Readers comment on UF's COVID policies, the fight over the filibuster and more

UF’s disconnect

I can’t imagine a more inviting environment for COVID transmission than the University of Florida campus: no data to guide behavior, no place for students to isolate and no reason for students to report test results. And to punish students who do report positive tests, UF offers no food and no access to classes.

In contrast, the American College Health Association’s “Updated COVID-19 Considerations for Institutions of Higher Education” advocates equitably accommodating all students with or exposed to COVID-19 by: 1) designating space for students to isolate or quarantine; 2) providing confined students with food services and academic access, either virtual or through note takers; 3) checking daily on students’ health status; and 4) making counseling services easily accessible.

Perplexed by UF’s failure to comply with ACHA’s recommendations, I checked to see if UF is an institutional member of ACHA. To my dismay, UF is not. I then checked the member status of Florida State University, the University of Central Florida, the University of South Florida, Florida Atlantic University and Florida International University and found that all five were ACHA members.

No matter what the cause, for the health of the campus and its surrounding community, UF’s disconnect with institutional norms needs to be remedied.

Allan March, MD, Gainesville

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Fight over the filibuster

Four years ago, Senate Republicans and 30 Democrats signed a letter urging Senate leaders to preserve the filibuster. Chuck Schumer said Republicans were only wanting to change it “because they can’t get their way on every judge,” that they want to “change the rules in mid-stream, to wash away 200 years of history. They want to make this country into a banana republic, where if you don’t get your way, you change the rules. Are we going to let them? It’ll be a doomsday for democracy if we do.”

Now he and his party want it changed. Why are they changing their minds now, when they used it over 100 times during Donald Trump's presidency? Now with a 50/50 split, Democrats won’t be able to pass their and Joe Biden’s wish lists if the Republicans use the filibuster.

There are two Democratic senators who do not want to do away with the filibuster, so any votes bought to the floor to change or do away with it will not pass. Most leaders will not even bring to the floor bills they know won’t pass, but Schumer claims he will. Will he regret it when he is minority leader again?

Cathy Anderson, Williston

Damage to democracy

Sen. Joe Manchin, not Trump, will go down as the biggest-ever enemy of American democracy in the annals of history. Trump did whatever he did, but Sen. Manchin has ensured that that becomes the law of the land, and thereby has done irreparable damage to American democracy.

Fair and free voting is the lifeline of democracy. By voting against changes that would allow the Voting Rights Bill to pass, Sen. Manchin has driven the last nail in the coffin of American democracy.

Nand Sharma, Gainesville

Questionable role model

What possible positive expectations can be had of a man who models himself on Donald Trump? This is the guy who recommended "somehow" fitting an ultraviolet light into the lungs and drinking instant death, aka bleach. He is the most bizarrely unqualified demagogue to ever occupy the office of governor.

The challenge for the rational segment of our population is to navigate Ron DeSantis' bizarro world without giving up hope.

Greg Fey, Gainesville

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This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Letters to the editor for Jan. 26, 2022