Thursday’s letters: Politics vs. public health, GOP’s future, cause of migration, more – Sarasota Herald-Tribune
DeSantis about politics, not public health
I moved to Florida in spite of the fact that Gov. Ron DeSantis was elected.
DeSantis is preventing businesses from developing protocols to protect public safety. It is not a violation of HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) for cruise industries to require proof of vaccination in order to ensure the safety of passengers.
DeSantis is pandering to his political base and disregarding public health common sense while spending taxpayer money unnecessarily; there will be credible lawsuits.
Speaking of taxpayer money, it is worth reminding your readership that President Joe Biden’s proposed tax increase will affect only those making $400,000 or more and the money will go toward needed infrastructure improvements.
I am appalled by the inability of most GOP leaders to condemn the Jan. 6 insurrection and hold people accountable. Moreover, the GOP continues to undermine our hard-earned democracy by promulgating false claims of election fraud and attempting to restrict voting.
I hope that more Floridians will come to their senses and consume credible news rather than conspiracy theories spread by social media and news outlets that promote falsehoods. I also hope that the GOP will regain respectability.
Thank you for your responsible journalism.
Barbara Thompson, Venice
GOP: What does the future hold?
There is only one issue that matters today: whether our country can survive when the once great Republican Party has devolved into an authoritarian cult, a party that stands for nothing (just read their 2020 platform – oh, right, there wasn’t one), but lives only for hate.
Hatred of Black people, hatred of women, hatred of gay and trans people, hatred of science and intellect, even hatred of democracy and reality – the reality that Republicans are a rapidly shrinking minority, the reality that Donald Trump is a lifelong liar and serial failure who lost the popular vote twice, never reached a 50 percent approval rating, motivated the largest turnout in history in the middle of a pandemic to vote against him and cost his party the House, Senate and White House.
The stated goal of today’s GOP is not to compete for voters and win elections. It is to suppress the vote and overturn elections that it loses.
Either it will be defeated and reborn as a sane conservative force, or it will seize power by cheating or violence and the American experiment that started in 1776 will end in tragedy.
Eric Grevstad, Bradenton
Big Lie could bring on malaise, doom
No government can permanently survive the distrust of its population. For example, the Soviet Union collapsed not by losing a war but because its citizens distrusted the government, workers expended minimal effort, the economy slowly declined and an internal malaise eventually undermined the government.
Donald Trump’s attacks on the last election risk creating a similar malaise in America. He invented the “Big Lie” that the election was stolen without providing a shred of evidence because he was threatened by defeat.
Loyalists accept the lie, as shown by the grotesque current recount of votes in Arizona.
Republican senators defeated a bipartisan commission to investigate the Jan. 6 attack on Congress that intended to block Joe Biden’s election because they were afraid it would reveal that Trump stimulated that attack.
If the Big Lie gains traction, a malaise similar to the one that doomed the Soviet Union may spread, imperiling this country.
The Big Lie strikes at the foundation of democratic government. The peaceful transfer of power from one administration to another is the bedrock of a democracy. Challenging that transfer stimulates insurrections, like the one Jan 6.
Therefore, a repudiation of Trump’s fraudulent claims is vital for the survival of freedom in this great country.
Sigmund Tobias, Sarasota
Questions for judge who overturned gun ban
Some questions for the federal judge in California who recently equated AR-15 assault rifles with Swiss Army knives, in overturning a ban on assault weapons:
• How many combat soldiers have attacked an enemy position with a Swiss Army knife?
• How many homeowners have repelled dangerous intruders with a Swiss Army knife? With an AR-15?
When, and if, you have the totals you will have a number equivalent to your IQ.
Charles H. Dudley, Sarasota
Addressing the root cause of migration
If you have read “American Dirt” or “The Four Winds” you can understand why desperate people leave the home they love.
Visiting Guatemala and tacMexico, Vice President Kamala Harris was where she needed to be to address the root cause of migration: fear of violence and lacking the resources to provide for the family.
Irene Ward, Lakewood Ranch