BY ALEX GALBRAITH & NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA
More Reedy Creek developments, a petition to ban the Bible in schools, Casey Anthony back in the spotlight and other news you may have missed last week. » DeSantis vents pique on Reedy Creek; House of Mouse zips lip Walt Disney Co. has remained relatively silent as lawmakers have debated (and ultimately signed off on the demise of ) their long-held independent government in Reedy Creek. That ended earlier this week with a note to bondholders from the district. Reedy Creek leaders noted that the district could not be dissolved without Florida paying back all of the district’s outstanding debt. In their message, they pointed to the 1967 law creating the special district, which said the state “will not in any way impair the rights or remedies of the holders ... until all such bonds together with interest thereon, and all costs and expenses in connection with any act or proceeding by or on behalf of such holders, are fully met and discharged.” In other words, if Florida wants to get rid of Reedy Creek, it has to pay back all its bondholders first. Since Florida shows no inclination to do that in the immediate future, Disney plans » to continue to operate as if Reedy Creek is a fixture. “In light of the State of Florida’s pledge to the District’s bondholders, Reedy Creek expects to explore its options while continuing its present operations, including levying and collecting its ad valorem taxes and collecting its utility revenues, paying debt service on its ad valorem tax bonds and utility revenue bonds, complying with its bond covenants and operating and maintaining its properties,” they stated. Disney hasn’t said much throughout this tiff with state Republicans. The company initially tried to work behind the scenes to stall a controversial anti-LGBTQ bill. This drew the ire of both sides: The state felt that Disney should mind their business, while LGBTQ employees thought the company didn’t go far enough to protect them. When walkouts were planned, Disney shot out a quick note saying they respect workers’ rights to protest. They also halted all political donations in the state of Florida in the wake of intense scrutiny of their contributions. This relatively tame reaction led the governor to call the company a puppet of the Communist Party of China. State leaders followed that up with a series of laws meant to punish Disney for (barely) speaking out, including the planned dissolution of their special district.
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Give the Holy Book the hook?
“Since she got out of jail, she’s kept to herself and people are always talking shit about her,” the friend shared. “Every few months, a story about what she’s doing is published, and [the media] just say whatever you want to say. But now she feels like it’s time for her to set the record straight and say what she needs to say. She wants her voice to be heard.” Anthony’s last public interview was notably standoffish. She maintained her innocence and said that she understood why people viewed her negatively after being fed wave after wave of overheated media coverage. “Based off what was in the media, I understand the reasons people feel about me. I understand why people have the opinions that they do,” she said. “I didn’t do what I was accused of, but I fought for three years. ... Not just for me, but for my daughter.”
Permit rules for guns undone in short run, promises Gov Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday he expects to approve changing Florida gun laws to allow what is known as “constitutional carry,” though it is not clear when that could happen. He didn’t say whether he would add the issue to a special legislative session that will start May 23 on property insurance. But he said he intends to eventually sign such gun legislation. “The one thing that I wanted the Legislature to do, and I think we will do it, I can’t tell you exactly when, but I’m pretty confident that I will be able to sign constitutional carry into law in the state of Florida,” DeSantis said while at an infrastructure-funding event in Williston. Under current law, people who want to carry guns must get concealed weapons permits from the state. “Constitutional carry” would allow people to carry guns without the permits. “The Legislature will get it done. I can’t tell you if it will be next week, six months, but I can tell you that before I am done as governor we will have a signature on that bill,” DeSantis, who is running for re-election this year, added. Alabama and Georgia, both also under Republican governors, enacted forms of constitutional-carry laws in the past two months. As of March 31, Florida had just under 2.5 million concealed-weapons permits issued, according to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, which administers the program. news@orlandoweekly.com
A Florida man is attempting to get the Holy Bible removed from school libraries under recently passed laws in the state putting instructional materials and library books under stricter scrutiny. In petitions sent to 63 Florida school districts, Chaz Stevens asked administrators to remove all books that mention the Bible, as well as any copies of the book itself — adding, as is often the case with banned books, “let us lay flame to that giant stack of fiction in a pyre worthy of a Viking.” In the petition, Stevens cites HB 1467, a law passed by Florida Republicans allowing parents and citizens to object to school curricula and instructional materials. Stevens breaks his objection against the Bible into seven points in the letter, a copy of which he shared with Orlando Weekly: “age-appropriateness; smashing babies, killing children; bestiality; rape; wokenness; social-emotional learning; and cannibalism.” He echoed a common point of conservatives, noting that children were free to learn about such things outside of school. “In the end, if Jimmy and Susie are curious about any of the above, they can do what everyone else does — get a room at the Motel Six and grab the Gideons,” he wrote.
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Tot mom drops ‘truth’ bomb Infamous Orlando area mom Casey Anthony is hoping to tell her side of the story that made her a household name in a new documentary. At least, that’s the word from People. The gossip magazine spoke with an anonymous source close to the tried-and-exonerated Anthony, who said the former Central Floridian is ready to share what it was like at the center of a media circus. “She’s waited almost 14 years to really talk deeply about her experience,” the source said. “She’s now getting ready to tell her truth. She feels like it’s time.” Anthony has kept a relatively low profile in the years since she was cleared in the murder of her 2-year-old daughter Caylee. The toddler’s disappearance led to a nationwide search and the eventual, grim discovery of remains near Anthony’s home. Her trial became a nationwide phenomenon, and she understandably ducked the spotlight once it concluded. Anthony’s associate said she wants to counter some of the information that has been shared about her while she stayed silent. orlandoweekly.com
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MAY 4-10, 2022 ● ORLANDO WEEKLY
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