Sorry Desantis, but I think Disney may have gotten the last laugh

When you resign in a chess match, that doesn't mean you've won. Quite the opposite.

 

Getting up and walking away from the board after I (and others) checkmated you isn't resigning. I'm not required to play a new game with you. Have a good night.

 

This is mate, but you have the winning party backwards. Good night.

 

LOL, ignore is your friend. I did it two years ago with this one.

 

Only one was playing chess, you were trying to play checkers. You got jumped so many times you have the Nike swoosh embedded in your forehead.

 

FWIW. If one sits down for a game of chess, and the person across the board proceeds to start eating all the chess pieces, it’s only natural to get up and walk away.

 

Disney maintains and develops things better than the state government. This person of Florida had no problem with the reedy creek development district. It’s been a boon to the entire I4 corridor.

 

I missed who appointed you as representative for all of the people of Florida.

But I do know somebody people here keep whining about who meets that description FAR more closely.

 

Hey, I've got half of Too Hot personally attacking me on this board and like 90% of it disagrees with me.

You don't see me taking my ball and going home, then claiming I've won.

 

Is that the test though? The American people voted for Biden, but that doesn't mean we agree with Biden on every issue or how he handles every issue. Not sure if there is reliable Florida-specific polling on the DeSantis versus Disney saga, but it'd be interesting to know. Trump and Christie are both criticizing DeSantis. That may be for their own political reasons, but - anecdotally- I've talked to someone I know who almost always defends DeSantis who is scratching his head over this and thinks he is really screwing up.

 

1. It's not necessarily enough, but it certainly has more authority than a message board poster.
2. This is a common political game everyone plays:

• When a government official does something the Party likes, "elections have consequences, sorry democracy is happening to you," or "they had good reasons for it."
• When a government official does something the Party doesn't like, "it's a violation of basic individual rights, the Constitution, the law."

Here's the problem, we're so divided as a country we have very little agreement to what some of these key terms mean anymore, like democracy, rights, the Constitution, and the law. And both sides understand that if you completely cede the definitions to the other side, you will lose.

This is a large reason why eliminating the filibuster for judicial picks was a really bad idea. You generally want judges (just like you want umpires, referees, and mediators) to ideally be nonpartisan entities that a supermajority agrees on. When it just becomes a game of "simple majority" you'll inevitably politicize the judiciary as well. And all of a sudden, everything is a shouting match because nobody agrees on anything, even basic definitions of words. The rules effectively don't exist anymore, just power.

It's why politics is so ugly and depressing. Either you play that game, or you lose.

 

Surprised it's only 90%.

 

At this point, I think Christie has some sort of special relationship with Trump. He seems to always go out on a limb to protect him and almost simultaneously derailed both his own campaign and Rubio's in 2016. Biggest winner? Trump.

I think he's going a little too far on some things.

• The whole CRT culture war governing (at the Governor's level) should be reserved for K-12 schools, with stricter standards on public schools than private schools.
• He should've left abortion at 16 weeks and called it a day. Doesn't make the biggest pro-lifers happy, but it satisfied the greatest amount of his constituency and voters he can possibly win over, while alienating the least amount of voters.

Those are the two primary examples that come to mind. The list would be longer if I was more of my idealistic self from a little over half a decade ago. And that's really the ongoing internal debate in the Republican Party. Fight fire with fire and dictate the terms yourself, or try and create this perception even from bad faith Democrats that you're "playing fair," knowing damn well that it will probably bite you in the ass sooner rather than later. Because those same bad faith Democrats don't give a crap about whether you think they're playing fair.

The result? An authoritarian race to the bottom.

The losers? Everyone who is not politically connected, as their options are worse.

The alternative? Democrats dictate the terms, control the institutions, change the rules when they find them inconvenient, do the same with the definitions, and Democrats have a stranglehold on this country built through governmental, institutional, and cultural control. Republicans try playing by that game, but the result is predictable.

 

WHy hasn't a single reporter toured the water and wastewater, fire, security, recycling, solid waste.... facilities at disney and at the two surround counties to inform the public?

 

Nobody wants to be on the governor’s bad side? He is a mean petty demagogue. Just a thought.

 

I was a libertarian in my youth when I thought the party was serious. When the party rejected choice I realized that the party was nothing but right leaning hypocrites.

then when the tea party formed I liked the idea limited government. I am 100 percent for that. But once again they wanted to be the moral police.

so I am a true conservative. A man without a party. Trumps fascism caused me to vote for a democrat for the first time in my life.
I supported Desantis and even voted for him the first time. Honestly who could have voted for Gillum? I liked when he took a no nonsense approach to try to save the Everglades. His stupid battle with Disney is just dumb political grandstanding. The development district has created central Florida. It is the engine that drives growth in the area.
Desantis is being a child in his battle.

 

Those Claiming Disney 'Outmaneuvered' DeSantis Move Goalposts

 

I don't think many political junkies or partisans are swing voters. Although they matter in primaries, they aren't likely to cross over in a general anyway and probably aren't going to stay home either absent something rare. In general elections, and with respect to the electoral college in particular, apparently there are enough moderates and independents that can swing things. I don't think I personally know anyone who voted for Obama, then Trump, then Biden, but statistically, they must be out there. A strategic consideration on both sides is always about turning out the base versus getting swing voters.

What I seem to note observing both sides over many years is that they both think (or at least argue publicly) that their own side just isn't willing to fight hard as hard or be as nasty and dishonest as the other side. I'm not sure that's really true. To me, it's a little similar to a party blaming messaging when they lose to avoid introspection about poor candidates or unpopular policies. I don't disagree with you that there's a bit of a prisoner's dilemma in all of the games that get played and with respect to escalation and violation of norms. Both sides have played games over the years. I think Trump took it to another level, but I don't want to get side-tracked there.

I'm not necessarily saying that DeSantis screwed up by criticizing Disney or pushing back. He had the right to fight for his bill, and I do think many people are worried about what their kids are being taught at school, whether that was a widespread problem in Florida or not. But you conceded that his efforts to overtake Disney is about retaliation. I do appreciate your honesty there, and I think most people following this probably see it that way even if DeSantis can't admit it. So I just don't think it's really a question of whether Disney is good for the state generally and don't think any of this is about principled objections to its arrangement with the state.

I think everyone has to pick their battles and their opponents. My gut just tells me that going to war against the Mouse is a bad idea even if he wins in the courts. Disney is an international brand loved by many kids and adults. I haven't been in years and don't watch Disney movies for that matter, but many people do. The parks are well run, very clean, and the staff are friendly and professional. Many people - and not just Floridians - have fond memories of going to Disney. It's the happiest place on Earth! Yeah, Disney is kinda liberal, but they've been supportive of LBGT stuff for a long time. Moreover, gay marriage is only becoming more and more accepted - now by a majority (albeit slight majority) of Republicans.

Even putting aside the legal and constitutional concerns, I just think Disney is a likeable opponent, and DeSantis would have been better served by de-escalating behind the scenes after he got his bill passed. Maybe a de-escalation is still possible, but seems less and less likely when lawyers get involved.