April 25 – Florida Speaker Apologizes for Calling Pregnant Women “Host Bodies” During Abortion Discussion

House Speaker Jose Oliva revoked his words after he repeatedly referred to pregnant women as host bodies. The man aired his sentiments during an interview with Jim DeFede about abortion on CBS.

The Miami Lakes Republican referenced the term “host body” several times during the interview on the Facing South Florida Show. This term, he claimed was inspired by medical ethics to make the abortion debate dispassionate. However, his sentiments didn’t augur well with most of the audience, who claimed he offended and demeaned women.

The then-incoming Florida House Speaker faced online criticism, prompting him to post a public apology. In the apology, he claimed his intention while using the term was different from what the public got. While he meant to remain dispassionate and still friendly to the subjects in discussion, the opposite happened. The man spoke of his disappointment in his sentiments that, though meant well, dissuaded the public’s attention from the subject, sparking the exact opposite reaction from what he expected.

Oliva who used the phrase five times spoke of his views against abortion, saying abortion involves two lives, which should be respected and accorded their numerous rights. While the topic of abortion is still very controversial, the public was keen to note his remarks and attitude toward women. As such, they expected a better way to describe pregnant women rather than just say the host body.

While some who got to read the apology okayed it, some critics were still not very satisfied with Oliva’s claims in the apology post. Toxicity against women has been on for ages, especially amongst leaders who later come up to justify their opinions. And while the public lets that slide after “apology,” it’s always clear that we’ve got a long way to go with tranquilizing such an old vice.

See Also:

• Florida Man Docket – April 24
• Florida Man Files – April 23
• Florida Man Stories for April 22

April 25 – Florida Man Records Himself Dragging a Shark to Death

A Florida man was charged with animal cruelty after dragging a shark behind a high-speed boat. In the viral video, the suspect and his fellows were laughing and smiling as the shark struggled to free itself.

30-year-old Robert Lee Benac faced two felony counts of aggravated animal cruelty before accepting a plea deal, as reported by the Tampa Bay Times. Benac, however, accepted a plea deal, after which the court dropped one count and reduced the second charge to animal cruelty. Besides, Benac was required to serve his 10-day jail sentence on weekends, 11 months of probation, and a $2,500 fine. To demonstrate restitution for his cruel action against the shark, the 30-year-old was required to perform 125 hours of community service at an animal shelter and another 125 hours elsewhere.

In the viral video, Benac and his colleagues were seen laughing while the animal struggled to free itself, according to Hillsbourgh County Jail. Besides, the animal repeatedly flipped and hit the water before one of the men joked the shark looked dead.

However, the charges Benac received might have been a compromise of legal requirements after investigators discovered that the shark was shot before it was dragged. A Miami charter fisherman popularly known as Mark the Shark shared the video on Instagram after claiming that two Instagram users had sent it to him. After viewing it, Mark posted the video, hoping that the suspects would be identified and arrested.

That helped with the arrest of Benac, whose attorney, Brent Petredis, helped against conviction. However, the case will appear in Benac’s record. Two other men shown in the video, Spencer Heintz and Michael Wenzel, were charged with two felony counts, as reported by the Tampa Bay Times. However, the court made changes, dropping charges against Heintz as Wenzel served 10 days in jail and probation.