Closure was rushed

On Tuesday afternoon, a two-day school closure was announced for “safety reasons.” An excellent decision for Wednesday; given the forecast, the risks were obvious.

But for Thursday? Clear, cold, no chance of precipitation. The safety risks were not so apparent.

And why the rush to make this call two days in advance? With the plethora of hurricane days, early closure for the solar eclipse and now this, it appears that the new default is for schools to be closed at the first sign of danger, no matter how remote.

If this decision is influenced on being litigation adverse, then please also consider the many risks inherent to children being home alone for all or part of the day because of the district's decision.

Finally, a one-hour delay can strike a healthy balance between safety and education. The district should add it to its menu of options.

Julius Gylys, Gainesville

Liberal fascism

In the land of the free, one should have the right to seek and receive whatever kind of psychological counseling one deems appropriate. People tormented by self-destructive behavior or disordered inclinations should be free to hire the counselor of their choice and to fire the counselor at will.

This basic freedom is a matter of common sense. Only a totalitarian or fascist society would deny this freedom and insist on government-approved counseling only. Yet a letter writer (Dec. 30) urges Alachua County officials to outlaw reparative counseling for people who want to escape unnatural inclinations and the homosexual subculture.

It’s peculiar that so many liberals promote political correctitude at the expense of freedom. Liberal fascism has already come to California and other leftist, nanny states. Let it not come to Alachua County.

Andrew Scholberg, Gainesville

Fair representation

Let us join together — whether Democrat or Republican — to stop the hateful news coming out of our papers and support all our congressman and Donald Trump. You may hate him or love him, but he is our duly elected president of the United States of America.

Yes, Hillary Clinton won more votes, but the Electoral College is our system. The system was developed to have fairer representation — not just a president elected by New York, Texas and California. The House of Representatives representation is determined by population, while the Senate has two for every state.

If the system is broken, and you disagree, change it — that is the American way.

Barbara Collett, Gainesville

Encouraging story

During this time of deep darkness in the year and in our country, where greed is rewarded and need is ignored, I find wisdom and encouragement in “And There Was Light.”

Written by a French immigrant in the ‘60s to show appreciation for being America's guest, it details the amazing life of Jacques Lusseyran, a French Resistance leader and survivor of three years in Buchenwald concentration camp. During another era of implacable human evil, he details what those years held of life, light and joy, cultivated and shared with those who have the courage to know and live the truth.

Resist.

Susan Stanton, Gainesville

Part of deliberations

U.S. District Judge Timothy Corrigan does not consider God a part of jury deliberations even though he required the jury in the Corrine Brown jury trial to swear to the juror oath before deliberations began. The last words of the oath, “… so help you (me) God”, sound like a plea for the help of “the Holy Spirit” during deliberations.

Judge Corrigan “fired” the only juror that verbalized help from the Holy Spirit.

Wally Riviere, Melrose

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