Letters to the Editor: May 22, 2022

Moms for Liberty: We support good educators and good education

Reviewing what has been written in the media about Moms for Liberty and about myself, as local chairman for the organization in Indian River County, focusing primarily on what we are against, it might be best to point out we generally are for what most educators seek.

I’ve come to realize that the majority of educators went into the profession to improve the mind and education of children from kindergarten through post graduate education. Most take extra time for students who need extra help. Many take their own money to buy backpacks, books and notepads for students.M

The problem I and most members of Moms for Liberty have with public education does not involve the majority of educators. Our problem is with a small but dedicated group of political activist educators who first began dominating in unionization of teachers and then began intimidating administrators of education, from principals, to superintendents, to presidents of higher education.

Let’s take for example shaming children in the first three years of their education if they happen to be white; or having young students question their own gender. I know few teachers who would do that. But curricula often supported by unions and some elite educational professionals think these are necessary for racial and gender equity.

Moms for Liberty absolutely knows how significant teachers are for our children. That is exactly why we have become involved in how our children are educated. We totally honor teachers. We are taking issue only with some of the process. It is our intent to do this with respect. But for respect to work, it requires respect for parents from those in charge of our educational institutions. We don’t co-parent with the government.

Jennifer Pippin, Sebastian, is the chairman of Moms for Liberty —Indian River, Florida.

Indian River-based story jogs World War II-era memories from Daytona

I read the Sunday story about the boys living near the Indian River back in the 1930s, and it brought back memories of when we were living with my grandfather in Daytona Beach during WWII. We were there because of a fire in our home in the northeast and the inability to get anything to repair it because of the war.

We lived in Gramps' stucco duplex, some of which are still around, maybe 150 yards from a lagoon on the river. Across from the house were the chicken houses where I would go every morning to gather whatever eggs had been laid. Of course we always carried a large forked limb to catch the black and king snakes, which were also after the eggs. You knew because of the egg-shaped bump in the snake after swallowing the egg whole.

Gramps had an old wooden rowboat, and we would go out into the river at night with a hand net for mullet. Some times the school would be so large you thought you could walk across the river on them as they bubbled on the surface.

No air-conditioning, of course, and you could find spiders as large as your hand. On the beach in Daytona there was only one hotel and that was a large stone one on the northern end. A small boardwalk was there with maybe 10 concessions. Now as you ride down the same street you would not know the ocean is there since you can't see it because of the hotels and condos.

My sister met her husband there. He was in the military recovery hospital, a 15-year-old sergeant who landed in the first wave at Normandy.

It was a wonderful period for us.

Edward Marasi, Port St. Lucie

What are elected officials doing while insurance policies go out the window?

My homeowners' insurance has been canceled. The company decided that they had too much exposure in Florida. The letter stated that 56,500 policies were being canceled. Remind me what our governor was working on this week.

Holly Dressler, Sebastian

Gov. DeSantis is treating his term as a steppingstone to the presidency

We have a governor in Florida, one Ron DeSantis, who has used his tenure as nothing more than a steppingstone to the presidency of the United States. He used Donald Trump's playbook, and a “mini me” approach to secure his victory as our governor. Since achieving his seat of power he has used revenge as his main method of dealing with his adversaries.

Revenge on anyone who has opposed his agenda or his concept of what laws should be on our books. He has been a proponent of legislation that has divided our citizenry, and turned Florida voters against each other.

Much like Trump, he has tried to dismantle equality among voters, Black or white. He tried, through a special session, to redraw voting districts to eliminate Black voters in the northern part of our state, thereby making it all but impossible to have a fair election.

He only has aspirations for the top prize, and will do everything in his power to achieve this. I firmly believe he cares not for his constituents if they have reservations regarding his laws.

He has directed his vengeance against Disney, because they dared speak up against his biased laws. And now the good people of Orange County will be on the hook for $2,200 to $2,800 more in taxes.

His politics, like Trump’s, are more and more resembling the Mafia.

Joseph de Phillips, Stuart

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Letters to the Editor: May 22, 2022