Maxwell calls it like he sees it

In Scott Maxwell’s July 9 column (“Defamed: When online trolling has real-world repercussions”), he called out just the edge of the right-wing attack machine. It went full force against a teenager who went to Winter Park High School.

Journalists are so much better protected, both by their newspapers and milquetoast policies that have them acting like shrinking violets. They are close to where the play happens. We need them to call ’em like they see ’em. Scott Maxwell did.

Rumors, innuendo, simple fabrications. That teenager struck a nerve. That teenager was hounded because of a question.

It’s more than the thumb on the scale making a false equivalence of “both sides.” They seek to bribe all umpires, so to speak, but if that happens, do they think they still would want to watch ballgames or live in a distorted country?

There are enough facts in front of you. It reminds me of whispering at lunch tables in school. Grow up. Read the newspaper and bulk up so your politicians won’t have such thin skin and so you can maybe learn to enjoy some bit of real life.

Catherine Hettinger Winter Park

Gun-control laws disarm the innocent

In criticizing the permitless-carry law, a letter-writer invokes the phrase, “When guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns” (“Gun law has bad consequences,” July 8). The reality is outlaws, by definition, will always have guns regardless of any type of gun-control law.

As far as awaiting an OK Corral-style shooting that impacts innocent, unarmed bystanders; wait no more. Just check out the weekly stories from New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Baltimore, etc. Most gun-control laws only force the innocent to be unarmed.

Scott Campbell Winter Park

Groveland spotlights light pollution’s impact

Kudos to the City of Groveland for their efforts to control light pollution in their beautiful town (“Stargazers Rejoice,” July 9). While the reasons cited, preservation of nocturnal ecosystems and the aesthetics of the night sky, are indeed important, the article fails to mention one of the most critical reasons for controlling light pollution — prevention of vision loss.  Macular degeneration, an irreversible deterioration of the retina of the eye, affects nearly one out of every eight Americans over the age of 40 and is the leading cause of vision loss over the age of 65. Many scientists believe that an important risk factor may be direct exposure to bright lights, especially “short wavelength” light such as the intense white and blue light seen in the most common types of LED outdoor lighting. Similar to the effects of loud noises on hearing loss, the damage may be cumulative over a person’s lifetime, and it is not known what level of exposure is completely safe.

The risks of potential eye damage can be minimized by reducing the wattage of your outdoor lighting, projecting the beam downward into your yard and out of direct view, and using longer wavelength light such as amber or yellow (which have the added advantage of being less attractive to mosquitoes). Your neighbors, as well as our friends in the nocturnal ecosystems, will be grateful.

Marc F. Schwartz Maitland

Dr. Marc F. Schwartz is past president of the Central Florida Society of Ophthalmology.