For the health of Florida's children, Dr. Ladapo should resign now.

Dr. Ladapo should resign.

Ladapo measles memo contradicts CDC advice | February 25

Parents need proper medical advice to keep their children healthy. The advice they receive from Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo that goes against the science could actually be harmful to their health. In a letter to Broward County school parents following six measles outbreaks, he failed to urge parents to vaccinate their children as a precaution.

Measles is one of the most contagious diseases on the planet and can lead to blindness, brain infections, and even death. Childhood vaccinations protect against this devastating disease and are recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization.

Florida has one of the highest coronavirus death rates in the country and is partly to blame, saying coronavirus vaccines are “not suitable for human use” and restricting Floridians from receiving these vaccines. It's in Ladapo, which I've been encouraging people to avoid. I, Lynne Ringenberg, have witnessed a decline in pediatric influenza vaccinations in my medical practice, likely due to the general fear of vaccines that he promotes. Influenza can cause pneumonia and, in rare cases, can be fatal. Ladapo has betrayed the public's trust by continuing to promote medical falsehoods. Our children and all Floridians deserve better. He should resign or be forced to resign immediately.

Lynn Ringenberg and Ron Saf

Lynn Ringgenberg is a professor emeritus in the USF Health Department of Pediatrics, and Ron Saf is an allergist and immunologist in Tallahassee. Both are directors of the Florida Association of Socially Responsible Physicians.

obligations to others

Ladapo measles memo contradicts CDC advice | February 25

Who is protecting all of Florida's children? Certainly not Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo. He has opposed both the coronavirus and measles vaccines, both of which are recommended by the CDC. All parents have the right and responsibility to decide: their But we all have the same responsibility to protect other So do the children. If parents choose not to vaccinate their children, that's fine. However, you may also choose to keep your child at home and away from other children until there is no longer a chance of infecting others. Someone has to protect all of our children. Ladapo is not like that, so let us be.

Marilyn S. Warner Shimizu

treated with false information

Vaccine hesitancy increases – so does measles outbreak | Editorial, February 21

This editorial shines a clear spotlight on the real dangers of information disseminated with the goal of dissuading the public from actions that, in many cases, could literally save lives. Floridians have been “treated” to a tidal wave of misinformation spread by state government leaders with the sole purpose of forcing innocent citizens to avoid state-recommended actions, especially in this case vaccination. Ta.

If an individual with a mandated role of overseeing the health of Floridians intentionally encouraged those same citizens to disobey the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's recommendations to get vaccinated, then the individual with a degree of intelligence The public is forced to question the individual's selfish motives. . Sadly, this intentional communication DisInformation has the very real potential to lead to illness and, yes, death as well. To be clear, “disinformation” is the intentional communication of false information (also known as “obvious lies”).

Spend your days with Haze

Subscribe to the free Stephinitely Newsletter

Columnist Stephanie Hayes shares her thoughts, feelings, and interesting business stories every Monday.

Everyone is registered!

Want more free weekly newsletters sent to your inbox? let's start.

consider all options

It is truly disheartening to see a nation's leaders deliberately try to mislead the people they trust. We can only hope that they, too, get their “reward” and are exiled in well-deserved humiliation. In the meantime, I encourage my students and others to review what they have read, seen, and heard. Lecter is wary.

kirk haslett river view

The author is an adjunct professor of communication studies at the University of Tampa and the director of ethics for the Tampa Bay chapter of the Public Relations Association of America.

please stop fooling around

US, EU, Ukraine impose new sanctions on Navalny against Russia February 24th

This headline raises the question: “After two years of war in Ukraine, why are sanctions still in place?” Why do we always do things at the last minute and hope to achieve worthy goals with as little effort as possible? If you want to punish Russia for bad behavior, then do it Please stop. Instead, President Vladimir Putin laughs in our faces and applies a series of half-baked measures that are clearly ineffective. This is the so-called “Papier-mache tiger.”

John SV Weiss spring hill

i went to school

Why aren't Florida's children going to school?? | Editorial, February 24th

My parents made me understand that attending school is not optional.

Carlos J. Desisneros tampa

completely clear

Democrats are too resigned to Joe Biden running again | Column, February 22

Just when I thought I was starting to tolerate Peggy Noonan, she suggested that Democrats were “too resigned” to supporting President Joe Biden's re-election. Yes, I know, Biden is old and sometimes forgets things. Everyone thinks so, but every time I heard him talk about aid to Ukraine or Israel, I heard it perfectly clearly. But Republicans continue to support the twice-impeached former president. He was convicted in a civil sexual assault and defamation case. He paid porn stars and Playboy playmates for sex. He suggested drinking bleach to cure coronavirus. He has been indicted on 91 charges and faces four criminal charges. He compared his “victims” to the plight of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny. Favorable to dictators. He clearly confuses Nikki Haley with Nancy Pelosi, but claims he's just being sarcastic and is now selling gold-plated tennis shoes along with NFT trading cards. Does that mean there's no one else in the Republican Party to run for president?

david rubin tampa

You must obtain a license. they?

florida state legislature

The Florida Legislature believes that my graduate level education, required clinical supervision, my licensure, and my experience providing counseling to public school children are unnecessary. Pending legislation (HB 931 and its companion bill, SB1044) would allow untrained volunteer (undefined) chaplains to provide mental health services in schools. The mental health crisis young people are experiencing is now well known, but some Florida legislators are using their agenda to advance their own agenda against the backdrop of an apparently religiously motivated agenda. is betting on the mental stability of young people. Parents, teachers, other qualified mental health providers, and members of the public who want professionals to perform the delicate and often complex task of counseling, so this is important for children. Tell your legislators that this is unacceptable.

barbara byrne bradenton

The author is a licensed clinical social worker.

there's no way to stop it

Social media bill heads to DeSantis | February 23

There is no question that social media is addictive for most children, often with negative consequences. However, attempts to solve this problem with restrictive legislation are doomed to failure. First Amendment issues and parental rights issues pop up, but the most prominent issue is enforcement. There is no way on God's green earth to develop or implement effective enforcement mechanisms. Children, often with the help of adults, find various ways to circumvent social media access restrictions. That's exactly what's going to happen. Such restrictive laws are always questionable and must be treated with caution, but even then, efforts are doomed to fail if enforcement mechanisms remain inadequate.

john crawford gulfport

Life in the fast lane

Florida may crack down on left-lane driving | February 23

Very few people drive in the left lane. The problem is that someone driving 125 mph and passing a 70 mph driver is abhorrent when the driver at 95 mph is screaming, slamming on the brakes and flashing their high beams is not going fast enough. I think there are politicians who think so. Do you want better laws? Treat it like a ski resort. The person in front has priority. They were there first. Back up until they finish passing. Our highways are dangerous enough. This bill would give the most dangerous groups of drivers legal protection against thug-like behavior. Helping a spoiled brat doesn't make them a better person.

Jason Barrera oldsmar

your beliefs, not your body

Embryo ruling puts pause on more IVF providers in Alabama | February 23

Self-righteous people who rail against masks and vaccines while casually dictating what pregnant women can and cannot do are hypocrites of the worst kind. The state of Alabama has now determined that frozen embryos are fetuses. Where will this madness end? What happens to women who voluntarily undergo oophorectomy because they are at high risk for ovarian cancer? The removed ovaries contain thousands of egg cells that have the potential to become embryos. The decision to terminate a pregnancy is deeply personal, heartbreaking, and excruciating. It is a decision that women live with for the rest of their lives. I personally don't want to make that decision, but I support a woman's right to decide what happens to her body. Just because you believe abortion is a sin doesn't mean you can impose your beliefs on others. Otherwise we are no different from the radical theocracies we despise.

LA Wiener St. Petersburg

matter of opinion

Florida moves forward with bill to make it easier for media to sue | February 22

Why are Christian and conservative media outlets so opposed to a Florida bill that would make it easier to sue media companies that cite anonymous sources and publish false information without verifying them? Stephen Miller, a former senior adviser to former President Donald Trump, said the bill, if passed, would “kill” conservative influencers, podcasts and alternative media, and replace them with corporate (mainstream) media. He said it should be tailored to target. It's as if these conservative sources are intentionally promoting false and unsubstantiated opinions as fact.

Danny Reich zephyrhills

kids and guns

Florida kids who carry guns could soon face harsher penalties | February 21

So I want you to understand, is the Florida Republican Party's basic plan to litter the streets with guns and jail the kids who pick them up?

Pat Ward St. Petersburg