Fucking Florida, Amirite? (General Florida Thread)

Florida is far and away running with the news cycle, and has been for the past few months (years), and there's just so much shit going on, that I started a Florida thread, because damn.

Not satisfied with banning trans people from medical care, banning books, attacking its largest tourist attraction, or its perennial "Florida man" people of note, Senator Rick Scott today made an announcement:

Socialists better watch out, because they're not welcome in Florida.

Oh, no, I promise you, it's real, and it's both hilarious and scary. Hilary? No, no. Scalarious? Maybe.

Rick Scott issues travel advisory for ‘socialists,’ warning Florida is ‘openly hostile’ to them

Source: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate...ts-warning-florida-is-openly-hostile-to-them/

We need to get trans folks, other LGBTQ+ folks out, and liberals out (I know you're not socialists, but it's not like these people know the difference), and cut Florida free from the mainland.

How's he gonna identify 'em, with a fucking tricorder?
A commie sniffing dog?
A piece of litmus paper between the butt-cheeks?

They added "..under God.." to the pledge of allegiance in the 50's to root out the commies.
As if it would burn them like a cross to Dracula, or a bug-zapper to a skeeter.
This shit ain't new.

Commies can just lie their way through the pledge, and they can say "yep, good American capitalist here!" when they're pulled over.
What, are they supposed to have their "Das Kapital" in the glove compartment all the time?

Jesus fucking Christ.


As for "socialism" everyone has a social security number, so everyone's a fucking socialist.
That ship sailed with FD-fucking-R.

(Cuz I know it's coming from some fucking libertarian)
(Girl scream voice) Nyyyooo!! Neeaaooouuhhhh!!! I didn't sign on for that! I didn't siiiiggn oooon forrr thhhaaaat!

Fuck you.
If you don't like it, go back in time to your conception, and pull your dad's dick out, and don't be born.

since when?

Only one solution.

This asshole also declined the federal money that would have built the bullet train between Orlando and Tampa on the I-4 corridor. That section of road was built specifically to accommodate high speed rail. JEB! Bush first ignored a constitutional amendment that voters approved for a bullet train. Scott turned down the money claiming the maintenance would have been too expensive. That money went to California's high speed rail system, which is years away from opening it's first link. It gets better (i.e. worse). The current kinda high speed rail system called Brightline that Florida is touting as a "free-enterprise" which is of course, publicly funded. Just by coincidence Scott has investments that are at least indirectly tied to Brightline and he has taken campaign contributions from Brightline's parent company.

let'em float off to a real libertarian paradise... like Somalia?

The Villages would be a good start.

If you wanted to fix the duh you would give floribama to Alabama where it belongs. Hell, cut it right down to Ocala.

Liberty Prime.

Yes and 12 years later that rail still hasn't been built in California and the costs shot up to the point that there isn't funds to complete it.

Looks to me that was the right decision as Florida still has a balanced budget while California is facing budget deficits in the billions.

And seriously? A an entire thread over a press release that was clearly a tongue in cheek response to the NAACP's bullshit travel advisory.

If a release stating that your socialist views will be met with laughter and mockery hurts your feelings, then I don't know what to tell you. There are millions of Cubans and Venezualens living here that can give you a first hand account of the accuracy of that statement.

But California is the fifth largest economy in the world!

To use the household budget analogy the Right are so fucking fond of - Florida is in a job that pays the rent every month. Cali has a mortgage.

https://www.gov.ca.gov/2023/05/12/governor-newsom-releases-balanced-revised-budget-plan/

Nope, no mortgage.

Excellent - paid it off early.

Equity release for the retirement years, whereas Florida will still be working at CostCo until its 70.

Saying that California’s boondoggle means Scott was right is bullshit. California’s problems deal with routing and right of way. The I-4 corridor route already has the right of ways and is built to bullet train standards. If Scott hadn’t intervened that link would be operating and DeSantis would be taking credit for it. As far as “socialism” is concerned, the way DeSantis operates sure looks an awful lot like the way the tinhorns in Cuba and Venezuela operate.

Regardless of what you think of the leadership there, unlike Florida, Cuba has free healthcare (resulting in some of the highest life expectancies), free housing, free education (resulting in one of the highest literacy rates around the world) and some of the most advanced LGBTQ+ rights in the world, all happening under oppressive sanctions from a world superpower. I mean, I get what you're saying, but I just wanted to make that clear. Cuba's doing damned good, all things considered, and is worlds better than the civil rights hellhole that exists in Florida.

Nope. It's a budget. Not debt.

It's funny how deficit spending leads directly to greater economic success.

Maybe that's why the GOP always is pro running huge deficits when they are in power, but threaten to blow up the debt to stop the Democrats from doing the same thing.

I've been to Cuba. Cuba is a third world shithole that hasn't progressed since the 1960s. Their water is so filthy that travelers are advised not to consume it, the coastline to Havana was the nastiest I have ever seen, everyone is driving beat up and patched together 50s automobiles. most are living in old shacks and no one can progress beyond their meager existence. I couldn't wait to get back on the cruise ship because besides the cigars and rum, there was no further reason to hang out there. I'll take Florida any day of the week over that shithole.

"I couldn't wait to get back on the cruise ship."

No matter how much rail pushers deny it, there is always cost over runs when building as well as continued maintenance. Brightline runs passenger trains between West palm beach and Miami. Orlando will be opening soon and Tampa is still in the planning stages. All privately owned and no risk to the task payer.

Then you need to get your eyes checked.

Not sure how that is a dismissal of my point. I was in Havena and saw a lot of the towns outside of it. I spent a full day there. What's your experience in Cuba?

Where the hell is Havena?

My experience in Cuba? None. I don't have the money for a day cruise to Cuba. However, I do trust my comrades in Cuba and what they say and do. Your experience doesn't compare to them.

Stifling free speech and imposing state standards on education and turning schools into indoctrination camps by using only "acceptable" text books that don't make children "uncomfortable" or by implication make them question authority is tinhorn dictatorship 101. Of course, DeSantis still allows local elections, he just gets rid of election winners that he doesn't like. So I guess that is different from what goes on South America...or is it? As for Brightline saying that there is "no risk" to the taxpayer is a bit disingenuous becausee it implies that there is no taxpayer money involved since they are subsidized by millions of dollars in grants.

It's the capital of Cuba. Use google.

SUUUUUURE you do. And yours doesn't compare to mine nor any Cuban I met there or that live in Tampa. Believe whatever fairy tale you want. The millions of Cubans that have fled that shithole know better than both of us.

Every state has state standards for education. Let me play the smallest violin for teachers that are now being forced to teach their subjects instead of pushing their social agendas in the classroom without parent consent.

And recently won re-election by 20 points. But carry on.

If you're referring to Andrew Warren, he was removed from his post for indicating that he wouldn't enforce the law, which is his job as a state attorney. Or maybe you're referring to Sheriff Scott Israel, whose poor response to parkland led to the deaths of innocent children. You really want to defend that?

Wow, a whole $25 million dollars of a FEDERAL grant compared to the billions that it would have cost Florida to build and maintain. I like that trade off.

You changed the spelling in my quote reply. You said "Havena." I was poking at you for spelling Havana wrong.
As for my Cuban comrades, their word is better than yours any day. That you don't agree means nothing.

And my Cuban comrades word is more important that yours any day.

But if you think it's such a great place to live, why don't you move there? I'm sure your comrades will take you in.

The ones who lived in Havena? Must have been hell. The Cuban government must have razed it to the ground, you don't even see it on a map anymore.

Because I'd rather stay here and work to stop this shit wagon of a country from killing people, both inside and outside its borders?

Also, for fuck sake, can dumb ass conservatives come up with anything better than "why don't you move there?" as a riposte? As if moving doesn't cost thousands of dollars, or as if moving out of the US doesn't require extensive paperwork and fees that can take years? Or that permanently moving to a country currently under US embargo is illegal?

I mean, conservatives aren't sending their best here.