Home-rule foes aren’t for the people
In my opinion, those politicians in Tallahassee who are doing the bidding of corporate and elite interests to undermine our home rule in Orange County are corrupt, inept and greedy.
Corrupt, because their loyalty should be to the Constitution and “We the People,” not subservience to their big-money campaign interests or an arrogant and intolerant ideology.
Inept, because they are lazy in solving the real problems faced by Floridians, instead choosing the easy way out, or creating problems where there were none.
Greedy, because their political orientation has become what they stand to gain from their donors and re-election — not working for the common good.
If that is too crude a way of putting it, so be it. There is no “nice” way to bring about change. We need to stop being polite to politicians who do not uphold their oath to office by misrepresenting their intentions and faithfulness to the voters.
I believe the most important value is not party affiliation or the size of financial support, but sincerity. It is whether those politicians truly believe that a great moral power will be invested in them and therefore will be called to the highest form of justice within the law.
The No. 2 value is respect. This one goes both ways: to the voter when the politician abides by their will, and from the voter when the politicians keep their word.
The third value is trust. It is the regard with which people uphold and safeguard the legitimacy of the system, based on the support and protection they have received from politicians.
It is not too much to ask for. Is it?
— Nelson Betancourt, Orlando
Nelson Betancourt is a declared 2028 candidate for Orange County Commission, District 3.
Rollins’ defense of stolen land
My wife and I have supported the Annie Russell Theatre at Rollins College for years.
Recent Playbills have stated “the land of Central Florida, where we live and create together, is stolen land. It rightly belongs to the native Seminole and Timucua people. We recognize that these lands were obtained through genocide and mass ethnic cleansing.”
The plays have had nothing to do with the American Indians. This message of stolen land and Black injustice has been in every Playbill. The question is why?
Is this message a Rollins mea culpa? If it is, then I would like to point out that the theater is not a confessional, there are no priests to give the college absolution, and self-flagellation will not change history.
The Playbill also states “our silence as we grow will only perpetuate white supremacy.” Statements like this only create division in our community and take away from the beauty of theater magic.
If Rollins feels so strongly about this, they could give the land back to the Native American tribes.
Presently, the student enrollment of Rollins College is around 3,000, but only a small fraction come from Native American tribes. Instead of empty words and cliché phrases in a Playbill, the college should recruit and finance the entire education of Seminole and Timucuan Indians.
— Stan J. Sujka, Winter Park
Who’s the real loser?
President Trump called the American freestyle skier Hunter Hess a “real loser” on Truth Social after the Olympic athlete exercised his First Amendment rights and expressed negative feelings regarding the divided political climate in our country (“Trump’s immigration agenda roils opening days of Winter Olympics,” Feb. 10).
On the other hand, can you think of one positive public comment the nation’s 45th president has made regarding the stellar athletes who are proudly representing our country at the Winter Olympics in Italy?
Perhaps the president should look in the mirror and see the real loser.
— Neil Levine, Boca Raton
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