After Disney expressed opposition to a law in Florida popularly termed "Don't Say Gay," DeSantis went on the attack by securing the repeal of a special tax privilege that had been accorded Disney some 55 years ago. It's still unclear what the cost of the repeal will be to Disney but my hunch is that when the dust settles, the cost will be in the millions of dollars.

Of course, when it comes to the defense of civil liberties, conservatives have never been paragons of virtue.Their unabashed support of the war on drugs and the war on illegal immigrants serve as good examples. In fact, I think it would be safe to say that most conservatives view civil liberties as nothing more than "constitutional technicalities." Thus, it is not surprising that conservatives across the land are hailing DeSantis for what he and his Republican cohorts have done to Disney as part of their fight against "wokeism." 

But what DeSantis has actually done is expose the charade of how America, as compared to countries like Russia and China, stands for "freedom of speech," as reflected in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Keep in mind all the pontificating that U.S. officials and right-wingers in America engage in when lecturing Russia and China when the regimes in those countries punish people for criticizing the government. 

All that pontificating is, of course, a hypocritical crock! And the governmental retribution that DeSantis and his fellow Republican goons in the Florida legislature have exacted against Disney for exercising freedom of speech proves it.