How STUPID is Governor Rick Scott?!
Before you watch the video, you should know: Florida’s Governor Scott traveled to Spain last week, where he met King Juan Carlos. Juan Carlos has recently been shamed by the media for taking a trip to Africa to go elephant hunting. This is embarrassing for two reasons: (1) the King took an expensive, lavish trip while Spain’s economy is suffering tremendously, and (2) Juan Carlos is an honorary President of Spain’s World Wildlife Fund.
The clip above is from their very first meeting - Scott walks in and immediately says “I’ve ridden elephants, I’ve never tried to shoot one”. The King is clearly embarrassed.
Of course the King is embarrassed - Governor Scott is a stupid, insensitive leader with no sense of diplomacy or manners! He is literally the laughing stock of Spain (example here -about 40 seconds in, these Spanish TV hosts are clearly mimicking Scott).
[Source: Miami Herald]
No words necessary, just look at the photo.
Unions are strengthening in Florida!
After being attacked on many fronts by the Republican-dominated Legislature for several years (3% pay cut for all state workers to aid the pension fund, an effort by the Republicans to end paycheck deductions and collective bargaining rights for unions, merit-based pay for teachers, etc), unions across the state are working together.
In Florida, unions representing a broad swath of workers have united for the first time in decades, fired up over what they see as an unprecedented attack by state legislators over the past two years.
New to the table are law enforcement groups, including unions representing firefighters and police officers, who have traditionally backed GOP candidates and enjoyed a comfortable relationship with the Republican-dominated legislature.
The law enforcement unions are now holding hands with historically left-leaning labor organizations, including the AFL-CIO and the Florida Education Association.
[Source: Palm Beach Post]
Mitt Romney participated in an education roundtable with teachers in Philadelphia, and he suggested that class size doesn’t make a difference in student performance. Several teachers proceeded to tell Romney he was dead wrong.
Side note: Romney’s education policy advisor, Rob Page, referred to the National Education Association as a “terrorist organization”.
Jay-Z Supports Gay Marriage! -Rolling Stone
When asked about his opinion of the President’s endorsement of gay marriage:
What people do in their own homes is their business and you can choose to love whoever you love. That’s their business. It’s no different than discriminating against blacks. It’s discrimination, plain and simple.
When asked if he thought the President would lose votes as a result:
I think it’s the right thing to do. It’s not about votes. It’s about people. It’s the right thing to do as a human being.
Go Jay-Z!
[Source: Rolling Stone]
The public sector is the largest employer in 51 out of Florida’s 67 counties. Wow.
Check out the rest from Florida Taxwatch’s study on public employers.
CIA denied Sen. Bill Nelson his request to be waterboarded
Wow. Apparently during the controversy over the CIA’s use of waterboarding, Senator Nelson requested that he be waterboarded, to fully understand the experience. According to a book by former CIA official Jose Rodriguez (Hard Measures - How Aggressive CIA Actions After 9/11 Saved American Lives), the agency denied Nelson’s request.
“The agency decided that it would not be wise to accommodate the senator’s thirst for knowledge,” Rodriguez writes. And while Nelson, known for liking to do his homework, “appeared to be in great shape,” he was in his mid-60s at the time.
“Even though we would have had medical personnel standing by, we wondered what would happen” if Nelson had a heart attack and died from the unpleasantness.
Funny how Rodriguez insists that waterboarding is not torture, but refuses to allow a U.S. Senator to experience the treatment. The former official describes the procedure as “harsh and unpleasant.”
This is a good reminder of how awesome Senator Nelson is. As much as I love politics, I feel more and more jaded about the intentions of politicians. But Bill Nelson is someone who I trust to do the right thing, and someone who has the best interests of the American people in mind.
[Source: Washington Post]
We have to keep the hope alive, despite the bad news out of North Carolina!
The South now completely bans gay marriage
With the resounding passage of Amendment 1 in North Carolina yesterday (61% in favor), all Southern states have effectively banned gay marriage. An entire region of the United States is legally unwelcoming to the LGBTQ community.
Knowing North Carolina, I expected Amendment 1 to pass, but for some reason it really struck me to read in a NY Times article this morning that North Carolina became “the 30th state in the country and the last in the South to include a prohibition on gay marriage in the state constitution.”
As a Florida resident and voter, I am ashamed. We are part of the South, but we are so much more than just a stereotypical Bible-thumping, gun-toting state. We should be able to do better than this.
I just graduated with my bachelor’s degree on Sunday, and so many of my progressive friends are leaving or have already left this state. Two incredibly smart gay men I know, who will go on to do incredible things with their lives, have gone to law school in California. Others are going to Washington, D.C, Boston, Chicago.
I want to tell everyone - don’t leave! Florida needs us. The South needs us. As young people, we see another city or state as more accepting, more liberal, more forward-thinking, and we want to go and make a life there. But there is so much work to be done right here at home.
Without us, change will come much more slowly.
If you haven’t taken a look at the Obama campaign’s The Life of Julia, you really should. What a reminder of who is fighting for women, and who is fighting a war on women - I think you know who is who.
