When it comes to climate, vote wisely, young people

A reporter once asked comedian George Burns how it felt to be 99. Burns replied, “Consider the alternative.” I recalled this anecdote after reading the Aug. 3 op-ed, “If Biden wants young climate voters to support him again, he needs to brag about his wins.”

In this unprecedented heat, those young voters should examine the options under former President Trump. To head the EPA, he appointed Scott Pruitt, a climate denier who sued that very organization on behalf of the fossil fuel industry 14 times as Oklahoma attorney general.

Rep. Ryan Zinke, a supporter of increased coal production, headed Trump’s Department of the Interior from 2017-2019.

Drain the swamp?

Yeah, if it’s the Everglades. I urge young voters, for their sake and the planet, to consider the alternative.

Jeff Spiero, Hollywood

Home equity

I find it amusing that Sen. Marco Rubio, whose family came from Cuba where an insurrection has lasted nearly 70 years, is not one of the loudest voices against the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

What about that criminal regime’s selfish calculations? How could Rubio lecture us to be tough on these other countries when he doesn’t have the intestinal fortitude do it in his own party?

In his Aug. 6 letter, “No going back,” Rubio names El Salvador, Ecuador and Guatemala as examples of pro-U.S. countries. Ecuador’s president, Guillermo Lasso, will soon step down and most likely will be replaced with ex-President Rafael Correa’s cronies, who detest the United States.

President Nayib Bukele, of El Salvador, might be friendly to the United States, but is on a path toward dictatorship. And many of the immigrants at our border come from Guatemala.

Rubio should get his own house in order before fixing other people’s houses.

Douglas Gonzalez,

Coral Gables

Be honest

As a retired Miami-Dade County Public Schools counselor, I find the new Florida curriculum standards concerning. Apparently, changes have to be made to hide the cruel treatment Black slaves endured at the hands of slave owners.

As a member of Cuban American Women Supporting Democracy (CAWSD), a non-partisan civic organization, and as a staunch anti-communist, I wonder if the Florida Board of Education fear telling the hard truth, in case it reinforces hatred. Yet the opposite is true.

Black history is part of American history and it must be taught at all levels. Acknowledging that we took part in the horrific human slave trade is important. The curriculum must address the realities of systemic slavery, along with the reasons it led to a Civil War. Our youth will learn ethical values of freedom and democracy to build egalitarian societies that value differences and to understand we all belong to the same human race.

American values favor equal treatment under the law. We can’t hide the truth of our past. In doing so, we’re only justifying it.

Delia Garcia, Miami

Two-tiered injustice

A young Black social-media influencer directs his followers to Union Square in New York with promises of free gaming equipment. The crowd goes out of control, property is damaged and several police officers are injured. The influencer is immediately arrested for inciting a riot.

An old white election loser directs his followers to the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., with the admonition to “fight like hell” in support of his Big Lie. The crowd goes out of control, the Capitol building is breached and damaged, and 140 police officers are injured.

Two and a half years later, the loser is still roaming free with no consequences for these actions. Talk about the ultimate in white privilege.

Michael Marmesh,

Miami

Cease and desist

Let’s give the news about Donald Trump’s indictments a rest. The media and Democrats are on a crusade to destroy Trump and couldn’t care less whether he is guilty or not. They want him removed because he is a threat to President Joe Biden in the 2024 presidential race.

The many charges against Trump are clearly politically motivated.

Is he completely innocent?

Probably not. The former president can be obnoxious and is known to make dumb statements and make a spectacle of himself at times. His actions, however, do not warrant the Justice Department’s unrelenting investigations and round-the-clock media coverage.

While all this is going on with Trump, the Biden family’s crimes receive little attention.

Gilbert Schwartz,

Aventura

No fins, no dinner

The July 30 story, “Paris, but make it kosher: Chef to open a unique new French restaurant in Miami,” sounded very exciting. I especially want to meet the mashgiach (Yiddish for supervisor) who approves of “crab cakes” with truffle beet mousse.

Crab is definitely not kosher. This supervisor is more likely a mashuganah — crazy man.

The rabbi will likely not be coming to dinner.

Bill Silver,

Coral Gables

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