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Monday’s letters to the editor, June 29

Segregation brings discrimination

Discrimination and hatred will abound as long as we live in a segregated America! It is there before us, in ways you might not recognize, but that are supported out of our own ignorance, and that we are afraid to openly challenge or question:

•Nine black church goers murdered in a South Carolina Church by a white man who wants to live in a segregated America — a segregated Nazi America that he supports. While the nine black victims and their fellow congregants support a church that segregates the black man from their white neighbors. Both are wrong.

•A black caucus of national political leaders sees our government’s treatment of black Americans as unequal to their white brothers, and therefore sets themselves up as special representatives of the black man, which is segregation at the highest level, and a bad example for us all.

•Islam and Muslims, by sheer numbers, segregate themselves from the rest of the world; they hate Christian and Jew alike, and believe in their own supremacy of law. Massive secular murders around the world go unchallenged in the name of Allah; one of America’s greatest mistakes is our national silence.

It is out of the hurt in my heart that I address these issues — certainly not out having the answers — but I am willing to take all consequences of being branded “politically in-correct” if the future of America is brighter because someone can affect one or more of the needed changes. We must come together, and we will when we stop finding reasons to dislike each other.

-Ed FitzGerald, Bonita Springs

Writing headlines

Re: Hate in America, June 19

Has the USA Today hired Doug MacGregor, Andy Marlette, and the rest of the FFFLCU (Far Far Far Left Cartoonists Union) to write their headlines? I guess “Hate” is politically correct, whereas “Another nut case kills innocent people” isn’t. At least they included a picture of the premier hater of the USA above the headline!

-Wes Dobbins, Fort Myers

Deter credit card theft

Concerning stolen credit cards. It has been my practice to write the words “Ask 4 ID” in the signature block. This may not eliminate this crime, but I’m sure it is a deterrent. One thing for sure, it can’t hurt.

-Pete Lebowitz, Fort Myers

Shoddy golf course

I never knew until a few days ago what kind of a place Chambers Bay golf course was. I was totally shocked when presented with the layout of this so-called beautiful course. For God’s sake, this is the United States Open Championship and it is being played on what resembles one of the many goat farm courses in the British Isles. From the aerial view, it looks like a bombed out war zone or an excavation to build a super mall of some kind. Is this supposed to be a second British Open?

In my opinion, and I am not alone in my feelings, this is a slap in the face to the American people to play what is arguably the most important golf tournament in the world on such an ugly venue. It is a far cry from all the beautiful venues that have been used in the past for this tournament. It is not fan friendly. You can’t follow your favorites from hole to hole. You just have to get a grandstand seat and watch them parade by.

You can’t tell the fairways from the greens. The USGA had to go out and put little white markers around the greens so the players would know where they could or could not mark the ball. The greens are so splotchy and bumpy you have a hard time following the ball sometimes.

Now, throw FOX into the mix and now you have a real travesty. This is undoubtedly the worst presentation of a golf tournament I have ever seen. Camera placement was not good and the angles were very poor. Joe Buck and company had better stick to football.

I watched because I have played golf for 60 years and am a real golf fan. But this year was a terrible disappointment.

-H.L Wooten, south Fort Myers

Skin color not the issue

There is nothing wrong being Jewish, there is nothing wrong being a person of color. There never was. There is everything wrong with how white supremacist’s think. It always will. Jewish people hold 163 Nobel prizes, black people hold 16 Nobel prizes, white supremacists have 0. The color of the skin does not make the person, the person does and circumstances in general make the person.

-Manfred von Hassel, south Fort Myers

The Charleston incident

I am so saddened by the loss of innocence that occurred the other night in Charleston, S.C. I just can not get it out of my mind, since I heard what happened that night, about the loss of people in a safe place. A place that most Americans would respect, no matter what they believed in. He was invited in, even though they did not know him, as a sign of respect. They trusted him as a fellow human being, and then he betrayed them. He did not know them. They were nothing to him.

-Stan French, Fort Myers

McCarthy’s rant

John “Mac” McCarthy’s rant (June 19, Changing history) against extending equal rights under the law to American citizens whom he deplores is based on bigotry not on facts. He states “every time a gay marriage proposal was put on a ballot for a vote, it lost.”

The facts are that Maine, Maryland and Washington State approved gay marriage by popular vote. In Europe, Ireland legalized gay marriage by an overwhelming popular vote. Eight state legislatures in the United States have legalized gay marriage as representing the will of their constituencies. In Europe and in North and South America, 18 countries have approved same sex marriage by legislative decree.

-Hoyt Williams, Fort Myers