A Florida state employee was ordered to undergo a mental health assessment after violating an unwritten state ban on using the words “climate change” or “global warming” in official communications.
“Longtime employee Barton Bibler reportedly included an explicit mention of climate change in his official notes from a Florida Coastal Managers Forum meeting in late February, during which climate change, rising sea levels, and the possible environmental impact of the Keystone XL pipeline were discussed,” The Guardian reports. “Bibler was instructed to stay away from the office for two days and told he could return to work only after a mental health evaluation from his doctor verified his ‘fitness for duty,’” the paper adds, citing a complaint filed by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).
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Krueger writes that Bibler “told the Miami Herald that he ‘didn’t get the memo’ about the gag order, so when he introduced himself by congratulating other officials on the call for the
