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Letters to the editor for NDN Friday, March 22, 2019


Moss for Naples Council

When endorsing candidates, the Greater Naples Better Government Committee meets individually with the candidates to discuss their qualifications and platform statements submitted prior to the interview. An endorsement requires a 60 percent majority vote by a quorum of the GNBGC board.

Recently, we interviewed the four candidates running to fulfill the remaining term of Linda Penniman on the Naples City Council: Ted Blankenship, Ray Christman, George Dondanville and Bill Moss. All impressed the interviewers with their grasp of the issues facing the city.

A discussion ensued, focused on the qualifications of each candidate and on how well he would work with the current council members. Many GNBGC board members felt that what was lacking on the part of some candidates was experience working on city advisory boards prior to running for office.

Experience and compatibility with current council members became the determining factors in arriving at a vote in favor of endorsing Bill Moss in the April 2 election.

Nancy Kerns, Endorsement Committee chair, Greater Naples Better Government Committee

Sanders Aoc Socialism Facades 83 221223 Taylor Jones

Where to shoot targets

Shooting in a backyard.  See the contradiction?  Backyard, not open space. 

Backyards are for barbecue and Frisbees.  Golden Gate is not rural; it is a subdivision of residences. Hello in there. 

As for the sheriff giving his ranges to the public use?  No sense, the range is for officer training, costs associated with that and "liability." Think Punta Gorda. 

If private citizens want to shoot their weapons, go to a shooting range like the Alamo.  Safe and sound and reasonable.  If you can buy a gun and ammo, you can afford the range cost. Common sense. 

As Dylan once sang, the times they are a changin'.  Keep up to date.  

PS. I understand guns are useful tools for citizens. Not toys.

Dennis Wichterman, Naples

Water storage and treatment

We are channeling untreated storm water laden with pesticides, fertilizers, herbicides, etc. into the Gulf via tidal estuaries.

The amount from a city like Bonita is equivalent to that coming from Lake Okeechobee.

Furthermore, our city is actually paying for it and will impose a fee on us to finance this malevolence.

So not only is precious irrigation water wasted, but we are creating pollution and red tide at the same time.

It's time for an integrated storm water and irrigation water cleansing and distribution system.

This will cost a lot of money, but if we don't do this, we will poison our beaches and ruin our economy and our health. Are our elected officials too cowardly to do the right thing?

Jude Richvale, Bonita Springs

Solving red tide problem

I am so happy that our “local officials” and “red-tide experts” have solved our Red Tide problem! The fish and birds will soon be back in our canals, rivers and Gulf of Mexico because they have solved the problem.

It is all about lawn fertilizers that run into Lee and Collier County waterways from our local residents; that lawn fertilizer runoff into our waterways produces the red tides. Apparently, we did not use lawn fertilizers 10 years ago, back when we didn’t have this localized red tide problem! Apparently, it isn’t the runoff from the sugar cane fields, fresh-polluted dark-water discharges from Lake O that has been polluted for years because of the water runoff from the cattle ranches just north of Lake Okeechobee.

I am so very happy the mystery has been solved. Good job! Just think of all the money that will be saved; we do not have to dig that little retention pond to hold back all that polluted water, the sugar cane industry doesn’t have to spend any money fixing the problem, nor does the cattle industry. Everybody wins!

Robert G. Powell, Bonita Springs

Florida's public schools

Florida’s traditional public schools are under attack. Our legislators and governor need to provide answers to these questions related to Florida tax dollars:

Why did Collier County Public Schools have 360 teaching vacancies at the start of the 2018-19 school year?

Why does Florida rank 45th in the nation for funding public education?

Why does Florida rank first in the nation for public tax dollars being diverted to subsidize private schools?

Why do legislators use the term “scholarships” to hide vouchers of tax dollars being shifted from public to private schools?

How can nearly 80 percent of the voucher monies go to religious schools when the Florida constitution forbids using public funds to aid religious institutions?

Why are Tallahassee forces eroding the home rule of locally elected school boards and county office-holders?

Why do Florida legislators reduce future revenue by several hundred million each year through business tax breaks and then wonder why Florida teachers’ salaries are $10,800 less than the national average?

Why have the rank-and-file state employees received only one raise in eight years?

Why have wealthy outsiders spent more than $19,000,000 on candidates and lobbying to erode traditional public education in Florida?

If you want answers to these questions, email or call your legislators today. For more information, see

Richard Woodruff, Naples