Okay, we got taken for a little ride about the possibility that a piece of legislation was making it official that gays weren't welcome in Utah. But the state of Florida's completely serious -- at least about gays that are movie characters. ---
According to the ThinkProgress.org Website, that's actually just one thing that won't be welcome in movies that want to earn tax incentives for filming in Florida. The current incentive program offers a 2 percent bonus to films that are "family friendly," but a revision currently before the legislature is even more specific about what they want -- and don't want -- in films shot in Florida. If approved, the revised version would specifically exclude films with certain content: "Family-friendly productions are those that have cross-generational appeal; would be considered suitable for viewing by children age 5 or older…and do not exhibit or imply any act of smoking, sex, nudity, nontraditional family values, gratuitous violence, or vulgar or profane language." When asked specifically if the provision would apply to movies or television shows with gay characters, Florida state Representative Steve Precourt (R-DisneyWorld) reportedly told the Palm Beach Post News, "That would not be the kind of thing I’d say that we want to invest public dollars in."