Orange County lacked ethics on Cut up Oak choice
The U.S. Supreme Court docket had been criticized for missing an ethics code, highlighted by a justice getting non-public jet rides from a donor with enterprise earlier than the courtroom. Even protected against public stress in lifetime appointments, the courtroom just lately created an ethics code, albeit basically self-enforced.
Orange County equally and desperately wants an ethics code with peer enforcement. Mayor Teresa Jacobs made progress on it throughout her mayorship. However in my opinion, the present moral requirements are sorely missing as a result of they don’t take into account the highly effective, coercive affect of main marketing campaign contributions; and so they don’t have any automobile for peer accountability.
Once I was a Planning and Zoning commissioner, my friends and I voluntarily conflicted ourselves out of sure votes. Everybody did proper throughout my time period, however there was no possibility for peer accountability if a commissioner refused to acknowledge their very own battle.
On Tuesday, Mayor Jerry Demings and a number of other county commissioners ignored the 2020 poll initiative to guard Cut up Oak Forest — an initiative handed by 86% of voters (“Orange, Osceola commissioners rebuff Cut up Oak defenders’ pleas”). I imagine the mayor and county lawyer collaborated to sidestep citizen and commissioner issues on Osceola County’s breach of contract within the matter, as an alternative giving a noncommittal lecture on jurisdiction and easements whereas failing to decide to a easy authorized definition.
Even in case you don’t agree on this authorized interpretation, it’s clear — the swamp wants draining. We want an ethics code that acknowledges main marketing campaign contributions as improperly persuasive and permits peer challenges to conflicts. And yeah, possibly we additionally don’t rehire officers who ignore what 86% of us mentioned.
Trevor Sorbo Orange County
Ortiz is now simply one other Democrat
Orlando Commissioner Tony Ortiz’s column, “Why I’m leaving the GOP” (Could 8), comes throughout as nothing greater than a purchasing basket filled with the identical outdated drained Democratic speaking factors, and as typical, completely devoid of any information to again them up.
It appears fairly clear that Ortiz isn’t, and has more than likely by no means been, a real GOP conservative, and I believe most readers will see this for what it truly is: only a thinly veiled try to place himself for a mayoral run in majority-blue Orange County.
Wayne Windham Winter Park
Don’t spend any extra on NASA Artemis program
The Trump administration has proposed ending the Artemis undertaking after the Artemis lll launch (conveniently after midterm elections). Shut it down now. The Artemis program, with its projected $93 billion price by 2027, represents a considerable monetary burden. Given potential technical dangers highlighted by NASA’s personal security teams and important delays already skilled, persevering with to Artemis III appears an imprudent allocation of sources. T
hese funds may very well be redirected in direction of extra urgent scientific endeavors, addressing quick wants right here on Earth or decreasing deficit spending. Investing additional in a program dealing with such challenges, particularly with the appreciable expense of the Artemis III launch, seems to be nothing greater than a jobs program and is clearly a wasteful endeavor.
Keith Jones Orlando
Let Canada courtroom U.S. states as an alternative
After assembly with President Donald Trump, I’m stunned that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney didn’t counsel that every one northern U.S. border states can be welcome in the event that they wished to grow to be Canadian states. Washington, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Canada would possibly get a few takers in that group. And get the Nice Lakes within the course of. Then, go after Greenland.
Eric D. Kuritzky Orlando
Biden failed to shut digital divide
The Biden Administration promised to shut the digital divide and broaden broadband entry to rural People. They acquired $42 billion to do it. 4 years later, only a few properties have been linked.
This isn’t only a coverage failure — it’s a case examine in authorities inefficiency. Whereas bureaucrats drew maps, held press conferences, and shuffled paperwork, tens of millions of People in rural and underserved areas remained disconnected from work, schooling, and telemedicine.
Evaluate this to the non-public sector, the place innovation is definitely taking place. Elon Musk’s Starlink has already linked over 2 million customers throughout the globe — together with in distant areas the place no cable or fiber firm dared to go. Whereas the federal authorities spent billions attaining nothing, Starlink quietly launched satellites and delivered outcomes.
The federal authorities doesn’t have a useful resource drawback — it has a outcomes drawback. Rural People don’t want extra process forces or press releases. They want actual connectivity.
Spending $42 billion and connecting so few properties isn’t simply embarrassing — it’s offensive to the taxpayers footing the invoice. We deserve higher. People ought to be asking: the place did the cash go?
Duncan DeMarsh DeLand
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