Letters: DeSantis has opened dangerous can of worms with educational interference

From what we understand, our governor does not want children in Florida schools to be made uncomfortable or offended by subjects being presented. Outlawing an AP course in African American Studies would certainly keep them protected from learning of serious evils that dot our history. But why stop there?

Surely the theory of evolution is upsetting to some students. Should Darwin’s breakthrough be taught in Florida schools? Personal experience has shown that many university students are very uncomfortable with the rigors of calculus, chemistry or physics. Should they be forbidden?

Education must be about exposing young people to facts and ideas, while also helping them develop the skills to decide how to deal with them. We generally ask these questions: What is it about this that makes you uncomfortable? How could the situation have been different? What can we do in the future to ensure this never happens again?

All are thoughts any purposeful adult should consider. History is rife with terrible evils that makes any thinking person uncomfortable — the Holocaust, Armenian genocide, our treatment of Native Americans and enslaved Africans, to name a few. Outlawing discussion of these issues does not make them disappear — it is just a tragic attempt to deny the facts about what actually occurred and risks their repetition.

Does our governor really want to take us back to the 1925 Scopes “Monkey” Trial, when a high school teacher had to defend his practice of teaching science that some found offensive? It is ironic that all this interference in education is coming from the Republican “keep-the-government-out-of-my-affairs” Party.

Gov. Ron DeSantis has opened a can of dangerous worms. It must stop.

Fran and Pete Sheridan, retired teachers, Atlantic Beach

Woods nailed it on education

I am a retired elementary school teacher and principal from the public education system. Mark Woods did an excellent job in his Jan. 29 column, outlining why we all need to pay attention to what Ron DeSantis is doing with his power as governor. But a key issue — why public education is critical to having a successful democracy — needs to be addressed.

The purpose of public education is not to cater to one political group or serve at the pleasure of a government leader. Education is not about controlling others. It is about independence and freedom of all individuals. It is about unity, not division.

Public education is also about teaching facts. Without facts, you can't have truth and without truth, you cannot have trust. A shared reality is necessary for a democracy. Public schools enhance these concepts by teaching civic virtues — honesty, respect, responsibility and self-discipline. These virtues are necessary to maintain a culture of freedom, as well as the rule of law and order.

Taxpayer dollars should not be used to increase a voucher system that has already been chipping away at public school budgets to fund private and religious education. Plus, HB1 will expand this system to include paying parents to homeschool their children. Does paying a parent to teach their own child even make sense?

Mr. Woods stated it best with his headline: “State of education in Florida: Shades of ‘1984,’ visions of 2024."

Maggie Barker, Jacksonville Beach

Voucher bill flawed

The universal vouchers bill, HB 1, will eliminate the income cap, so even billionaires will qualify for a voucher (subsidy) if it passes as proposed.

There are 500,000 students, currently enrolled in private schools, who do not receive voucher money. If HB 1 passes, they will become eligible for the $8,000 subsidy, which comes to $4 billion. How will that be funded?

According to Florida’s School Choice website, there are 2,311 Florida private schools (out of of 3,097) that accept vouchers. Of those, 1,598 voucher schools are unaccredited.

It has previously been reported that 61% of voucher students returned to public schools within two years. Was the tuition raised? Were promises not kept? HB 1 includes no safeguards to ensure that private schools offer parents enough information to make an informed choice.

There is nothing to stop a voucher school from raising tuition. There is also no requirement that a voucher-funded private school be graded like district-run and charter schools, so parents can compare them. There's also some evidence that the organization the state pays to distribute the voucher money continues to distribute funds to private schools that break nondiscrimination laws, as laid out in Florida Statute 1002.421.

Tell your legislators to vote “NO” on HB-1 at ActionNetwork.org/letters/hb12023

Susan Aertker, education committee chair, National Organization for Women-Jacksonville

‘Money talks’ on rezoning

A rezoning that happened very close to my neighborhood around 2018 was very similar to the Cedar Point Road rezoning, reported on Jan. 23. The builder wanted to put 67 homes on 17 acres that were zoned Open Rural. All of the properties surrounding the land in question were anywhere from 5 to 10 acres.

After attending three meetings that included members of the land and use zoning committee, the City Council member (at the time), the builder and the same lawyer (Paul Harden), it was evident the meetings were just a dog and pony show for the neighbors opposed to the rezoning plan. The officials attending and the lawyer were very chummy, like they just came from the golf course, so it was easy to see what would eventually happen.

This has happened many times in the area where I live and it will continue to happen, because no consideration is ever given to the residents impacted by it.

Landowners should be able to sell their land when they want, but new buyers should have to use it with the same zoning. When a builder or developer purchases a piece of property, they should have to follow the zoning of the Duval County Land Use Maps.

Just as bad as the rezoning are the small lots — removing all the trees to make construction easier, two-story "shoe boxes" with no room for a swimming pool and being able to reach out a window and shake their neighbor's hand.

Unfortunately, the entire process reeks of "Money talks, BS walks."

Richard Pierce, Jacksonville

Church statement not surprising

So, a church asks its members to affirm their belief in the church's teachings. How is this news? Well, we've arrived at this moment in time since the LGBT community seems to want to cancel all traditional morality — to bully religious organizations into tolerating the intolerable and accepting the unacceptable.

Membership organizations require their members to abide by the rules and policies of the organization. The article even says the statement on biblical sexuality was "approved by church leaders and lay officials and voted on by the congregation." Similarly, the church has received a "windfall of support" for its statement. And, "the church's position on LGBTQ+ issues isn't new."

Yet, the author could only find two people who disagree for the story? This is advocacy, not journalism and appears the intent of the author is to cast the church in a negative light for being intolerant, mean-spirited, backwards and judgmental.

It's my belief that if we sincerely love what is true and good, we cannot have any sympathy for error and evil. If we are to truly love the sinner and contribute to their salvation, then we must abhor the evil that manifests in him or her.

I stand with First Baptist Church for fulfilling its mission to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, no matter how unpleasant those truths are to some.

Steve Holder, Jacksonville

DeSantis no ‘environmental savior’

In her Jan. 22 column, Anna Upton of The Everglades Trust (an acknowledged political nonprofit) gushes over Gov. Ron DeSantis’ commitment to The Everglades. She crowns him “America’s Everglades Governor” — and by inference an environmental steward — but is betrayed by a deliberate Okeechobee-sized blind spot in her fawning column.

DeSantis’ bar for protecting The Everglades is extremely low and devoid of political risk, as it employs favorable optics and is “the right thing to do.” In addition, substantial Everglades funding comes from the federal government he despises, which also makes for an easy lift.

His science and resilience officers will be no match for the next big hurricane, as he declines acknowledging climate change and proposes no mitigating measures. He won’t take on the supportive but environmentally degrading sugar industry, the friendly developers overtaxing fresh and wastewater infrastructure or the environmentally burdensome large cruise ships docking in Key West.

And only with apologies has he vetoed Florida Power & Light’s nasty bill to penalize home solar owners.

He has also misguidedly prohibited state retirement funds from investing in profitable but “woke” corporations that include environmental, climate and societal concerns in their investment strategies. He’s no environmental savior.

Michael Miller, Ponte Vedra Beach

More doubts about Orleck plan

The letter about the USS Orleck in the Jan. 28 edition was a good one in my opinion. Let me add that I am also not a fan of the project; it is a small warship, and I doubt it will attract many visitors within or outside the city.

If I recall correctly, the city proposes to let it dock somewhere at the Shipyards property. If the ship does not attract some given number of visitors in some period, the owner should have to move it somewhere or pay to keep in place.

And that makes me wonder: Who exactly owns the vessel? Who is responsible for its upkeep? If a storm or other event sinks it or does other damage, who is responsible for refloating or repair? Hopefully that is not the city, but someone or some entity that is financially viable for some time to come and who must keep a bond in place to assure its ability to perform.

My prediction is that not too many years from now, it will be a rusty eyesore and the city will be stuck dealing with it.

William Nussbaum, Jacksonville

No excuse for Baunach's death

As reported on Jan. 30, the murder of Katie Baunach — despite filing an abuse report and a restraining order, among other efforts — reveals failure of the police and courts at a criminal level. Defunding the police is a naive action, but we certainly should refund them.

Using our present available technology, there should be a citizen protection unit that tracks potential killers by non-removable signalers attached to them and their potential victims. A cadre of screens and human monitors could see when the two signals come into some set proximity and the potential victim could be phoned/texted to take shelter or flee. Ideally, a police call could follow up on the infraction.

There is simply no excuse for what happened to that woman.

Sharon Scholl, Atlantic Beach

Terrapin Creek project illogical

Our city council must stop acquiescing to big money developers now. There should be no more destruction of land and trees anywhere near the Timucuan, Cedar Creek and Pumpkin Hill preserves, nor anywhere near or around the 7 Creeks Recreation Area.

Rory Diamond’s comment was basically to let them build, then there will be “a bunch more people” to protest future development.

What kind of logic is that?

I challenge everyone on the council to put on your boots, go to the woods and the waterways. Please don’t take this from us.

Mike McCreary, Sr., owner, Baymeadows Movers, Jacksonville

Ending comments a good move

I would like to offer my support for the decision to end public commenting on Jacksonville.com, as reported on Jan. 31. While most public forums were once a place for civil debate and enlightening discussion, most have unfortunately become a dark downward spiral of trolling and misinformation. I cannot imagine the level of administration and discernment that must require from your team.

Thank you for providing our community with outstanding local coverage and your continued commitment to engage with your readers in other, more appropriate, ways.

Annie Pilling Howe, Jacksonville 

A question of leadership

In the U.S., we have five federal military service academies. The graduates are expected to lead folks who come from every walk of life. A national police academy modeled after the military schools might instill what is currently missing in local law enforcement — professional leadership.

Like the academies, discipline must be mandatory. There's nothing wrong with our individual police officers.

Ed Robertson, Avondale

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: State has opened dangerous can of worms with educational interference