A shoutout to Naples Children Foundation | Opinion letters
Our readers share their opinions on a variety of topics
We at ABLE Academy are pleased to see the bold new changes for our longtime supporter and collaborator, the Naples Children Foundation (formerly Naples Children & Education Foundation). Since 2009, the foundation’s unwavering support has enabled ABLE Academy to deliver life-changing therapeutic and outreach services to children with autism, developmental disabilities and behavioral health needs and their families, helping them realize their full potential.
The refreshed brand truly reflects NCF’s tireless commitment to providing the full scope of childhood wellbeing, including essential child advocacy and health care services, in addition tocritical education programming. As a proud Blueprint Partner of NCF, we applaud their team for showcasing their successes and year-round impacts that they’ve achieved over 25 years of improving the lives of vulnerable children in our community.
Colleen Cornwall, CEO/Founder, ABLE Academy, Naples
Indifference is never neutral
While digitizing family papers collected over the last 80 years, I found a letter from Weitersweiler, Germany, dated October 30, 1936, addressed to my grandfather: “Dear Cousin in America.” It described humble, land-owning farmers — “not rich but grateful” — and then turned to politics: “I am 81, and never concerned myself about politics. Since 1933, the beginning of the Third Reich, one notices in the smallest village that our great leader…concerns himself about everything… Our great leader Adolf Hitler wants no more war…he wants honesty and righteousness…We have the greatest confidence and all wish to cooperate for the good of our good German Fatherland.” That was the last letter. After the war our family learned this cousin had died in 1941 in France, where he and other relatives had been sent by the German government during the occupation. Those relatives later lost all livestock and equipment when forced out of France in 1945. Of his ten grandsons, four died in World War II. His claim of political indifference — “never concerned myself about politics” — is a cautionary message: mindless repetition of party lines hides danger. Indifference is never neutral. When people stop questioning, truth dies quietly — and history begins to echo.
Charles R. McClinton, Cape Coral
Lack of due process
In Florida, ICE’s reach extends far beyond its stated mission. What is often portrayed as an agency focused only on undocumented immigrants with criminal records has ensnared lawful residents and even U.S. citizens. Without any judicial oversight, ICE routinely targets individuals who are here legally, including asylum seekers and green card applicants who are simply waiting for their cases to be processed.
Over the past year alone, hundreds of Floridians, among them U.S. citizens, military veterans, and lawful immigrants, have been wrongfully detained or even threatened with deportation. These incidents reveal a disturbing flaw at the heart of ICE’s operations: reliance on incomplete or inaccurate data that leads to unlawful imprisonment and undermines one of our most fundamental principles: due process under the Constitution.
Equally alarming is the near-total lack of accountability. There are few meaningful safeguards to prevent ICE from acting on bias, whether it’s based on someone’s skin color, accent, or place of birth. This unchecked power means that almost anyone could be caught in ICE’s net, regardless of their legal status or citizenship.
Before applauding the next ICE raid or deportation, consider who is truly being targeted. Many of those detained are not “illegal immigrants” at all – they are our neighbors, our service workers, our veterans – people who have followed the law. ICE’s actions too often disregard legality, humanity, and the ideals of our justice system. I’m alarmed at the lack of due process and appalled by our neighbors’ families being torn apart.
Sally Miller, Marco Island
‘Operation Dirtbag’
From the Naples Daily News November 14 issue “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials announced that more than 200 undocumented immigrants accused (Note: “ACCUSED!”) of sex crimes were arrested in an immigration enforcement sweep dubbed “Operation Dirtbag.” Too bad they didn’t arrest the biggest dirtbag of them all!
Jon Pipkin, Naples
History repeats
While visiting Rome Italy celebrating our wedding anniversary and a major birthday, I was watching a YouTube of Rick Steves about the art of Europe. Rick was talking about a huge painting in the Louvre and how Napoleon Bonaparte had been part of the French revolution driving out the aristocracy. He was a hero to the masses of French men and women who had starved while Marie Antoinette allegedly said “let them eat cake.” But the point is that while starting out a friend of the average Frenchman, Napoleon’s megalomania led to his becoming no better than the king he replaced. He reveled in his ballrooms and gold trimmings. Crowned himself emperor and betrayed the ideals of the revolution. This is the same thing we are experiencing today. While Trump got elected promising lower prices, the reality is that he now withholds food from tens of millions of Americans, a vast number from reliably GOP voting states while he oversees the destruction of the White House no doubt to be replaced with his gold plated ballroom – the same kind of gawdy gold plated selfish stuff done by Napoleon, but this time to honor king Donald Himself. It’s amazing how history keeps repeating itself – MAGAlomania is fully at work!
Bob Geltner, U.S. Air Force veteran/ captain, North Fort Myers
Political theater
The recent government shutdown struck me less as a policy crisis than as a performance — a bit of political theater staged, this time, largely by Democrats.
To be clear, I have little sympathy for the Trump administration’s policies or for the authoritarian tendencies I see taking root under his leadership. But Democrats, facing waning credibility and mounting pressure from their own base to “do something” about Trump and his congressional allies, appeared to seize the shutdown as an opportunity to dramatize their opposition.
The script was written around affordability and health care — both worthy priorities — yet the immediate trigger was the expiration of enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies, which were always meant to be temporary. By holding up government funding, Democrats risked collateral damage to programs like SNAP, on which millions depend for food assistance. In that light, the shutdown may have done more harm to working families than good for the uninsured.
Eight Democratic senators ultimately broke ranks to vote with Republicans to end the impasse. Most of them were retiring or not facing reelection until 2028 — a detail that suggests their votes were politically expendable. They served, in effect, as the party’s sacrificial lambs, giving Democrats an exit strategy that preserved their message while avoiding further economic pain.
If there’s a silver lining, it’s that continued funding for the Government Accountability Office survived the ordeal. The GAO — one of the few federal institutions still devoted to evidence and oversight rather than spin — had been on the chopping block for years. In that sense, this episode, though drenched in political drama, may have safeguarded a rare bastion of fiscal honesty.
In a time when both parties are tempted to substitute performance for governance, protecting truth-seeking institutions like the GAO may prove the most meaningful act of all.
Michael Troop, Naples
Definition of dumb
In an article about COP30 summit California Governor Gavin Newsom attended, he apparently stated the Trump administration’s stance on green energy as dumb. My definition of dumb? Mandating electric cars in a state that has continually rolling brownouts because the grid can’t handle the demand as it is. Improper forestry to keep massive fires from happening. No water in fire hydrants when those fires do break out. Exorbitant fees and rules for people trying to rebuild their homes that were destroyed. Overtaxing residents for green projects like Rice energy project, Fountain wind project and Delta Conveyance project that are completely over budget and not close to being finished. Newsom went to the Summit to play big shot, meanwhile California residents are drowning in debt and taxes due to his policies.
Michael Graback, Bonita Springs
Ignorant immigration policy
President Trump has limited immigration to 7,500 people. Apparently that group will be South African white men. Nature announced today that China has a new Science Visa with easing migration requirements in order to attract the best young researchers and experts in the world with their skills in artificial intelligence, robotics and new materials. China does more research studies than any other country. The U.S. will continue to fall behind due to poor government policies.
Trump doesn’t realize that ten of the top U.S. companies have Indian CEOs. This includes the three trillion-dollar companies of Microsoft, Alphabet / Google, and Youtube. The next seven CEOs head billion-dollar companies (two by women) are Procter and Gamble, Palo Alto Networks, Adobe, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Zscaler, Fedex and Chanel. The U.S. immigration policies are preventing the best educated and trained people that we need to fill our voids. The U.S. education system is falling behind in so many areas.
It is frightening, disappointing and scary how one person who is ignorant with superficial knowledge and no interest in most areas can prevent our success and growth. It may take decades if we have the right politicians to revitalize decades of the damage incurred.
Tim Diegel, Naples
It’s going to get worse
When Tim Walz and Kamala Harris were running for election, their slogan was “We’re not going back.” Not only have we gone back but we’ve also gone inside out and upside down. Stay tuned. It’s going to get worse.
Carolyn Sertich, Bonita Springs
Taking away women’s rights
Actions by state legislatures and initiatives by the Trump administration to ban abortion pills goes contrary to the wishes of two-thirds of American women.
One would think that Trump and his cohorts might think twice before imposing abortion pill bans for political reasons. But Trump and his conservative friends know that American women are asleep at the switch. They know that today’s women do not have the determination and fighting spirit of their suffragette predecessors.
They know that men can cautiously and progressively take away women’s right to birth control and eventually their right to vote without a fight. It isn’t because women aren’t smart; it’s because women believe that those rights are protected and are permanent. Women are taking those rights for granted in spite of two facts: (1) the initiatives to eliminate women’s rights is part and parcel of Project 2025 and (2) The Trump administration, now comprised of the authors of Project 2025, has been methodically implementing the initiatives of that project on a daily basis.
American women are asleep at the switch as Trump’s dream becomes their nightmare. Maybe they are asleep because the majority of them don’t need abortion pills. But many more of them use contraceptives and the majority of them vote. Let’s hope they wake up before Trump pulls their switches.
Sally Lam, Naples
Health care information
Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert Kennedy Jr. has issued many controversial decisions for health care. He has no medical or scientific training. It is essential to seek information from credible sources when it comes to health-related issues. Misinformation can lead to harmful consequences for individuals and to communities. Vaccines, for instance, save lives and reduce the spread of infectious disease. As we navigate the complexities of modern medicine and the rise of artificial technology, it is crucial to approach topics with a critical eye. AI has the potential to revolutionize health care and improve diagnostics, personalizing treatment plans and streamlining patient care. However, it is important to recognize the ethical implications and ensure we use these advancements responsibly. Stay informed by consulting reputable organizations that value truth and promote understanding in the face of an uncertain illness, peer review journals and health care professionals are so important. Engage in discussions, ask questions and do not hesitate to seek a second opinion when necessary. By arming ourselves with accurate information, we can make informed decisions to benefit our health and wellbeing. Your health is in your hands. Together we can foster a healthier society that values truth and promotes understanding.
Kathleen Callard, RNBS, North Fort Myers
Democrats caused crisis
I have now heard the House minority leader, Jeffries, repeat over and over that we have a Republican created health care crisis. Let’s review the facts. ACA (Obamacare) was passed by the Democrats, with absolutely no support from the Republicans, with the promise that it would reduce health care costs. Health care costs have more than doubled since the ACA was passed. Then, during COVID, the Democrat controlled Congress passed subsidies for insurance premiums for Obamacare for low-income people, but those subsidies were set by the Democrats to expire at the end of 2025. It is clear from the facts that the current health care crisis has been solely caused by the Democrats. Health care costs are out of control contrary to the Democrat Obamacare plan and the elimination of the subsidies was set by the Democrats. So the facts are clear. We do have a health care crisis, but it is solely due to Democrats’ policies.
Ron Wobbeking, Naples
Culture of moral relativism
The careless manner in which a person professes the facts is systematic of the radical ideology that is willing to sacrifice the truth to the cause — to the mission. It is a mission that is never described or defined, a mission that believes not in absolute truths but in moral relativism.
Moral relativism has proven itself to be a bankrupt ideology that has played out time after time over the course of history to the same tune: nihilism, hedonism, and a disbelief in God. Nietzsche would be proud of his heirs.
In high school, I knew of Nietzsche only from the carvings on my desk in study hall. Those carvings, cut deep into the wood with a pocket knife, read “God is dead. Signed Neechee.” Right below that in larger letters it read “Neechee is dead. Signed God.”
This kind of lineal thinking was before we were taught that there are no such things as absolute truths, and that all such “truths” are themselves nothing more than moral relativism — one of the benefits of higher education. When the professor asked if there were any questions, the teenage boy with thick glasses sitting next to me with a stack of books on the top of his desk raised his hand and when called upon asked our philosophy professor if the statement he had made was not itself an absolute truth, namely, that “absolute truths are nothing more than moral relativism.” As our philosophy professor stared down at the questioner, I grabbed my book and notepad and moved two seats away.
John Bernardi, Bonita Springs
Preventing mass shootings
Reports that the Trump administration is considering a measure banning transgender people from possessing guns, derived from the mass shooting by a single trans shooter at the Annunciation church/school in Minneapolis, is a good start toward limiting access to firearms by potentially dangerous individuals. Brilliant. The administration has finally come up with a concrete solution to gun violence.
If the administration wishes to bar gun ownership or possession based solely upon the stereotypical personal characteristics of mass shooters, it should impose that prohibition upon the most common feature of mass shooters: single White Christian men. Keeping guns out of their hands could prevent nearly all of the mass shootings in this country.
