Ignore 'hit pieces' about Bridget Ziegler. Critics want control of School Board.

School Board member stands against mob

Here are some facts about the “hit pieces” in the Herald-Tribune against School Board member Bridget Ziegler.

Bridget is the only School Board member to stand up against the “woke” mob as it promotes critical race theory, social and emotional learning and gender confusion.

Bridget has consistently stood for appropriate age-level curriculum and phonics training for teachers and students.

She bravely voted for a superintendent with family values, an excellent background, training, certification and a deep desire to meet the needs of all students and parents.

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I want the Zieglers to know that truth still rules. Citizens stand against the mob of hypocrites who want to remove the Zieglers from leadership over unproven allegations.

Sarasota GOP Chairman Jack Brill can no longer be trusted to vet candidates. The Zieglers’ critics want total control of the School Board so that they can push critical race theory, transgenderism and social and emotional learning.

God bless those who see through this “false flag” operation.

Linda Wilson, Venice

Zieglers make a mockery of 'values'

Christian and Bridget Ziegler need to resign their very public political positions in Florida and Sarasota County. They are making a mockery of the GOP as well as making state Republicans look hypocritical and sordid as they continue their disingenuous “moral” rantings against others.

“Do as I say, not as I do” would make an accurate motto for the Zieglers. These two do not belong to the party of family values as they would have us all believe.

They have just spit in the faces of Moms for Liberty and state Republicans.

Boot them out, Florida.

Kathy Houser, Sarasota

‘Moral compass’ of board should apologize

I spent 42 years in the education field, the last 14 with Sarasota County Schools.

In my previous two states (Maryland and Delaware), a position on the school board connoted working with parents, teachers and community members to ensure the absolute best possible education for our students.

Political agendas were simply not tolerated.

Some past and present members of the Sarasota County School Board appear to share that vision.

However, from the beginning, School Board Member Bridget Ziegler’s intent has been to overhaul the system to match her “conservative, Christian values,” and use her position as a steppingstone to more prominent and influential posts within her preferred political party.

In particular, Mrs. Ziegler has approved hatred-riddled verbal attacks on supporters of our LGBTQ students, staff and board members.

How interesting now to hear that Mrs. Ziegler has arranged and participated in same-sex encounters! It would seem that the self-proclaimed "moral compass" of the board owes very public and personal apologies to all of the victims of her hateful rhetoric.

Diane K. Coy, Lakewood Ranch

Preserve Siesta Key for residents, tourists

According to the Siesta Key Luxury Rental properties website, Siesta Key attracts more than 350,000 tourists to the small and wonderful barrier island of Siesta Key, which has no urgent care clinic or emergency room.

Many of those tourists, along with about 5,400 residents, utilize the beautiful beach, the gulf and many canals for water sports – and, of course, our fabulous village that does not have one public restroom for our 350,000 visitors.

Everyone who visits or lives here knows how wonderful this place is and we would love to keep Siesta Key the quaint island that it has always been. We cannot do that with huge hotels that the infrastructure cannot handle.

Our county commission is not representing the residents by even considering these monstrosities with only two-lane roads and two bridges that can never be expanded.

Christine Marano, Siesta Key

Speaker shows ‘open contempt’ for law

As a retired journalist and concerned defender of freedom of the press I would like to have been a reporter at House Speaker Mike Johnson’s press conference Dec. 5. 

He told journalists about his plans to release unseen TV footage of the Jan. 6 insurrection with faces of the participants blurred to protect them from being charged by law enforcement.

In November, Johnson published 90 hours of footage that his supporters used as the unfounded, false narrative that federal law enforcement staged the insurrection to distract from election fraud.

The speaker was praised for this action at the time by former President Donald Trump, which was not surprising considering his fealty to Trump and his aiding and abetting the events of Jan. 6.

At the press conference, Johnson said he believes a follow-up narrative would reveal the need to rewrite the Jan. 6 events. However, bipartisan reactions to his comments were highly critical, with one legal analyst calling his statements “an open contempt for the rule of law.”

Also of concern was Johnson’s ambiguous comment that this type of censorship might “address other problems.”

Grace Ann Mosher, Sarasota

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Bridget Ziegler stands up against woke agenda, gender confusion