Let's see what the Trump and DeSantis supporters are up to in Tsing Tao's Tampa area of Florida... The Organizer of a Series of Trump Boat Rallies Shouted “White Power” While Celebrating at the First Dion Cini has links to prominent Trump backers—and once went to sea with his son Eric. https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/04/dion-cini-white-power-trumparilla-boat-parade/ Unless you’re from a certain slice of Florida—the Gulf Coast side near Tampa—you’ve probably never heard of Gasparilla, the city’s annual and well-attended pirate-themed bacchanal. Unless you’re both from Tampa and are fully into the weeds of post-Trump presidency MAGA minutiae, you also have probably have never heard of Trumparilla—a Gasparilla for people who have decided the 2020 election was a sham and that Donald J. Trump ought to still be president. Though the actual Gasparilla was canceled this year because of the coronavirus, MAGA troll Dion Cini and Cliff Gephart held their pro-Trump flotilla earlier this month in Tampa, which dozens of boaters attended. The entrepreneurs have promised to take the event to a city near you, with follow-ups planned for San Diego, Cleveland, and Las Vegas, according to Trumparilla’s Facebook page. The MAGA movement has long attracted notable racist supporters and people who readily spout racist things. Cini is one of them. A video shared with Mother Jones by @the_cancel_mob, an anonymous Twitter user who tracks the American right, shows Cini loudly shouting “White power!” during a landside evening gathering at the Tampa Trumparilla. Cini’s invocation of white supremacy came as he was being recognized from the stage by Gephart for his efforts to organize the event. “I wanna thank Dion, he’s worked his ass off to make this happen. He has struggled with venue after venue,” Gephart said. In response, Cini raised his hands up and rotated to acknowledge applause while shouting “white power,” and flashing an okay hand symbol which, in certain contexts, is shorthand for white power. Prominent Trump ally Roger Stone stands within an arm’s length. When asked for comment, Cini responded to Mother Jones through email and Twitter direct messages. He wrote that his yelling white power was “a troll,” and claimed “several black people” were in attendance. “Of course [you] won’t show that,” he wrote.Cini also told Mother Jones that his wife is Jewish and sent a picture of himself with a Black person at an event. It’s unclear if the picture was taken at Trumparilla or elsewhere. “White power or white lives matter is just my fishhook and there’s always a taker,” Cini wrote. “I do the White Lives Matter on multiple occasions, because as a Latino, I think that it’s only it’s fair that white people get their voices heard.” Cini, who clarified that he is actually of Italian descent, explained that he sometimes claims to be Latino, because of the Latin language’s Roman history. In some ways, Cini is a fringe figure in MAGA world. He has a modest social media following of around 3,000 Twitter followers and has mostly shown up in local news stories for repeatedly brandishing Trump flags where they are unwelcome—like an ice rink in Central Park, Disney World, aboard a kayak on the Hudson River, and so forth. Despite such hijinks, Cini maintains ties to prominent people in Trump world, like Stone, who was the star of a VIP event at Trumparilla. Photos obtained by Bend the Arc: Jewish Action and Jews Against White Nationalism show Cini hanging out on vessels during 2020 Trump campaign boat parades with Trump sons Eric and Don Jr., as well as former deputy assistant to President Trump, Sebastian Gorka. According to those Jewish activist groups, Cini has also appeared in photographs with neo-Nazi event organizer Jovi Val and neo-Confederate Billy Sessions. Cini says the picture showing him with Jovi was taken “before he decided to go extreme,” and that he didn’t know Sessions and “never saw him again.” When pressed on if he disagrees with Jovi Val or Sessions, Cini wrote, “Of course I’ve reamed Jovi’s ass many times. But again, he’s not a nazi, he an extreme troller.” Cini didn’t explain why he thought Val was only trolling. Val has been disowned by the Proud Boys, the neo-fascist group, for organizing a rally supporting far-right individuals who attended 2017’s Unite The Right white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, according to New York magazine. One of those individuals included James Fields, the man who drove a car into a group of protestors, killing Heather Heyer. Cini is just one of many Trump backers who have continued to construct events praising him since he lost the White House—a role that helps elucidate just who is taking leadership in sustaining the post-presidency MAGA movement.
And now nothing separates you from the biggest partisan douchebag, scumbag trolls on the internet. Right out of the rules for radicals play book. You are a fucking per-commie. you have no redeeming qualities.... if you think you do... you are kidding yourself.
"DeSantis for the win" -- He claims Florida under his leadership is doing so great with vaccinations that he does not even need a plan. Let's see the reality. COVID-19: Florida lags behind other big states in vaccinating public https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story...her-big-states-vaccinating-public/4872968001/ While about one in three adults across Florida have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show the state lagging behind other large states. Statewide, 8,684,024 people in Florida have gotten at least one shot, including 5,985,537 residents fully vaccinated, a state health department report published Wednesday shows. About 34% of residents ages 18 and older were fully vaccinated, the CDC reported. That's lower than large states such as New York (41%), Michigan (38%), and California and Illinois — 37% each, the same share of adults nationwide — and on par with Texas (34%). More than two-thirds of Florida seniors 65 and older (67%) have been fully inoculated, slightly behind Michigan (70%) and the nation (68%); and ahead of California (66%), New York and Texas (65% each) and Illinois (64%). Infections continued trending downward statewide as health officials logged 5,178 more infections Wednesday. Over the past two weeks, officials reported 80,860 new cases, down from 83,951 from April 1 through April 14. Palm Beach County's infection count grew by 403 people Wednesday. That means 5,324 people have tested positive during the past two weeks, down from the 5,551 that were added from April 1 to 14. The COVID-19 death toll increased Wednesday by 76 people statewide, including six in the county. Hospitals in the state were treating 3,299 people for COVID-19 on Wednesday, down from 3,478 on April 20, the highest count this month. About 5.8% of 89,385 new COVID-19 tests released statewide came back positive for the disease. In Palm Beach County, 5.9% of 6,715 were positive. During the past two weeks, the daily positivity rate has averaged 6.8% statewide and 6.4% in the county. Medical experts recommend that the coronavirus can be considered contained only when less than 5% of tests consistently come back positive. That has not happened in Florida since Oct. 24, state health department reports show. Meanwhile, the push to relax Palm Beach County's mask mandate came after the CDC on Tuesday said vaccinated people don’t need to wear masks in uncrowded outdoor areas; or indoors with fully vaccinated people or unvaccinated people from a single household. The current county mandate, enacted in June and set to expire May 18, requires people to wear masks in businesses, government buildings, and public places where remaining at least six feet apart is not possible. Gov. Ron DeSantis and four county commissioners flouted the rule Saturday at an opening ceremony for the Delray Beach Market. Melissa McKinlay told fellow commissioners on Tuesday she felt “frustrated” after receiving emails from people about the lapse. Commissioners Dave Kerner, Mack Bernard, Maria Sachs and Robert Weinroth, and state Rep. Lori Berman, were seen close together, talking with DeSantis, none wearing masks. DeSantis and three of the commissioners said they had been fully vaccinated more than two weeks before the event. Kerner said he got the first shot of the two-dose vaccine April 14. “If we’re going to have a mask order in place, then we need to abide by it,” McKinlay said. Photos obtained by The Palm Beach Post show McKinlay speaking with others without masks at The Pelican Club in Jupiter during a March 26 gala for Glades Day School that attracted dozens of people. “I made a mistake,” McKinlay said in an email. “I make no excuses for it. I should’ve had my mask on at all times and I didn’t.” McKinlay, who tested positive for COVID-19 in October, said she received her Moderna booster shot last week. The kerfuffle comes as mask opponents continue to rail about the mandate, even though it is largely unenforceable. Months ago, DeSantis stripped counties of their abilities to fine people or businesses for violating local mask-wearing laws.
You're posting stuff from Mother Jones now? Hahaa..... From your article: When asked for comment, Cini responded to Mother Jones through email and Twitter direct messages. He wrote that his yelling white power was “a troll,” and claimed “several black people” were in attendance. “Of course [you] won’t show that,” he wrote.Cini also told Mother Jones that his wife is Jewish and sent a picture of himself with a Black person at an event. It’s unclear if the picture was taken at Trumparilla or elsewhere. “White power or white lives matter is just my fishhook and there’s always a taker,” Cini wrote. “I do the White Lives Matter on multiple occasions, because as a Latino, I think that it’s only it’s fair that white people get their voices heard.” Cini, who clarified that he is actually of Italian descent, explained that he sometimes claims to be Latino, because of the Latin language’s Roman history. So Mother Jones (and you) is (are) triggered by some silly MAGA dope who is intentionally trying to get a rise out of you folks? I can smell the desperation.
Sounds like more Floridians simply don't give a shit about the vaccination. Its not availability. I get offered to take a vaccine every time I walk in Publix or CVS or Walgreens. Popup Vax clinics all over town. Sounds like the vaccination plan doesn't have a problem. The "problem" is people don't want it. It's just the people don't care. Good, says I.
BTW -- there is new CDC cruise guidance... they require 98 percent of crew and 95 percent of passengers fully vaccinated to resume cruising. Let's see what DeSantis does now. CDC: Cruising Could Restart From the U.S. by Mid-July https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/6075/ Cruising could restart from the U.S. as soon as mid-July, the CDC announced via a letter sent to the cruise industry Wednesday night. It is the second time in as many weeks the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention has indicated a mid-summer restart, but this is the first time a timeline for any new guidance has been provided. Exactly when the restart will happen will depend on the cruise lines' ability to get ships ready for service and their compliance with the CDC's Framework for Conditional Sailing Order. "We acknowledge that cruising will never be a zero-risk activity and that the goal of the CSO’s phased approach is to resume passenger operations in a way that mitigates the risk of COVID-19 transmission onboard cruise ships and across port communities," Aimee Treffiletti, head of the Maritime Unit for CDC's COVID-19 response within its Global Mitigation Task Force for COVID-19, wrote in the letter. "We remain committed to the resumption of passenger operations in the United States following the requirements in the CSO by mid-summer, which aligns with the goals announced by many major cruise lines." The CDC said it has been meeting twice weekly since April 12 with cruise line representatives to discuss the CSO and exchange information. This comes after additional guidance was released at the start of April,which led to a furious backlash from the lines and a round of talks to try to agree a timeline for the resumption. In its letter this week, the CDC reiterated mid-July was a possibility and released five clarifications for the CSO, specifically around the Phase 2 technical instructions issued April 2: Ships can skip the test voyages carrying volunteers and resume sailings with fare-paying passengers with 98 percent of crew and 95 percent of passengers fully vaccinated. This replaces previous guidance that required test cruising for all ships leaving from U.S. ports. For cruise lines that aren't committing to that vaccination threshold, test cruises will be required. The CDC has agreed to review and respond to applications from cruise lines for simulated voyages within five days rather than 60 days, as orignially outlined. CDC will update its testing and quarantine requirements for passengers and crew on sailings with paying passengers to align with its own guidance for fully vaccinated people. For example, fully vaccinated people will now be able to take a rapid antigen COVID-19 test before embarkation, as opposed to a PCR test. CDC has clarified cruise ship operators may enter into a "multiport agreement" rather than a single port agreement as long as all port and local authorities sign the agreement. The CDC has clarified guidance on quarantine guidelines for passengers who might have been exposed to or contracted COVID-19. For example, local passengers may to drive home, while passengers who have traveled by air to cruise may quarantine in a hotel. The CDC and the cruise industry have been at stalemate about the resumption of sailing for over a year, with the CDC coming under increasing pressure to allow for the safe resumption of cruising. Two states -- Alaska and Florida -- are currently suing the body to allow for a U.S. restart, and more and more cruise lines are announcing global restarts. Cruise Critic has reached out to cruise lines and the Cruise Line Industry Association for comments and will update this piece accordingly.
Lets' see how a school operated by GOP and DeSantis donors and supporters is run... Oh, you can't get much more batshiat insane than this... ‘Insane and dangerous’: Inside the Miami school that told teachers not to get vaccinated https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/education/article250973204.html Long before Miami’s Centner Academy ignited a national uproar by telling teachers not to get COVID-19 vaccinations, contrary to all credible scientific advice, the school’s husband-and-wife founders were determined to do things exactly as they pleased, for better or worse. It began with the academy’s first open house when David and Leila Centner asked guests not just to wipe their feet but to swaddle the soles of their shoes in Saran wrap. And it continued with an impassioned pledge to mold students into “emotional ninjas,” and with the coverings over the windows to ward off potential radiation from 5G cell towers. (“No adverse health effect has been causally linked with exposure to wireless technologies,” according to the World Health Organization.) Then there were the non-disclosure agreements required of employees who wanted to quit or parents who wanted to withdraw their kids. And the efforts to persuade staff how to vote in the presidential election. And the invitation to anti-vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to address the school community. And the constant exhortations against wearing masks. Through it all, Leila Centner, who runs the school’s day-to-day operations, was omnipresent, and teachers feared she was watching them over an expansive camera system, one current and three former employees said. So when Centner sent an email last week warning staff at the private school’s two campuses not to take the coronavirus vaccine — in the process spreading misinformation about the drugs’ safety and raising questions about whether the school is violating the rights of employees to seek healthcare — few involved with the school were surprised. “She was always talking about doctors that seemed fringey. And there were all these weird emails: Are masks really good for youth’s mental progress?” said Greg Tatar, the parent of a first-grader. “They screamed Republican, Trump, anti-COVID. All the weird news that you would see between 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. on Fox.” Despite Centner’s eccentricities, Tatar had been pleased with the education his son was getting, with chiropractors, mindfulness coaches and a personal chef preparing organic, gluten- and sugar-free meals. Yelling and time-outs were banned. The school prioritized emotional well-being, language immersion — in Mandarin, French, Spanish, Italian and German — and physical health and nutrition. But dissuading people from getting a vaccine approved by federal health authorities went too far. “It is our policy, to the extent possible, not to employ anyone who has taken the experimental COVID-19 injection until further information is known,” Centner wrote in an email to parents Monday. Fearing that the health-conscious school might actually infect them and their children with a dangerous virus, parents bombarded the news media with complaints. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that COVID-19 vaccines are “safe and effective” and that millions of Americans have gotten them “under the most intense safety monitoring in U.S. history.” “People believe her because she’s in a position of power,” Tatar said. “I really don’t want her to fire all the teachers with common sense and keep the teachers that are believing and feeding into this fake science news. ... What she’s doing is completely insane and unreasonable and dangerous.” It could also be illegal. Mark Richard, an attorney who represents the United Teachers of Dade and United Faculty of Miami Dade College, said a policy that bars employees from taking the vaccine could violate the Americans with Disabilities Act, as it interferes with the right to get medical treatment, especially for employees who are at higher risk. “It would be like a cancer patient not getting chemotherapy,” he said. Labor and employment attorney Lowell Kuvin agreed that the ADA would cover employees’ right to be vaccinated. “I think it would be definitely an easy lawsuit to bring. It’s tantamount to saying we don’t want people to work for us who have diabetes because they have to take insulin shots,” he said. “What’s the difference?” The school has received public funds, including an $804,000 COVID-relatedPayroll Protection Program loan in April 2020 that doesn’t have to be paid back. Former teachers and current parents told the Herald that the vaccine scandal fit into a pattern of behavior by the Centners that they described as straight out of a “cult.” They said the couple failed to impose adequate health and safety precautions during the pandemic like enforcing the usage of masks and continually spread medical misinformation that bordered on indoctrination. The Herald interviewed 10 former and current teachers and parents critical of the school. Few wanted to go on the record, but they corroborated each other’s accounts. The teachers feared retaliation; the parents worried they could face legal action or their children would be ostracized in school. “She turned the school we all loved into her own conspiracy theory platform,” one father said. Still, many other parents and teachers rushed to defend the academy, a $15,000- to $30,000-per-year haven for those who believe the antidote for the virus lies in nutrition and wellness and that masks are ineffective. They celebrated the freedom they found in the choice to wear a mask, or not, or to get a vaccine, or not, saying they were more scared of the shot than the virus. And they lauded Leila Centner as a visionary with the guts to make her views known. “This is one of the only schools where there’s been no masking, no social distancing,” said one parent who didn’t want his name published. “Compared to all other schools in the area and around the country, it provided a nice option for us because the social benefits … outweighed the risk of COVID. “This woman is a hero,” he added. The Centners made a fortune when their New York-based company, Highway Toll Administration, was acquired by a billion-dollar private equity firm in 2018. They relocated to a penthouse condo in Miami Beach and immersed themselves among South Florida’s power players, contributing $1 million to President Donald Trump’s re-election fund, as well as tens of thousands to Gov. Ron DeSantis and local Republicans and Democrats. Leila Centner joined the board of the Adrienne Arsht Center Foundation, and the couple made a major donation to a women’s homeless shelter in Miami. But their goal was always to open a school fit for their young daughters. The local options simply weren’t up to par. “Tour after tour after tour, none of this is really doing it for me,” Leila Centner told the Herald in 2019. Now her dream is under attack. Through a spokeswoman, Centner defended asking her employees to not get vaccinated — or risk losing their jobs. Her answers were based on what public health experts say is dangerous misinformation that the COVID-19 vaccines are not safe or effective. She said no teachers or families had left as a result of the policy. She also denied allegations of monitoring staff through cameras or using non-disclosure agreements forfamilies and teachers withdrawing from the academy, which has almost 300 students between its preschool in the Design District and an elementary and middle school in Edgewater. “Centner Academy is the first happiness school in the U.S.,” Centner wrote. “We draw on the latest research in the fields of mindfulness, emotional intelligence and the science of happiness.” In an email, David Centner said that the school never encouraged students not to wear masks but said “many students and teachers complain of headaches, dizziness, and nauseousness, and other ailments while wearing masks all day …. [and] we made a decision to not strictly mandate” their use. The cameras, he said, are for security. ‘It’s a cult’ One teacher showed up excitedly to her first day of training at Centner Academy in August 2020. Then she saw few people wearing a mask or practicing social distancing. Some of her new colleagues, who lived in houses provided by the Centners, said they were nervous to use masks — for fear of crossing their bosses. “It really felt like a cult. ... It still keeps me up at times because it was so disturbing,” said the teacher, who quit soon after. “Leila Centner is single-handedly responsible for forcing people in the Miami community to not wear masks for money and power.” When a Herald reporter toured the campus in 2019, Leila Centner said the preschool in the Design District had 135 cameras, with many placed in classrooms. The large number of cameras led teachers to fear they were being watched. Centner didn’t just keep an eye on her school — she also seemed to want to control what employees thought and who they voted for, several former teachers said. They said they felt pressured into joining a WhatsApp group chat called “Knowledge is Key” where Centner shared conspiracy theory videos and social media links to bunk science, like a video by anti-vaccine advocate Rashid Buttar. (David Centner denied anyone was pressured to join the group.) One teacher said Leila Centner told staffers to vote for Trump because “Biden wants to vaccinate everyone.” Two weeks after school began in September, a mother of two Centner Academy students said Centner approached her and told her that the mask she was wearing was ineffective and that she was inhaling chemicals. The parent said she received constant emails about anti-mask discussions. “It’s a cult,” the mother said. ”It’s nowhere near a school.” Centner’s opposition to masks seemed to stem from an immersion in far-right media and conspiracy websites. Her Instagram is full of misinformation and debunked conspiracy theories about COVID-19. One of her posts suggests that “thousands of women are experiencing the sloughing of their uterine linings” from being around vaccinated people. (There is no scientific evidence to back that claim. Vaccines are not contagious.) Instagram has flagged several of Centner’s posts for spreading “false information.” In Tallahassee, Democratic state Sen. Jason Pizzo proposed an amendment Thursday that would outlaw companies, governments and educational institutions from preventing people from getting vaccines. The measure failed on a tie vote. Last week, Leila Centner sent staff a Google form asking whether they’d been vaccinated. One teacher said she and colleagues spoke to a lawyer about filling out the form. The lawyer said not to do it. “It’s only 37 more days,” said the teacher, who plans to leave the academy at the end of the school year. Coming back home In August 2019, South Florida’s wealthy, prominent and well-to-do stepped inside the brand new and upscale Centner Academy, the bottom of their shoes carefully wrapped in plastic. Leila and David Centner clinked champagne glasses with friends and local notables, including a then-Miami Beach city commissioner and the president of the Miami Beach Chamber of Commerce. The elite crowd was treated to a glimpse of what life would be like at “The Happiness School.” They meditated, heard from Harvard’s “happiness professor” and enjoyed a performance from a musician playing a traditional Chinese stringed instrument known as an “erhu.” It was all for a school — a 16,000-square-foot, royal blue three-story building on the edge of the Design District, Miami’s luxury shopping mecca — that the Centners built to be worthy oftheir barely school-age daughters, who dazzled that day in matching Dolce & Gabbana outfits. Centner Academy would provide the kind of education Leila Centner wished she had gotten. She even splurged on glittery granite bathrooms (“When they go to the bathroom I want them to feel like royalty,” she once said) and painted stairways (“I didn’t want the stairwell to be yucky either”). For her husband, returning to South Florida was a homecoming. David Centner graduated from Miami Sunset Senior High and worked at Frankie’s Pizza. Then he found love in New York City — The New York Times featured David’s flash-mob proposal toLeila Samoodi, a businesswoman originally from California. Together, they ran a highway toll company until they sold it to a private equity firm. It was time, they said, to return to Miami and “warm and real people.” “Miami has proved to be the perfect location for our new home,” the Centners said at their ribbon-cutting. They entertained lavishly, cared for by a coterie of roughly 10 servants, including chefs, housekeepers, personal assistants and a butler, according to two people who know the couple. Leila Centner also has her own private security team, one former academy staffer said. Even before officially arriving in Miami, the Centners got to work on a blueprint for a school. Leila worked on the vision and strategy while David handled the marketing, public relations and technology. Neither has a background in education, but said they instead hired professionals. They had grand ambitions, like working with former presidential hopeful New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker on a $40 million teacher’s village with 251 units of workforce rental housing. But the deal fell through for reasons the couple wouldn’t specify, pointing to a non-disclosure agreement. Instead, the Centners bought a few homes in the nearby Buena Vista neighborhood for their school staff to live in at a discounted rate. Brain program The academy started off as a small school of 18 students aged 2½ to 6 midway through the 2019-2020 school year. Grade levels were based on personal growth rather than age. Every day started with “I am” statements and “positive brainwashing” to instill confidence. Parents had to attend mandatory nutrition workshops and workshops on conscious parenting. Students learned Dr. Seuss in Mandarin while essential oils wafted in the air. Key to the Centners’ operation was focus on the brain. In November 2019, Leila Centner spoke of children who were overdiagnosed and overmedicated. She talked about reversing autism. Every student admitted to Centner Academy went through a “brain program” where their development would be assessed. The Design District building, home to the preschool, bursts with color and light. Doors open and lock with a fingerprint. “If I was a kid, what would I want?” Centner said. “Colors have vibrations.” Atop the building sprawled a 3,000-square-foot rooftop playground with a mini-soccer field, a biking/jogging track and an obstacle course. But the Centners hoped for more. They wanted a school that went through 12th grade, eyeing a 28,000-square-foot Edgewater building once home to the Aspira charter school. In March 2020, they officially announced a partnership with the Metropolitan International School of Miami and absorbed its students. Eventually, the Centners bought out MET, hiked the tuition by roughly $10,000and unveiled a temporary new name: Metropolitan International Centner Academy. One student attends on a government-funded, tax-credit scholarship. Another 30 or so attend on a scholarship paid out of the David and Leila Centner Foundation, according to Leila Centner. She said those students were from the nearby Buena Vista neighborhood. ‘Would I send my kid there?’ Despite the controversy, some parents and teachers applaud what the Centners have accomplished. “We are letting our children be the leaders and the researchers and the investigators. They write the narrative,” said Zeinette Diaz, a Spanish teacher whose son attends the academy’s preschool. “As teachers, we are the support. We are not standing in front and telling them ‘ABC.’ We are letting them experience on their own and learn how things work and use data to prove their hypotheses.” But Diaz said she’s not ready to accept the overwhelming scientific data showing that COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. Getting COVID-19 earlier this month at an Easter party where some people weren’t wearing masks didn’t change her mind. “I have not taken the flu vaccine for years,” she said. “I decided not to feel fear. … I trust my instincts.” She said it is Leila Centner’s decision to believe what she chooses and run the school accordingly. “Who am I to say that she’s incorrect just because it’s not scientifically proven?” Diaz said. “If she wants to believe that the apple is purple, I might not agree. But other people have to understand that this may not be the right school for them, at least until she changes her opinion.” Mara Gonzalez, the vice principal of the preschool campus, called the controversy “absurd.” In recent days, the academy has received 150 inquiries to join the school, Gonzalez said. “I don’t understand why the backlash on our philosophy. I don’t understand why people can’t see that we’re not doing anything wrong,” she said. “We’re not firing anybody. We’re not imposing our beliefs on anybody. We’re just educating our staff and our faculty. We are keeping the health and well-being of our students our priority.” Abby Mellinger, who worked as the school’s digital marketing director and documentary filmmaker from late 2019 to March 2020, said she understood why some staffers and parents might see the school as a cult. “It can come off like that. But in reality it just comes down to that’s their narrative,” Mellinger said. “It’s different, it’s weird, it’s very holistic and all about mindfulness. Just like any other organization, they have their own brand and ethos.” Still, she wondered, “Would I send my kid there? “I don’t know.”
Only in DeSantis' Florida. This is what failed leadership looks like... Florida GOP Kills Measure To Protect Vaccinated Workers From Retaliation It’s a topsy-turvy world in Florida, where vaccinated people can be banned while unvaccinated people can’t be. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/jason-pizzo-miami-covid-vaccination_n_608c7bf1e4b02e74d2275743 In one of the more bizarre developments in the heated political wars over COVID-19, Republicans in the Florida Senate have defeated a measure that would have stopped schools from banning vaccinated teachers. The measure was introduced by Democratic State Sen. Jason Pizzo earlier this week to protect teachers and other workers from being barred or fired by employers because they’ve been inoculated against the deadly pandemic. He was spurred to act after a private Miami school put vaccinated teachers on notice that their jobs were at risk. Pizzo’s proposal was an amendment to a bill just passed by the Florida legislature Thursday that would prohibit businesses, schools and government entities in the state from asking anyone to provide proof of a COVID-19 vaccination. In other words, in Florida, vaccinated workers can be barred from their jobs, while the unvaccinated can’t be. “In Florida, you can get fired for protecting your health,” said a crestfallen Pizzo following the vote. Pizzo introduced his measure following news that the Centner Academy elementary school in Miami had issued an edict that vaccinated teachers or staff would be banned from having any contact with students. Vaccinated employees risked losing their jobs, warned school founder Leila Centner. Centner and her husband have made significant contributions to the Republican Party. According to a student, a Centner Academy science teacher told a class that they shouldn’t hug their vaccinated parents for more than 5 seconds because it was too dangerous, CBS Channel 3 Miami reported. (Check out the video up top.) In an email to staff and a letter to parents earlier this month, Centner claimed without any evidence that vaccinations caused unspecified issues with women’s reproductive systems and fertility, including changes in menstrual cycles. She did not cite a single study, because none exist. Centner acknowledged that her opinions were “new and yet to be researched.” Pizzo called Centner’s notions “quackery.” It’s “just bizarre that would be okay,” Pizzo told HuffPost in a statement. He called Centner’s policy “quite dangerous, and it goes against well-accepted science.” Pizzo said he introduced his amendment after he was told by the Florida Department of Health and the Education Department that there was nothing they could do about Centner’s policy — even though health experts have warned that it puts workers, students and communities at greater risk of contracting COVID-19. A backer of the measure, Democratic state Sen. Jeff Brandes of St. Petersburg, pleaded with his colleagues before the vote: “Let’s show that the Senate is not insane, that we’re reasonable people and that we are not going to allow businesses to prevent someone from working there for doing exactly what we told them that they should do.” Pizzo’s measure would have prevented any business, government entity, or educational institution from moving to “reject, restrict, obstruct, interfere, prevent, or deny” a person entry, services or use because the person is vaccinated against COVID-19. It failed to win the necessary majority in a 19-19 vote in the Senate Thursday, even though some crossed the aisle to support it in the Republican-controlled chamber. GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis, meanwhile, took credit for the new legislation that bars proof of vaccination in the state and said he’ll quickly sign the measure into law. “The irony is that this bill would grant rights to the people who have not been vaccinated, but it doesn’t protect me,’’ state Democratic Rep. Michael Grieco told The Miami Herald. “It’s time to start thinking ... about science and less about politics.”