Let the sunshine in

DeSantis’ legal fight over secrecy | Feb. 5

Government in the sunshine or government in the dark? The citizens of Florida voted a long time ago for sunshine laws in this state. It’s even specified in the Florida Constitution. Russia does not share much with its citizens, nor does China. We Americans need to be vigilant and protect the rights we struggled for and won. Our elected officials have no right to assume they are omnipotent, unless we let them. To quote a former Florida attorney general, Pam Bondi, “In Florida, transparency is not up to the whim or grace of public officials. Instead, it is an enforceable right.” Let’s keep it that way. Elected officials, from the governor on down, need periodic reminders that they work for the people in the full light of day.

L.J. Phillips, Brooksville

Raise taxes as necessary

Mint the coin? | Feb. 5

Once again, Republicans and Democrats are battling over the debt ceiling. As usual, the Republicans are saying to cut spending, and the Democrats want to raise the debt ceiling. Unfortunately, neither option will solve the problem for the long term. Politicians have been raising the debt ceiling for as long as I can remember. The basic problem is the government needs more revenue to fund its operations. Constantly increasing the debt only gets the country in deeper and deeper. Cutting spending is difficult. Some of the biggest items in the budget are defense, Social Security and Medicare. No politician is going to cut defense after the recent Chinese balloon event. Reducing Social Security and Medicare would be a direct attack on the most vulnerable of our population. As we have seen in the past, either of these solutions is temporary and will only result in the same problem next year. The best solution, therefore, is to raise taxes to the point they will cover the government’s needs. The increased taxes will provide a continuing source of income, including pay-down of the debt, which will release additional funds as the debt interest will gradually decrease.

Barry Kreiling, Brooksville

An easy fix

Throw the book at the thought police | Column, Jan. 29

When I was in school way back in the 1960s, if the school library did not have the title I was looking for, I stopped on the way home from school at the public library and checked it out. It was and still is that simple.

Bill Wick, Palm Harbor

Safety first

Police divided over Fla. gun bill | Feb. 6

It’s a shame our Florida GOP leaders can’t keep our students as safe from gunfire as they apparently are from a Toni Morrison novel, at least in some schools.

Martin Fouts, St. Petersburg