It's Duh-Santis If You Please

Casey DeSantis, wife of our Florida governor, would like to have the pronunciation of their last name changed. It seems she would prefer “Duh” Santis versus “Dee” Santis. This would be a wise change as it would match the current pronunciation of our state in many arenas when it is referenced as, “Floriduh.” This descriptor is derogatory in nature as it infers a certain lack of intellect. If that is her intent, I applaud the change.

Florida has been without a governor since before her husband’s reelection. We apparently elected “candidate” DeSantis and not a governor. His only “governing” in the state has been to keep his name in the spotlight of challengers to the de facto Republican presidential nominee, whatshisname. Florida apparently has no housing problem, or transportation problem, or insurance problem, or coastal flooding problem, or gun violence problem, or school safety problem. Florida’s top problems are drag shows, unsupportive theme parks, immigrants in Texas, and woke school books.

In April I visited the Lake Nona Region of Florida. This 17 square mile area south of Orlando is self-described as, “…a trendy planned community made up of sleek family homes, bungalows, and leafy gated communities. Lake Nona is one of the fastest-growing communities in America. Lake Nona is home to thoughtfully-designed neighborhoods, dozens of parks and playgrounds, weekly community events, top-rated education facilities, walkable shopping, dining, and entertainment options, and innovative business clusters.” I stayed in a newly completed hotel in a neighborhood surrounded by upscale homes and new businesses.

Lake Nona Pedestrian Walkway

The Lake Nona Region was however cast on the heap of collateral damage wrought by Florida’s governor and his War on Woke. In this case, despite the ironic fact that Ron and Princess Casey were married in the Magic Kingdom, Disney refused to join DeSantis’ attacks on the gay community. In fact, they actively denounced the governor’s plan. The thin-skinned governor then plotted his revenge by taking away their special tax status (enjoyed by hundreds of other businesses throughout the state) and replaced the district’s governing board with his own cronies in a specially convened legislative session. The Fuhrer of Florida would not tolerate dissent in his Magic Kingdom.

MoeRon and Casey Get Married at Disney
(Ariel was the maid of honor and Goofy was the best man)

As a result of his childish actions, DeSantis saw that Disney would reward him by pulling about $1B of investments and 2,000 high-paying jobs out of Florida. The Lake Nona Region will pay for much of this as it will see other investors, who had counted on the Disney cash investments to make their own business ventures viable, follow Disney and consider other alternatives. Lake Nona is a beautiful area and there has been far too much already built to allow its demise. It will, however, not see the explosive growth that would have undoubtedly followed the Disney expansion had not the governor thrown a temper tantrum like a sleep-deprived three-year-old desperately in need of a nap.