Your Words: letters to the editor + Clay Jones’ comic

ILLUSTRATION BY CLAY JONES

¶ Don’t be afraid of a little prick

It’s been yet another week of insanity as our governor refuses to make any moves to safeguard his constituents’ health, to the point that the president of these here You-nited States called him out: “If you’re not going to help, at least get out of the way of people trying to do the right thing.” Gov. Nero’s response? To claim Biden has “imported more virus from around the world by having a wide-open southern border.” OK, crazy. @Tiffany Taylor It’s one thing not to pass mandates but it’s entirely another level to actively pass legislation that ties businesses’, counties’ and municipalities’ hands to institute mitigation protocols. @Lara Zee DeSantis’ own statement shows he’s more interested in economic recovery than health recovery: “We’ll have businesses open, tourists back, we’re not going backward. … Would rather have 5,000 young people infected than 500 more vulnerable elderly.” @Tony Patercsak Whose side is he on? Not mine. Bad for America. Bad for Florida. Bad for business and bad for public safety. @Evy Lopes I’m so tired of Republicans ruining Florida. Do your job and protect the people above your own political gains. @Steven Mumby Can we acknowledge that this thing is 100% pandering for votes by attacking Dems for “taking away freedom” from the uneducated idiots who keep voting for them?

¶ Masks just get in the way when you’re yelling ‘fire’

Regarding Jeffrey Billman’s commentary on July 21 about misinformation regarding COVID-19 on social media, I must strongly disagree. The old saying that “freedom of speech does not mean that it’s all right to yell ‘fire’ in a crowded theater” applies to this situation. Persons who refuse immunization because of misinformation, and then, even unknowingly, transmit COVID-19 to others, are responsible for the continuation of the pandemic and possibly the serious illness or death of our elders, young children, and other vulnerable citizens. We cannot allow them to continue falsely screaming “fire” in our theaters. Freedom of speech does not mean it is fine to say things which lead to illness and death, even if indirectly. As a physician, I have seen some sad outcomes because otherwise sensible people believe untrue things they read on social media or the internet in general, especially during this pandemic. The only “slippery slope” here is the one that will lead to endemic COVID-19.

— Katherine Welty, Winter Garden

¶ Please keep your nasty pandemic out of my leisure pursuits

The article I stumbled upon while looking for new restaurants to potentially try, began with a very partisan, anti-conservative paragraph, very unbecoming of an entertainment article and your media company. This was the statement: “Let’s put 2020 where it belongs — in a slop-filled dumpster strewn with red baseball caps coated in fryer grease and set ablaze by a flamethrower-brandishing Anthony Fauci. …” Most of us have had enough with the partisan political rhetoric being thrown at us by professional sports organizations and other entertainment companies. Enough. I will likely not partake in any information you continue to put out into the community going forward. I do hope you take this into consideration and just stay in your lane in the future. Thanks so much for your consideration.

— Leslie Holloway, Maitland