Readers Write: Vaccines, hit on Venezuelan vessel, James Dobson, women’s rights

Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes letters from readers online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.

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On Wednesday I watched as state officials in Florida articulated how it was not their responsibility to tell citizens to get their children vaccinated as they planned to eliminate vaccine mandates in Florida (“Florida to be the 1st state to drop vaccine mandates,” Sept. 5).

I have a hard time understanding this logic. I believe that our government has a responsibility and an obligation to keep its citizens safe. That safety includes health. I expect our government to provide fact-based, peer-reviewed policies and practices to keep us citizens safe. That includes setting vaccine mandates for me, my children and my grandchildren.

I have no knowledge of science. I do not want the responsibility of searching for information and making that kind of a decision.

It seems to me the state officials in Florida are shirking their responsibilities and obligations to their citizens. Count me as one Minnesota resident who will not be fleeing for refuge in Florida.

Tom McDonough, Eagan

During the hearing of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. it became obvious that we cannot trust the advice, information or recommendations from RFK Jr. nor members of the current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under his direction (“Kennedy defiant on COVID vaccine curbs,” Sept. 5). Perhaps blue states could get together and organize a new CDC (under a different name of course). This organization could give truthful, factual and scientific advice and recommendations to the medical community, and to parents who need advice concerning vaccinations and other medical issues. I understand that there are many former CDC staff members who have been laid off who may be interested in serving in such an organization.

Robert Kriesel, Stillwater

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Most parents probably feel if infants or kids do not receive the measles vaccine, their kids may only develop a rash and fever. They probably have heard of measles encephalitis of the brain, but that is rare.

There is another risk in especially young infants of not receiving the measles vaccine of which most parents are not aware. It is present around the world but has been more rare in the US. The low U.S. incidence is probably due to the historically high measles vaccination rate. The disease is subacute sclerosing panencephalopathy (SSPE). It is always fatal. It effects all of the brain areas through four stages. Stage 1 effects personality, mood, depression and memory, and symptoms onset usually over six months. This is the only stage when some treatment may delay the other symptoms. Stage 2 brings movement muscle disorders, loss of vision, dementia and seizures. Stage 3 is when jerky muscle movements arise with rigidity. Stage 4 brings on breathing and heart disorders, low blood pressure, coma and death. It can be fatal one to three years after diagnosis.

More information is available in a search. Without getting their children the vaccine, especially babies under 15 months, parents may worry about SSPE onset for years, waiting for the early symptoms followed by an early death of their child.

Tim Diegel, Edina

The writer is a physician.

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The next thing we will hear out of RFK Jr.’s mouth is: “... and the world is flat!“

It’s interesting how quickly the Trump administration went from ignoring due process to blowing up suspected criminals on a boat in international waters (“Trump defends lethal hit on vessel,” Sept. 4).

Now, I’m no Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, but it seems to me that if the military can target a boat in the middle of the ocean, it could also follow a boat to its dock. If the boat landed in the United States carrying drugs, there could be a passel of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents there to actually do their real job of arresting criminals. Even if it turned out they weren’t hauling drugs, they were hopefully still illegal immigrants. Since that particular crime against humanity called Alligator Alcatraz may be shut down, they could still be sent to one of those “shithole countries” the administration has at its disposal.

I’m also no Secretary of State Marco Rubio, but shouldn’t the U.S. be a little bit worried about blowing up citizens of another country when we aren’t at war with it? I think in military terms that’s called escalation, which sometimes can have unintended consequences. But let’s not worry about this administration not knowing what its doing.

Mary Alice Divine, White Bear Lake

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Mark Gortze, Champlin

In the Aug. 31 “Remembering” section it states that James Dobson advocated for strict discipline of children (“Religious leader preached politics”). To be clear, what Dobson advocated was to start spanking children as young as 15 months old. As a child got older, he recommended spanking them with a paddle, switch or belt. Dobson also said that “the punishment should be of sufficient magnitude to cause the child to cry genuinely.” However, if the child continued to cry for more than five minutes after the spanking, they should be spanked again. And for what Dobson termed “malicious defiance” the child should be sharply struck on their thighs with a switch. Why? According to Dobson, pain is a powerful motivator.

Dobson said people often opposed him for his belief in the immutable standards of right and wrong based on biblical truth. As a pastor, I opposed Dobson because of his consistently shoddy interpretation of the Bible that he used to justify his personal beliefs and biases. For example, he justified advocating abusive treatment of children based on Proverbs 13:24, where it states that he who spares the rod hates his son. Of course, the rod in Proverbs is mindful of the rod used by a shepherd. But shepherds did not beat their sheep with the rod. They used it to scare away predators, push aside the sheep’s heavy wool to examine the skin, stir the grass and brush to scare away snakes, and guide sheep back to the appropriate path. That is what discipline that is genuine and loving and reflects the nature of God looks like … not inflicting pain to motivate your child through fear.

Roland Hayes, Shoreview

How lucky are readers to have been able to enjoy the stunning tribute by Angela Denker to Carol Tierney in the Sept. 2 paper (“Women have always wanted, and deserved, more. Let’s not turn back the clock now,” Strib Voices). It brought to mind conversations I had with my mother in the years before her death in 2023 at age 98 and with some of her fellow residents in assisted living who had similarly lived through World War II, the Civil Rights movement, the Vietnam War and so many other tests of our humanity.