Wrong priorities

DeSantis visits Texas border, where Florida resources are spent on enforcement | July 18

In his unofficial bid for the highest office in the land, Ron “Don Quixote” DeSantis is off chasing windmills in Texas so he can look presidential before his adoring Fox News followers. Our governor is using his office for free publicity to propel himself into the national spotlight, while ignoring the very pressing problems here at home. Our governor has abandoned his post regarding these issues, and since the Republicans have held a stranglehold on state government for over 20 years, most of those problems are of his own party’s making. Good luck, Man of La Mancha, just don’t forget you only won in Florida by one-half of a percentage point.

Brian Valsavage, St. Petersburg

What’s in Texas?

DeSantis visits Texas border, where Florida resources are spent on enforcement | July 18

I cannot fathom what Gov. Ron DeSantis thinks that his role as governor is? Red Tide is blooming, new COVID cases in Florida are leading the country percentage wise, buildings are collapsing, but he is off to the Texas-Mexico border? Let’s not forget he wants to start a war in Cuba. We, the people of Florida, need to stop buying the GOP sound bites and pay attention to how a servant of the public is performing.

Diane Pearson, Dunedin

Give the troops options

Why is Fox News’ propaganda still broadcast on the Armed Forces Network? | Column, July 18

The author of this column was quick to point to his credentials and background as proof of his ability to comment on Fox News being allowed on the Armed Forces Network. He claims that what he deems as propaganda will undermine troop cohesiveness, destroy morale and have deleterious effects on readiness. With all his self-proclaimed intelligence, he conveniently failed to mention that in addition to Fox News, there is a steady stream of CNN, MSNBC, PBS and others. He did not mention left-wing propaganda being force-fed to our troops.

I for one think the men and women and non-binary folks that serve our great country have the ability to glean the occasional kernel of non-biased truth that can be found in each of the opposing networks news streams. To boot Fox or any conservative viewpoint from the Armed Forces Network leaving only left-wing news is wrong. The only ones who support a one-sided argument are those who wish to control the narrative. We don’t need our military fed only one viewpoint. Present both sides and let the troops decide who is on the side of truth. I’m sure they can figure it out.

Steve Thomas, Tarpon Springs

The military ‘wants it’

Why is Fox News’ propaganda still broadcast on the Armed Forces Network? | Column, July 18

The columnist wonders why Fox News is broadcast to our military. The reason is very simple: The military and those serving want it. While serving and putting their lives in harm’s way, the last thing they need to hear is that they are racists, defending a county ripe with systemic racism, and that they are occupiers, which is how many people on the other news channels now describe the country.

John Spengler, Spring Hill

Give Trump a chance

Dear President Trump. We need your help fighting COVID. Here’s how | Editorial, July 18

The notion that former President Donald Trump could rally his base to take the COVID jab is creative. Somewhat similarly, a clinic in the Ozarks is trying to reach the audience who lied to pollsters but voted for Trump, by offering “no one will ever know” secret vaccinations. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data indicate that Gen Z — people born after about 1997 — is a larger and more vexing slice of the hold-out pie. Numerous studies suggest that tangible positive or negative incentives attract more people to get vaccinated than celebrity endorsements. But half a million vaccinations and 25,000 new cases daily argue for giving the political P.T. Barnum a go. We need an insurrection against the current impasse.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will have to promise to walk-back their campaign disparagement of a Trump vaccine endorsement, and their post inaugural faint praise of their predecessor’s warp speed success. The media would need to promise to cheer Mr. Trump’s effort and not repeat the violations of medical privacy and snarky comments which greeted the former president’s treatment and vaccination history. Restoring Trump’s access to social media — of course, only for this vaccine effort — would support the newspaper’s recommendation. So, this is worth a shot, to get more shots.

Pat Byrne, Largo