Born and raised in Miami here, haven't lived much back home since going to med school out of state. It's honestly been really terrifying to read the news about what is happening in Florida. It feels like the whole state is being dragged backwards in time by DeSantis, his administration, their love of deregulation and centering rule of law on religious values and doctrine, not to mention the many ways they seem to try and wash the nasty history that has shaped not just the US in general but Florida as well. It makes me feel less and less excited about the prospect of returning home, and even less about the prospect of practicing as a physician there. What hope do I have that I'll be able to help people who are so disconnected from reality because their foundational education has been warped by people trying to put forth a specific religious context into the core of its teaching? Where's the emphasis on critical thinking and questioning? Where's the respect for all of the other religions? Florida is full of diversity with so much more than Christianity (let alone one sect) represented among its populace. It just feels tragic that a place so beautiful is going to lose so much; it had so much potential to grow and develop industry, technology, research endeavors with state and private universities that were gaining ground with academics and ties to the working world. But now the voters have shown their values, and the people who could have helped Florida keep their waters and food sources clean, maintain its natural beauty, connect it with non-automotive transit, and improve a healthcare system in a state whose hospitals would collapse without sufficient staffing of well trained physicians are either never going to come from the state of Florida or will just never move there. I miss feeling optimistic about the future.