An ominous peek into a future New College of Florida classroom

Anthony Baratta
·3 min read
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Anthony Baratta
Anthony Baratta

Welcome, students, to the Fall 2084 semester of DeSantis University. This class is The History of the American Confederation. Since as freshmen you are all new to the university, I’ll give you a brief history of our school.

I think it’s important to understand the university’s origin and see that its founding is intimately connected to the formation of the American Confederation. Some historians believe it was the founding of DeSantis University that was the catalyst to the movement that led to the breakup of what was once the United States of America.

As many of you probably have read, our legendary Governor for Life Ron DeSantis created this great university from what was once known as the New College of Florida. His vision was to provide a school in which students would be grounded in a strong conservative fundamentalist philosophy to counter what he saw as the decadent woke culture enveloping what was then the state of Florida and the former United States.

An archway leads to the Dort Promenade on the New College of Florida Bayfront Campus. Could there be a day in the future when New College is renamed DeSantis University in honor of Gov. Ron DeSantis, whose recent moves have dramatically changed the school's leadership and mission? It's hardly far-fetched, writes Anthony Baratta, a professor emeritus at Penn State University who now resides in Nokomis.

In fact, our current president of the Southern Federation was one of the first students who attended what was to become DeSantis University!

The university's initial approach was to outlaw the teaching and discussion of alternative lifestyles and to brand all of them as countercultures not to be tolerated. Both the university’s history and the formation of the Southern Federation are tied to the belief that alternative lifestyles and belief in woke ideals are counter to individual freedom and liberty.

Once the philosophy of our great Gov. DeSantis become widely accepted among many states, it was only a matter of time before the American Confederation would be formed.

After securing his lifetime status as governor, DeSantis began to lobby his fellow governors to resist the imposition of not just laws, but also beliefs put forth by what he considered the liberal elite. The breaking point occurred in 2034 when the then-U.S. Congress and president imposed a restitution tax on former states in which slavery was legal prior to the 1865 Civil War. Those states resisted, activating their National Guard to prevent collection of the restitution tax. The United States was on the verge of another civil war. It was only averted by the great compromise brought forth by the new State of American Samoa.

The compromise divided the then-United States into three federations: the Southern Federation (to which the Prefecture of Georgia-Florida belongs), the Coastal Federation (made of Mid-Atlantic states and most West Coast states) and the Heartland Federation (made up of what was the Central United States).

The provinces in the Southern Federation all shared a common belief in conservative ideals, including completely forbidding the access within their boundaries to any books or websites that espoused liberal philosophies – and particularly those dealing with woke ideology or alternative lifestyles.

Time for questions

I’ll take a few questions. Yes, the gentleman in the first row – I apologize but I have yet to learn your name.

"Oh, that's no problem, professor. Here's what I would like to know: Why we aren’t allowed access to some of the literature that other federations cherish as great literary works? Isn’t the whole purpose of education to embrace knowledge? Why does the president’s party, the Moms for Liberty, find these works so offensive? Shouldn't we know about other cultures – even those that may espouse ideals contrary to our own? I know I probably shouldn’t say this, but my family has a secret collection of books that aren’t allowed here. It includes 'Gender Queer: A Memoir,' 'All Boys Aren’t Blue' and 'The Kite Runner.' My dad said these were acclaimed books when they were written in the early part of this century. What’s so wrong with reading them?"

To respond to your question, why would you want to read about such vulgar lifestyles? Why would you want to be exposed to liberal ideals and risk corruption? Our president supported the current law that requires all such people to wear what is commonly called "the mark of shame." They’re free to do whatever they want but everyone knows their lifestyles are counter to and disruptive of our societal norms.

Let me put it this way: You’re not allowed to yell fire in a crowded building if there’s no fire because people could be injured in the ensuing chaos. So why should you be allowed to read and learn about ideas that the government has determined are harmful to society as a whole?

Enough for today. We’ll discuss this more next period. Have a wonderful Freedom Day! Class dismissed.

Anthony Baratta, Ph.D. is a professor emeritus in nuclear engineering at Penn State University in State College, Pennsylvania. He resides in Nokomis.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Will today's New College of Florida be tomorrow's DeSantis University?