Governor would turn ships into petri dishes
Governor Ron DeSantis has consistently opposed the cruise industry’s call for all passengers to be vaccinated, ignoring the medical community and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and opting for a political solution instead.
Well, he should be watching out for the COVID-19 outbreak last week at the Manatee County Administration Building that killed two county employees.
Other employees tested positive for the virus in Port Manatee on Monday (“Manatee County is making efforts to vaccinate staff following the deadly COVID outbreak.” June 21st).
None of the infected were vaccinated.
More:How to send a letter to the editor
If DeSantis prevents cruise ships from mandating vaccinations, those ships will become Petri dishes for the virus, like in early 2020.
The thought that you have the right to do what you want with your own body does not allow you to expose others to a deadly virus if there is a vaccine to prevent it.
DeSantis has also stopped daily reports on the facts of the virus, ignoring the 37,000 people who have died as if it were just collateral damage. The families of the victims deserve to know why we did not do many of the things that could have reduced that number.
Malcolm Brenner, Lakewood Ranch
Right choice: invest in public schools
John Kass’s June 19 column blames poor school choice for everything that’s wrong with Chicago and other major cities (“School Choices Can Help Reduce Endless Violence”). Nowhere does he talk about improving public schools.
Those who benefit from private schools – be it churches, private companies or other corporations – guarantee that the already heavily underfunded public schools will fail, continue to crumble and underserve the exact students for whom they were built.
There was a time in America when public education was highly regarded, with excellent teachers and open-minded students – and I don’t mean pre-integration.
Let’s upgrade the administrations, faculties, and facilities in our public schools so that students can proudly say, “I’ve completed PS 101 and I’m preparing for college!”
Jane S. Oaks, Longboat Key
Mail-in-voting encourages informed voters
Research and diligence are valuable elements of mail-in reconciliation that are seldom mentioned by those trying to narrow it down.
I was once guilty of automatically selecting my party’s candidates and then voting on amendments and referendums on the basis of the ballot in 10 minutes. This is the preferred method for those who want us to vote by party line, ad impressions, and soundbites.
With mail-in-voting we can research every candidate and suggestion. The top of the voting is usually straightforward, but finding local candidates can be insightful, and I will cross the party lines for a hospital board candidate with extensive nursing experience or a professional educator for the school board.
We are reviewing amendments and referendums because voting summaries often do not accurately describe the intent or possible consequences, while some are manifestly misleading.
We’ll be checking out CNN, Fox, the Herald-Tribune, the Observer, the League of Women Voters, and other sources to hopefully see what these initiatives really mean to us.
We then fill out our ballot papers and send them by post or drop them off at the election supervisor’s office, where we would also vote in person.
Thomas Jefferson called for an informed electorate. Mail-in voting helps us with this; let us not let anyone stop us.
Steve Coker, Sarasota
Voters come for Steube
Let’s see Rep. Greg Steube was crouched in a conference room when insurgents took over the Capitol.
Then he voted against honoring the police officers who saved his skin.
He voted against financial relief for his voters (our tax money)!
He criticizes President Joe Biden’s strong but diplomatic talks with Vladimir Putin and overlooks Donald Trump’s surrender by backing Putin to our own intelligence services.
Steube’s Republican friends in Congress have dubious moral and ethical standards.
As his rebellious friends might say: “We’ll pick you up” at the voting booth and not with bear spray.
Ted Blackburn, osprey
After Trump and the riot, fear for the future
A wise man once said that “few things on earth are worse than ignorance, armed and ready to fight.” The January 6th uprising in the Capitol is testament to how right he was.
The Republicans’ refusal in our Senate to allow a full investigation into the insurrection is an example of one of the few things that are actually worse.
For the first time in my life, the events of the Trump presidency and the irresponsibility of our politicians in defending what happened make me fear for the future of our wonderful country.
Jed Wolfson, Sarasota
