Letters to the editor for Wednesday, May 4, 2022

Adopt a dog; help stop abuse

Naples' population is growing at a record speed, and with that so are the number of stray animals overcrowding the shelters. Some believe it is due to people going back to work after COVID, or families unable to afford the cost of a pet due to the economy. A third and constant problem is the backyard breeders.

I’ve been told these breeders can charge as much as $500 for a pit bull puppy. Then, when the cute puppy becomes big and too much to handle, it is surrendered to a shelter.

Many residents do not want to get involved, especially having to give their contact info and address when reporting illegal breeders. There is another way to report abuse, unlawful breeding -- any kind of harm to an animal (tethered to a tree, housed outside in the sun, running loose) anonymously by contacting the Collier County Sheriff‘s Office at 239-252-9300 and/or Colliercountyfl.gov.

Please do your part to stop the breeding and abuse of these dogs. Every shelter is completely overcrowded with dogs who are no longer cared for by their owners.

Only Collier County residents can eliminate this problem.

Domestic Animal Services on Davis Boulevard has more than 45 wonderful dogs available to adopt. The volunteers can tell you everything you need to know about the dogs.

Patty Teulet, Naples

Impressed with Naples Community Orchestra

After moving to Naples a little over 30 years ago, my wife Barb and I immediately became members of The Phil, now Artis-Naples. Our interest has continued with season tickets for the Pops and individual tickets to many other productions. It has been a source of great satisfaction in continuing to enjoy the arts.

A big addition to our interest in the arts was formation of Naples Community Orchestra, which was started 29 years ago. NCO also has matured while growing the last three decades. In fact, today’s attendance to the final performance for 2022 was so outstanding it caused this letter to be written. Perhaps the strongest reason to compliment the Naples Community Orchestra, which is looking for a new conductor, is that they hired local pianist Jodie DeSalvo to be both guest conductor and featured pianist for the last performance of the year. The combination was a winner!

Our history with Jodie DeSalvo goes back at least two decades when she was the music director and educator at Unity Church. Her talents were unbelievable and her personality shined through what she did.

In short, Jodie Desalvo and Naples Community Orchestra combined to really impress the full audience. Many of us are dreaming of what could be in our future.

Jerry Flagel, Naples

Donalds ignores water quality issues

The recent meeting at the Sanibel Community House was supposed to be about water quality issues, but few questions and answers addressed water quality. When Byron Donalds was asked why the largest polluters in the state were not being held responsible for the continued release of phosphorous and nitrogen runoff into Lake Okeechobee, his answer was that you can’t go back in time and “penalize” companies for practices that have been accepted for decades but are now known to be harmful.

Under Mr. Donalds' reasoning, Johnson and Johnson would never have been sued in a class-action suit for ovarian cancer victims from their baby powder products, and the tobacco industry wouldn’t have been sued in a class-action suit for misleading the public about their product and lung cancer risks and Ford Motor Company would never have been held accountable for exploding Pinto gas tanks. Moreover, the state of Florida has sued HRK, the company responsible for the Piney Point Reservoir leak for damages from the defunct Piney Point phosphate mining operation which caused fish kills and damage to Tampa Bay. Mr. Donalds' deference to Florida corporations shows that he would prefer that Florida and or federal taxpayers shoulder the costs. I wonder if he would intervene on behalf of Florida corporations in court against the state’s suit against HRK.

Studies by reputable groups have shown conclusively that man-made nutrients have been harmful. We need to stop pretending the problem will go away.

Rick Ansaldo, Fort Myers

Not a state for young people

Guest Columnist Olivia Solomon (My body is more regulated than guns, April 29) broke my heart.

I have grandchildren Olivia's age, so the chronology of her life since her birth in 2001 strikes close to home for my family. Terrorism. Gun fear at school. Pandemic. Student debt. Abortion restriction. Certainly this awful reality is not restricted to the state of Florida, but this state has gone so far in the direction of harming its citizens that no one can blame Olivia and thousands of other high school and college students for being disillusioned. Don't Say Gay? Book bans?

I became a Floridian reluctantly. A native Marylander, I scoffed at Florida's version of government from afar, but marriage brought me here. The era of Ron DeSantis has gotten so bad, so rotten that I'm embarrassed to admit I live in Florida. It is incomprehensible to me that anyone can defend the antics of the GOP-controlled Legislature and this governor.

If conservatives in this country (and particularly Floridians) continue to defend anything that supports their desire to protect older, privileged white people and forces their brand of religion and flag waving upon the rest of us, young people like Olivia will find little reason to support our democracy. If we lose the trust of our young citizens, we will be truly lost as a country. Bravo to Olivia for telling us how disappointment (and despair) feel from her viewpoint.

Katherine Baer, Naples

It's up to mom and dad

It doesn’t matter if you are Democrat or Republican. It doesn’t matter if you are liberal or conservative. It only matters if you are a mom or a dad with a young child in public school in Florida.

Do you want your child in kindergarten, or first grade, or second grade or third grade to be instructed in sex and gender identity by their teacher or another school employee?

It’s not complicated. If you say no, you are FOR the law that Gov. DeSantis just signed into law. If you say yes, you are AGAINST the law that the governor signed.

It’s up to you, mom and dad, as it always has been in America up to now. Who do you want to talk to your little kids about sex?

Gary Marsh, Estero

Want disinformation? Read the paper

Gov. Ron DeSantis is one of the most popular governors in America today. Statewide, 59 percent of Florida voters approve of the job Gov. DeSantis is doing, versus just 36 percent who disapprove, 4 percent unsure. Support for DeSantis is broad across nearly all political and demographic groups. He leads by double digits over Democratic opponents for governor. Democrats want social justice, political correctness and shared misery in America. Gov. DeSantis stands for law and order, traditions and prosperity!

Yet 75 percent of this newspaper’s articles and letters to the editor are seem to be anti DeSantis and slanted to the left.

Maybe the new Ministry of Truth czar on the Disinformation Governance Board should look into this paper and its practices.

Lou Walker, Cape Coral

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Letters to the editor for Wednesday, May 4, 2022