Readers sound off
Disney, death penalty, Florida politics and a [BLEEP]-hole columnist
Dear Scott, thanks so much for the column today. [“Florida legislators want to videotape teachers. I say we put body cams on lawmakers.”] This bill is an insult to good teachers everywhere. If this bill passes, I can see more teachers quitting and adding to the shortage. Judy
Judy, some Florida lawmakers would consider that an added bonus.
I think all politicians should have to wear body cameras — the kind that automatically turn on when lobbyists come around. Joan
Good idea. The cameras would rarely shut off.
Blow it out your a**. No one listens to your propaganda. Jamie
Jamie, here at the Sentinel, we strive to offer the most a**-blowing propaganda in town.
Thank you for your column today on the death penalty. [“With 324 on death row, Florida is among small number of states still executing people”] It’s hard to believe that this is still being debated among modern and civilized people. In 1994, Justice Harry Blackmun strongly objected to capital punishment because of possible errors in sentencing and the difficulty of trying to provide fairness and consistency and said, “The path the Court has chosen lessens us all.” Nancy
A lot of the support for capital punishment seems based on emotions more than thoughtful analysis. The death penalty doesn’t deter crime. It’s not doled out evenly among race, economic status and even mental fitness. And we have concrete evidence people have been wrongly sent to death row — dozens of times in Florida alone.
Execute one a day and it will be empty in under a year. Think of all that saved money.
Glenn M
Hi Glenn. I’d genuinely like to know more about your thinking here. You just read a piece that said, for every three people executed, Florida later learned another was wrongly put on death row. Some of the people on death row now still have pending appeals for DNA tests. And your proposed solution is just to kill them all anyway?
(Glenn M. never responded.)
I was for the death penalty in Florida until I read your article. I agree, there’s just too much uncertainty about it. Glenn C
Glenn, I don’t get many notes like this
Merry f ***ing Christmas, a**hole. Art
Art, you have a unique way of honoring our savior’s birth.
Scott, you should consider running for office: mayor, governor, president? Susan
I think I’d have trouble securing Art’s vote.
Hi Scott. My husband and I are longtime subscribers. I am equally horrified and embarrassed by the current effort of legislators to help white folks who are made uncomfortable by talks about racism. [“Targeting Disney: Florida’s anti-’woke’ law is for whiny snowflakes. It’s also unconstitutional.”] I’ve worked at two large local companies. Both had a day of mandatory training to learn about the company’s values … and also videos about how to stay safe during an active shooter incident. Perhaps the folks in Tallahassee could pass some legislation to protect me from
BEING SHOT AT WORK. The idea of that makes me a lot more uncomfortable than talking about legitimate American history. The Goodwins
I appreciate the perspective. But GOP legislators seem more scared of history lessons about segregation than criminals’ ability to buy high-capacity rifles without background checks.
Hey Scott. So, in the interest of free enterprise, you would also be okay with Disney promoting Wiccanism or Scientology? It’s the same bathtub as wokeism. Joe
Joe, the only people who ask: “Well, would you allow this speech or that speech?” are people who don’t truly support free speech. If Disney wants to tell its employees it believes in anything from unicorns to tyranny, that’s the company’s business. When government starts telling individuals and businesses what they can and can’t say and think, you should be worried. Even if you’re not, I am.
Scott, is a civics class still mandatory in school? The Larsons
Yes. And it has been for years — even when Florida politicians were claiming we needed to “put civics back in the classroom!” Some of those politicians need the civics classes more than the kids.
When will we all realize that the greatest threat to democracy is public schools being denigrated? To be successful at sowing fear and distrust requires a public not educated enough to think or believe there is a better way. Paul
Sounds like propaganda to me.
ORLANDO SENTENIAL PLACE THE RACE CARD.
A.P. A.P., this was a rare instance where I needed an interpreter for something allegedly written in English.
Scott, thanks for putting a spotlight on these rotten people. [“Florida education scandal reveals conflicts, money-grubbing for tax dollars.”] I despise people who undermine public education while pursuing their selfish interests. Shame on them.
R.M.
This case seemed particularly unseemly. The state’s top education officials pushed to privatize an entire public school district — and then some tried to personally profit off the contracts.
Your column today is the best I’ve read to date concerning the Jefferson County education scandal. Today, with so many examples of blatant yet publicly unacknowledged corruption in government operations, we are numb to it. We almost expect it. Randa
I sadly agree. This scandal was at the highest levels of Florida’s education. Yet most Floridians barely blinked. The governor and education commissioner seemed eager to sweep it all under the rug, and the citizenry has been pretty accommodating.
You are the reason I won’t read the Orlando Slantinal. Richard
Richard, I’m grateful for non-readers. They’re some of the most loyal followers we have. Some write over and over to complain about pieces they claim they didn’t read and to let me know they won’t be reading the pieces they’re sure to complain about in the future.