Disney will host a major conference promoting LGBTQ rights in the workplace this September, demonstrating the limits of Ron DeSantis’ campaign against diversity training and to control the Magic Kingdom. (w/ @MaryEllenKlas) https://t.co/2mbfWj0CzY
— Michael Wilner (@mawilner) March 22, 2023
The Spousal Unit tested positive for the ‘rona over the weekend, I flunked *my* test Monday, and overnight the household router decided to make itself noticed right after I finished the weekly Covid Update post. All three things could have been much worse — thank Murphy the Trickster God for vaccines, paxlovid, and my personal in-house tech specialist — but if I’m not up to my usual standards here, NOW YOU KNOW.
Anyway… I’m sure there are many good arguments about the merits of Woke Corporate Queerness, but this means DeSquamous (or his press office) will be getting pestered by reporters, and we all know how much he enjoys that:
The Walt Disney Company will host a major conference promoting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights in the workplace in Central Florida this September, gathering executives and professionals from the world’s largest companies in a defiant display of the limits of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ campaign against diversity training. Disney’s decision to host the conference this fall comes amid a yearlong dispute between the company and the Republican governor, who signed a law that ended decades of autonomy at the Disney resort. It was seen as punishment over the company’s opposition to Florida’s Parental Rights in Education legislation, known widely as the state’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which prohibits any discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in classrooms before fourth grade. Disney has had a longstanding relationship with Out & Equal, the organization behind the event, and is listed on its website as one of its most generous sponsors.
The Florida resort has committed to hosting the conference this year and next, which will coincide with the presidential election campaign in 2024. DeSantis is widely expected to challenge former President Donald Trump for the Republican nomination…
Dozens of iconic American companies — including Apple, McDonald’s, Uber, Walmart, Hilton, Amazon, Boeing, Cracker Barrel and John Deere — are sponsoring the Out & Equal Workplace summit, which over 5,000 people are expected to attend. Several agencies, including the State Department and the CIA, are listed as government partners and will have booths at the conference.
The conference comes after DeSantis declared victory over Disney in February when he signed a law that gave him the power to appoint a five-member board overseeing government services at the Disney district near Orlando…
Math Guy
DeSantis is going to learn the same lesson that the writer Harlan Ellison learned decades ago when he worked for Disney for half a day: in Disneyland, you don’t fuck with Mickey Mouse.
Roger Moore
When Walmart and Cracker Barrel are helping to sponsor the Out & Equal summit, the Republicans have to know they’ve lost the battle.
Raoul Paste
The big-time corporate sponsor list is encouraging
Baud
Feel better, AL.
Mai Naem mobile
Anne, ugh. I hope yours and your SU’s is a mild nothingburger course.
Baud
And this is how we’ll defeat the fascists — with PowerPoint and swag.
NotMax
Florida legislature to fast track a bill erecting a 30 foot high wall made entirely of Chik-Fil-A sandwiches surrounding Disney’s property.
//
Anonymous At Work
Can the new “Special District Uberlieutenants” that DeSantis appointed do anything, like schedule a major sewer inspection and overhaul? I know Reedy Creek is huge but a challenge to a proto- or outright fascist like this cannot go unanswered, and want to game out what an answer would look like.
trnc
Yup, I just semi-educated someone on another blog about Disney’s response to DeSantis.
Hope everyone is OK in the AL household. We’ve had no hot water for a couple of days due to an electrical problem, and I spent a few hours yesterday failing to fix. Turns out the breaker probably went bad, so I’ll need to replace that but our circuit box is outside (stupid damn builders!) and it’s raining. I guess I could just rub some soap on myself and go outside if I want a shower that badly.
Jackie
Somewhat related:
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — “The administration of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is moving to forbid classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in all grades, expanding the controversial law critics call ”“Don’t Say Gay” as the Republican governor continues a focus on cultural issues ahead of his expected presidential run.
The proposal, which would not require legislative approval, is scheduled for a vote next month before the state Board of Education and has been put forth by state Education Department, both of which are led by appointees of the governor.
The rule change would ban lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity from grades 4 to 12, unless required by existing state standards or as part of reproductive health instruction that students can choose not to take.”
https://apnews.com/article/dont-say-gay-desantis-florida-gender-d3a9c91f4b5383a5bf6df6f7d8ff65b6
MisterDancer
Anne Laurie, just wanted to say Good Luck — I’m dealing with similar issues here, and it’s all I can do to stay above water these days.
COVID is no joke, y’all — even when you dodge it, you have a household to manage to allow people time to heal.
Betty Cracker
Hope that you and hubby are feeling better!
Lacuna Synecdoche
Best Wishes for speedy recoveries, Anne Laurie, Spousal Unit, and Household Router.
Hoosierspud
Hey, don’t be trashing squamous epithelium by association with De Santis. Squamous cells serve a useful purpose (protection), completely the opposite of the sorry troll running Florida
NotMax
Florida conservatives march to demand Disney reinstate the shared underwear policy. Film at 11.
//
Dorothy A. Winsor
Deere was pretty good on this stuff when Mr DAW worked there. One of his co-workers transitioned, and management laid down rules about respecting the person’s choice.
JCJ
My brother sent me a text last week about an article on the Faux News website. The title is “Indiana medical students subjected to DEI instruction on gender as part of basic human structure course” with a sub-headline ” Students in the class are taught to be a ‘more inclusive’ healthcare professional for ‘gender diverse patients’.” He was brimming with pride to have been able to increase the stress level and blood pressure of these idiots and their readers as he is one of the instructors of this course. Of course much of the information in the article was incorrect, I assume to stir up more outrage. If a state (and medical school) like Indiana has this as part of their instruction that is just further evidence that these people are fighting a losing battle.
Central Planning
They should have hosted the event in Disney Land to minimize any dollars flowing into FL, although I understand why they would also want to do the event at Disney World.
I’m torn on the idea that events (that are from inclusive organizations) should be held in places like Florida to show them that their laws won’t change anything. There are some other states where events could be held and not support the economies of the regressive, hateful states.
Manyakitty
Oof. Hoping the AL household is restored to the bloom of health ASAP.
JPL
I hope you and your hubby feel better soon.
Baud
@Jackie:
So it’s going to be prohibited unless it’s required?
Matt McIrvin
As I was kind of hinting in the COVID thread, the situation re COVID is very strange to me now: all nationwide indications are that the pandemic is subsiding to a lull at least for a little while, yet among people I actually know online or IRL, it seems like a massive COVID wave is raging. The disconnect is bigger than at any time in the past.
I think what’s happening is that these are the people who were “good”–they got all their shots, they took extra precautions, and they managed to dodge COVID for three solid years. And that makes them the most vulnerable to infection of just about anyone now. Mitigation measures go away, nobody is making accommodations for them to stay home, they haven’t been able to get a booster since September, they let their guard down–and they become the last people on earth to catch COVID.
Manyakitty
@Baud: kind of like how student athletes won’t be allowed to discuss their periods except for when they’re required to discuss their periods.
I want to know which local politician will be performing the genital inspections.
ETA: the above is my favorite comment/response when a wingnut tries to cry about “protecting the children.”
Mai Naem mobile
@Raoul Paste: the whole list is way way longer. Good luck to MAGAts and the GOP trying boycott this group of companies(Walgreens,CVS, the CIA, Dell, USAA, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Bechtel, Google, Intel, Mondelaz, Goldman Sachs, PNC etc)
https://outandequal.org/oe-partners/
Jackie
@Baud: Until the required is prohibited.
Fake Irishman
@Baud:
Yeah. Those are some pretty big loopholes for a “ban”
Elizabelle
Feel better, Mr. and Mrs. Anne Laurie. Not the kind of research we expected you to perform on our behalf. May it be a mild case for each of you, and not a lot of lasting fatigue?
kindness
I am curious what the Brownshirts response to the conference will be. No doubt some protests, some groomer slander, and calls for Disney boycotts. With current Florida law, could folk in drag counter-protest or would that make them automatically eligible to be hauled off to jail?
Matt McIrvin
@Manyakitty: The important thing is state control. WE control what you can do or what you can say–you don’t get to do it.
Outlawing abortion or contraception goes hand in hand with forced sterilization for people the state doesn’t want reproducing. It’s all of a piece.
Manyakitty
@Matt McIrvin: indeed. Also, ick.
VincentN
@Central Planning: Kinda damned if you do, damned if you don’t. Disney could move the event to California but that would be seen as giving in to DeSantis.
My thinking is that since Disney isn’t going to move Disney World money is going to flow to Florida regardless so they might as well make a stand. And let’s be honest. Disney wouldn’t take this stand unless it also made them money. Which is true of all the other corporations taking part.
Jeffro
Sorry AL – hope you and your husband are feeling better soon!
scav
Because the one thing massive corporations just love is governments telling them how they chase profit. I hope they all wear their most businessy of business suits around the Magic Event just as Team Grand Ol’ Prophet is panting after scenes of rainbow prancing and riots to frighten the horses with. No reason not to do three-piece synchronized sashays though.
Betty Cracker
It’s always a good day to tell Ron DeSantis to go fuck himself, but I always assume giant corporations are acting in their own financial interest. IIRC, pressure from Disney’s creative talent was behind the belated opposition to DeSantis’s assault on free speech and persecution of the LGBTQ community. Maybe the “Imagineers” and artists working for Disney on various platforms played a role in this decision too.
The Moar You Know
@VincentN: Disney had nothing to do with any decisions about where this was going to be held, save to answer “yes” or “no” as to whether there would be enough space.
Out & Equal are the folks you may have a problem with here.
Old Dan and Little Ann
I’ll be in Disney World in 10 days. Dog help me. Or Mouse.
Anoniminous
@Matt McIrvin:
US Covid case reports are worthless. Very few people who test positive with the home test report and clinics are no longer required to report cases.
Betty
Good for Disney and all the participants. No matter how hard they try, these haters are fighting a losing battle. Get well soon, Annie Laurie and SU.
Dorothy A. Winsor
Whoa. The Fed raised interest rates again. 0.25%
Jeffro
@Matt McIrvin: it’s probably more than the folks who’ve never gotten Covid, but yeah. People are coming down with it here, there, and everywhere.
Keep washing those hands, peeps!
Dangerman
If Disney just said “fuck you, Disneyworld, is moving to “random blue state” if you keep this up”, DeSantis would be impeached/recalled/whatever the fuck they do in Florida (fed to crocs?) in a NY minute.
Ken
@Matt McIrvin: Also, they’re not going to tell you whether it’s prohibited or required, until after you’re arrested for doing — or not doing — it.
Hoodie
@Dorothy A. Winsor: That’s in line with expectations and much lower than preceding rate increases. Markets don’t seem particularly roiled as this was baked in already.
Betty Cracker
@Baud: I think it’s performative authoritarianism to some extent. There are real consequences to the oppressive laws, like teachers peeling rainbow safe space stickers off classroom doors and removing books from shelves. But Puss ‘n Boots Pinochet generally blames fallout that gets bad press on the people tasked with carrying out his edicts.
misterpuff
@VincentN: Plus Disney captures the more of the lodging dollar at DisneyWorld than it does here at Disneyland.
All that tourist money staying at non-Disney hotels and motels.
CliosFanBoy
@Math Guy:
“Don’t mess with the Mouse!”
oldgold
@kyledcheney
BREAKING: The appeals court has DENIED effort by Trump team to block Judge Howell’s order turning over *documents* to special counsel Jack SMITH’s team.
Jeffro
Truth!
It seems to be happening more and more. Many people are saying, “Ron, go fuck yourself“. Bigly.
Despite all the insanity of his first (and only!) term, and the prospect of multiple indictments, it looks like the GOP base is… gelling around supporting trumpov in ’24. Mind = boggled.
I guess they want that white supremacy STRAIGHT UP, no chaser!
Non-insane GOP voters better hurry up and get their shit together, because they’re about to end up with trumpov as the nominee no matter how many times Fox News has Kilmeade go throw the ball around with ol’ Pudding Fingers.
Baud
@oldgold:
👍
Ruckus
@Math Guy:
in Disneyland, you don’t fuck with Mickey Mouse
Rule #1. Not difficult to remember – unless your brain runs on conservative bullshit, in which case it is one useless piece of crap.
Oh and BTW, the sun came out when I went to the store this morning and now, a half hour later, it’s hailing and raining heavily. Hail about 3/8 of an inch in diameter. I don’t believe that the storm has left, sun or no sun, which is once again what we have, sun done gone.
arrieve
@Central Planning: Disneyland is a much older park and I don’t know if it has the kind of facilities to hold huge conferences like that. I’ve attended a few at Disney World though–they have several different levels of accommodations and multiple conference buildings. So it may be as much a matter of logistics as anything else.
But good for the Mouse!
Baud
@Betty Cracker:
I agree. It allows DeSatan to posture for his base without actually taking the type of actions that may lead to a normie revolt.
I worry a little about over-stating what he’s actually doing (as opposed to what he’s saying). On one hand, outrageous conduct rules up our faithful. OTOH, normies may think we’re exaggerating the threat and not take the risk seriously.
Matt McIrvin
@Anoniminous: Correct, but we see the same declining trends in wastewater and hospital admission counts.
Which is why I think I’m seeing a selection effect for the circles of people I associate with. The people who got it earlier were less likely to be friends or coworkers of mine. In my case I dodged it until late January.
JoyceH
@Jackie:
Reminds me of the part of The Once and Future King, when Wart (young King Arthur) visited the ant colony. Sign over the entrance read, “Everything not forbidden is compulsory”. Author notes that Wart didn’t understand the sign, but it seemed ominous.
Matt McIrvin
@arrieve: Disney World has whole hotel resorts that are set up as convention centers. We actually stayed at one the last time we were there–Coronado Springs. There was some kind of military aviation conference going on at the time, with lots of people in uniform around the grounds.
Cameron
@Betty Cracker: I remember when he got sassy with the cruise lines about mandatory vaccination. As soon as the president of one of them (Nordic?) observed that there were plenty of southern ports outside of Florida, that whole thing went away.
scav
@Baud: But are they more afraid of riling their corporate backers over mere normies? They’ve always been an uneasy alliance between the Authoritarian Prophet seekers and the Unfettered Profit seekers — with the former generally bought off with the illusion of red meat until now.
JPL
The Appeals Court said that Don’s atty must testify to the Grand Jury. Don will probably appeal to the Supremes, but it’s doubtful he’ll get 5 votes there. Of course, it could delay the proceedings though.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Matt McIrvin:
And then what happens when too many people challenge them and call their bluff?
robmassing
@Jeffro:
Sorry, you lost me.
topclimber
The real test will be if there are drag shows as part of the Conference and RonDee sends in the anti-grooming police to shut them down.
CaseyL
It will be interesting to see what happens to GOP support for TFG when he’s indicted.
As he will be.
Just not sure which of the many GJs will issue one first, or on which charges.
But an espionage charge would be nice, Jack Smith, if you’re listening.
rikyrah
AL,
Feel better, and I hope that the entire household gets well soon.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@CaseyL:
Especially as that would bar him from ever holding office again
NotMax
@topclimber
Hmm. Trying (and failing) to picture Goofy in a cocktail gown and heels.
;)
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
Hope you and your family feel better, AL!
JoyceH
@JPL:
Um – WHICH grand jury?
(Reminds me – when Trump was indicted the second time, Wikipedia had to create a ‘disambiguation page’ for the term “Trump Impeachment”.)
Anoniminous
@Matt McIrvin:
Hospitalization rate is the best indicator for new cases. We have solid evidence SARS-CoV-2 can linger in the body for months with and without symptoms, I don’t know how that affects waste water analysis.
geg6
@Betty Cracker:
It helps that they got rid of Disney’s CEO who was all ready to wimp out when this all went down and brought back Bob Iger, who was CEO when when Disney went woke and until he retired and wimp guy took over. Iger is no pushover.
M31
so if Putin decides that a non-Trump has a better chance of beating Biden in ’24, will he release the kompromat you know he has?
That would be hilarious
rikyrah
@Baud:
BWA HA HA HA HA AHA HA HA
Mai Naem mobile
@Jeffro: I don’t think the non insane GOP voter thing can work. You need a different non MAGAt GOP party. Kind of like how the Mormons have the LDS and then the polygamous whackjob Mormons have the FLDS which is tiny.
gvg
@Roger Moore: and the CIA…
Roger Moore
@Dangerman:
Disney can’t plausibly relocate Disney World to a blue state. Replicating what they have in Florida would cost billions, probably tens of billions, of dollars, and that’s exclusive of the real estate price.
Also, there aren’t a lot of plausible places in blue states to relocate to. It plausibly has to be somewhere in the Southeast, since it needs a climate that will let them operate year-round (no regular snowfall) and they want it to be close to the big East Coast population centers. There just aren’t any reliably blue parts of the Southeast.
JPL
@JoyceH: The DC Grand Jury. If trump lied to his atty, it’s obstruction of justice. I’d be okay with that
It has to do with the classified documents.
fyi He’ll go to the supremes.
rikyrah
Been waiting for that Soros check!!
Kenny BooYah! 🖖🏾 (@KwikWarren) tweeted at 11:24 PM on Tue, Mar 21, 2023:
George Soros seems to have given every got damn liberal in America lots of money except me!
(https://twitter.com/KwikWarren/status/1638396116172513281?t=jKG0VabEUTIOsTT3T-fXyg&s=03)
Anoniminous
@NotMax:
Bugs Bunny cross-dressing was a persistent theme. The Greatest Cartoon Of All Time – What’s Opera Doc? – is squarely based on Bugs in drag.
Both versions of Mulan have the title character cross-dressing.
And Disney had a couple of transsexual characters in one of their films. Nemo?
NotMax
OT. Is this how it’s done now?
Received a Save The Date card about upcoming wedding of step-nephew, with the message “invitation to follow.”
UncleEbeneezer
zhena gogolia
@NotMax: Yep.
gvg
@Central Planning: Well, Disney World doesn’t support it so how would hurting it help civil rights? And we do have to challenge them, not roll over. I would say be choosey about where in state you spend dollars. The Green book actually listed specific businesses not just states, maybe the proposed “new” green book needs to go into that too.
geg6
@NotMax:
Yes, it is. I don’t get it either. An invitation is enough for me.
Jeffro
@robmassing: “non-insane GOP voters” = they don’t think trump is actually god
that’s about the only plus I can give them – the only way I can differentiate them from the true MAGAts.
@Mai Naem mobile: I don’t know if trying to rouse them to get off their collective asses would work (or that I even want to do that – trump has helped the Ds for 3 straight elections now). It was just an observation that if they want someone else, they’d better hurry up b/c they’re about to get stuck with trump again.
(and that ‘someone else’ sure doesn’t look like Ron DeSantis, either)
No wonder they’re all praying that Orangemandias strokes out!
NotMax
@Anoniminous
Bugs has naught to do with Disney. Just sayin’.
Maybe next year when the original is scheduled to enter public domain we’ll be treated to Steamboat Wilma. :)
gvg
@Matt McIrvin: My sister dodged it for a long time until things got better, then she went on vacation and got it. She thinks it was the plane ride. She had to drive back home in a rental car while still sick.
Baud
@NotMax:
@geg6:
Wedding invitations tend to be fancy, and by the time the design is selected, they may come too late for some people. That’s the idea anyway.
Roger Moore
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):
No, it wouldn’t. The Constitution spells out the requirements for someone to run for President, and there aren’t many:
Natural born US citizen (or a citizen at the time the Constitution was adopted)
At least 35 years old
Resided in the US for at least 14 years
Not served at least 1 and 1/2 terms as president before election
Not banned from office by having been impeached and convicted
That’s it. Furthermore, the courts have ruled that you can’t add any more requirements beyond the bare minimum in the Constitution. Not being indicted (or convicted) of espionage is not a legal requirement to run for the Presidency.
Matt McIrvin
@geg6: When Iger came back, the sort of Disney fans who like to bellyache about things being ‘woke’ got this idea that Chapek had been the source of all the evil wokeness and Iger was going to fix it! Their hatred of change is mitigated by their very short memories.
Mai Naem mobile
@NotMax: yes, if its requiring you to do some major traveling. They’re just giving you an idea so you can start doing some early planning. I think it started with COVID with all the contingencies people had to have.
JoyceH
@gvg:
Dang, I have two trips scheduled for this year, to California and to England. Fingers crossed, and hope they approve a second bivalent for us Olds.
Suburban Mom
@NotMax: Yes, this is how the youngs do it now. I’m surprised you got a card. Many of them do the whole invitation process online.
bbleh
@UncleEbeneezer: Now THAT’s what I call an expedited appeal!
JPL
@Roger Moore: If elected, minutes after being sworn in, he’d pardon himself.
gvg
@Jeffro: DeSantis is not the Not Insane candidate. So the not Trump again cohort left him. That leaves only the insane base to be measured. If they are actually sane they ought to be voting Democrat for at least a few cycles. Frankly I don’t know how they get out of the mess they have made and don’t care as long as they lose a lot.
Mai Naem mobile
@Jeffro: i think its either going to be Youngkin or somebody nobody who is basically on nobody’s radar right now. I think Sununu isn’t enough about cultural issues and too connected to old GOP politics via daddy.
Roger Moore
@NotMax:
Apparently yes. I’m not sure why there needs to be a separate “save the date” message from the actual invitation, but that has been increasingly the practice for quite a while now.
Anne Laurie
In our case at least, you’re probably right. I’ve been fortunate enough to essentially be a hermit for the last three years, and the Spousal Unit has mostly been working from home & exemplary about masking when he did go out. And, of course, we’ve each gotten five shots, including the bivalent booster in December.
But his company is ‘transitioning’ back to in-office requirements, and last week S.U. had a (masked) face-to-face meeting with his supervisor… newly returned from emergency heart treatment… who complained that masking had not been enforced in the emergency room. In Massachusetts!
ETA: Praise Murphy, so far neither of us are suffering worse than a bad cold (sinus drainage, sore throats, coughing). Definitely glad we managed to avoid getting infected until now!
Dorothy A. Winsor
@NotMax: Yes. The last time we got a “save the date” card, the wedding was several months in the future, so we could mark the date on our calendar
gvg
@Anoniminous: Clownfish in nature change sex. The largest clownfish around an anemone colony is the female, the next biggest is the male mate and the others are juvenile males. If the female is killed, the male mate changes sex and one of the juveniles moves up. Conservatives do not know nature at all. Parrot fish are the other way. One male, many females, if the male is killed one of the females changes sex. There are color changes and it takes I think a couple of months.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Roger Moore:
Looking at this further, you’re correct. Many legal experts agree that the Constitution is what determines who is eligible to be President
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Matt McIrvin:
Reminds me of the people who kept predicting that Star Trek Discovery or Picard was going to be canceled any day now and “Real Star Trek” was going to make a triumphant return.
Betty Cracker
@gvg: Mrs. RuPaul’s Fish Sticks!
NotMax
@Roger Moore
Sections 3 and 5 of the 14th Amendment. Would make for a fascinating legal spectacle, except of course for the gravity of the circumstances surrounding any invocation.
geg6
@Baud:
Due to working with a lot of young people and having nieces (and their friends) of marrying age, I get a lot of save the dates and wedding invites. If they are waiting so long to get invites that their guests won’t have time to make travel arrangements, that’s simply procrastination and laziness, IMHO. No one at my niece’s wedding, her best friend’s wedding or my former student’s wedding (all of which I attended in 2021-22) necessitated save the dates. No one from other countries or even the West Coast was invited to any of them. A month or six weeks is plenty of time for planning and that’s when invites should be going out.
Shalimar
Even the Trump voters who think he’s God aren’t giving him money anymore. To me, that means their support is very shallow at this point.
Another Scott
@Anoniminous: I tried to report my home test results to Virginia’s on-line and Bluetooth things. They refused. They only want official positive results from healthcare providers. (Worried about monsters spamming the data with garbage, they say.)
It’s a big problem. We do seem to be flying blind, but as long as the hospitals are able to cope, the people controlling the purse strings don’t seem to care.
Grr…,
Scott.
HumboldtBlue
@scav:
Ba-dum-tssh!
Craig
@Roger Moore: Disney is happy to wait out Desantis. To paraphrase Henry Hill, The Mouse may move slow, but that’s because The Mouse didn’t need to move for anybody.
Matt McIrvin
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Some of those fans were mollified by Strange New Worlds which seems to be the closest thing available to a new version of original Star Trek. But of course it’s not above doing morality plays on contemporary subjects just like the original series always did.
Matt McIrvin
@Another Scott: I trust the wastewater counts as an indication of how bad the infection situation really is out there. But they only exist where the sewage plants (a) exist and (b) are actively participating in the program. Fortunately I live in one of those places.
zhena gogolia
@geg6: I think it gives you less of an opportunity to bow out!
Matt McIrvin
@Anne Laurie: I look back and am amazed at the fact that I got major surgery in a Massachusetts hospital in February 2021, a couple of months before I was eligible to get vaccinated, with no precautions beyond requiring a negative PCR test before going in and everyone wearing disposable surgical masks, and did not get COVID then.
The staff were eligible for vaccination at that point, but I don’t think it was mandatory and from what I remember of the time, many of them had probably declined. And the design of the masks they gave me was such that, after removing them to eat or take a pill or whatever, I couldn’t really put them back on without using both hands, which was kind of a problem when one arm had an IV tube stuck in it. So a lot of the time I was actually unmasked in there.
Ken
Sorry, for some reason this made me giggle. Probably because I began imagining the Sovereign Citizen eligibility arguments, which would rely on sheriffs, gold braid on flags, and long-form birth certificates.
PaulB
If I’m reading this correctly, Disney didn’t put this conference together, but rather Out & Equal did, and then booked conference facilities on the Disney properties. Usually such conferences are booked months, or even years, in advance. At my former company, our 15,000-attendee annual conference was booked five years in advance.
Disney’s role was to a) decide whether or not to accept the booking (and the money), and b) decide whether to act as an official sponsor. So good on Disney, but this was likely more of a financial transaction than anything brave or “woke”.
kalakal
@Matt McIrvin: That’s my experience too. Including myself and the missus I know about 6 “first timers” who contracted it in the last 2 months
Ken
Serve them right if George Takei made a guest appearance on one of the new shows as Admiral Sulu, and introduced his husband….
Matt McIrvin
@kalakal: We can at least say that, yes, we did our bit to flatten the curve. Managed to delay getting it until a time when there are good vaccines, good treatments and the hospitals aren’t overwhelmed.
Matt McIrvin
@Ken: Takei, though, has always disliked tie-ins that described Sulu as gay just because he is–he argues that the character was definitely straight. But I think alt-Sulu was gay in the Abrams movie universe.
Roger Moore
@Matt McIrvin:
He clearly had a thing for Lt. Uhura, so that checks out. Of course he might also have had an interest in men that wasn’t shown, but that would make him bi rather than gay.
VOR
@Matt McIrvin: Some people were outraged because Strange New Worlds had a trans person in an episode. Yeah, that’s the problem, but we are okay with Kirk having sex with aliens or one of the lead characters (Spock) being a human-alien hybrid. Some people just live to be offended, that’s their purpose in life.
Frankensteinbeck
@Matt McIrvin:
While I don’t think it should be the actor’s decision, Takei certainly deserves respect and a listen from the writers, given Takei’s sexuality is at the center of the controversy. The man has earned respect, period.
@Roger Moore:
As I recall, bi was the default in the Federation and Roddenberry merely felt he had to play it quiet about that. Of course, without discrimination pressure you still have the purely straight as well as the purely gay.
Geminid
@Mai Naem mobile: Mike Pompeo will likely run. People here tend to dismiss him, but we are all Democrats and tend to look at Republicans through Democratic eyes more or less.
Yesterday I was talking politics with a landscaping customer, and while she doesn’t want Trump and has doubts about DeSantis, when I ran Pompeo’s name by Jane her response was a quick, “I like him.”
Pompeo’s business and political careers were fostered by the Koch brothers, and his Wichita congressional district is home to Koch Industries headquarters. I think he will be well funded by that donor network.
Unlike my customer, many primary voters are unfamiliar with Pompeo. If he runs though, they will be introduced to him by a lot of slick ads telling them that Mike Pompeo is the steady, tough Daddy figure they need.
His long suit, foreign affairs and national security, may be less salient than domestic issues, but Pompeo also has a good reputation among political evangelicals. Those folks believe in a lot of weird shit, but their more hardheaded leaders believe deeply in winning and they may see Pompeo as a likelier winner.
And debates will count some, maybe a lot if someone messes up, and I think Pompeo would outperform Trump and DeSantis on a debate stage. So I do not count Pompeo out, and right now I don’t see any strong potential primary candidates besides him, DeSantis and Trump. All three may have weaknesses but still, someone has to win that nomination.
Frankensteinbeck
@VOR:
White man hero gets promiscuous sex everywhere, including exotically sexy minorities. THE toxic masculinity fantasy.
They see Vulcans as extra white and have completely missed the social commentary.
trollhattan
@Geminid: I don’t dismiss him–it’s just he’s out of a job and not in the public eye. If Trump
drops outgoes to prison he could easily get the nom over DeSantis, Cruz, Rubio, Pence, Haley, my sofa, that AZ Stepford chick.Formerly disgruntled in Oregon
Out and Equal is a great conference. I’ve only been once, and it was virtual that year, but the content was excellent.
DEI is a big deal in large organizations all over the world, critical for successfully recruiting and retaining the best talent. This conference features the cutting edge in this space. Which presents a very different perspective on corporate culture, for one thing.
Disney has been a long-standing supporter of and active participant in Out and Equal, which I applaud them for.
Formerly disgruntled in Oregon
Yep. Otherwise known as “manifest destiny”.
Geminid
@trollhattan: Pompeo is not making a lot of news right now, but he doesn’t need to until he jumps in later this year. In the meantime he’s making lower profile appearances before party groups and donors.
A lot of those elites are biding their time also. They think Trump has too much baggage already, but are not convinced that DeSantis will be strong candidate.
lowtechcyclist
Cracker Barrel?!?
Didn’t they used to be actively hostile towards gays?? Like, firing gay employees for no other reason besides their orientation? I remember avoiding them back when we lived in places where there were Cracker Barrels to be avoided, but that was back during the 1990s, and I haven’t thought about them since. But now they’re one of the sponsors of the Out and Equal summit?? Infuckingcredible!
Geminid
@trollhattan: I think it’s unlikely that Trump will go to prison before 2025. But he may shamble into 2024 like a zombie, with so much baggage that all but his most loyal fans gravitate to a candidate less certain to lose in November.
lowtechcyclist
@Geminid:
My reservation about Pompeo’s chances is that, as you say, he doesn’t have a lot of name recognition. When’s the last time the GOP nominated a candidate that wasn’t already well-known? Wendell Willkie, maybe? Since then, it’s been Dewey, Ike, Nixon, Goldwater, Nixon, Ford, Reagan, GHW Bush, Dole, GW Bush, McCain, Romney, and Trump.
Also, that debate stage. I can see Trump just deciding he’s already been there and done that, and he’s the presumptive nominee already, so he doesn’t need to do that again this time. Then DeSantis follows suit – with less justification, but with the cover of Trump already have done so, and a sensible decision, given that he’s lousy at debates, and he’s the only challenger to Trump that’s getting any media oxygen. The primary debates could easily turn into events that few pay any attention to, because the big names aren’t there.
Not saying that’s more likely than not, but it’s a real possibility IMHO. I just don’t think this is going to be anything like a normal primary season. There’s just never been a primary season in the modern era with an ex-president running at all, let alone one who is still the dominant figure in his party despite having lost as an incumbent. Imagine GHW Bush running in 1996, or Carter in 1984.
So I’m kinda skeptical that Pompeo has much chance to come out of nowhere and win the nomination like Carter did on the Dem side in 1976. The terrain’s just not going to be the same.
Geminid
@lowtechcyclist: You are looking at the situation today. Pompeo will not jump in for months, and when he does he’ll be well prepared and well funded, with slick ads ready to roll.
As you say, this will not be a normal primary season. I don’t expect to know how Republican primary voters will respond to the various candidates until a year from now, when they start voting.
I would add that I believe the Republican debates will get a lot of attention.
Geminid
@Geminid: I’m not saying the Republican debates will move the needle much among voters, although it’s possible a candidate could hurt himself. But as long as Trump is there people are going to watch.
There will be less interest if he does not make the race, but with the Democratic race not seriously contested the Republican debates will be the only game in town.
lowtechcyclist
@Geminid:
The longer he waits, the more it’ll firm up in everyone’s mind that it’s Trump or DeSantis.
Which is way less important than it used to be. People can just TiVo (and whatnot) past the ads these days. Let’s see how he plays on social media.
And how’s he going to differentiate himself? Republican politics are so inflexible that all he can really change is what he emphasizes. He’ll need to be more fascist than the other guys, and the other guys are making that quite a challenge.
Geminid
My guess is that the bulk pf Republican voters are not firmly attached to either Trump or DeSantis at this point. Same with Republican politicians. Trump is a very problematic candidate; he excites passionate support from a subset of Republican voters, but he’s also a proven loser with a lot of baggage and more to come.
A lot of DeSantis’s appeal is based on a negative: he’s not Trump. He’s also emphasizing culture war issues that have yet to show widespread appeal. I would not say he is a weak candidate, but I cannot say he is a strong one either.
While Pompeo waits, Trump will be tearing DeSantis down, and most likely himself as well. When Pompeo announces, he’ll pitch himself as steadier and more responsible than Trump, and more seasoned than DeSantis, and more in touch with issues that matter
Pompeo has been laying the groundwork for a presidential campaign ever since he left office. Like I said above, I believe he will be well prepared and well financed.
I’m not saying Pompeo will win the nomination. I think he has the elements of a strong Republican candidate though, one of a very few who could go the distance. We’ve yet to see how Republican voters respond to him, but I do not count him out.