I was wondering when they would get around to this, or if they were just going to relocate their business to other ports and let local businesses scream bloody murder at Florida politicians for all the lost tourism trade that would result. Anyway, Norwegian Cruise Lines has filed a lawsuit against the Surgeon General of Florida (the suit is against him as he is the official with the authority to enforce Florida’s “no vaccine passports” rule.). The lawsuit, as you might guess, is about Florida’s “no vaccine passport” requirement, which prevents cruise lines (and other businesses) from requiring passengers and employees from being vaccinated.
The Norwegian lawsuit rests on two issues: 1) restricting the flow of information (vaccination documentation) is a violation of the First Amendment, and 2) the Florida rule interferes with interstate and international commerce, which is a no-no.
Because stupidity knows no limits, a spokewoman for Florida responded to the lawsuit thusly:
“Apparently Norwegian prefers the shackles of the CDC to the freedom offered by Florida. This administration will not tolerate such widespread discrimination.”
Uh, ok. Yeah, I don’t get it, either.
Anyway, good times. Meanwhile, Norwegian plans on resuming Alaskan cruises in early August. Alaska has yet to be as stupid as Florida and has not tried to prevent businesses like cruise lines from protecting their staff and customers from dying of a preventable disease.
Edit: Small edit to clarify what the suit is about.