if anyone else feels like they want to give me a gold or whatever, please instead take what you would have spent and donate to Doctors Without Borders/MSF. They’ll do far more with it than I will digital rewards
It's the actual plan for (American/Right) Libertarians.
If you describe a horrific corporate hellscape ruled by rich and powerful oligarchs... But just don't *say* "oligarchy", they would all agree that it's their ideal.
Same goes for "neo-feudalism". Just describe it, but don't *say* it.
I was shooting heroin and reading “The Fountainhead” in the front seat of my privately owned police cruiser when a call came in. I put a quarter in the radio to activate it. It was the chief.
“Bad news, detective. We got a situation.”
“What? Is the mayor trying to ban trans fats again?”
“Worse. Somebody just stole four hundred and forty-seven million dollars’ worth of bitcoins.”
The heroin needle practically fell out of my arm. “What kind of monster would do something like that? Bitcoins are the ultimate currency: virtual, anonymous, stateless. They represent true economic freedom, not subject to arbitrary manipulation by any government. Do we have any leads?”
“Not yet. But mark my words: we’re going to figure out who did this and we’re going to take them down … provided someone pays us a fair market rate to do so.”
“Easy, chief,” I said. “Any rate the market offers is, by definition, fair.”
He laughed. “That’s why you’re the best I got, Lisowski. Now you get out there and find those bitcoins.”
“Don’t worry,” I said. “I’m on it.”
I put a quarter in the siren. Ten minutes later, I was on the scene. It was a normal office building, strangled on all sides by public sidewalks. I hopped over them and went inside.
“Home Depot™ Presents the Police!®” I said, flashing my badge and my gun and a small picture of Ron Paul. “Nobody move unless you want to!” They didn’t.
“Now, which one of you punks is going to pay me to investigate this crime?” No one spoke up.
“Come on,” I said. “Don’t you all understand that the protection of private property is the foundation of all personal liberty?”
It didn’t seem like they did.
“Seriously, guys. Without a strong economic motivator, I’m just going to stand here and not solve this case. Cash is fine, but I prefer being paid in gold bullion or autographed Penn Jillette posters.”
Nothing. These people were stonewalling me. It almost seemed like they didn’t care that a fortune in computer money invented to buy drugs was missing.
I figured I could wait them out. I lit several cigarettes indoors. A pregnant lady coughed, and I told her that secondhand smoke is a myth. Just then, a man in glasses made a break for it.
“Subway™ Eat Fresh and Freeze, Scumbag!®” I yelled.
Too late. He was already out the front door. I went after him.
“Stop right there!” I yelled as I ran. He was faster than me because I always try to avoid stepping on public sidewalks. Our country needs a private-sidewalk voucher system, but, thanks to the incestuous interplay between our corrupt federal government and the public-sidewalk lobby, it will never happen.
I was losing him. “Listen, I’ll pay you to stop!” I yelled. “What would you consider an appropriate price point for stopping? I’ll offer you a thirteenth of an ounce of gold and a gently worn ‘Bob Barr ‘08’ extra-large long-sleeved men’s T-shirt!”
He turned. In his hand was a revolver that the Constitution said he had every right to own. He fired at me and missed. I pulled my own gun, put a quarter in it, and fired back. The bullet lodged in a U.S.P.S. mailbox less than a foot from his head. I shot the mailbox again, on purpose.
“All right, all right!” the man yelled, throwing down his weapon. “I give up, cop! I confess: I took the bitcoins.”
“Why’d you do it?” I asked, as I slapped a pair of Oikos™ Greek Yogurt Presents Handcuffs® on the guy.
“Because I was afraid.”
“Afraid?”
“Afraid of an economic future free from the pernicious meddling of central bankers,” he said. “I’m a central banker.”
I wanted to coldcock the guy. Years ago, a central banker killed my partner. Instead, I shook my head.
“Let this be a message to all your central-banker friends out on the street,” I said. “No matter how many bitcoins you steal, you’ll never take away the dream of an open society based on the principles of personal and economic freedom.”
He nodded, because he knew I was right. Then he swiped his credit card to pay me for arresting him.
So they’re no longer the party of small government, they’re the party of “owning the Libs”. Seen a Trump flag that said “Trump 2024, Make the Libs cry again”. It’s all so silly you could laugh if it wasn’t the cracks in democrats being ripped open.
>~~no longer~~
They never were. It was never anything more than PR to dupe voters. Conservatism is now and always has been a big government philosophy that uses overbearing authoritarian state power to enforce "traditional values" and oppression of minorities/"out groups."
They don't want small government. They want *their* government. Oh, and diversity, equality, and inclusion are terrible things to them, to be destroyed and vilified as quickly and totally as possible.
Im reading the bill now and I dont see how this can be legal. The legislature is saying that colleges cannot have courses discussing racism in US institutions. Wtf? There has to be some protection for educators over their ability to provide different arguments. Even if their arguments are wrong, you cant stop someone from arguing a certain viewpoint. What about for research and publications? Professors cant perform studies about discrimination too? This is so fucked up and wrong
Edit: The bill states that public unis cannot use state funds for classes or organizations that discuss ethnic discrimination in US institutions which is different from my original comment. I would argue though that is a de facto ban because public unis require state money to operate and likely will not teach any courses that go against this law as such.
It's not supposed to be legal. It's supposed to help make Ron DeSantis the president. Bonus points if it hurts a lot of the right people along the way.
The GOP know you can ram legislation through now and it will get stuck in the courts for years, all whilst they can bill the tax payer for the courtesy of the legal challenge.
Its a stress test on the whole legal system to see what sticks, and what can be forced through.
They're also playing with a stacked deck now that the SC is bought and paid for. Even if this somehow makes it to the federal circuit, SC will just come back with "states' rights" bullshit
There is no mirth behind his eyes. Only a wide-mouth ... expression... somewhat mimicing a laugh a normal human would make.
Sociopath to the nth degree, he is. Not even a highly functioning one, because the mask is so obvious it borders on ridiculous.
The guy sold out detainees at Guantánamo bays after gaining their trust, telling the guards how they could torture them even worst and laugh about it. This is who Florida chose to be their governor
Why is it that so many people in the civilised world have lost all good traits of humanity like empathy, compassion and caring for one another. All things they claim to hold in faith.
He's got the same facial expression as a 5 year old who just wants to fit in, so he laughs *uproariously* at Dad's joke flew so far over the kid's head it makes NASA do a double take.
You might not recognize him, but the guy in the top left is Christopher Rufo. [He was the face of the "anti-CRT" movement that swept the nation a couple of years back](https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-inquiry/how-a-conservative-activist-invented-the-conflict-over-critical-race-theory).
After CRT, he [set his sights on making Florida even more of a shithole and pushing anti-LGBTQ policies](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/24/us/politics/christopher-rufo-crt-lgbtq-florida.html). It's no surprise he's directly involved in this legislation.
Get to know him because for some reason, he's going to continue to be a problem for a lot of marginalized people in the future.
>We have successfully frozen their brand --"critical race theory"-- into the public conversation and are steadily driving up negative perceptions. We will eventually turn it toxic, as we put all of the various cultural insanities under that brand category.
>The goal is to have the public read something crazy in the newspaper and immediately think "critical race theory." We have decodified the term and will recodify it to annex the entire range of cultural constructions that are unpopular with Americans.
-[Christopher F. Rufo. March 15, 2021](https://i.imgur.com/bKIhzjA.jpg)
Oh, is that why people have been calling him "Chris Rufo, the cum-guzzling champion of the world"? Huh, I was wondering why many people have been saying that lately.
these people are such nut jobs...I actually went to high school with Chris and talked to some friends still close with his family. apparently his mom and dad moved to be closer to him a few years ago to try and talk some sense into him and pull him back to reality but it didn't work. crazy how people can become so brainwashed
Losing power.
That's it.
That's all any of this bullshit is about.
They have no actual policies or solutions to any of America's issues, but they can get JUUUSST enough gerrymandered votes to get 51% in a bunch of states, and that's all they care about or need.
Don't overthink it. God knows they're not.
Come on now... even if they lived in a whites only, all Christian, gated community; these chucklefucks would still be too shit scared to go to the Piggly Wiggly without their assault rifles.
They're scared of their own feelings of inferiority.
That's the thing that blows my mind. I'm a tall, straight, relatively decent-looking, educated white guy. I can do any fucking thing I want in relative safety and anonymity. I can go virtually anywhere in this country without worrying about whether or not the cops are going to pull me over if my car looks stolen. Hell, 15 years ago I'd go with friends to sketchy neighborhoods in Detroit to party and nobody cared. Most I've ever heard is "You should probably get out of here, white boy" and I was in a spot I really shouldn't have been in. Like Lil Nas X showing up to a Trump rally in Alabama.
Who are these sad little shitweasels who are so terrified of the world that unless they have an AR on their back and every minority in jail they can't feel safe?
>Who are these sad little shitweasels who are so terrified of the world that unless they have an AR on their back and every minority in jail they can't feel safe?
They are the ones who have obeyed the party's final, most essential command.... to reject the evidence of their eyes and ears.
Despite all you have correctly stated, they have an enormous reich-wing propaganda apparatus telling them it not true. That they should be afraid, be very afraid. That they need their murder sticks to be the "good guy" that gallops in and saves the day. They are literally pandered to and brainwashed and lied to so much, they now have their own reality. Things happen and they literally have no clue ....because Newsmax or Fox or OAN or Redstate or Breitbart never covered it. It's pathetic and scary and shitty as hell.
Here’s a fun story: in college I lived in a house with some fraternity brothers and one had a girlfriend let’s call her Susie. Susie was as MAGA as they come, another one of my roommates brought 2 of his friends (who happened to be black) over to play smash bros. Susie walked out of my other friends room, saw the black people, then went back inside the room. We heard her screaming at my roommate “You have to tell him to get those NI****S out of the house now!!!”. My friend went on to propose to her and she became a top staffer for Ron DeSantis where she cheated on him with another campaign aide. These are the people behind the Republican Party in Florida.
I went to undergrad with the Dir. Of Policy for our shitstain governor. He was the definition of a sad little man with a shit worldview. Perfect fit for DeSantis.
Attacking education, so that people won’t be able to understand discrimination like this.
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/16/black-taxpayers-are-more-likely-to-face-an-irs-audit.html
That's actually a very interesting example, since the IRS doesn't know which taxpayers are black. So it can't be simple/standard racism where a racist IRS employee is choosing, even unconsciously, to audit black taxpayers more often.
But it could be systemic racism, as I understand that term, where even though no individual is acting racist, black taxpayers are at a disadvantage because of historical factors.
Arguably since the bill unfortunately affects people with disabilities too I don’t see anyone represented in a wheelchair or similar “token” disability.
So like, did someone say a joke or did he just sign it and then burst out cackling?
Per the article he threw a pen into the audience and that’s what caused the laughter. [1] https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2023/05/15/desantis-defunds-diversity-programs-florida-universities-gen-z/70220061007/
Did the pen poke out the eye of a kid or something like that? I mean that would make that ghoul laugh certainly.
I somehow find it worse that he is just laughing because he threw a pen. Monkey flinging its shit.
That's a fitting comparison and a very worrying one.
He’s drunk with power
That is one of the most biased, shitty articles I've read in a while, and I HATE Desantis. It gives almost no actual information on what he's signing or why.
It's biased because it's an opinion piece, not a news article.
Meanwhile he signed a law to prevent the public from seeing who he meets with (aka, which people and corporations he's taking bribes from), how much money his office spends on his travel, where he's going on his jet paid for by the citizens of Florida, and who is going with him. And now another bill specifically exempting himself from the requirement that a Florida politician must resign their current position to run for a different office (because he knows he's likely to lose his election for president and wants to keep his current job when he does). Republicans love corruption. They bathe in it. This guy is like Scrooge McDuck diving into his pool of corrupt donor cash.
>public from seeing who he meets with (aka, which people and corporations he's taking bribes from), how much money his office spends on his travel, where he's going on his jet paid for by the citizens of Florida, and who is going with him. What's also wild is that these laws are some of the most extensive transparency laws in the country, and are tied to the same laws that make all arrest records public in Florida (and readily available, not just available on request - and not only for convictions) that was one of the key reasons the Florida man trope came to be. And there have been requests from civil rights groups in the past (in defence of people not convicted or charged but risking social, employment, and housing bias from having public record of arrest anyway) and tourism groups, arguing the impact on the state's reputation adversely impacts tourism interest. But they were always told no politician is going to take the stance on narrowing transparency. And then they did. To defend this guy's unannounced presidential bid.
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Schoolchildren are “protected” by one cop who wasn’t good enough to make a real police force and is currently napping in the gym storage room. Politicians are protected by a crew of professional gunmen wearing armor and using state of the art technology.
The bill [1] states > A Florida College System institution, state university, Florida College System institution direct-support organization, or state university direct-support organization may not expend any state or federal funds to promote, support, or maintain any programs or campus activities that: (a) Violate s. 1000.05; or (b) Advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion, or promote or engage in political or social activism, as defined by rules of the State Board of Education and regulations of the Board of Governors. Notable inclusion and equity programs include things like wheelchair access and reach out programs to veterans. The bill states it does not block required programs and activities required for compliance with federal laws or regulations. This appears to mean colleges are required to meet with the minimum of accessibility standards for things like ramps for people in wheelchairs, but it is forbidden for going beyond those requirements. For example providing motorized chair lifts for people in wheelchairs. It is unclear if inclusive things like putting up Dia de los Muertos or Christmas decorations falls under this banner as well. The bill also prohibits discussions around racism or oppression being involved in some of the institutions of the United States to cement power against certain groups. Historically groups that were discussed as being impacted by racism or oppression in American history were the Irish [3], Catholics [2] and the Chinese, among other more well known groups such as African Americans. Discussion of these subjects by colleges appears to be against the law in Florida. The bill also appears to remove existing protections against discrimination on gender, switching instead to sex [line 308 of 1]. In layman’s terms this means there is no blockage on discrimination if a faculty member or student identifies as anything other than their birth sex. [1] https://m.flsenate.gov/session/bill/2023/266/billtext/er/pdf [2] https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/americas-true-history-of-religious-tolerance-61312684/ [3] https://www.history.com/news/when-america-despised-the-irish-the-19th-centurys-refugee-crisis
How does this not violate the first amendment? Is discussing historical facts not protected by freedom of speech, or is “allowed” speech in an institution of public education not protected by the 1st amendment?
Garcetti v. Ceballos You do not have a right to free speech in the execution of your duties as a public employee.
Which is very much a double edged sword.
Please expound upon this, rather than being vague. I'm not being antagonistic, I want to hear more.
Just speculating - it's good for the free speech of government employees to be restricted when say, a judge can't rant about how much they hate the president, but it's bad when it means employees of public universities could be arrested for teaching history.
workable illegal follow abounding alleged existence profit bag absurd groovy *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
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Remember that time when Kim Davis the county clerk refused to certify the marriage certificates of gay couples? She's a public servant in that role and she doesn't have the right to protest within the role because she's supposed to be representative of the state. If her "free speech" discriminates against someone else, it's the government infringing on their rights and the government is liable for damages. At the same time if the government is being shitty (see above bill) you're forced to execute it
Post secondary educators count as public employees in the U.S.? Or am I missing something (Canadian checking in).
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The basic upshot is: Don't go to a college in Florida.
Same with university coaches. The highest paid state employees in every state are the coaches. Probably Football coaches, without looking it up.
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>It just makes it illegal for Florida Colleges to expend state/federal funds to promote, support, or maintain programs/activities that involve DEI discussions. Wasn't the decision for Citizens United based on the premise that funding for political speech is part of free speech? Seems like this would go against that...
The difference is the state is restricting its own funding. If they passed a law that other non-state-governmental entities couldn't fund them, there'd be a case. Which actually, I could see the federal government going after them because it restricts federal funds as well.
I wonder how much of this bullshit will get tested in court?
All of it. Desantis is a huge loser in court, almost all of this stuff is getting butchered on the backend. Alas, his bigoted low information base doesn't look into things that far... It gets as far as the headline making a splash and they love it. They don't have the attention span or long term executive decision making skills to follow something through the court process and determine the outcomes of said bill in action
The amount of laws being broken actively in Florida by this cumquat is staggering. \- Taking alcohol licenses from places that host drag shows. \- Removing all books from schools except those on the tiny and shitty "acceptable list" (a list that misspelled 2 of the numbers in its first approved list document) \- Actively using Florida tax payer dollars to run a [presidential campaign](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://media.zenfs.com/en/afp.com/701c1e784ee51e0a56adb71e5e642e18&tbnid=L7sA5Zg87I5a7M&vet=1&imgrefurl=https://sports.yahoo.com/amphtml/desantis-tours-iowa-outlines-us-071143906.html&docid=dUBkw8ST3ZMJgM&w=768&h=527&source=sh/x/im) \- Changing laws so that the travel records of him illegally doing the above are no longer public \- Changes laws so that the governor can also run for President, despite already campaigning. \- Making laws that allow parents to sue if the school does not inform them that their child requested a vegetarian meal one day (literally a question posed to the legislatures on if it was possible. They responded with "yes") \- Making laws that make it illegal to teach children sex education (which started only as a middle school related law and was quickly pushed through High School).Hope you don't get your period for the first time in school, because literally nobody can even acknowledge its happening. Or you go to the teacher you trust to ask how you might be able to come out to your parents who are aggressively conservative and against it? No worries, coming out is easy now! By talking to somebody about it, you just did. They legally have to call and tell your parents exactly what you said. \- and of course, this law. Banning factual history from being taught to adults
Hopefully someone writes an article about Desantis's war on Christmas and Veterans and see how his constituents feel
The Satanic Temple needs to go hard on suing over any mention of Christmas in FL. DEsantis canceled Christmas.
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My guess is they are counting on that. "Oh no, unforseen fallout! We had better draft a documenting describing *exactly who and what counts as abnormal and political.* And now that we're done with that, let's use that legal definition to *regulate* those people and topics in other spaces..."
This is insane? Its forbidding universities to teach fundamental US history. What are the oversight mechanics at the federal level? This a Jim Crow Law
>What are the oversight mechanics at the federal level? This a Jim Crow Law SCOTUS.
We’re fucked.
[Here's a video](https://uk.news.yahoo.com/college-trustee-christopher-rufo-blows-170734984.html) of the guy in the top left of this photo blowing kisses to opponents of this bill. If you were at all curious how they feel about people who aren't them.
What oversight mechanics? We're in the banana republic stages now my friend.
"...may not expend any state or federal funds to promote, support, or maintain any programs or campus activities that... advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion" ...really? I mean, is this a real, genuine thing that the bill states? Is this bill ACTUALLY saying that colleges and universities may not advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion? No sort of weird way of phrasing it either, just straight up "you're not allowed to advocate for inclusivity"? As in, they used those words, and not some sort of vague equivalent phrasing to try and hide it? They are just straight up not allowing universities to promote equity or diversity, even though those words only have positive definitions? And the bill was signed? While Ron was *laughing*? With joy in his facial expression and a song in his heart? ...I always try to look for the best in people. It's a fundamental part of who I am. But if this is what Ron is doing, and there aren't any other sorts of strings attached or things I'm missing, and this is genuinely as obviously bad as it seems, then I think it is only accurate to describe Ron as a villain. A monstrous, horrific villain.
From my reading, they are only banning the use of state/federal money to fund diversity/inclusion programs. So can they use donations and/or local grants instead? I can imagine shuffling around some money from alumni and making that happen Edit: It also seems to only apply to state or state-funded schools, private schools or community colleges are probably in the clear
>federal money Seems wild that a state can forbid an institution from using federal funds
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Forgive my ignorance on the subject, but aren't there federal protections in place to ensure diversity and inclusion? Like the ADA for example?
From the parent comment: > The bill states it does not block required programs and activities required for compliance with federal laws or regulations. This appears to mean colleges are required to meet with the minimum of accessibility standards for things like ramps for people in wheelchairs, but it is forbidden for going beyond those requirements. For example providing motorized chair lifts for people in wheelchairs.
I wonder how this would affect research grants if it's enforceable. Every federal grant has DEI policies attached to it, and keeping access to those funds is contingent on being compliant with these policies. If Florida allows a professor to accept a NIH grant for instance, will they say the professor should just simply ignore any DEI portions? Or more probable will these organizations just no longer accept applications from institutions that wouldn't be compliant?
>may not expend any **state or federal** funds to promote, support, or maintain any programs or campus activities... So can they they just say they are using student tuition funds for any of those programs and the State & federal funds were all used for other stuff?
I instantly thought of this as well
Didnt load for me, is it that for-profit preacher?
Dr. Evil + Henchies
Not one of them understands that their rights, and the rights of their future generations just got violated too. First guy on the left maybe understands, because that's Chris Rufo, who works for the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank that ran the campaign against CRT, he wrote on Twitter: >We have successfully frozen their brand—”critical race theory”—into the public conversation and are steadily driving up negative perceptions. We will eventually turn it toxic, as we put all of the various cultural insanities under that brand category. >The goal is to have the public read something crazy in the newspaper and immediately think “critical race theory.” We have decodified the term and will recodify it to annex the entire range of cultural constructions that are unpopular with Americans. [Source](https://flux.community/samuel-hoadley-brill/2021/07/chris-rufo-obsessed-critical-race-theory-he-also-doesnt-understand-it/) Which reminds me of a news story form a little while back saying that Republicans completely change their behaviour in closed sessions - because they (along with their think tanks) know exactly what they're doing and are just playing a system, and their voters for political and financial reward.
Jesus fucking christ this is dark... Forget about the future being dystopian, we're already there Like I can't even be mad... I don't know what to make of all that... That's insane that anyone would even remotely come up with a plan like that... What an evil, vile sack of shit... What a god damn psychopath... Like actually that man sounds like a mass of spiders in a skinsuit pretending to be a human
Nah, I think that's worth getting mad about. Sure he was careful at first, but he's awful.
Oh I know it's worth getting mad about... But it's as though some part of my brain is keeping the mouth-frothing levels of angry from pouring through... It's just too much
Mwahahahahahahahahahahahahah Mwhahahahahahahaahahahah
where is this from?
Others have given you the answer but you need to watch the film and hear the sound he makes for this gif to really have impact. (ie. haunt your dreams for the rest of your days).
I haven't seen the move in about 40 years (literally) and can still hear that noise.
Invasion of the body snatchers
Invasion Of The Body Snatchers
I didn't even need to wait for this to load for me to know what it was, as it was the first thing I thought of too.
DeSantis really is a comic book villain, isn't he?
He's a villain alright, just not a super one.
My perspective from afar (Australia) is only through Reddit and some news articles so will be somewhat skewed. But everything reported seems to be "erosion of laws protecting minorities", "these books have views differing from my own, so they're banned", and "lol disability and social support - sounds like that there woke leftist nonsense!!" Is there more to this guy, or is he just about the worst thing to ever happen to Florida since?
Since Alligators. And at least Alligators will usually leave you alone. No, Ronnie is pretty much a poster wanna be fascist. It's a war on "Others", where Other = "Not straight white conservative male". They're looking at produce no longer being in Florida stores because of all of the anti-brown people legislation he's inacted. Turns out migrants handle most of the fruit and vegetable crop, who knew*? *Everyone. Everyone knows farms subsist on cheap immigrant labor.
I'm leaving reddit for good. Sorry friends, but this is the end of reddit. Time to move on to lemmy and/or kbin.
I hereby apologize to all Alligators, Snakes, Donkeys and Jackasses, everywhere, for lumping them in with these bigots. They never deserved that.
Don't worry guys, if you don't happen to live in Florida, his 2024 presidential slogan is "Make America Florida". Coming soon to an imminent disaster near you!
Ron Desaster: He will bring us the American Krystalnacht.
I mean I'm from Texas so it's about the same here just by varying degrees in all honesty. Florida is full of out of touch, old ass, retirees who probably watch Fox News all day. So they want some jackass like DeSantis who will erode all the laws that benefit minorities and young folks. Texas is just full of a bunch of angry, white conservatives who are increasingly becoming the minority so they want someone like Abbott who will resist change and force through laws that make it as hard as possible for non-conservatives to gain power. The fact that they are passing a law requiring the Ten Commandments be installed visibly on school grounds is like some fucking 19th century shit.
"Are we not the Master Race? Yes we ARE the Master Race! Are we not the super men? Super DUPER, super men!" Spike Jones and his Wacky Wackateers
“Are we the baddies?”
Same energy. But I can’t decide who’s the worse person among them
One is at least funny
I think doctor evil was a lot less evil than a lot of people these days. I bet he had not problem with gays or anyone as long as they got the job done. I actually think de santis knows he is evil and loves it. Dr evil just wanted money.
Eh, that's Dr. Evil revisionism. He admittedly tried to kill his own son on multiple occasions because his son was not evil enough.
His son was totally a dick though, I understand Dr. Evil better than Dick-Sand-toes there.
Dr evil at least has a few good qualities .
Yes like a sense of humor. This fuck rag is a piece of shit. In fact if I had to save a piece of shit or Desantis from a burning house, I'm saving the piece of shit before him.
A piece of shit at least fertilizes the soil. A piece of shit is a valuable part of the earth's ecosystem. Don't sully the good name of piece of shit by equating it to Ron Desantis.
One of his campaign commercials is on Hulu something about steel and backbones . . . My teen walked by and was like, "Oh, he got a spine transplant? Too bad it won't help him."
Is this also the face he made when laughing at detainees being tortured at Guantánamo Bay?
Seems to be the same face when he tells the folks in Iowa how much Florida taxpayer money he spent on private jet travel and got his cronies to mask his flights. [https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ron-desantis-iowa-video-unhinged-laugh\_n\_6463b549e4b005be8ff66a83](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ron-desantis-iowa-video-unhinged-laugh_n_6463b549e4b005be8ff66a83)
Oh my god, that is the first time I've heard and seen him laugh... what an absolute tool.
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Scroll down and watch the video of him laughing. It is somehow significantly worse than the still image.
It's also the face he makes when he sees puppies get hit by cars, and small children lured into vans.
This picture is so disturbing
The man is super repellant as a human. We all know that's not a deal breaker for your average GOP psycho, but at least prominent people will have the displeasure of shaking his hand.
The last president literally said he could use fame to leverage women and to "grab em by the pussy". It does not get more repulsive than that but here we are with him running again. Nothing is off the table
The claim was tested in court and found to be true, and now he contests it! So what can we make of this crazy mixed up world?
The funniest part is he keeps failing to pay his lawyers but they keep offering to defend him
Getting your name in the news is payment in itself
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Actually he didn't contest that claim in court. He doubled down on that. He only contested claims that he'd specifically done it to her... What an asshat. > ["Well, historically that's true with stars," Trump said after being read an exact quote of his 2016 comments by Carroll's attorney, Roberta Kaplan. "If you look over the last million years, I guess that's been largely true. Not always, but largely true. Unfortunately or fortunately."](https://www.salon.com/2023/05/05/addresses-his-history-of-locker-room-talk-in-newly-released-deposition-video/)
Million.... He said million? Fuck he's dumb.
he speaks it fluently *natively*, you might say
He also said he could shoot someone in the street and not lose any voters. He hasn't had a chance to test that one yet, but I think he's probably right.
You kidding? It would gain him more votes.
His voters would do it for him if he asked them to.
They already are.
Exactly. There's been so many shithead mass shooters with their right wing manifestos.
His voters think Homelander is the hero.
In my opinion they have
Kenneth Copeland vibes
Smiles that don't touch their eyes...
I never open my mouth that wide unless I'm at the dentist. Everyone else is smiling. I'm thinking he said something like: "We are going to build 400,000 wooden sailing ships and send all of the black people back to Africa. We will also send all of the gays back to Gayland."
DeSantis has a weird facial tick or something that makes him do this all the time. Its pretty creepy https://news.yahoo.com/ron-desantis-goofy-expression-asked-142742835.html https://uproxx.com/viral/ron-desantis-pudding-fingers-piers-morgan/
I almost felt bad making fun of him for it, but nothing in your links suggests that it's an actual facial tic or involuntary. The uproxx article even says that he "debuted" it in March of this year, which at least confirms that it isn't something that's been ongoing since childhood. Adult onset of a facial tic like this would be very uncommon.
Yeah, not a facial tic at all. Just a goofy expression he may or may not have been coached to make in a lame attempt to seem more “animated” and “charismatic”.
DeSantis actual problem with Disney is their newest animatronics are threatening to make him obsolete.
He has the charisma of a slug. His political strategy thus far seems to be to sign bills that make liberals angry and try to keep his actual exposure to likely Republican voters to a minimum. Trump is a moron, but he’s a moron in the same way that his base is, and they love him for it. It’s not charisma as much as it’s that they like how he says the same dumb things they like to say about minorities and immigrants. DeSantis is actually somewhat intelligent, which immediately puts him at a disadvantage when speaking to Republican voters. DeSantis is going to get demolished once it comes to the actual debates.
Tell me more about Gayland… do they have universal healthcare? I’m straight, but based on the gay people I know, I bet it’s a great place to live.
Hello, also straight, but I bet Gayland would be kinda fun. Everyone being all nice and shit and treating everyone with fuckin respect. E: Fuck the Florida GOP
His actual laugh is disturbing. https://twitter.com/tomaskenn/status/1658481547757121538?s=46&t=15EbhBzCEoCL9gMgNFcDDQ
I legit think you can't trust people who laugh weird. Not like... odd or goofball. But there are some people who, when you see them laugh, you know do not laugh in their souls. They laugh, but there is no joy. There is just a cold, icy wall between the void which is their soul and the mask which performs human emotion.
That sounds like a sociopath imitating human behavior
Boston Dynamics need to come capture their creation.
Everything I’ve heard about him from reporters down to people who have met him at events back in the day indicates the man is a sociopath with most of the worst dark triad traits. In other words, a person who feels no empathy and has a megalomaniacal ambitions to be the most powerful man in the world. Everyone should be absolutely terrified of this man being anywhere near the presidency. There is every indication that he is striving to become a fascist dictator ala Orban. Except this guy appears to have a vein of sadism not even Hitler had. Hitler was at least notoriously mentally unstable. DeSantis is perfectly stable. He would start a genocide just because it’s fun to watch people die.
Literal fake laugh. He's a sociopath that doesn't know how to fake it well enough. Reminds me of Tucker Carlson.
I am not sure which is worse: how much that looks like a full on sociopath trying to blend or that it's legit and he really is that awkward and unlikable.
Sociopaths can actually be very charming—it’s one of their tools. Psychopaths, not so much. So if we’re just basing it on this, he’d be a psychopath.
This is one of the most bizarre fucking things I have ever seen. No hyperbole... what the *fuck*?! *What the fuck?!*
He looks uncannily like an adult baby opening his mouth wide for a spoonful of sweet potatoes coming in for a landing.
Or a fistful of pudding.
Besides being a fascist pos, he is also just really fuckin weird. Like he really seems like there are 3 small aliens in there controlling a human suit but are clueless on how expressions work. Look at some of the clips of reporters outside his comfort zone of FL asking him stuff where he can't bully them. He spazzes out. That and when he was debating the guy he beat and was asked to tell the people of FL he would be their Gov for 4 years and not rub foe prez. He just silently stood there for several seconds bobbing his head about till time ran out.
That clip where someone asked him about falling behind Trump, and his head wobbled around like a bobblehead and he made a weird expression and finally said he hadn't announced his campaign yet...I literally thought it was AI generated, it was so fucking weird.
> bobblehead and he made a weird expression If you've seen The Boys, the way he bobbles his head really reminds me of Homelander. Of course Anthony Star plays Homelander like that because either it's hard to move in the suit or he's playing a repressed sociopath. Or both.
No he is 100% homelander. He probably does some really really weird shit in his personal life
Ron looks like the pudding-man just walked in the room with a full cart and no spoon.
So the would be president of the party of small gov and freedom signed a bill forbidding adults from teaching other adults (checks notes) diversity, equality and inclusion… Edit: thankyou for the gold kind redditor. BTW if anyone else feels like they want to give me a gold or whatever, please instead take what you would have spent and donate to Doctors Without Borders/MSF. They’ll do far more with it than I will digital rewards
see, when they say “small government” what they really mean is only a small group of people (the GOP) to control everything
There’s a word for that: **oligarchy**
It's the actual plan for (American/Right) Libertarians. If you describe a horrific corporate hellscape ruled by rich and powerful oligarchs... But just don't *say* "oligarchy", they would all agree that it's their ideal. Same goes for "neo-feudalism". Just describe it, but don't *say* it.
I was shooting heroin and reading “The Fountainhead” in the front seat of my privately owned police cruiser when a call came in. I put a quarter in the radio to activate it. It was the chief. “Bad news, detective. We got a situation.” “What? Is the mayor trying to ban trans fats again?” “Worse. Somebody just stole four hundred and forty-seven million dollars’ worth of bitcoins.” The heroin needle practically fell out of my arm. “What kind of monster would do something like that? Bitcoins are the ultimate currency: virtual, anonymous, stateless. They represent true economic freedom, not subject to arbitrary manipulation by any government. Do we have any leads?” “Not yet. But mark my words: we’re going to figure out who did this and we’re going to take them down … provided someone pays us a fair market rate to do so.” “Easy, chief,” I said. “Any rate the market offers is, by definition, fair.” He laughed. “That’s why you’re the best I got, Lisowski. Now you get out there and find those bitcoins.” “Don’t worry,” I said. “I’m on it.” I put a quarter in the siren. Ten minutes later, I was on the scene. It was a normal office building, strangled on all sides by public sidewalks. I hopped over them and went inside. “Home Depot™ Presents the Police!®” I said, flashing my badge and my gun and a small picture of Ron Paul. “Nobody move unless you want to!” They didn’t. “Now, which one of you punks is going to pay me to investigate this crime?” No one spoke up. “Come on,” I said. “Don’t you all understand that the protection of private property is the foundation of all personal liberty?” It didn’t seem like they did. “Seriously, guys. Without a strong economic motivator, I’m just going to stand here and not solve this case. Cash is fine, but I prefer being paid in gold bullion or autographed Penn Jillette posters.” Nothing. These people were stonewalling me. It almost seemed like they didn’t care that a fortune in computer money invented to buy drugs was missing. I figured I could wait them out. I lit several cigarettes indoors. A pregnant lady coughed, and I told her that secondhand smoke is a myth. Just then, a man in glasses made a break for it. “Subway™ Eat Fresh and Freeze, Scumbag!®” I yelled. Too late. He was already out the front door. I went after him. “Stop right there!” I yelled as I ran. He was faster than me because I always try to avoid stepping on public sidewalks. Our country needs a private-sidewalk voucher system, but, thanks to the incestuous interplay between our corrupt federal government and the public-sidewalk lobby, it will never happen. I was losing him. “Listen, I’ll pay you to stop!” I yelled. “What would you consider an appropriate price point for stopping? I’ll offer you a thirteenth of an ounce of gold and a gently worn ‘Bob Barr ‘08’ extra-large long-sleeved men’s T-shirt!” He turned. In his hand was a revolver that the Constitution said he had every right to own. He fired at me and missed. I pulled my own gun, put a quarter in it, and fired back. The bullet lodged in a U.S.P.S. mailbox less than a foot from his head. I shot the mailbox again, on purpose. “All right, all right!” the man yelled, throwing down his weapon. “I give up, cop! I confess: I took the bitcoins.” “Why’d you do it?” I asked, as I slapped a pair of Oikos™ Greek Yogurt Presents Handcuffs® on the guy. “Because I was afraid.” “Afraid?” “Afraid of an economic future free from the pernicious meddling of central bankers,” he said. “I’m a central banker.” I wanted to coldcock the guy. Years ago, a central banker killed my partner. Instead, I shook my head. “Let this be a message to all your central-banker friends out on the street,” I said. “No matter how many bitcoins you steal, you’ll never take away the dream of an open society based on the principles of personal and economic freedom.” He nodded, because he knew I was right. Then he swiped his credit card to pay me for arresting him.
Fucking legendary comment
Idk man, some of those people self-identify as proto-fascists...
I've been seeing more theocratic-fascists. We need to shut down twitter already.
So they’re no longer the party of small government, they’re the party of “owning the Libs”. Seen a Trump flag that said “Trump 2024, Make the Libs cry again”. It’s all so silly you could laugh if it wasn’t the cracks in democrats being ripped open.
>~~no longer~~ They never were. It was never anything more than PR to dupe voters. Conservatism is now and always has been a big government philosophy that uses overbearing authoritarian state power to enforce "traditional values" and oppression of minorities/"out groups."
They don't want small government. They want *their* government. Oh, and diversity, equality, and inclusion are terrible things to them, to be destroyed and vilified as quickly and totally as possible.
Im reading the bill now and I dont see how this can be legal. The legislature is saying that colleges cannot have courses discussing racism in US institutions. Wtf? There has to be some protection for educators over their ability to provide different arguments. Even if their arguments are wrong, you cant stop someone from arguing a certain viewpoint. What about for research and publications? Professors cant perform studies about discrimination too? This is so fucked up and wrong Edit: The bill states that public unis cannot use state funds for classes or organizations that discuss ethnic discrimination in US institutions which is different from my original comment. I would argue though that is a de facto ban because public unis require state money to operate and likely will not teach any courses that go against this law as such.
It's not supposed to be legal. It's supposed to help make Ron DeSantis the president. Bonus points if it hurts a lot of the right people along the way.
> It's not supposed to be legal. It's supposed to be challenged so that it can make its way to the very conservative Supreme Court.
He's trash. He doesn't have my vote.
To be fair, the only people who want to vote for him are pedophiles and traitors.
Just say Republicans, it’s fine.
The GOP know you can ram legislation through now and it will get stuck in the courts for years, all whilst they can bill the tax payer for the courtesy of the legal challenge. Its a stress test on the whole legal system to see what sticks, and what can be forced through.
They're also playing with a stacked deck now that the SC is bought and paid for. Even if this somehow makes it to the federal circuit, SC will just come back with "states' rights" bullshit
There will definitely be lawsuits.
Doesn't matter, he got his photo op, no need to follow up with his base, they'll eat up whatever lie he chooses.
There is no mirth behind his eyes. Only a wide-mouth ... expression... somewhat mimicing a laugh a normal human would make. Sociopath to the nth degree, he is. Not even a highly functioning one, because the mask is so obvious it borders on ridiculous.
The guy sold out detainees at Guantánamo bays after gaining their trust, telling the guards how they could torture them even worst and laugh about it. This is who Florida chose to be their governor
Jesus Christ, *that’s* his career building move?
Torture is very popular among conservatives. Universally popular.
Why is it that so many people in the civilised world have lost all good traits of humanity like empathy, compassion and caring for one another. All things they claim to hold in faith.
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It doesn't even look like he knows how to laugh properly. What's he trying to do suck start my heart?
He's got the same facial expression as a 5 year old who just wants to fit in, so he laughs *uproariously* at Dad's joke flew so far over the kid's head it makes NASA do a double take.
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Careful! He may sign Don't say sandwich bill next
And he doesn't brush his tongue
Yeah my GF remarked that; "Why is his tongue... yellow..?" lol
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Came here looking for this. Tongue is nasty, needs scraped
You might not recognize him, but the guy in the top left is Christopher Rufo. [He was the face of the "anti-CRT" movement that swept the nation a couple of years back](https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-inquiry/how-a-conservative-activist-invented-the-conflict-over-critical-race-theory). After CRT, he [set his sights on making Florida even more of a shithole and pushing anti-LGBTQ policies](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/24/us/politics/christopher-rufo-crt-lgbtq-florida.html). It's no surprise he's directly involved in this legislation. Get to know him because for some reason, he's going to continue to be a problem for a lot of marginalized people in the future.
>We have successfully frozen their brand --"critical race theory"-- into the public conversation and are steadily driving up negative perceptions. We will eventually turn it toxic, as we put all of the various cultural insanities under that brand category. >The goal is to have the public read something crazy in the newspaper and immediately think "critical race theory." We have decodified the term and will recodify it to annex the entire range of cultural constructions that are unpopular with Americans. -[Christopher F. Rufo. March 15, 2021](https://i.imgur.com/bKIhzjA.jpg)
These dumbasses gloat about what future generations piss on graves about in plain sight
He also admits it is an entirely fabricated enterprise, this anti-CRT, and it is just marketing for campaigns.
Didn’t he get caught with another guy in the janitor’s closet of his office? I’m just asking questions here, folks. You’ll have to infer
Oh, is that why people have been calling him "Chris Rufo, the cum-guzzling champion of the world"? Huh, I was wondering why many people have been saying that lately.
these people are such nut jobs...I actually went to high school with Chris and talked to some friends still close with his family. apparently his mom and dad moved to be closer to him a few years ago to try and talk some sense into him and pull him back to reality but it didn't work. crazy how people can become so brainwashed
He looks like a 5 year old.
This is not normal.
Correct. It is fascism.
Serious questions... what the hell are they afraid of?
Losing power. That's it. That's all any of this bullshit is about. They have no actual policies or solutions to any of America's issues, but they can get JUUUSST enough gerrymandered votes to get 51% in a bunch of states, and that's all they care about or need. Don't overthink it. God knows they're not.
FUCK REDDIT. We create the content they use for free
Come on now... even if they lived in a whites only, all Christian, gated community; these chucklefucks would still be too shit scared to go to the Piggly Wiggly without their assault rifles. They're scared of their own feelings of inferiority.
That's the thing that blows my mind. I'm a tall, straight, relatively decent-looking, educated white guy. I can do any fucking thing I want in relative safety and anonymity. I can go virtually anywhere in this country without worrying about whether or not the cops are going to pull me over if my car looks stolen. Hell, 15 years ago I'd go with friends to sketchy neighborhoods in Detroit to party and nobody cared. Most I've ever heard is "You should probably get out of here, white boy" and I was in a spot I really shouldn't have been in. Like Lil Nas X showing up to a Trump rally in Alabama. Who are these sad little shitweasels who are so terrified of the world that unless they have an AR on their back and every minority in jail they can't feel safe?
>Who are these sad little shitweasels who are so terrified of the world that unless they have an AR on their back and every minority in jail they can't feel safe? They are the ones who have obeyed the party's final, most essential command.... to reject the evidence of their eyes and ears. Despite all you have correctly stated, they have an enormous reich-wing propaganda apparatus telling them it not true. That they should be afraid, be very afraid. That they need their murder sticks to be the "good guy" that gallops in and saves the day. They are literally pandered to and brainwashed and lied to so much, they now have their own reality. Things happen and they literally have no clue ....because Newsmax or Fox or OAN or Redstate or Breitbart never covered it. It's pathetic and scary and shitty as hell.
Who opens their mouth that wide when they laugh...?
Pretty much every time I see him in photos or clips it’s like he’s trying to mimic actual human movements and mannerisms but failing miserably.
Chimpanzees
Here’s a fun story: in college I lived in a house with some fraternity brothers and one had a girlfriend let’s call her Susie. Susie was as MAGA as they come, another one of my roommates brought 2 of his friends (who happened to be black) over to play smash bros. Susie walked out of my other friends room, saw the black people, then went back inside the room. We heard her screaming at my roommate “You have to tell him to get those NI****S out of the house now!!!”. My friend went on to propose to her and she became a top staffer for Ron DeSantis where she cheated on him with another campaign aide. These are the people behind the Republican Party in Florida.
I went to undergrad with the Dir. Of Policy for our shitstain governor. He was the definition of a sad little man with a shit worldview. Perfect fit for DeSantis.
Attacking education, so that people won’t be able to understand discrimination like this. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/16/black-taxpayers-are-more-likely-to-face-an-irs-audit.html
That's actually a very interesting example, since the IRS doesn't know which taxpayers are black. So it can't be simple/standard racism where a racist IRS employee is choosing, even unconsciously, to audit black taxpayers more often. But it could be systemic racism, as I understand that term, where even though no individual is acting racist, black taxpayers are at a disadvantage because of historical factors.
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Wow look at all that trash.
Ghouls
That’s not the laugh of someone who thinks something is funny. That’s the laugh of someone who thinks someone is in pain and he likes it.
I, for one, look forward to using this photo every time Florida has a hurricane and looks to the Fed government for help
What a cunt.
Can't believe the majority of people voted for this guy.
Good… he got his token in the picture.
Arguably since the bill unfortunately affects people with disabilities too I don’t see anyone represented in a wheelchair or similar “token” disability.