Letters to the editor for Saturday, March 25, 2023

School can be safe haven

Isn’t anyone in the Legislature aware that all parents are not good parents? Forbidding students to talk to teachers about their periods, or indeed anything else, takes away what might be the only safe haven that child has.

My father was a principal of a grammar school in a small town in Connecticut. One morning in the winter, arriving early as he usually did, he found a small girl who was in the third grade huddled in the doorway. She had been there all night, running away from a father who was sexually abusing her in her own home. She came to the school because it was the only place in her life she felt safe.

My father called the police and the child was removed from her parents. I have never heard my father so enraged as he discussed this with my mother that night (as a teen, I was upstairs but trying to listen).

The public school with supportive teachers and principals may be the only place where children feel free to discuss important matters, or to go to with terrible troubles.

It is also particularly offensive to me, as a woman, that a man decides this question about period discussion. Who are you to dictate to girls and women what they should talk about and to whom? I am 89 years old, and I am getting sick and tired of men deciding questions for women. Go focus on your own sex life, and if you want a cause, try and pass a law requiring all single men who impregnate women to pay child support for a number of years. That would be much more useful.

Anita Putnam, Fort Myers

Parental input can be overrated

A grade school principal in Tallahassee was fired because she showed a picture of Michaelangelo's "David" to her class. A parent complained that the statue was pornographic and the school board agreed. Obviously the parent (and apparently the school board) haven't had much exposure to the classics, but I'm still somewhat puzzled at the knee jerk reaction as the board responded to the complaint by saying "we take parents' concerns seriously."

If you drive a car, you must secure a license first. If you carry a gun, you first get a license. The requirements to be a parent are not as stringent. As we watched the attack on the Capitol in January, we observed many, many parents displaying behavior which ended up with them being jailed. Leaving important decisions to those "parents" apparently is not too wise.

Of course many school board reactions these days are as a direct result of our governor's attempt to change history, to influence what students learn through muzzling educators' attempts to educate, by firing those teachers and university faculty who don't knuckle under to his decrees, and by acts such as burning books which might make students "uncomfortable."

Backed by an overwhelmingly Republican Legislature composed of invertebrate eunuchs, the governor is running roughshod over the wishes of many of the non-knuckle-dragging "parents" who would like our offspring to be able to think for themselves and recognize among other things that history is just that. It really doesn't matter if some isolated child is uncomfortable. They will grow out of it (or not) but their squeamishness shouldn't affect their peers who do want a legitimate education. Parental input can be severely overrated.

Robert F. Tate, Naples

A vision for Cape wildlife

Our vision for Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife is simply to save all the wildlife in Cape Coral for our children, grandchildren and residents to enjoy as well as the hundreds of tourists to come to observe our burrowing owls each year. Our vision is to see that we will still have thousands of gopher tortoises, burrowing owls and other wildlife into the 22nd Century beginning 2100. To date we have bought nearly 60 parcels with gopher tortoises and burrowing owls on them. Our goal is to buy 150 parcels for wildlife in the Cape. Our vision is to see 3,000 owls or more in the Cape forever. Our further vision is to build homes for the owls with artificial burrows -- we term them starter burrows -- for people's yards. Go to ccfriendsofwildlife.org for starter burrow information and other information and call 239-980-2593 if you'd like to have a starter burrow in your yard. Please join our club for another vision is obtaining over 1,000 members.

Carl Veaux, Cape Coral

Let's address real issues

So a new environmental threat in Southwest Florida? I guess the state legislators must think mosquitoes are gay so they are afraid to mention them. (Don't Say Gay Mosquito!) Maybe our surgeon general believes insects can't carry diseases? (He might think mosquitoes are imaginary, like fairies.) Our state representatives need to be more concerned with actual issues facing Floridians and less obsessed with the menstrual cycles of preteen girls.

Steve Solak, Fort Myers

Thankful for caring teachers

After reading in The News-Press (March 22) "Bill would forbid talk about periods" I was compelled to send the following to Rep. Stan McClain (R-Ocala):

As a retired teacher and Florida resident, I wonder why you are proposing a bill (HB1069) that attempts to stifle young girls from communicating with a teacher about a critical issue in their young lives: menstruation.

First, you apparently don’t realize that girls can experience a first period as young as age 9, in fourth grade.

Second, you also don’t understand that not all students have the benefit of a home life with parents who teach them about their bodies and what to expect as they become young women – but thank goodness, they have caring teachers.If a girl in a class of mine had questions, or experienced onset of her period, had cramps and needed to leave class and came to me for assistance, I, and any worthy teacher, would of course address the student’s needs, answer any questions honestly, direct them to the nurse’s office, and communicate with parents to update them with any concerns, as needed.

No matter what you think your bill will “allow” for discussion, young girls will always have questions, and great teachers will always speak with them and assist as best they can.

The last thing a girl needs is to think that having her period is shameful or scary – your attempt to muzzle young girls and their teachers from open communication about life’s changes, situations, and issues is insultingly paternalistic, absurd, and simply dystopian.

Katherine Odell, Cape Coral

Republican flip-flops

Republicans here are still “flip-flopping,” to borrow a phrase invented by Republican President Gerald Ford to castigate vacillating positions taken by his Democratic challenger Jimmy Carter in the 1976 presidential election.

First, it was Senator Rick Scott, who retreated from his advocacy to “sunset” Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and all other federal entitlement programs. Senator “Sunset” backed off his proposal in the face of nearly universal rebuke from all political quarters, including his own Republicans, although there’s more than a sneaking suspicion that that his withdrawal is temporary awaiting the firestorm he spawned to pass before he re-engineers it.

Now, it’s Governor DeSantis’ turn. Having minimized last week the Russian invasion of Ukraine as a “territorial dispute,” which drew criticism from nearly everyone, including devout fellow Republicans, he this week described Russia’s Vladimir Putin as a “war criminal” for initiating the invasion that he had just treated so insouciantly.

These dual flip-flops by two top-level Republicans recalls a remark by another GOP President, Ronald Reagan, also critiquing Jimmy Carter in the 1980 campaign, “There you go again.”

Marshall H. Tanick, Naples

Bamboo Curtain

A Bamboo Curtain is being erected, stretching from St. Petersburg on the Baltic via Damascus, Syria to Egypt, North Africa, defining the new eastern border of Europe and the western border of a rising Asian Empire.Unfortunately, our current administration seems to be oblivious to this fact and it’s significant implication for our future.We are mired in a useless Ukrainian war, which drains all our resources and makes us impotent to face the new century's realities.Will we wake up before it is too late?Henry Pfendt, Naples

Less product, more inflation

Due to the severe price increases, especially at grocery stores where the changes are most noticeable, another form of inflation is quite often exacerbated by the stealthy practice of manufacturers to deflate quantities and sizes. Do you notice the diameter of pizzas decreasing when you use the same pan to bake them in the oven as you did before? Energy bars come in the same size boxes but the individual bars are much smaller while they use the same wrappers but the last inch of same is devoid of product. Paper towels and toilet tissues have less sheets per roll. This methodology is rampant amongst a growing number of products. Yes, inflation is a worldwide phenomenon mainly coming about due to rebounding from COVID with supply-chain and workforce deficiencies. Throw in the greed and gouging by manufacturers trying to pad their bottom line, these practices will continue until the public revolts by shopping elsewhere which is already happening with the big grocery chains. As usual, the biggest losers are those on fixed, government aided incomes aka Social Security. The recent increases in payouts is more than usurped by inflation.

Instead of worrying about the woke crap, how about helping families and retirees to at least break even. I’m not sure how to go about this aid but, instead of whining about all the inconsequential vagaries in today’s political spectrum, how about actually governing for a change.

Glenn Chenot, Cape Coral

Tired president, weak Cabinet

Last week, the White House released a photo of the president's Cabinet with the boast, "a Cabinet that looks like America,” choosing appearance over ability. President Joe Biden is the oldest president in history at 80 and looks old for his age. He seems to lack the vigor to deal with multiple problems at the same time. This is not a criticism of the 80-year-old man but a matter of biology. So when multiple crises occur, the combination of a lackluster Cabinet and a perpetually exhausted president presents real dangers to America and to his party.

Recently a train derailment and toxic waste spill in a small Ohio town competed for public attention with the president's trip to war-torn Ukraine. A younger, more vigorous president would have gone to Ohio first, expressed his condolences, promised to hold the guilty parties accountable, and promised financial relief. It's a time-tested way of dealing with such things. And then, he would fly to Ukraine for the all-important meeting with President Zelensky demonstrating America's support.

But lacking the vigor to do both jobs, he turned the Ohio trip over to his Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who looked like a fish out of water, appearing uncomfortable working this far down the social ladder, and everyone saw it. That’s a consequence of a Cabinet chosen for its looks but lacking proficiency or credibility in assigned areas of responsibility.

The alternative would've been to send the vice president, historically an even greater disaster.

Bill Korstad, Naples

Rescuing Social Security

The Social Security System is broken and extreme measures are needed to fix it. The original idea was for the government to collect money from workers, grow the money during their working years, and then disburse it over their years of retirement.Instead, the government puts all the money collected into the general fund and makes accounting entries to a notional SSA account. There is no Social Security fund; all of the money collected has already been spent. In a way, it’s the world’s largest Ponzi scheme, where some money collected is spent on current retirees and the balance spent for other government purposes, not invested to grow the workers' accounts.There are a number of ways to rescue the system, all of which should implemented.1. Raise the retirement age slowly, as people continue to live longer.2. Raise the cap on SSA taxes, so that higher income people put in more money.3. Allow some portion of the money collected to actually be invested in stocks and bonds. This could be a choice by each worker or a blanket rule.4. Gradually raise the amounts invested in real assets.Without such reforms, the payouts to retirees will soon exceed the SSA taxes collected, at which point SSA will be funded by debt, since no government will abolish the program.

Ira Cotton, Naples

Money drives priorities

Many people in this country strongly believe that Republicans are pro-life. To date this country has seen over 60 mass shooting this year, more than one per day. Schools of all levels of education, churches, bars, grocery stores, simple gatherings in a park, as well as many other venues in this country, have become the “killing fields.” Yet those lives are nothing in comparison to the millions of dollars that the NRA heaps upon these pro-life politicians. If the supporters of the current pro-life movement were pro-choice, and there was a way for the NRA or some other organization to heap wealth on them, then they would be against these killings, willing to ban weapons of war, large capacity clips, and have universal background checks. Instead, they go with the minority of the country because that is where the money is. Because money equals power, and damn everyone else, but to date, this question has not been asked. What if your child, parent, sibling, friend, were murdered by one of these weapons of war, what would you do?

But we already know the answer to this. Congressman Scalise was shot by one of these weapons at a softball practice, yet they just pass it off as a deranged person who was mentally ill. Republicans in politics are not pro-life, they are pro-money. They go which way the money is blowing. They have no backbone, leadership or moral courage. They only have wallets that tell them how to vote, speak, think and, most of all, protect each and every one of us. They take an oath to the Constitution, then shred it when money is waved in front of their faces. Republicans, you are being scammed. But like any good scammer, they steal from your back pocket with one hand, while giving you a lollipop with the other.

Louis Profeta, Fort Myers

Banks gamble and fail

A trip down memory lane! Remember when banks were banks and brokerage houses were brokerage houses. Remember when banks paid 5% interest on savings, and rarely, if ever, failed. Banks were heavily regulated and limited in those things in which OUR money could be invested. Now banks are permitted to gamble with OUR money and fail with disturbing regularity. The stock market was staid, not volatile. Now, fortunes made are lost every ten years or so because of deregulation and lack of government oversight. Five percent guaranteed doesn't seem so bad, does it?

Fred Muggs, Naples

'Woke' destroying America

I would like to respond to the letter to the editor "What's Wrong with 'Woke." He takes the definition of "woke" from the dictionary which is insane. He must think that today, "gays" are just happy people.Today "woke" individuals and corporations, encouraged by the Democrats, have divided us into victims and oppressors. They have decided, in the name of "social justice," what is right or wrong in the world and tolerate no discussion because one is a moron, bigot, or racist if you dissent. And you will be canceled, fired, and attacked if you do.

Tearing down statues, rewriting history, demanding reparations, accepting LGTBQ and abortion indoctrination, calling riots "peaceful protests," discrimination against straight white males, sexualizing children and mutilating their bodies, hiring people to fill a quota, demanding "equity" not equality of opportunity, and destroying any authority like police, religion, and our legal system, etc. are okay and justified. These are all signs of how "woke" is destroying America.

Thomas Harakal, Naples

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Letters to the editor for Saturday, March 25, 2023