Here's how classified documents should be handled: Readers give their views on Trump, more

Unforgivable action

I was in what was called the Army Security Agency, a sub-agency of the National Security Agency. I had a top-secret security clearance to do my job, which was to listen to high-ranking East German government phone calls.

To enter the building, we had to give up our ID and get another with our picture to hang around our neck. When we finished our shift, we exited through the same security building with the guards going through our bags to ensure that we didn’t take any documents.

There were two areas of the building to which I didn’t have access. It didn’t matter your rank: If you didn’t have the access, you couldn’t go in. A lieutenant wanted to visit his workers at a listening site. In spite of lacking access, he insisted on entering the building. At that point the sergeant leveled a 45mm at him. The lieutenant was gone from Berlin the next day.

Donald Trump took hundreds classified documents (some of them with the most restrictive access) from the White House. That is unforgiveable! If a general had done the same, he/she wouldn’t be a general very long, nor in the service.

Quit worshiping him! He cozied up to Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong Un and Xi Jinping, enemies of the U.S. I’m fearful of what he would have done with those documents.

Thomas R. Weller, High Springs 

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‘Free’ state of Florida?

Trump’s big lie about his lost election is not the only lie from Republicans. For example, Ron DeSantis’ “Free State of Florida” lie. He wants you to think it means the people of Florida are free, when it really means the state of Florida is free to control the people.

The state is free to control what books you are allowed to read. The state is free to decide your sexual identity. The state will decide whom you can love and marry. The state will control what you can think and say. The state will control your reproductive life. You will learn only the history the state wants you to know.

The “Free State of Florida” means you’re only as free as the state of Florida will allow you to be. But, if you remove DeSantis and his Republican cronies from office in November, you can be as free as you want to be. Choose freedom.

John H. Burgess, Gainesville

Worthy acolyte

The "Kingfish" is smiling. Finally, more than 85 years after his assassination, Huey P. Long Jr. has found a worthy acolyte.

Long was the flamboyant and demagogic governor of Louisiana. He "established a radical dictatorship, using ruthless autocratic methods," according to historians, and "nourished nationwide ambitions." As a U.S. senator and a critic of "the lying press," he continued control of his home state from afar — establishing an unprecedented executive dictatorship.

As governor, he achieved absolute control of the state militia, judiciary, and election and tax-assessing apparatus "while denying citizens any legal or electoral redress." And though he never attended LSU, he regarded it as "his" university — increasing LSU's funding, intervening in university affairs, expelling seven students who criticized him in the school paper. He loved LSU football, oversaw the hiring of football coaches and told them how to run the team.  

Fortunately for us Gators, Gov. DeSantis' exposure to Harvard and Yale football may explain his non-interest, thus far, in firing/hiring UF football coaches. He is, however, according to The Sun and other news media accounts, following the "Kingfish" playbook on such matters as the university allowing professors to offer expertise in court proceedings, as well as how to dramatically shorten the med school's hiring process for key faculty making $250,000 to start.

As Karl Marx suggested: "History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce."

Stan Huguenin, Gainesville

Benefits of physical therapy

For decades my husband and I have relied on physical therapy to overcome shoulder, back, knee and hip problems, without the need for pain medications. We highly recommend physical therapy, and have been surprised that private insurance would rather pay for expensive surgery.

In physical therapy we learned exercises that we could do as needed at home, and have had good results. In our 70s now we can walk, mow the lawn, garden and do all types of housework.

I support the SMART Act, which will make physical therapy available under Medicare. Expensive surgery and/or pain medications, with the risk of addiction, are much more costly.

Barbara Brewer, Alachua 

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Letters to the editor present the opinions of readers on news stories and other pieces published by The Sun. Share your opinions by sending a letter to the editor (up to 200 words) to letters@gainesville.com. Letters must include the writer's full name and city of residence. Additional guidelines for submitting letters and longer guest columns can be found at bit.ly/sunopinionguidelines.

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This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Letters on Trump's handling of classified documents and more